Mirtazapine good or bad?

Oh dear you poor thing mirthater that is so sad ?? they should take that drug off the market but then again it does work wonders for some people wish I could make a pill ?? to make all of us better.I'm also a mirt hater for what it did to me.I'm going to try to get off another medication called gabapetin which I'm on for anxiety but I read some ugly side effects so I need to talk to my Dr I wish you better days ahead do keep in touch ??

So happy for you Susan I'm still going through crude depression anxiety and crying spells I'm just not a happy camper right now please keep in touch ??

I hear you Rosie the weight gain was horrible I put on over 35lbs and for me that is alot.now I'm going to try to get off another medication called gabapetin which I take for anxiety but it comes with horrible side effects.I'll see what the Dr say's keep posted

So right evergreen works for some but not for all what a yo-yo this medication is.I'm glad to be off it one less med in my life ??

Yeah Elaine after reading about mirt really changed my way of looking at it for the worst I to started having lower back pain and wondering if mirt had any thing to do with it or not who knows? All a mystery or coincidence or??? I'm off mirt now so I'll see how I feel will keep in touch ??

Hi Maria

I am suprised to read you are advised to take Mirt & Phenergen regularly together, although nothing suprises me when it comes to doctors!

Its just that Mirt lowers the blood pressure, slows the heart, Phenergen does the same, so just wanted to add a little caution.  

Best wishes.

I never had any problem , my blood pressure has always been fine likewise the ECG done on my heart recently was also okay , it is one thing i joke about  as i suffer from anxiety but my blood pressure is always okay when the doctor or Nurse does it , the only time when it has cause for concerned is when i come out of surgery - put to sleep for operations .

Hi Maria I to slept well with mirt on 15mg but the weight gain caused me to get off them so is the other med you take an AD? You take it with mirt right? I take a combination of meds and I'm fine your Dr wouldn't let you take the 2 together ifteydidnt go hand and hand?? I'll keep you posted

Calmer you seem pretty educated about meds reading your comments have you heard of gabapetin? Being used for anxiety? I read some ugly side effects on this medication can you be of help?thanks cat196111

Hi Cat,

Sorry no, I don't know anything about Gabapetin being used for anxiety, only know it is usually used as pain relief and for seizure prevention. Have you searched for it on this forum under its name, maybe get something there?

You say you are off Mirt now?  How did you taper Mirt Cat ? 

Phenergan is basically for allergies , motion sickness but it is also for sedation and i was struggling at night time so a psychiatrist last year gave me a prescription for it so i would have casual prescriptions from the new psychiatrist i see but then she decided along with the gentleman who checks up on me from CMHT that i should have it on repeat prescription so now i can take it every night though sometimes  if i have a early start the following morning i don't leaving me with the opportunity to take 2 if i get very unsettled one night , i also take 375mg of Venlafaxine in the morning ( that was split last year - morning and night but now it is just to be taken in the morning ) for depression  and 50mg of Pregabalin 3 times a day for anxiety .

I remember taking phenergen alongside mirt and had one of the scariest nights of my life. Completely stopped me breathing if I started to nod off. So had to fight all night to stay awake and consciously take every laboured breath. A total nightmare, so I echo your caution.

Well calmer I had been on mirt for 7months but on my last two weeks of it I was on 30mg for one week then 15mgon my last week and that was it.my appetite decreased but I'm feeling a bit nausea so now I'm going to look into gabapetin thanks ??

Glad you managed to get off them but perhaps you should have done it more gradually, like doing the 7.5mg for a while and then cutting that in half.  I dont want to go back to the nausea which for me was horrendous, 13 weeks non stop and racing heart, just came out of the blue and that is why I think the mirt is masking something, like for example thyroiditis. Anyway, we shall see but I certainly would not entertain taking gabapentin.  Have you read up the side effects, not nice and also taken over a long period can cause osteoporosis.  As you probably know they were originally intended for epileptic fits but now it seems they use anything for everything.  Just be careful.

Yeah Elaine I'm trying to get away from gabapetin I've cut down my dose and am going to see my Dr next week and talk to him about it I'm so tired of pills ?? and not feeling good I'm always tired and don't want to do much I'm not going to let medication run my life at least the wrong ones thanks for your concern ??

