Earlier it was a common practice to prescribe Zoloft to adults who suffer from serious emotional issues. Today, this drug is prescribed even to teenagers and young children. But, it might not be the best option for the treatment of ADHD.
Taking Zoloft is not the indicated therapy for ADHD but, it assists in soothing the signs of ADHD. This drug is prescribed in conjunction with other drugs like Adderall and Ritalin. It works along with these stimulants in the treatment of ADHD.
The reason why this antidepressant drug is given in conjunction with other stimulants is because the patients who suffer from ADHD also pose with other issues like depression, nervousness, compulsive disorders and many other problems. Taking Zoloft helps in treatment of hyper-focused ADHD cases versus unfocused cases.
The major reasons why doctors prescribe Zoloft with other antidepressant drugs is that if Zoloft is given alone, it causes many serious side effects and also very severe drug interactions. The side effects include panic, anxiety, irritability, difficulty in sleeping, hostility, mania as well as impulse problems.
Zoloft not just cause psychological adverse effects but, also lead to many bad effects on the physical health. It can cause flu- like symptoms, muscle tremors, difficulty in speech, jaundice, fuzzy vision, cardiac palpitations and extreme skin rashes.
Zoloft when taken for the management of ADHD can cause very sever effects if taken in conjunction with other medicines. For instance, taking MAOs (Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors) even two weeks prior to taking Zoloft can cause life- threatening effects.
A person might face very side- effects if he tries to change the antidepressants from Zoloft to any other SSRI (serotonin selective re- uptake inhibitor) drug.
If children or young adults take Zoloft and ADHD treatment they might get aggressive, suicidal thoughts and homicidal behaviour. Due to this reason many lawsuits have been filed against Pfizer, the manufacturer of Zoloft. The news has revealed the stories about many children and adults who have committed or tried to commit suicide after taking Zoloft or other SSRI. The much hyped news about two teens who had murdered their friend and themselves during Columbine shooting were on SSRI drugs.
There are no studies that show the harmful effects of Zoloft causes on ADHD if used for about ten years or more than a span of 10 years. The studies that might help in ruling out the effects take too long and are very expensive.
Whatever disorders an adult faces in his, majority of them are deeply rooted to their childhood. If a child takes ADHD drugs in his childhood, he might have to face grave circumstances in his adulthood. A person must keep this in mind while giving this drug to any child. It is better to use other drugs and therapies. The doctor must plan the treatment very carefully and keeping the consequences in mind. The health practitioner must adopt safer treatment plans because the consequences are directly related to life and death.