Postpartum nightmare

The Drug: Zoloft- scroll down for the UPDATE

Why were they put on this medication: “Depression” due to pregnancy about a month prior to giving birth to our first baby.

Was informed consent given? No The OB whipped out the prescription pad and I was never made aware nor was my wife of the dangers or effects. She was put on 50MG of Zoloft

Were you aware of the dangers? NO

Potential drug induced symptoms?No

Adverse reactions? No

Were there problems in the relationship before the drug was started? Not at the time she began. We had a happy healthy marriage and and wonderful life. She did have a lot of childhood trauma and the depression due to the hormonal changes. The pregnancy got scary which is why we sought the advice from the OB initially.
 

Did Your personal relationship change? Yes drastically. She became very cold and despondent. She seemed happier in the first couple of months but then the nightmare under the surface started. She started keeping a Google Calendar of everything she perceived that I was doing wrong in the relationship. She started becoming very critical of everything I did and her perception of reality during arguments became greatly skewed. I was being sabotaged by the drug inside our marriage but I had no idea because I didn’t know how Zoloft affected people.  I was completely blind arguing against the impossible claims and accusations that were being brought against me not knowing it wasn’t actually her fault. Her memory was greatly affected.  During the disagreements or arguments we had it never mattered what I said or how hard I tried to explain the truth,  she was convinced I was lying or that I was wrong or misleading her intentionally to manipulate and control her.

Was your loved one withdrawn? Yes, absolutely

Making Accusations?  Yes absolutely. She accused me of being a narcissist many times and told me I was controlling and manipulating her. The biggest issue was that her mother and friends absolutely believed her and began feeding the mania and the altered perceptions of reality because they had no idea what was actually going on. That drove her resentment and validated all of the negative feelings she was having towards me even deeper into our marriage and relationship.

Was Your loved One Irritated? Yes she was constantly in a bad mood. Fatigued, exhausted, dealing with insomnia, chronic migraines, blurred vision, dizziness, decreased appetite and many other devastating side affects from the Zoloft that kept her feeling miserable and tired.

Did you know they were spellbound? No I had no idea. I didn’t realize what was going on until weeks after she took our daughter and abandoned me and our marriage. She had been plotting a divorce behind my back for almost a year (shortly after she got the prescription) and I didn’t realize it until it was all too late. I had no idea the Zoloft was so powerful and dangerous until I started doing my own research,  searching for reasons why. I was trying to understand what the hell even happened.
 

What did it feel like to see what the problem was?  Overwhelmingly devastating. I have cried every day for 9 weeks

What is something you would want other loved ones to know? What do you want other medicated to know?  Other loved ones need to know SSRIs are the most insidious evil drugs ever created. They are capable of psychological terrorism and being on the receiving end is a literal living hell you can’t even begin to imagine or describe. Pray. Hold on. Don’t give up. Realize it’s not your fault.

Did you notice drug Induced symptoms? Yes but I wasn’t aware of what was causing it until it was too late.

Did you notice change in personality? Yes many. All of her “light” was gone. It completely changed who she was as a person and stole all of her joy and happiness.
Are they Tapering/Hyperbolic Tapering/Cold Turkey? Cold Turkey

Was your loved one depressed? Has it improved?
Yes from the pregnancy hormones but only temporarily. The SSRIs made it significantly worse.

Did you experience a shift in thinking if/when you connected the dots? Yes a huge shift. Everything made sense and I started seeing the truth of why and how this happened to me. It allowed me to completely forgive her realizing nothing she had/has done is her fault. She is a victim but doesn’t realize it yet.

How are you now? Still in an overwhelming amount of pain and emotional agony missing my wife. I want to fix and heal her and I want to put our marriage and life back together. I am speaking with her as much as I can, when I can but it’s very difficult and I feel like I’m walking through an emotional minefield. Some days are better than others but it’s still very traumatic. I can see her, but I can’t reach deep enough under the surface to grab her and pull her out yet. I just keep praying and doing my best to communicate with her and tell her how much I love her and care for her. 

Editors Note: Recently things are starting to look up and there is hope.

January 2026 UPDATE: She has recovered from the drugs! They are very happy, expecting their second child. It took patience, grit, determination and prayers. She woke up and realized the narrative she had been playing in her head was not true. Almost 6 months. Baby boy should be arriving any time. We are ecstatic that this was a happy ending. He is now one of our outspoken advocates. He survived the hell, after almost losing his whole family! They were in divorce court, communication was not allowed, and when it was then it was gaslighting by her. She does not recall much and just knows the drugs took ahold of her brain and feels like she was prescription raped. We agree. Thankfully her husband held onto hope and found the right resources to keep going.