Concerns about taking sumatriptan with sertraline

OK so I have been having severe headaches for about 3 weeks now. i have a telephone call with a doctor this morning and he has prescribed me sumatriptan. I always read my leaflets as I had a huge reaction to duloxetine a few years ago which made me really poorly. the leaflet says do not take if you are taking sertraline as it can cause serotonin syndrome. this really freaks me out!! I'm on 100mg sertraline daily and cannot go without it as its the only thing that keeps me stable. but my head is killing me! anybody on both with no issues?? I have a face to face appointment tomorrow so worst comes to worst I don't take it and I bring it up tomorrow when I speak to the doctor.

Your answer

Marzie

1y ago

I actually took sumatriptan for awhile while I was on Prozac (an SSRI), which does have a possibility of serotonin syndrome but I never had any issues. Doctors and pharmacists are aware of these problems so definitely ask them what they think before you start it but there are pretty big warning symptoms, so as long as you don't notice any of those when you start, you should be okay. It's unlikely they'd prescribe it if they think there's a high risk of SS; they know the doses that should be given to avoid this. Definitely ask because you are unsure but sumatriptan helped so much with my severe migraines when I had them, so the risk might be worth it

Pizza_Crust

1y ago

Not sure if it's any help but what causes my severe headaches/migraines wound up being low hummidity. If it's been super cold outside where you are it'll decrease the hummidity a lot. You want no lower than 40% no higher than 60%. Something to consider at least?

Magpie42

1y ago

Chat with your doc or pharmacist, my neuro rxed me Maxalt, and I asked about serotonin syndrome. He explained that it is extremely rare but must be listed because it *can* happen.

SpoonieMcgee

1y ago

my gp said the same. But when I took the meds the headaches got way more severe and I became massively irritable. It really wasn't nice. He asked me to go for an eye test to see if there's anything wrong with my right eye as that's the one that hurts when the headaches occur. So I have that tomorrow to rule anything eye related out. Wish me luck ❤️

bridgiebee

1y ago

Some doctors know this information and have already weighed the pros and cons. My medications risk serotonin syndrome together, but don't do that as long as they taken three hours apart

RxQueen

1y ago

this. I take about 5 different medication that are generally likely to cause serotonin syndrome, CNS depression, heart attack… but the pros outweigh the cons considering I am now working 2 jobs, living a much happier and more productive life versus being on the verge of suicide every day of my life. I just had no good days for years until they figured out my meds. Anyway I would talk to a doc about it but I’m pretty sure they figured that the two doses aren’t enough to cause problems when taken together. Hope that helped.

Future_Dr._Zebra

1y ago

I’m so glad you caught this, but this shouldn’t be the patient’s responsibility!! Don’t take it until your doctor confirms that you can safely take them without severe interactions

SpoonieMcgee

1y ago

right!! I'm just glad I always read my leaflets!

FlutterBuy

1y ago

I would talk to a pharmacist or your GP before starting them

SpoonieMcgee

1y ago

I thought this too. I just don't understand why a doctor would prescribe something that says on the packet is unsafe to take with the meds I rely on!

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