Good luck with it.  I know it's miserable not feeling well all the time.  I'm the same but now have the added "bonus" of really bad bone pain which I dont know is atributed to mirtazapine (it affects bone density according to a recent study), too much vitamin D supplement, or because osteoporosis is painful before breaking something??

Hi evergreen,

 Yes I remember it well !!  How are you?  Has your sleep improved at all?

Hi Calmer, i'm not so good, I'm afraid. I have gone from hyperthyroid to hypothyroid. My teeth hurt and my gums and tongue are swollen. I sleep poorly. I am fed up. Now this morning my GP has rung to tell me ny immune system has been compromised by the drugs and I have neutropenia (explains the sore mouth and fatigue). So I'm not a happy bunny right now. I am now seeing a specialist endocrinologist and see him again on Tuesday, so will see what he says then. How are you?

Oh know Elaine that's not good ?? it could be the mirt but who's to say I would try tapering it maybe and talk to your Dr about it don't let it get any worse not worth the suffering keep me posted hope you feel better soon ??

Thanks Cat, I am tapering it and want to get right off it, not only got a fat stomach (the 1.5 stone I lost has gone straight there and not spread out, lol).  I try to have as least as possible to do with my surgery.  I have hardly been in the last 26 years and then last September, the head one who had her eyeballs glued to the clock on the wall said "youve seen three different doctors this month"!!!   The pysch lady is typical tunnel vision and brushes aside any side affects or makes some excuse.  I knew from past reading that SSRI's cause osteoporosis and I asked about SSNI's and was told no, and yet in the leaflet accompanying the Mirt which I only dared read a couple of months back it says one of the side effects suppressed bone marrow.  I think I would rather put up with my anxieties and not sleeping properly than that, as it is just another added anxiety!!  Hope you and everyone on the thread have a decent weekend x

Hi Everygreen

You're still having a very rough time, sorry to read that and I hope the specialist can help you.  Is it common to go from hyper to hypo?  Is that caused by the meds dosage being too high, difficult to know I suppose.  I hope you get on ok tomorrow and turn around soon.    

I am ok really, still tapering ugh ...   snail pace - hardly any symptoms, I just had one afternoon of pretty bad fatigue 4 days after the drop - my usual discontinuation pattern.  Lost 7 lbs put 2 back on lol ... still trying!  Munchies have gone, I have a very healthy diet but puddings are my downfall, so my willpower needs a boost, sugar makes me tired I know that, I just need to get off it.

Sugar had that effect on me too whilst on mirt. It probably still does, but now I'm off it, I don't crave sugar very much at all. I think you are doing really well to lose weight. Half a stone is very good going on mirt. Even though it turned out I was hyperthyroid, I didn't really drop the weight until I'd been off mirt for a couple of weeks.

?I now have neutropenia, so yet another thing to contend with and I have had to come off my meds because those are what has caused it. Yes, it is common to go hypo once you have been treated with anti-thyroid meds for a while. Also, some forms of hypothyroidism start off with an episode of hyperthyroidism. Then the thyroid burns itself out and you go hypo. No one has bothered to test my antibodies to find out what type I have. It would be helpful! I am going to press for some answers when I see my consultant again tomorrow. I was not filled with much faith after my first appointment with him last week.

Hi Elaine battle of mirt still goes on I'm glad you are tapering off of it.I don't know if its withdrawals I'm having but I'm so tired all the time and depressed with crying spells.I see one of my Drs tomorrow to see what he says I'm going nuts!I just want to feel better what ever that is but its got to be better than this I prey.will let you know what the Dr says.take care ??

Hi Cat,

?I hope you get on okay with your GP.  I wouldnt even be bothered to go.  I feel rough all of the time and lately I am thinking more about my dad dying earlier this year but I think the side effects, possibly long term regarding bone density damage, outweigh the "advantages".   I'm down to 3.75mg which is negligible and would like to get off them completely.  If the horrendous chronic nausea I had returns (have never got to the bottom of that), then I guess I might pop a 15mg for a couple of days and see what happens.  Good luck. x