Zoloft for Daughter with Anxiety

My son has severe generalized anxiety disorder and we tried both prozac and zoloft with him beginning at the age of 6. That was under the care of a developmental pediatrician because he also has developmental delays and sensory processing problems. With both of them he started exhibiting some bizarre behavior. He is now 9 and under the care of a psychiatrist and I would definitely recommend seeing a psychiatrist as opposed to a pediatrician. It is well worth the extra money as they just have a much broader knowledge of the various medicines. We have landed with Celexa, but he also takes 2 other medications to manage his anxiety. He basically lost kindergarten through about mid 3rd grade of learning opportunities because he was in fight or flight mode constantly at school. Now that he is stable, he is a straight A student, makes eye contact, and is not a behavior problem - and, no, he is not a non-feeling zombie. He has a great personality, a sense of humor and is beginning to make friends. He also sees a counselor to learn coping techniques.

To those who immediately say that they would NEVER medicate a child for psychiatric reasons. Would you feel the same way if the problem were a heart issue or diabetes? Psychiatric problems and mental health issues are REAL - they are not imagined or made up. It is past time to erase the stigma involved in seeking help for anxiety, depression, OCD, bipolar, schizophrenia, all of these things.

if the child has struggled for years.. TRY the zoloft.. it is only a trial. if you dont like it or it doesnt help. you can stop the drug.

My friend was totally opposed to medicating her son.. but he had severe anxiety, OCD . he started on zoloft at 5 and he is much better.. the dose increased as the child grew.

I will say that i suffer from an anxiety disorder myself for years and did not find out that I had an anxiety disorder at the age of 27. I wish my parents would have done something when i was eight pros to you! I do know that for me medication has helped and if it were my daughter I too would have some concerns about giving her medication. You might talk to her ped. and see what they think!

I didn't take it at that age, but in college, and again for pre-natal and post-partum, I did take Zoloft. I did not have any side effects, and I noticed almost immediate positive results. But, like I said, the youngest I took it was in college (~18 years old).

The one thing I can say is, often times people who have never experienced depression (or anxiety, etc) don't really understand what it's like - they think if you try hard enough, or go to enough counseling, you'll feel better. These disorders tend to be due to a chemical imbalance in the brain, which of course counseling or "pulling yourself up by your boot straps" will not affect!

Just my opinion, if she's being medically supervised, why not try it and see if it works? If not, then she can slowly go off the meds. But if it works, it could be life changing for her.

I don't have experience with zoloft but my son takes zyprexa for early onset bipolar and we are looking into meds for anxiety as well. Good luck with your daughter
@ jennifer I would love nothing more then not to put medications ment for adults into my 5 year old ESP the doses he takes but the reality is he needs them otherwise he is out of control and if you don't believe me come take him for a week without meds! It can be scary to medicate but sometimes benefits out weigh negatives. In my sons case he is for the most part mentally stable

This doesn't sound as if it was a "rushed" decision, and 25 mg is a low dose, which is good. Talk to the prescribing doctor and your pharmacist about side-effects, long-term use, and (for the doctor) if the dosage will be increased over time. Also ask what you as her parent should be on the lookout for, research Zoloft use for children online and stay well-informed.

My daughter also suffered many years with anxiety problems. Like you we tried counseling and etc. Last December her doctor suggested 25 mg. of Zoloft with hesitancy due to her age. As a team we agreed to try it and follow up bi weekly and then monthly. We noticed a difference within a few days and huge changes within weeks. I can honestly say the Zoloft is life changing for our child. I didn't see any side effects from her taking it at all. I hope this helps. K.

We haven't done Zoloft, but my daughter has taken other anti-anxiety and antidepressants for many years, and they have helped. We tried counseling and nutrition and environmental changes, but they weren't enough. I know, it's a hard decision, but some children need some extra help, and it certainly sounds like you are fighting on your daughter's behalf and not taking this lightly.

But I would encourage you, if you decide to try medication, to do the following: make sure the doctor who prescribes the medication is not a pediatrician or family physician, but a pediatric psychiatrist, or a pediatrician who specializes in emotional disorders or who has training in that field. Once your daughter begins taking the meds, continue with counseling therapy. And realize that it may take many weeks or months to find just the right dose and the right medicine or combination of medicines. Often people think they'll feel better (like taking antibiotics for an ear infection and two days later the ear pain is gone), so make sure your daughter knows this will take some time. Also, whatever medication you're prescribed, look it up on drugs.com or the Mayo Clinic site or a nationally recognized, reliable, trustworthy site. Look up side effects and how to take the drug. Some doctors or pharmacists won't tell you the little things that can make a difference, like take it with a low fat snack, or take it with a high fat meal, or the best time to take it is first thing in the morning, or don't take it with an acidic juice ... important things like that.

