I was wondering what has been anyone's experience with lucid dreaming while on an Zoloft or any other SSRI? Did it help or hinder your dream recall and or your ability to have LDs?
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I was wondering what has been anyone's experience with lucid dreaming while on an Zoloft or any other SSRI? Did it help or hinder your dream recall and or your ability to have LDs?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tally-wa
When I first started taking a SSRI called Citalopram my dream recall skyrocketed, along with the clarity of my dreams. Sadly it only lasted 2-3 weeks until it went back to "normal" again. I can't say whether the meds had any effect on my lucid dreaming since during that period I didn't really try to LD.
I believe there is a correlation between Zoloft and lucid dreams. I had never had any lucid dreams (I refuse to use acronyms....sorry) until I had taken Zoloft for a few months. I cannot tell whether the Zoloft is the sole contributor however. I think I am one of the few here who believes that these "dream characters" are sometimes other people who are dreaming....but that's another story. I also try to take these "stories" people share here with a grain of salt, because human nature dictates that people in general, wish to feel more important and special than they really are. The ability to have lucid dreams is yet another thing that people can use to differentiate themselves, much like Vegans do, or people who drive hybrid cars.
I haven't taken any antidepressants personally, but my girlfriend was on them for a while. She used to always say "I never have dreams" and didn't get how people could have such vivid dreams. She was on lexapro, and within a couple of months, she would have absolutely absurdly vivid dreams and remembered them all.
Torriatte is correct on this correlation--Zoloft is an SSRI, which means more serotonin is floating around freely in the brain instead of cooped up in nerve cells. Serotonin is converted to melatonin, a process which also will increase if there's more serotonin around. Serotonin is normally inactive during sleep, but if the SSRI prevents the brain from reabsorbing it, then I would speculate that serotonin will be active during dreams, which could lead to dreams that more resemble waking activity (at least mentally).
looking back in my journal, there's surprisingly a butt load of detailed entries during the time i was on zoloft. Odd, because i thought I remembered myself having an inhibition of dreams while on it. However, I was taking recreational adderall at spurred bouts on the zoloft prescription. Double However, my dream recall always peaks during the winter months of the year. Final verdict, zoloft had little or nothing to do with my dream recall.
Edit: Actually it probably did boost my recall, but i had a lot of crazy stuff happening at that time
Double Edit: buckybadger010 is correct on the neuro-biological chemistry
More likely, is the fact that Zoloft makes you sleepy...and probably sleep more. I have noticed that in the beginning, it caused insomnia, but then turned to "gee...it's 8PM....time to get my ass to bed". The fact that I'm sleeping MORE....is probably a component.
haha oh yea, i remember the early insomnia
Sex is the ultimate sleeping pill....at least for males. Just the opposite for females...or so I've noticed. Perhaps porn is the best prescription sleep aid??
Just kidding