Medications (legal) and OBEs

[vipassana]

There was a discussion a while back on this forum about certain drugs such as Zoloft and other mood drugs and their effects on a person's ability to AP/OBE. I've been on Zoloft since 2003 and decided I do not need it anymore. First let me say that if your doctor put you on one of these medications, I cannot recommend you stop taking it. The fact is that for a lot of people, they do work. I'm a nurse by trade, although I do not work in that field in a traditional sense anymore, and my wife is a psychiatric nurse practitioner, so I have more insight than most people have when it comes to this. The reason I decided to stop taking it is because the stressful situation causing me anxiety I found myself in 7 or 8 years ago has long since passed, and I've become wiser to the world. I've weaned myself off of Zoloft over the past few weeks as opposed to stopping it suddenly. I tried to stop suddenly a few years ago and for me, it was not a good idea. I'm not going to go into long details, but my experience has been that when this is stopped suddenly, my anxiety went through the roof for no reason whatsoever. I think the brain has to be slowly conditioned back to a state where this drug is no longer present. So to the point...Since I have stopped taking Zoloft, I've noticed that I dream like crazy every night, all night. They are the long dreams that seem to play out like a movie. And I find myself becoming lucid in them several times a night. It's pretty awesome. So last night as I was falling asleep I kept repeating to myself, "I am going to fly tonight". In my dreams I must have flown to every corner of the unknown. Weird thing was I was flying around in a golf cart. A flying golf cart. But hey, golf cart or not, I'll take it. The sensations are real and the scenery in this experience was fantastically beautiful. My dreams have always been really out there, and being lucid in those places and in those situations is quite a fun time. So for me, this has been a good idea so far. But again, the reason I believe I do not need it anymore is because I have learned to recognize and control anxiety and it's causes. The downside is, and this is my opinion, I believe stopping this medications opens your mind up to the effects of negative energy much more so than if you are talking it. I now have to be on my guard to when negative energy creeps in. I have to immediately recognize it and squash it. This is my personal experience with stopping Zoloft.  

[Asi911]

Hey, Good for you!

I also have a friend who's been on some kind of Psychiatric pills and ever since he stopped he reported that his dreams are allot more lucid and vivid.

Just say no 

[personalreality]

I"m actually remembering more of my dreams since I got on zoloft.

maybe it's really because i'm off my other medications.

[vipassana]

It's really hard to say. The dreams could just be a placaebo effect for me. But anyway, just a personal experience to share.

[personalreality]

Update: I haven't been able to AP since starting zoloft.  don't know if it's really related or not.

[Capt. Picard]

Its funny that you mention (legal) there as if that matters. All studies show that marijuana (illegal) is less harmful that alcohol (legal). In the same way many anti-depressants have been shown to be as harmful or more harmful than alot of hard street drugs. And I mean come on, look up the side effects for almost any anti-depressant and I bet the fine print says "possible side effects may include depression or suicidal thoughts"   If your gonna go on them, why not just smoke a less harmful joint that will make you feel just as good if not better. I think any substance you take can effect your OBE's, it might make you more suseptible say if the drug relaxes you, or that relaxation may just make you pass out quicker.

On a side note, I don't really believe depression is a real disorder or if it is, I dont believe the majority of people treated for it actually have it. People are depressed because of actual problems in their life and with the world, since when is being sad a disorder? Rubbish.

[personalreality]

I agree 110% with you Capt.

I didnt want to take Zoloft because I don't trust it.  But I got kind of pressured by my fiance and mom and doctor when i detoxed off methadone because long term use of opiates decreases your brain's ability to produce it's own serotonin and dopamine.  The doc said taking this for a short time will help my brain rebound from it. 

IMO these kinds of drugs are made to inhibit spiritual awareness in some way.

and it has a lot to do with the diagnosis.  people believe they're sick and they just get worse.

[nickspry]

SSRI-type anti-depressants increase serotonin levels which increases deep sleep and supresses REM sleep. I guess that when you stop taking them and your sleep cycles return to normal, your dreams will seem incredibly vivid, but only because they've been supressed by the drug up to that point.
I think they can also cause a REM rebound effect while your still taking them, ie; the drug wears off in the early morning, and the brain realizing it's been denied REM sleep, intensifies and lengthens the remaining REM cycles to make up for the deficit, resulting in hyper-vivid or lucid dreams in the hour or two before you wake.

[personalreality]

do you think it can effect AP ability?

[nickspry]

do you think it can effect AP ability?

I would think that it would increase AP ability but only during REM rebound - when the drug has worn off.