Zoloft is used to affect those chemicals in the brain that may cause depression, anxiety or other obsessive compulsive disorder symptoms in case of any imbalances. It is an antidepressant in a group of drugs referred to as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, renowned through their acronym, SSRIs. Therefore, Zoloft is used for treating depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and many other forms of maladies on being prescribed by the doctor.
It is recommended not to take Zoloft with a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI). You should stop taking an MAOI at least 14 days before you start with Zoloft. Similarly if you have to begin with an MAOI, you need to Zoloft again 14 days before starting an MAOI.
Zoloft is approved by FDA for treating OCD in children. However, it is not approved for treating depression in children and one needs to call up the doctor immediately in case of any new or worsening symptoms. Likewise, the medication need not be stopped without consulting the doctor as that may worsen the conditions and may result in a relapse of depression. In case of pregnancy too, seeking the doctor’s advice is necessary.
One should avoid consuming alcohol while taking Zoloft and refrain from taking the liquid form of the medicine if you are taking disulfiram as the liquid form contains alcohol, which may have a reaction to disulfiram.
It is not advisable to change the doses without the doctor’s knowledge and the doctor will do so if he finds it necessary and this logic is applicable in case of missed doses as well. The intake of this medication does not depend on food and it is possible to start feeling better after 4 weeks of having taken the medicine although the doses should not be stopped suddenly, in spite of feeling well.