Hi guys,
I was prescribed sertraline/zoloft a while back. I collected my prescription at the time, but they've just been lying here for months now. The reason being, I'm, ironically, anxious about all the possible side-effects (and there's a long list of them, going by the leaflet included!).
However, I have a huge fear of even simple things like leaving the house, I never feel relaxed and constantly think that everyone around me is judging me on my looks or the way I act, the only time I feel comfortable is at home. When I actually think about it, I realise it's stupid, but I only wish that it could prevent me from feeling that way when it comes to leaving the house - I'm scared to apply for jobs or go to Uni because of my anxiety, and I know that really I should take the medication as I'm wasting my life away at the moment, in all honesty.
Does anyone have any experience with medication, or just how I feel? Even writing this post makes me feel ashamed of the way I am. 
First, there is nothing to be ashamed of, when you haven't done anything wrong. Now let us keep this aside.
Ask yourself a question, why am i thinking in this way? Try to focus on the origin of the issue. No one knows you better than yourself. There are always two ways to look at a situation, negative and positive. We often choose not to be wanting, to be positive, unless we are sure, because we do not want to hurt ourselves, in the end, when we come to know the
truth. Now focus on the above word. What is it that you are afraid of? Is it the "truth"? The "truth" about what? Your intelligence, your beauty, your character, personality, what? Everything that you, me and others at some point worry about is not the truth but an
opinion.
I know it won't really be much of a help when someone would say "just ignore all those things.....", but what you need to know is that, if one 'opinion' is spoiling your day then someone else's 'opinion' can make it as well. But the real
truth is you are taking each opinion or even the way someone looks at you, too seriously. The world will not end if someone says something negative about you and it will not stop testing you if someone says something positive about you, it just goes on and on and on.
It's up to you where you want to stop and start and focus and worry.
Now, after reading what you have posted, I stopped for a while and asked myself, "Is this guy really asking this question because he needs help
or is he just trying to make a fool out of someone?"
If I were to go with the second one, I wouldn't be posting at all here now. But I went with the first one. And even after this if you say to me that actually you were just trying to make a fool out of someone then I wouldn't change myself and stop helping people in situations like these because I will not take certain things seriously which are not meant to be taken seriously.
So, you decide which things are to be taken seriously and which shouldn't, because you should always be changing the situations in your favor (not on selfish lines) and not the other way round.
P.S: Consider this, if you are hurt physically, you take medicines to cure yourselves. But can you stop thinking about how you got hurt in the first place? You can't, no one can. The medicines you are prescribed will treat your depression, yes, only when you accept that you are depressed. Why should you accept that you are depressed, because you are taking some things very seriously which are not meant to be taken seriously in the first place. Maybe after reading all this, you'd feel like it's easier said than done, but would you rather trust a couple of strange pills given by a stranger and choose not to give your own will power another chance?
