Mirtazapine diet club
Posted , 48 users are following.
I thought I would start a thread about trying to lose weight on this drug. If others are currently dieting, please add your experiences here. I would like to discover whether we gain weight on mirtazapine purely because it increases our appetite, or whether other factors are at play. I certainly gained weight quickly when I started on mirtazapine (around 1.5 stone). My appetite was revenous, especially for sugary foods. I tried to com off mirtazapine around 6 months in and failed. I lost half a stone in the week I waas off it, but most of that was due to severe nausea. When I went back on the drug I did not gain more than a couple of pounds, but I was being very careful what I ate. My weight has been steady now for two years.
I am not happy carrying around the extra stone however, and so have decided to diet. I am on day 8 and it is VERY hard. But I have lost two pounds so far. This is with me still eating 1700 - 1800 calories a day. I have a very active physical job and so my daily calorie requirement is 2100.
I have also started taking raspberry ketones and green coffee bean extract as of this morning in the hope that it will help me to burn fat. The interesting thing is, the amouont of weight I have lost is the same as would be expected from a person who is not on mirtazapine.
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3 likes, 210 replies
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
Sooo... I am still off mirt for now. with my history of obesity, and still being too big and needing to lose weight, the thought alone of gaining lbs by taking mirt makes me extremely anxious and depressed.
I took it for one week and barely ate anything (under 1000 cal/day) and still gained 4 lbs. talk about OCD...
About two weeks ago I told my pdoc that I just couldnt handle the weight gain, even though I felt "myself again" on mirt. He could absolutely NOT understand my decision.
Yesterday I saw him again. In the meantime he talked to a colleague who has done major research in regards to psych drugs induced weight gain, obesity etc. She told him that even patients who either are overweight or have had weight issues in the past and are about to lose their eyesight would reject any drug that makes them gain weight and rather lose their eyesight.
That's something a "normal" person wouldnt understand and I think it was really important for my pdoc to hear this. He was much more understanding and helpful yesterday than he was two weeks ago.
So I've now been referred to see the "specialist" in person. Maybe she can help. In the meantime I have to find out why my kidney/creatinine levels are elevated. Ugh. Because bad kidneys would mean that I can't take any of the alternative drugs....
I feel like I am wasting time... want to feel better now and not wait another 6 weeks for the next appointment and maybe go out without a solution. Sigh.
I suppose the good thing is, that I am doing "good enough" right now. The depression isnt gone, but it's under control. And I can use the time until I see that specialist to lose another few pounds.
Sigh.... Depression sucks!
evergreen Mermaid3011
Posted
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
It's a crutch but hey.... i cant do anything right now and I think that's what makes me so depressed today. This feeling of having to wait.... for someone else to make a decision that affects me, not them. Ugh....
sunset17 Mermaid3011
Posted
SylviaLockwood Mermaid3011
Posted
I think your decision is absolutely understandable. Medication is a very personal thing, and what works for some people doesn't work for others.
I also have depression/OCD/anxiety symptoms. Have you ever been on escitalopram (Lexapro)? I don't know the details of how it might interact with kidney funcitoning, but it's a relatively low side effect drug that helps with OCD and depression. I'm actually on both mirt AND lexapro, but the lexapro alone does help keep my depression/OCD managable.
Best of luck to you!
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
its so good to feel understood!!
i have had a pretty bad day yesterday. I can feel the difference between days that I'm taking mirt and days I am not. It's incredible. anyway, for the last two weeks I haven't taken mirtazapine. My podcast is now getting why, but he also doesn't want to try something new until I have had that a specialist appointment.
but yesterday it got so bad that I came from work and instantly went to bed with a double dose of zopiclone, double clonazepam and one mirtazapine. Got up at 9 pm to walk the dog and went back to sleep with another 2zopi and 2chlonazapam.
obviously I slept extremely well. Dreaming I was lady Godiva! LOL
i am now of course back to OCDing about the weight gain. So I am on a strict diet. Pretty much just protein meal replacement bars, water and appetite suppressants.
Happy and hungry seems to be my choice for now...
I'll take mirt as long as I don't gain weight and as long I can stay on my diet.
love be you all!!
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
Three weeks ago I took mirt for 7 days, gained 2 lbs despite strict diet and told my psychiatrist that the mirt was great, but I couldn't take the weight gain. It literally made me crazy, stepping on the scale twice a day etc.
he didn't understand and reacted fairly rude.
10 days later I saw him again. I did well for the first week after stopping mirt, but could feel the depression coming back. So i explained again that I would need mirtazapine but at the same time I would need something to make up for the weight gain.
