2 Weeks off Mirtazapine, So Far
Posted , 3 users are following.
Hi everyone,
I thought I'd share my experience coming off of Mirt, as I'm still sort of battling the withdrawal effects right now. I tapered, admittedly, a little fast. I was on 30mg of Mirtazapine for 2+ years for anxiety. It was great for a while, but recently felt as though the drug has run it's course. I put on some extra weight, and felt like I never had energy, even though I was sleeping well.
After talking to my doctor, I decided to taper. I took 22.5mg for about a week, went down to 15mg for another week, then down to 7.5mg for another week. I wasn't really feeling any withdrawal symptoms during this time. Two weeks ago, I came off completely from 7.5mg. That first week, i could not sleep more than 2-3 hours a night. I've never had insomnia before, even before I was taking Mirt, and just chalked it up to the withdrawal and that eventually it would subside. My sleeping has been slowly getting better. Some nights better than others, bit I'm getting about 6-7 hours a night, which is fine by me.
I've definitely had some rebound anxiety, but am using a steady dose of ativan to control that, which has been a life saver. Not too worried about the ativan dependence, as a few years ago I was on a much higher clonazepam prescription that I eventually came off of (now THAT was hell)!
The most annoying withdrawal effect that I've been dealing with is the itching and rashes that I've suddenly developed. I have this eczema type rash that started while I was on the Mirt (never had skin problems before the Mirt), and has since spread lile wildfire, since coming off it a couple weeks ago. The itching is contributing to whatever insomnia that I have left, as I'm up all night scratching. Benadryl has helped somewhat, but was hoping maybe someone here has been through the same. Will these rashes eventually subside?
0 likes, 4 replies
rob03933 Decko
Posted
Decko,
I'm about two weeks off myself after being on mirtazapine for 14 months at mostly 30 mg. I weaned off in a week and I've been holding my own mentally but my sleep has gotten worse but I'm trying to take it in stride. I have hydroxyzine to help me out if I want but I'm trying to get off everything completely and I'm hoping I can fight through it and the sleep improves., 6 to 7 hours like your getting would be awesome.
Keep us posted on how your doing and hopefully things go well for all of us that have gotten off or are trying to get off mirtazapine!
Decko rob03933
Posted
Thanks Rob! Stay strong! Sooner or later (hopefully sooner), these withdrawal symptoms will run their course and we'll feel back to "normal" again!
Decko
Posted
Just a quick update. I'm now 3 weeks without taking any Mirtazapine and starting to feel better. Sleep is still a little iffy, but it's getting better. The itching is still there, but manageable (taking a couple Benadryl before bed). Ive lost 25lbs in the three weeks I've been off of it!
rob03933 Decko
Posted
Decko,
Glad to hear your starting to feel better and that's a heck of a weight loss for 3 weeks. My worst issues have been headaches and dry eyes which are really aggravating. I've been using hydroxyzine to help me sleep at night but only hoping to use that as a stop gap until the worst of the mirtazapine withdrawal is over which I hope is soon!! Keep getting better Decko and keep me updated.