Could this be a side effect of mirtazapine?
Posted , 4 users are following.
Lately, after being on mirt for four years, I have been having periods of insomnia. Basically, I get a kind of trembling in my chest and very frequent urination shortly after going to bed. I thought it was my heart racing but it isn't; it's a kind of vibration in my chest. I need to get up to urinate every few minutes. It isn't just the feeling that I need to pee; I actually do a reasonable amount.
I have been really happy on mirtazapine for most of the time, except that I need to really work hard not to put on weight, but now that it doesn't seem to be giving me the rest I need, I think I may need to get off it. However, one of my main symptoms before going on it was insomnia. I had to take temazepam most nights. Mirtazapine meant that I could cut temazepam down to around once a fortnight, but now it is several times a week. But I'm scared of the insomnia if I try to come off mirtazapine, and also of the other side effects. Can anyone recommend me a different AD that helps with sleep? I cannot take SSRIs. Thanks.
0 likes, 19 replies
mvwaugh evergreen
Posted
evergreen mvwaugh
Posted
mvwaugh evergreen
Posted
betsy0603 evergreen
Posted
At any rate, is it still helping you with the original reason for gong on it (depression?)?
Why is it that you can't take SSRIs? What problems did you run into?
I was on Effexor, went off too fast last year and was eventually put on mirt because I couldn't sleep or eat, but it pooped out on me very quickly at 37.5 mg, so my doc reinstated the Effexor and within an hour I felt dramatically better, a sure sign of dependency! Combining mirt with Effexor is known as California Rocket Fuel in the psych profession, and supposedly the two together work better than each by itself. My goal is to taper off both because I have been on ADs for nearly 20 years want to be done with them and deal with my emotional issues in a non-drug way. The drugs simply muted my emotions and kept me from feeling, but tolerance allowed the original issues to persist, since drugs never fix those.
So, if you decide to go off mirt, spend some time in the mirt withdrawal section on this site. It is NOT a pleasant one to get off of and you would be advised to do a very slow taper, ideally 10% reductions every 3-4 weeks. Otherwise, withdrawal causes so much suffering that people end up reinstating. You may find that on a lower dose your sleep will get better since it is more sedating at the lower dose. If you taper too fast, though, sleep can be greatly impacted.
If you are able to tolerate an SNRI, it could be added to the mirt since they seem to do well together. However, your system may be getting sensitized to where you can't tolerate any of it and have more side effects that are unacceptable. People in this bind end up polydrugged, since docs don't seem to understand that withdrawal symptoms can be the same as the condition the drugs were to treat originally, and so they chase the symptoms with more drugs. Each drug causes its own side effects which the doc then chases with yet another drug. So, beware! You do NOT want to go down that road!
You could try Benedryl to aid sleep. I have had good luck with taking a magnesium glycinate supplement, which helps anxiety and is calming. Drinking milk at bedtime can help as well, though won't improve the pee'ing problem. In general, I would try to cut drinking anything after perhaps 8 pm.
Try taking mirt earlier in the evening on the days you don't have to drive to see how sedating it really is. It may be that you could stay alert enough to drive even though taking it earlier.
evergreen betsy0603
Posted
Calmer evergreen
Posted
Not what any of us want to hear, but yeh ... sorry about thay Evergreen.
x
evergreen Calmer
Posted
betsy0603 evergreen
Posted
I'm sorry these problems have come up for on on a med that otherwise was serving you the way you liked. The sleep from mirt certainly is was a relief when I first went on it, given I was having horrible insomnia prior. But it pooped out really fast on me, probably because I was still withdrawing from Effexor. The sleep continued even though the depression and disinterest in life came back.
Calmer evergreen
Posted
Before my "episode" of insomnia started last year, which lead to acute anxiety which lead to depression (get that out the way) I had been "fortunate" enough, through exercise and diet ... to lose19 lbs, felt on top of the world, kept it up for about 9 months or so ... then the insomnia hit.
I can only think, for me, and something to ponder over for you maybe, that the foodstuffs that promote good sleep are the foodstuffs that are commonly avoided or certainly eaten in small amounts if trying to lose weight and working to keep the weight off . Wholemeal bread, wholemeal cereals, brown rice, nuts, seeds, avacadoes, dried fruits, oily fish, the vitamin that everyone is talking about now as a aid sleep for us poor sufferers is Magnesium - Coincidence?? Going low of this over a long period I wonder what effect it has had, worth noting anyway.
Had talks with Nutritionist who advised that Magnesium supplements are Trace metals (also known as trace elements) (such as magnesium or zinc)and are not generally classed as vitamins even though they can only be taken in from food (you cannot synthesise a metal).
Interesting anyway.
A simple bowl of porridge just before bedtime helps, may well
you through that wakeful time of 4 a.m. I think for some of us, sticking to the necessary 1700 calories or so to maintain a certain weight is detramental to a good nights sleep. It's an age thing, I think it probably started around 55 for me, can't win.
Best wishes
evergreen Calmer
Posted
evergreen
Posted
betsy0603 Calmer
Posted
Calmer evergreen
Posted
Best wishes, do you know when the tests will be?
evergreen Calmer
Posted
betsy0603 evergreen
Posted
evergreen betsy0603
Posted
Calmer evergreen
Posted
Avoid the drink though, I know you do mostly, but recent ... nothing worse for disturbed sleep than the drink, sadly just one and I'm all over the place tossing & turning - oh for youth !!!!
Bestest to you x
evergreen Calmer
Posted
evergreen betsy0603
Posted