My psychiatrist had - in the meantime - spoken to a colleague who is an expert in this field (weight gain on psychotropics ) and she explained to him that people who have had weight issues in the past are very sensitive when it comes to medication induced weight gain. She told him that she had patients who were losing their eyesight and still opted not to take a medication that could stop them from going blind, but was making them gain weight.
i think he had a little bit more understanding for my decision NOT to take mirt until he can give me a solution (topiramate or metformin).
sadly he wasn't willing to prescribe me any of these right now. He wants me to see that specialist first and then figure out wha to do next. That though can take weeks since she is very very busy.
sounds all good, right?!
well... But after being off mirt for 2 weeks now, my depression is worsening. Suicidal ideation. No interest in anything.... Etc.
Friday last week was the worst and I decided to take mirt fir the weekend, then stop during the week and hope that the 30-40 hr half life of the medication will tide me over a few days without weight gain. Possibly until wed or thu, so I could take 1 mirt every 3 days....
pewwww seriously. This is way more complicated as people think it is!!
Lets see if this weekend had any impact. I took 15 mg twice and ate 1100 calories per day.
tomorrow I'll go back up to 1600 cal per day but not taking mirt.
crossing fingers!!!
keithowen99 Mermaid3011
Posted
I started a trial six months ago where I also take Mirtazapine 30 mg along with 40 mg Citalopram.
Prior to this I had also been on a diet losing 3 1/2 stone but was still very unhappy. Dieting was easy because I was so depressed and just did not want to eat.
Since being on the trial from a mental health point of view I cannot remember when I felt to well and happy with my life but from a weight point of view it has piled on.
I am currently about a stone heavier than at my lightest and seem to be able to maintain this but cannot lose any more which is simply due to my appetite and feeling so well.
I could lose the extra stone but currently I choose not to but know if I do not keep my appetite in check all the weight I lost will come bouncing back so I am currently doing the 5-2 diet. What I put on over the weekend I lose Monday to Friday and then start all over again.
I suppose I have to take the rough with the smooth and will want to lose the extra stone at some stage but I am on this trial for another 6 months and want to maintain the improvement in my mental health so will have to be a stone heavier for now.
If you have any wonder cures for me to lose the extra stone please share :-)
Mermaid3011 keithowen99
Posted
i wish I had a miracle drug at hand that would make pounds disappear but for now I have to wait and see if my doc perscribes me either topiramate or metformin.
these two have been proven in clinical studies to stop or even reverse the weight gain caused by psychotropics like mirtazapine.
i personally think that metformin should work better but if you asked me right now, I'd even eat mice droppings at midnight behind a birch tree standing on one leg and howling like a wolf
of course there is always the option of getting my hands on metformin and doing an off the record trial, without my psychiatrists knowledge, but obviously that's something I don't want to do or promote.
evergreen Mermaid3011
Posted
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
For this week I'll go with every 2nd or 3rd night and maybe by next week I can convince my psychiatrist to give me one topiramate or metformin. We'll see...
keithowen99 evergreen
Posted
I started a trial six months ago where I also take Mirtazapine 30 mg along with 40 mg Citalopram.
Prior to this I had also been on a diet losing 3 1/2 stone but was still very unhappy. Dieting was easy because I was so depressed and just did not want to eat.
Since being on the trial from a mental health point of view I cannot remember when I felt to well and happy with my life but from a weight point of view it has piled on.
I am currently about a stone heavier than at my lightest and seem to be able to maintain this but cannot lose any more which is simply due to my appetite and feeling so well.
I could lose the extra stone but currently I choose not to but know if I do not keep my appetite in check all the weight I lost will come bouncing back so I am currently doing the 5-2 diet. What I put on over the weekend I lose Monday to Friday and then start all over again.
I suppose I have to take the rough with the smooth and will want to lose the extra stone at some stage but I am on this trial for another 6 months and want to maintain the improvement in my mental health so will have to be a stone heavier for now.
If you have any wonder cures for me to lose the extra stone please share :-)
evergreen keithowen99
Posted
Mermaid3011 evergreen
Posted
I dont want to sounds here like weight loss is more important than mental health and happiness! It sure isnt.
In my case it's just that I am a donut away from getting type II diabetes and where is the sense in that? Exchanging depression for something else?
So over the weekend I stuck to 1100-1200 cal per day and maintained my weight (256.8 or 18.5 stones!! yikes). Considering that mirtazapine is still in my system today, I will still have to keep my cal intake low, but with going to work I'll have to cut myself some slack and go up to 1300-1500.
Anyway - i'll keep you guys posted and also want to hear how your journeys are going!!!
Talking about journey - I'll be visiting a friend this easter weekend in New Hampshire and wont be online as much probably. And I KNOW we will eat more, so .... ugh... get ready for a rant! LOL
philip14659 Mermaid3011
Posted
Mermaid3011 philip14659
Posted
Obviously these meds also require that one watches the calorie intake, exercises adequately and CBT is supposed to help as well to make the lifestyle change reality.