Premenstrual Disorders

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Dosages

Prozac can be started with a 20-milligram dose but should not ex-

ceed 80 milligrams per day. Those eighteen and younger are often

prescribed a dose between 5 milligrams and 40 milligrams. For those

who have mild feelings of anxiety, one pill can be taken every other

day. This causes no problem because the medication remains in the

body for several days.

When treating depression, some patients may notice an im-

provement of symptoms within two weeks, but most will need as

much as four weeks. When treating PMDD or PMS, however, the

results of treatment are in many cases immediate. Emily may begin

to feel a difference the first month that she takes the medication.

Those who have trouble sleeping while taking Prozac should take

their dose in the morning. This is sometimes the only adjustment

needed to alleviate this problem.

Zoloft is another of the SSRIs approved for treating PMDD. It can

be taken either every day of the month or for the two weeks prior

to the onset of menstruation. The usual starting dosage for adults

taking Zoloft is 50 milligrams once a day, either in the morning or the

evening. For those having a problem with insomnia, Zoloft should

be taken in the morning. It is available in 25-milligram, 50-milligram,

and 100-milligram scored tablets that can be divided to allow ad-

justment of dosages. Those who are sensitive to medications should

start out at 25 milligrams, which can then be raised after a week or

The FDA bases its approval on specific research results. Some-

times, a particular use for a drug may have been thoroughly re-

searched by many studies, while other uses lack the same amount

of research. In that case, the drug label will only include the uses

that have met the FDA’s stringent research requirements. Physi-

cians, however, may continue to prescribe that drug for other

“off-label” uses.