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I'm curious...

Posted , 11 users are following.

david48602
david48602

Guys, I don't believe this...

I don't know how many of you are familiar with me; I have been on here for a couple of months now, making posts and talking about my Mirtazapine experience. Now, recently, I have decided to begin slowly coming off the drug, because I am not happy with it and the things it's doing to my body. 

Now, I have health anxiety; I'm slowly beginning to reign it in, but it's still there. So, the smallest things startle me and send me off the boil. Recently, I went to my GP because I have been suffering with pains in my... wait for it, there's a list... my forearms, my wrists, my hands, my fingers, the joints in my fingers; I have a shoulder that has been messed up for months, and refuses to get better. I get sore legs, sore knees, feet, and all this time I have been thinking... I am going bonkers; I'm going absolutely bonkers.

I had convinced myself I had Fibromayalga, which is highly unlikely, given that I am 27 years old, and a man. The doctor looked at me as if I had sprouted a second head. Anyway, the doctor diagnosed some things he thought it might be - Tennis Elbow, Tendonitis, slight muscle inflammation, or simply just my body being stiff and tense from being anxious so frequently.

Now, recently, I looked up the side effects of Mirtazapine, and low and behold, some topics from this very site came up and there were people going through exactly what I am going through. Granted, those threads were from quite some time ago; we're talking years ago. So, I decided to post this, to see if there are any members currently on here that have experienced or are currently experiencing these kinda symptoms.

I'm referring, mostly, to joint and muscle pain (my muscles also twitch quite frequently).

So... anybody with me?

3 likes, 26 replies

26 Replies

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  • betsy0603
    betsy0603 david48602

    Edited

    Yes, I'm with you, David!  I am reducing mirtazapine and am down to 11.5 mg, but recently had a spate of muscle twitching, my left tricep and my right thigh.  I also have a mystery injury of my right elbow, the inside of the elbow - tennis elbow?  Well, I don't play tennis and can't think of a triggering event; it's just a chronic pain when lifting things. It doesn't seem to want to heal.

    I read this somewhere:  Serotonin constricts muscles leading to muscle damage. When you attempt to use a constricted muscle it rips and tears.

    Hmmm.

    • david48602
      david48602 betsy0603

      Edited

      Betsy, I have been practically climbing the walls of my apartment, baffled as to why my body is so sore all of a sudden. I was genuinely starting to believe it was all a figment of my imagination. My shoulder, my right shoulder, has been so sore for months now. My fingers, the joints of my fingers, my forearms kinda throb. The small of my back, my pelvis, my hips. It's not 'painful', per say... it's like a dull ache. I am relieved, though, to see that someone else is twitching. Mirtazapine may be good for helping a patient get a good night's sleep, but that is where the benefits end. It has done NOTHING for my anxiety, nothing. I ache, my body is sore, like a car ran over the top of it. Enough is enough.
    • david48602
      david48602 betsy0603

      Posted

      I'm on 15mg, and I would say I'm on them... I would say between 3 and 4 months, so not too long.
    • betsy0603
      betsy0603 david48602

      Posted

      Since they aren't doing anything for you, you'll probably want to taper off before your system gets more committed to Mirt.  It already has its hooks in you, so it won't be fun :-(  You could try 7.5 mg and see if you can handle it, might make the pain issues go away but might also be too big of a jump down for you.  Many of us on here are doing a much slower taper out of necessity, making our own liquid for dosing smaller dosage cuts by syringe
  • Rosieogrady
    Rosieogrady david48602

    Posted

    None of those symptoms David, but horrific weight gain of 21lbs over ,the last year, after listening to the Jeremy Vine Show on BBCR2 on Monday this drug is the worst of the lot for weight gain, I was prescribed it as I'm a lifelong insomniac, it did that job ok, I was on 30mg per night, I've cut it by half the last 2 nights, no withdrawal, cutting back to a quarter tonight and tomorrow, then off it for good, I'd rather be tired than fat!!!
    • susan32309
      susan32309 Rosieogrady

      Posted

      Hi Rosie - I missesd the programme, what did it have to say, I'm currently doing Slimming World in an effort to reduce my weight but it's a real hard slog just to lose a couple of pounds.   My husband on the othr hand has lost almost a stone!   
    • david48602
      david48602 Rosieogrady

      Posted

      Oh, yeah, they'll put you to sleep. That's the one thing they do correctly. But when you wake up each morning, do you not feel like... I dunno, groggy?
    • susan32309
      susan32309 Rosieogrady

      Posted

      Is that too sharp a taper Rosiegrady?   I did try a couple of months ago by cutting my tablet in half for a week, I became so dizzy that I couldn't stand, extreme nausea .  . . 
  • charles98819
    charles98819 david48602

    Edited

    David

    i am also experiencing same thing, shoulder's joint,Wrist joints and finger joints pains. I have been on mirt for 6 years now and started feeling the shoulder joint pains 2 years ago and the wrist ,finger joints pain started last year it has been difficult to for me to link it to mirt but reading same symptoms from different people shows it might be mirt

    • david48602
      david48602 charles98819

      Edited

      Charles, if there are a significant amount of people all singing from the same hymn sheet and complaining of the same symptoms, then perhaps Mirtazapine is responsible. 
  • Rosieogrady
    Rosieogrady david48602

    Edited

    Hi susie32309, I heard the programme by accident as I was driving at the time, I have no other side affects apart from weight gain, last night was the night I was down to a quarter, no ill affect at all, forget slimming world unless you come off these belly ballooners, I tried last September and was losing only 1/2lb most weeks and I was religiously sticking to the diet, you should be able to get the Jeremy Vine show on I player it was BBC RADIO2 on Monday 20th June at approx 1pm worth a listen as they were talking about a lot of drugs especially this flaming mirtazapine gggrrrr 😈

    • susan32309
      susan32309 Rosieogrady

      Posted

      thank you Rosiegrady - I found it last evening and listened to it, I do wish doctors would tell us about potential side effects before prescribing - I had knee replacement surgery last year and when I asked the surgeon what I could do to help with the recovery and long term usage of the replacement he said just one thing . . .  you don't need to lose weight, but don't gain any - the more you weigh the more pressure it puts on the replacement!   I went to SW as I noticed my weight was starting to creep up, I lose 2-lb one week and it's back the next, I'm following it religiously but I just can't get rid of the weight - I know I'm doing it right as my husband has lost 12-lbs now!   I'm on 30 mg but cut the tablet in half last evening in an effort to start a slow taper!   Thank you so much for getting back to me . . . 

       

    • Rosieogrady
      Rosieogrady susan32309

      Edited

      Hi, I'm not going to blame my GP for not telling me the full facts, I read the leaflet for myself and did note that increased appetite and weight gin we possible, then promptly forgot about it til I heard Jeremy Vine and though oh balls I'll have to come off it, image lifelong insomniac and I was going through some pretty horrific back pain which when you can't sleep anyway is a killer, anyway back hip and pelvis fixed now so definitely time to get off these drugs, I've been on them for over a year and think my GP prescribed them as a last ditch attempt to help me with getting some sleep during the most painful times I'm doing great with the cutting back and thankfully no withdrawal at all, I'll be so glad to get into my clothes again, though I expect losing the weight will be harder than gaining it

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