227-reddit-1gxwv9v-zoloft-ct-blank-mind-anhedonia-empty-hell

“I want this to serve as a cautionary tale for anyone still on their meds and I hope people taper their medication very carefully. I’ve lost everything my life once was because of this making the stupid decision of abruptly withdrawing my medication. I was on 200 mg Zoloft from ages 16 to 21. I noticed some emotional blunting while on this highest dose prescribable of this particular SSRI. Things didn’t move me much. The emotional range was somewhat dulled, but I still had quite an okay experience of life compared to what is now the eternal void day to day. Orgasm was delayed but still had proper sensation and the orgasm was just as powerful as always. Then after out of the frustration of being tired of feeling dulled, for some reason I thought stopping the medication would somehow magically revert this. Oh boy how I was wrong. When I quit cold turkey in April 2023, I was still fine with emotions and thoughts for almost 5-6 months and until the real hell began. The withdrawal was mostly irritation up until that point. Now I suffer from a blank mind, a memory compared to a fish, unable to feel anything reward in my brain, whether it’s socializing, working out, smoking weed, or orgasming. I never thought it would be possible to live in such an empty hell that was been my life for a year now. Devoid of any experience. […]”

Cause

Reddit r/PSSD first-person OP u/Searik (same person later 1hpbvfz — not separately logged): sertraline/Zoloft 200 mg ages ~16–21 (~4–5 years), cold turkey April 2023. Mild on-drug blunting then delayed post-CT crash ~5–6 months later. Attributes blank mind + unable to feel any reward / empty hell / devoid of experience (and in follow-up: emotional blunting + loss of inner dialogue) to Zoloft CT/PSSD. Unused PSSD Zoloft BOTH (≠ 1rszwoi fluoxetine; ≠ Aaron7/UpsAndDowns/Alejandro/Max sertraline).

Duration

On Zoloft ~ages 16–21; CT Apr 2023; ~5–6 months latency then crash; ~1 year empty hell at Nov 2024 post; ~1.5 years still worse at Dec 2024 follow-up 1hpbvfz

Recovery notes

No recovery claimed. Clean diet, daily exercise/lift/cardio, sleep focus — no improvement; feels gradually emptier. Follow-up asks if brain can ever recover. No later recovery update Enriched from arctic-shift full OP selftext (2026-09-13). OP comments: considered reinstating Zoloft but declined after hearing reinstatement made others worse; still framing state as severe brain damage/empty hell. Live Reddit OP follow-ups: declined reinstate as too risky; MDMA refused as serotonin risk; still no improvement as of thread. Full OP selftext confirmed on old.reddit 2026-09-13. | [2026-10-16 watch] Added 1dugn1o (Jul 2024 blank mind + zero emotions) and later 2025–2026 anhedonia updates; still no.

Source URL

https://www.reddit.com/r/PSSD/comments/1gxwv9v/i_gave_myself_extreme_brain_damage_from_cold/