I hope you can find the right situation for your daughter.

Just a suggestion...my son also had anxiety and we treated it with neurofeedback instead of drugs. He's much better now. We tried medicine but had trouble getting the dosage correct. I didn't like them "experimenting" with my child to find the "right" meds and dosage. There are alternatives. What about acupuncture?? I would do that for myself, in a heartbeat, over drugs. Just a thought...good luck!

Ever considered seeing an osteopath doctor. They try to do what they can naturally by trying to figure out the cause. Sometimes the cause can be physiological in nature. I deal with anxiety and I tried a different drug and did not like some of the symptoms so I stopped. The doctor did not think zoloft was a good choice for me. I would be concerned with a child that young taking a drug like that especially with puberty right around the corner. There is a great one near Akron but there has to be one near you. My kids deal with anxiety too and I take them to this doctor too and we have been able to avoid prescription drugs. My 13 year old takes cod liver oil daily during the school year.There is so much I could tell you about the nervous system that could be the root cause: sensory issues, allergies, etc. Good luck to you.

My daughter is six and takes Zoloft daily. She is on 25mg also and it has worked wonders for her.

My son takes Zoloft. He is 15 now, but first took it when he was around 12. Started with 50 mg, dropped to 25mg, but this summer he told his doctor he felt better when he was on the higher dose. He also weighs more than when the 25mg was prescribed so that had a lot to do with the higher does.

He has some oppositional defiance and tends towards depression.

Zoloft has made a marked difference in him. His emotions are are more even and he feels better. He is old enough to be able to know this.

The one thing to remember about this medicine is that you have to give it consistently - no skipped doses and no quitting cold turkey. You have to ease off it in decreasing doses to let the body adjust. In fact, that is usually the way you start it also.

Medicating my son was never my first choice - but he was miserable - prone to uncontrollable bursts of anger and fits of depression. I tried other avenues first - counseling and that helped, I also tried herbals and diet first before the prescription. Zoloft works for him, but hopefully once he grows and matures more we will be able to wean him away from it.

Medical conditions require medical solutions. If you have exhausted all other avenues, try the medicine.

Wishing the best for you and yours.

God Bless

Have you tried using an amino acid? I would suggest doing some research with 5-HTP or L-Tryptophan. Worth looking into. This is a more natural approach to dealing with Anxiety. Google Generalized Anxiety disorder and 5-htp or Trypophan and you'll get some information about it. Just like anything else that doesn't fall into the more a "traditional" treatment with an Rx it has it's debaters but it does work for some that have been able to wean themselves off of prescription meds. I myself am perimenopausal and use 5-htp with great results. Wish you well and hope for a good outcome for your daughter.
Best Regards,
C.

My doctor prescribed generic zoloft to help me w/my migraines. It had the pleasant side effect of helping me get over my irrational fear of birds. Seriously. Also, I now call it my "chill pill". Makes everyone around me a little less annoying. You're going to get people telling you to not drug your child, but only you and your family know what you're dealing with and what your daughter is going through. It's up to you how to proceed. If you trust your doc and trust your gut try it. 25 mg is a pretty low dose.

I don't know anything about Zoloft with young children...I took it for about 5 years...and finally went off of it because of one particular side effect. I am not sure that it is very common but it caused me to clench my jaw constantly...I ground my teeth,and I am sure caused dental issues. I have since gone on a low dose ( 20 mg) of Citalopram and don't have that issue anymore.
I found that Zoloft was VERY good as far as smoothing out my emotions...I started taking it when my Mother was in the final stages of cancer and I was her primary care giver. I had always been a "crier"...I would cry at songs in church, that old commercial about "The Touch The Feel of Cotton" would make me tear up....it was a real pain...lol. Zoloft help me be more "appropriate" with my emotions and made me feel much better about myself!!
I would not be opposed to a young child trying zoloft if the doctor felt like it was going to be helpful. Just read up on the side effects and keep an eye out for them. I wish I had known about the jaw clenching side effect years earlier...it would have saved me a LOT of probably unnecessary dental work!!!

