gogirl723@... asked this question on 5/17/2000:
My husband was diagnosed with clinical depression. He was given zoloft. It worked beautifuly. However, he doesn't think he needs it now and has been off it for about 2 months. He is taking St. Johns Wart instead. My children and I can see and feel the difference in his personality. He is a time bomb again and the least thing sets him off. He also acts depressed, and realizes he is at times but refuses to take zoloft again. He has blamed zoloft for a sexual problem (has erection but can not ejaculate) but off zoloft, he still has this problem, but says he has more feeling and is getting closer to being able to ejaculate. Is there anyway i can get hime back on this drug? He has tried others and they don't work, zoloft was perfect. Our daughter also takes zoloft(19), she had the same problem with depression. Off of zoloft he is selfish, mean, tempermental, short tempered, and generally not nice to be around. I'm getting close to wanting a divorce. Help if you can.
TheAntiSpice gave this response on 5/17/2000:
You need to tell your husband that it is his depression that his causing his inability to ejaculate if he can't do it regardless of the medication.
Is your husband in counseling ? And how long was he this way before given medication ?
I've asked my doctor about switching from antidepressants to St John's Wort and she said it is NOT a good idea for most people. The higher the dosage for your antidepressants the less likely St John's Wort will help you , she told me. For example , if you're taking 20 mgs of Zoloft and want to switch to SJW then it might work. But if you're taking 100 mgs of Zoloft or 30 mgs of Paxil like I have to , then SJW will not be powerful enough to stablilize your moods.
Please tell your husband that he doesn't need to be ashamed of taking the medication that he needs. Explain to him that depression is a medical condition , just like anything else. If he had high blood pressure , he probably wouldn't argue with taking medication for it to prevent a heart attack. Therefore , if you have depression , you need to take your medication to prevent violence, shattered relationships, alcohol & drug abuse, and worst of all , suicide.
I hope that you can get through to him. Best of luck.
~Carrie
The average rating for this answer is 4.
gogirl723@... rated this answer a 4.
Thank you. I was hoping his doctor would tell him this again. As he has in the past.
Before he took zoloft he did not have a problem ejaculating. I would like to mention the fact that it is the depression, perhaps, that is causing the problem but to be truthfull I'm afraid to talk to him about it. HE DOESN'T WANT TO HEAR IT. He's made that clear. He also has a really bad rash (from polyester police shirts he says) but I don't think he got it when on the zoloft.
Do you think his condition is going to worsen, or stay like this. He isn't suicidal yet, but has been before going on zoloft, and knows when he reaches that point it's time to do something about it.
I'll try to get his doctor to talk to him. thanks again.