Am I allergic to Zoloft?

allergic reaction to zoloft

• hi, apparently i've developed an allergic reaction to zoloft, even though i was on it for over a year.  i had an itchy rash, my skin felt like it was on fire, my face & ears are swollen along w/ my wrists and ankles.  so i slowly went off of zoloft and had to deal w/ all of the crazy side effects of going off of the drug.  my doctor then put my on a generic form of celexa, but now my itchy rash, skin burning feeling is coming back.  i don't know if is because the zoloft is still in my system or if is because these two drugs are too similar so i'm possibly allergic to celexa as well. if i am allergic to celexa also, what other antidepressants might work for me?

• Answer:

  Hi Heidi, I would need some clarity on the chain of events. Specifically the following approximate dates: 1. Date of starting zoloft 2. Date of appearance of allergic symptoms 3. Date of stopping zoloft 4. Date of disappearance of symptoms 5. Date of starting Celexa 6. Date of reappearance of symptoms Firstly the reaction is not due to zoloft being in your system, drugs do not stay in the system so long. Secondly I would think that your allergy is not to the antidepressant but to something else. However in case of allergies you can never tell. I am thinking that yo have become allergic to a constituent which is common to zoloft and celexa, it could be a colour or some other excipient. In case it turn out that you are allergic to both zoloft and celexa, then we can move you to another drug. Escitalopram is a good alternative to celexa, and since it is a chiral form it may not react with you in the same way (in so far as allergy is concerned). Do let me know the details and let me think. Let me caution you that I may not be available on line after 12 Nov for a week or so. Ravi Ghooi