I'm sure you've looked into this, but is Zoloft a medication that there are no concerns with suicidal thoughts in pre-teen children? Just asking because my daughter struggles with anxiety and I have always been nervous about meds due to reading something about this, but I haven't done my homework in a long time.

Also, I did take Zoloft for Post-partum depression at one time and had two side effects. One was being very tired during the day (but again, I did have a baby), and the other was a feeling when I went to bed at night as if I was really revved up - almost as if I had had too much caffeine. Hope that is helpful.

That would make me a little nervous to give my child. I agree about talking to your pharmacist.
Have you thought about trying hypnosis, biofeedback, or eye movement therapy?

I was prescribed 25 mg zoloft a few weeks ago. The side effects were very difficult for me since I have 2 young children. It made me extremely tired and upset my stomach. The third day I took it, I slept for 20 hours.....which I cannot do with my children. That was the last day I took it. I have read that the side effects subside after a few weeks, but I couldn't wait that long. I switched to cymbalta. It is working out much better, but it is a bit pricy.

I think I'd go for a second opinion. She seems awfully young for it. But there definitely are rare cases where it would be needed. I'd feel inclined to get another opinion from a counselor. Some counselors are more talented than others, so she might need a switch or something.

Hi
I have NEVER been on Zoloft but do have anxiety issues here and there.. when it comes to certain things, claustrophobia is one in particular.. That said, BEFORE you do meds.. try this.. I have been learning how to do EFT (emotional freedom techniques) you can check out their FREE website at eftuniverse.com
the idea behind it is to "tap" literally on specific meridians of the body (like Acupuncture) but WITHOUT the needles. Additionally, you note that which you might for example be anxious about.. I know it sounds OUT there.. but hey, it's worth looking into.. and on the site, you can find practitioners in your specific area..
so far, since learning it, I have become much more calm when riding public transportation.. whereas before, if I felt crowded , I would have to get off the bus and walk the rest of the way home..
EFT 's premise is that anxiety in one way or another is behind ALL issues.. this could be eating, Claustrophobia.. etc etc
I have also read that kids take to it really well.. go ahead, check out the site and you can read up on it... as well as read many examples of children and adults overcoming life long obstacles..

I wish you the best. .keep us posted..

I am on Zoloft, well the generic. It is a life saver. The dr. put me on 50mg to start. I experienced extreme headaches and the feeling that I had a pill stuck in my throat and I was exhausted. I stopped taking them and it all went away. I called the dr. and he told me to try just 25 mg and that is working well. It still makes me sleepy a little but I think I am used to it now. But even a little sleepy, I can function just fine. My side effects came and went within 24 hours so just keep an eye on her and keep in contact with the dr.

Good luck!

I never trust anyone, not even the doc when it comes time to think about a new medication.

I go to the professional, the Pharmacist.

I have one that I trust and she is at a small family owned place. I know she is there every day, does not have a corporate ladder to climb, is going to know me and my background. She is a true Pharmacist. I go to her and ask if I can have a moment to discuss a possible medication. If she is swamped she'll tell me I need to fill X prescriptions and I can talk in about X minutes. She will sit with me a moment and listen to the question, she may go to the back to look up information but she can almost always tell me many many details about the medications, side effects, different ways it effects different aged people, etc...

If you don't have a small business pharmacist you can always ask at Walgreens or Walmart but be aware, you are probably not talking to a pharmacist but a tech hired by Walgreens or Walmart to run the register and referee people away from the pharmacist.

Have you tried any herbal remedies? I am not saying dont medicate, I'm saying try everything else first.

I have no experiences with Zoloft. I wouldn't recommend putting any drugs into our kids... this is what we tell our kids "just say no to drugs" then drug them? I would thoroughly research nutrition, before using drugs as a long term band aid. I know the value of vitamin B12 & vitamin D are super important to leveling us emotionally. I would be happy to help you find alternatives & other solutions in any way I can.

What kind of "Doctor" is prescribing this?
Her Pediatrician or a Psychiatrist?
That makes a difference.

Or get a 2nd opinion.

Only a medical Doctor or a Psychiatrist can 'prescribe' medications.
A Counselor or Therapist, cannot... prescribe medications.
They do NOT have a Medical, background nor schooling.