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Coming off mirtazapine

Posted , 11 users are following.

evergreen
evergreen

I thought I would start a new thread to give people tips for coming off this drug. I have gained so much advice and support from people on here and I owe my (so far) painless withdrawal to them. People like Calmer and Betsy, and plenty others too. I have been on 30mg mirtazapine for four years. I tried to come off them a couple of years ago and failed miserably, returning to my full dose after 10 days of awful anxiety and insomnia, as well as migraines and nausea. I had cut my dose to 15mg for a week and then dropped to zero.

This time I read every thread on here about mirtazapine withdrawal and started off really slowly, cutting down by just 3.75mg for two weeks. Then by a further 3.75 mg. At the same time I started taking a lot of inositol. I take a huge heaped teaspoon in my tea every morning. I had only slight nausea when I first started dropping my dose but I think that was me getting used to the inositol. Once I was down to 22.5mg of mirt, with no withdrawal symptoms, I figured I could go a bit faster and dropped my dose down to 15mg. I had no withdrawal symptoms after ten days and so have now dropped my dose to 11.25mg. I use a simple pill cutter from ebay to cut my tablets. So I am now on three quarters of a 15mg tablet. Mirtazapine had pooped out on me and so I already have terrible insomnia. I take temazepam some nights and benadryl on others to help me with that.

I will post my progress here. Who knows, I may fail miserably, but whatever the outcome, I hope it will help others. I was terrified of coming off mirtazapine, but now I am excited by it. I think the key is to take it really slowly and work out the pace your body can cope with. The smaller your dose goes, thee smaller the decrease in your dose should be. Good luck everyone, and please post your own experiences here. I know some people have really suffered despite coming off mirt very slowly. Everyone is different and I think everyone's experience can be a real help to others.

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  • jay09663
    jay09663 evergreen

    Posted

    Hi all, just wanted some opinions please following my GP appt today. Im on 15mg of mirt and have had a significant weight gain ( which I'm currently on a sort of experiement to see if I can lose any weight on  HFLC diet, but thats a different thread!)

    Anyway, back to the point, saw GP who noticed the weight gain! He then promptly advised me that he wanted to stop the  mirt and "try me" on sertraline. When I asked about tapering and WD symptoms of mirt he told me to take both the mirt and sertraline for 3 days then stop the mirt, as there are no "real withdrawal symptoms with it!"

    Having read all the suffering people go through when stopping one drug and starting another I really don't know what to do for the best. I've spent a good hour researching sertraline and although its unlikely to cause weight gain its got loads of other potential side effects. Ive got myself in a bit of a state and to be honest I am seriously considering tapering the mirt and not starting anything else. It's a minefield! How would I know what is mirt WD or sertraline effects??

    I start my CBT next week and have a sick note for another 2 weeks so I don't have to go back to work (a blessed relief as its sooo stresful at the moment)

    What to do?

    • Calmer
      Calmer jay09663

      Posted

      Exactly ... you wouldn't know what was causing any side effects or start up on a new drug effects.  I certainly wouldn't just switch within a few days from one AD to another - am I right in thinking this is because of the weight gain?  How long have you been on Mirt Jay?  Is Mirt working for you?  Is it depression/anx/insomnia?  

      I wouldn't want to switch at all if I were doing ok with the Mirt, the weight does stabilise somewhere along the line, the first few months may be harder.  But as you are starting CBT next week, I strongly agree with what you are saying, Sert may well cause you more problems, especially as it is best to WD so slowly from Mirt' - not sure what training doctors get regards giving out info to come off in 3 days!!! totally wrong.

      Although you talk of tapering the Mirt' and not having any other AD, it may be wise to continue with the Mirt', using it for a bridge to tide you through the CBT course, 8 weeks maybe?  I did the course, loved it, so very strengthening, lots of books out there to affirm learning also.  

      Evergreen will be able to advise with weight loss, see above also.

      Wishing youu well.

    • jay09663
      jay09663 Calmer

      Posted

      Hi Calmer, It started with insomnia then anxiety and I think low mood from dealing with that but GP says I'm depressed ( or was) as at the moment Im a whole lot better than I was , sleeping fantastically well, anxiety still surfaces now and then but much much much less intensely and I can say to myself " thats anxiety" and the feelings subside, strange but true! I've been off work since christmas so I think that in itself has helped enormously as its a stressful job.

      I'm rambling, sorry!

