Mirtazapine Reinstatement; Expected Timeframe to Stabilize
Posted , 4 users are following.
I've tapered Mirtazapine for about a year from 45mg to 7.5mg. When I got down to 15mg, I split the dose into 2 (7.5mg morn + 7.5mg night) bc this strategy worked well for me tapering Clonazepam 2 years ago. So I cont'd my taper by focusing on my night dose first (cont'd taking 7.5mg morn), and I jumped off my night dose of 2mg on 3/31. I felt great for first few weeks, then withdrawal hit me on 4/21. It wasn't bad but has gradually gotten worse (sleep disturbances, anxiety, depression, total lack of focus, etc.) over the last month. Since I have young children, I decided to reinstate my 2mg night dose on 5/26 because I couldn't sleep at all. My question is, how long should I expect to suffer before the withdrawal symptoms dissipate now that I have reinstated? I'm currently 4 days into to reinstating the 2mg dose and I still feel crummy.
1 like, 23 replies
sarah24378 david39626
Posted
so you still had the 7.5mg in the morning ?
we have a great support group if you find Jo Merriam on fb and send a friend request. it is a great group with loads of experience. i have tapered from 45 to 9 over 15 months.
david39626 sarah24378
Posted
Yes, I currently take 7.5mg in the morning (never stopped that one), and I've now reinstated the 2mg at night as of 4 days ago.
sarah24378 david39626
Posted
so are you on 9.5mg now ?
david39626 sarah24378
Posted
Yes, I'm back up to 9.5 as of 4 days ago.
nigel45109 david39626
Posted
okay, youve done exceedingly well 45mg to 15mg. of mirt. things must have improved for you during that time, or you never really needed that high a dose in the first place. whatever, you got to 15mg, while feeling well. it looks like you have gone too far with your reduction. your current decline will have been gradual, over a period of time. you need to go straight back to 7.5mg morning and night. tapering upwards will take too long, and may not work at all. go straight back to 7.5mg morning and night. if you havent got yourself in too bad a state, you ought to be much better in a few weeks, as mirt works relatively quickly. hopefully you will stabalise on 15mg. if you do, then you need to stick with 15mg for the forseeable future. once you are feeling okay on that, go back to taking 15mg at night, for the full sedative benefit for sleep. if you hadnt been pre occupied with coming off mirt completely, you probably would have felt even better on 15mg. mirt works considerably better at low doses.
david39626 nigel45109
Posted
So you're thinking I need to stay at that 15mg dose and don't try to taper anymore?
sarah24378 david39626
Posted
why were you trying to stop ?
i do not agree with nigel. Getting carefully off meds is a healthy goal. it may ger hars before it gets easier but ia often worth it
these neds are not really for long term use and taje a toll on our bodies. they can also stop working ans then you are in real trouble.
they are partof a toolkit to get better not the answer in themselves unless bp1 etc
i have been on and off meds for 15 years abd had to learn this the hard way
david39626 sarah24378
Posted
I was trying to stop because I felt better and better as I got lower and lower on my taper, and I'm very eager to try life w/o meds after much hard work. I've now been in therapies for 8 years and made so many life changes in the past 3-4 years (meditation/mindfulness/gratitude, nutrition/diet/supplementation, etc.). I guess I just hit a wall though and my brain/body need more time on the meds. I still want to get off, but I have to listen to my body.
nigel45109 david39626
Posted
essentially, by trying to come off mirt alltogether, it looks like yiuve discovered that 15mg of mirt is your ideal dose, and you could end uo feeling really good on that dose.
david39626 nigel45109
Posted
So do you think that the taper should stop permanently once I stabilize? ....or do you think I should taper much slower once I stabilize?
SerotoninSurfer david39626
Posted
To reiterate Nigel's point it looks like 15mg is your ideal dose and could/should stay on that permanently. I have found 30mg Mirt at night and 100mg is my sweet spot after 8 months of trial and error. You wouldnt withdraw from insulin if you had diabetes just like i can't withdraw from these meds due to chemical imbalance in my brain. You may have the same...speak to your psych about short term and long term managememt strategy
SerotoninSurfer
Posted
the 100mg i mentioned is Sertraline in the morning
david39626 SerotoninSurfer
Posted
I hear you. I just get nervous depending on these meds as I've experienced "poop-out" on Citalopram that threw me into horrendous withdrawal. So I'm always eager to try to see if I can get stable off of them.
sarah24378 david39626
Posted
i say get stable on 15. do bot split dose as it is a bedtime med then taper very slowely.
the group i mentioned can help with this
sarah24378 SerotoninSurfer
Posted
chemical imbalances can correct themselves with the help of meds depending on diagnosis.
many people get very ill go on meds then slowely come off.
david39626 sarah24378
Posted
Do you have a link for the group? I'm currently in the "Remeron Should be Illegal" group on Facebook, which is helpful.