      The GP wants me off because my BMI is now 43 he started talking about risks and benefits.

      He's given me a prescription for sertraline but no more mirt, I'm such a clutz I should have held my corner but was not expecting it so he caught me a bit off guard and now Im not ure what to do! Thinking about it hes unlikely to prescribe further mirt so I can taper slowly!

      Thanks for being around, finding this forum and all the amazing supportive people is a blessing

    • Calmer
      Calmer jay09663

      Posted

      Biggest concerns are coming off Mirt in 3 days, which us virtually CT & what difficulty that may cause - another AD can't help wd from Mirt. I understand now about the bmi.

      Insomnia often causes anx' - me too, nasty - maybe ask doctor for longer time to taper from Mirt ? Tell him you've researched from pharmacy / chemist - they don't like quoting internet do they !! X

    • evergreen
      evergreen jay09663

      Posted

      I agree with Calmer. Three days is far too quick to come off mirtazapine. I tried to come off it and go onto trazadone a couple of years ago because of the weight issues. I only lasted ten days. It was a terriblle experience.
  • evergreen
    evergreen

    Posted

    Good morning everyone!

    I am very emotional today, but not in a bad way. A bit happy tearful. Thinking about music I love, that kind of thing. This will be my second day without mirtazapine.

    I have also experienced a resurgence in my writing over the past two weeks, as though my creative side is being reawakened. I am currently writing my third novel another supernatural thriller which had been sitting stale for a couple of years! Now it really has come to life again.

    My lack of appetite has also returned, which is a PITA because I really have to force myself to eat anything before teatime. But that's just me and definitely not WD. Eating is a chore I need to do to get me through the physical tasks in my day.

    But overall I am very, very happy right now. Just hope the doctor doesn't set me back hugely tomorrow. Just a note of warning to self though; often WD can give yoou a mild sense of euphoria, and every high has it's low, so I hope this doesn't mean I'm in for a crash!

    How is everyone?

    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 evergreen

      Posted

      You are right about the initial euphoria, a WD symptom in it's own right (they aren't all bad!) but at least you are full on aware of what can happen, and that is empowering.  Very exciting that your creativity is coming back!  

      In hindsight looking at 20 years of AD use, I have realized what I have lost over the years:  creativity, excitement, truly feeling joy, generally feeling numb.  It saddens me because I have been this way for my whole relationship with my husband.  I am hoping when I finally get off (and hopefully sooner) that I will emerge a more passionate person.  Creativity?  Wow, that would be a bonus.  A p-doc author writes of it, calling it "psych med spellbinding," where we just don't see what the meds are doing to us, chalking it up to other things, but I clearly see it now!

      I am excited for you, Evergreen (as excited as I can get, at least LOL)!  If WD does show up, I hope it is so mild as to be tolerable and that you will continue to reep the benefits of being the true You!

    • betsy0603
      betsy0603

      Posted

      Oh, as for me, the dry cutting brought me right out of the wave I had been in.  I made too big a batch of liquid mirt and my hubby thinks it was losing it's potency and so it was like doing a rapid taper.  Can't handle that!  I'm fixed right up, had a very active day yesterday, ended up exhausted but happy to have gotten a lot done!
    • evergreen
      evergreen betsy0603

      Posted

      I am really pleased you are back on course, Betsy. Your husband may be right about it losing its potency. I ended up keeping my batches for two weeks in the fridge, and it seemed all right. However, the recommendation is for only four days, I think.

      I did start to feel a bit down again late morning and so made myself go on the cross trainer to get my natural endorphines up. It worked because I feel much brighter again now.

    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 evergreen

      Posted

      Yup, I knew about the four day thing but since you were getting away with it with larger batches I thought I'd do the same ;-)  Didn't work for me!  

      I'm glad you were able to pull yourself up with the cross trainer!

  • evergreen
    evergreen

    Posted

    Good news. I managed to get the temazepam on repeat, one pack every two months then review in six months. I am sooo much happier now. What a lovely locum he was!

    Bad news is that I hardly slept last night. Although in total I probably got 4 hours of broken sleep and I feel pretty bad today. I think this is just something I will have to push through. I thought the mirt was having no positive effect on sleep, but obviously it was. The thing that's changed is now once I wake up in the small hours, I can't get back off to sleep. Whilst still on the mirt, I could, even though it wasn't helping me with sleep onset, it was obviously sedating me enough to mean that I could quickly fall back to sleep if woken. But it will get better, I'm sure of it, once my body readjusts itself.

    I also have no appetite whatsoever. I feel slightly nauseous, but not unbearably so. I just don't want any food, even chocolate. But that's how I was in the mornings before mirt. I called it my morning sickness.

    However, I am in very good spirits! I know I can get through this. I am loving being AD free, and feel really alive. So Calmer, Betsy and everyone else tapering off this stuff, it feels good to be off. You are doing the right thing. I feel the fat melting away. It's like a whole layer of it has already come off my body. You'll get there, and it really is worth it.

    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 evergreen

      Posted

      I'm sorry you had a rough night, Evergreen, but very happy that you got your temazepam!  And thank you for the encouragement, that it is worth it!  So looking forward to the day I'll be free!  I hope your sleep sorts out real soon :-)
    • Calmer
      Calmer evergreen

      Posted

      Hi one and all, just checking in.  So good news and bad news Evergreen, beggars belief how 0.1 mg of mirt can help you sleep but 0.0 can't,  I have heard of people staying at the final dose for a month or more mind you!  So glad you got the Temazapam, that's a huge relief ~ I feel it for you haha.

      You may need to have the protein shakes if you get the queezies, some use it for breakfast as it then helps the appetite for later, otherwise sickness can stay.

      Nothings' changed for me, still the same, been out all day and felt great, sit down to PC and on comes the blurrey 'Mirt' eyes and the fatigue ... now to run around the kitchen and cook !

      I hope you sleep better tonight.

    • evergreen
      evergreen Calmer

      Posted

      Thanks, Calmer. Strange how the fatigue hits you when you sit down. I suppose you must have used up all your energy when you're out and about. I'm very fatigued mentally and physically today so have only done the bare minimum (although when you have horses to care for and dogs to walk, that's still quite a lot). I also have been out 3 times to take/fetch my son today and have a late one to do tonight. I am really hungry now and like you, am busy cooking dinner. At least I have an appetite at night. The protien shakes are a really good idea, thank you.
    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 evergreen

      Posted

      I finally figured out that I am having....mood swings :-(  I started the day off feeling ok, had a nice phone call with someone, laughing and cheery.  Not long after that I felt myself sliding down, had a crying spell, feeling worried that depression will always be knocking at my dooor, figured I'd go out and train the dogs on sheep and cows since I have a stockdog trial coming up.  I figured I'd be on the couch after that, nursing my blue mood, but ended up feeling better and stayed out in the sun and did a couple of small projects and some weeding.  THEN I figured I'd better come in and recharge.

      So, mood swings.  I know it is part of withdrawal to have them, but dang, when I'm in the blue phase or anxious phase it is the worst!  I am such a weenie; I know I can't handle full-blown withdrawal.  Hoping it gets no worse than this!

       

    • evergreen
      evergreen betsy0603

      Posted

      I had the most terrible mood swings whilst withdrawing. I didn't mention them as just thought it was me, but now I'm off completely, the swings have all but gone. I could be feeling euphoric one moment and hopeless the next. It was as though I had fast cycling bipolar disorder. But I know it was with drawal now. I hope you get through it ok, Betsy. It does get easier.
    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 evergreen

      Posted

      Thank you Evergreen, good to know.  I think I had it in a milder form all along since tapering, maybe even while on the full dose of Effexor, just took it as feeling tired or low, but this was more extreme.  I've read of people fast cycling due to the drugs or during withdrawal,  and then they are diagnosed as bipolor and put on anti-psychotics!.  When you are in it, it feels very real.  When it has passed, it's a little easier to get perspective. 

      I am so sorry you had such a rough night, but I'm glad the horse is ok.  My friend has a horse that colics frequently due to strongyle damage, so I get how distressing that is.

      What breed of horses do you have?  I forget, do you run a boarding stable? Hard work, caring for multiple horses!

    • evergreen
      evergreen betsy0603

      Posted

      Yes I board horses and this was one of my boarders. He was born here and so I am very attached to him. I have one of my own too. They are all warmbloods. Three here at the moment. Soon to be five.

      The weight is dropping off me at a very fast rate now, although a lot of it is due to the nausea, I think. Lack of sleep doesn't help. But so long as the horses stay well tonight and my son can sort out his own lift home, I am going to have a whole temazepam and an early night tonight. Maybe a glass of wine too.

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