Mirtazapine withdrawal

No problem samdenison, I'm no doctor but if it's stress your taking mirtazipine for then maybe your withdrawal might not be as bad as mine as I am taking it for depression and anxiety,

Taking you med every other day withdrawal is a common practise and might be beneficial for you,

Did it help with your stress levels btw?and weight gain is very common as mirt is an appetite stimulant, I gained about a stone and can't shake it off even going to the gym, that stones going nowhere.

Good luck

At the time I was suffering from anxiety and depression brought on by the stress. I am normally a very positive thinker. I am In a very positive state of mind now. Was that because of the mirt or because of me?I couldn't say.

The weight gain is beginning to upset me. I'm just about right now but fear putting on anymore will make me look like..... Well I'm sure I don't need to go there.

It's good to know support is out there. If you look for if.

Thanks

I stumbled upon this site while looking up long tern use side effects etc of Mirtazapine. SO glad I found this site! I've been on this drug for almost a year now with mostly successful results. I started off on 15mg for several weeks then went up to 30mg. After a few months on the 30mg dose I started feeling SO tired and foggy headed. My GP put me back on the 15mg does and after 1 week I felt like I was going backwards!! GP had me straight up stop Mirt and start Wellbutrin.Well...OMG...worst two days of my life!!! Until finding this site I honestly thought I was having a reaction to the Wellbutrin but I'm now convinced it was withdraw from Mirtazapine! I cannot believe the GP or even the pharmacy didn't inform me of the horrible effect with just straight up stopping. I cried for two days straight and did not sleep. I stopped Wellbutrin after just two doses and went back on 15mg of Mirtazapine.I cannot tolerate the 30mg dose (I get jittery) so the GP tried me on 22.5mg. NOPE! So, I'm back on 15mg at night. My goal is get off it completely but even with the small dosage change from 22.5 to 15 I notice the anxiety feeling and shakes. I'm going to start an exercise program and then, hopefully, start to get off this drug. My mother-in-law suggested taking a sharp knife and just scraping small portions off the pill each week rather than going down by halves. Anyone ever try this before? I know it would take a while doing it this way but cold turkey was the worst thing ever!!!!

Hi there 3sillykids...I hope you don't mind me shortening your user name. It is possible to reduce doses by scraping bits off the tablet. However you need to make sure that you take the same amount everyday. You need a good set of electronic scales that can detect tiny weight decreases and take the same amount of tablet in weight everyday until you are ready to reduce again. The slower you reduce the less withdrawals. I think there is probably advice on how to do this on the internet. Have a look back through previous posts for more advice generally and good luck

Alright,

So it's been a week since I've completely stopped the mirtazapine and although I am now sleeping slightly better, I am having ridiculous allergy symptoms...Stuffed up, burning dry eyes, and then a couple of random severe itching episodes. Not exaggerating. I am now doped up on Benadryl, which is hardly helping.

I thought, surely these two things CANNOT possibly be related... Apparently mirtazapine works on certain receptors that allow it to have an antihistamine effect and given I was on a high dose for several years, these withdrawal symptoms are not just in my head.

I'm just hoping they don't last too long. I don't have an appointment with my doc yet and so I don't know if I should reintroduce the mirt at a low dose again or just stick it out. Ick!

Thanks...I plan on researching it more and I'm sure my husband can find me a sensitive scale.

Just-dance....I used to have allergy symptoms ALL the time. I was surprised to find out that the Mirtazapine was having a good effect on my allergies. Never would have guessed it

I never considered the possibility of the symptoms returning if I go off it! One more thing for me to consider.

Hope you find relief soon!

Hi There,

Mirtazapine is a strong anti histamine. At 3,75 mg you would already have a relief of symptons. It is helpfull to start an alternative anti histamine during withdrawel of mirtazapine. Cetrizine, or occasional cinnizarine for nausea.

It's very sad to read everyone's struggle with Mirtazapine. My father took this drug for six weeks and it had a horrendous affect on him. He was very scared and withdrawn and suffered frequent episodes of total panic.

The doctor repeatedly altered the dose until he was on 45 mg, despite his fears and complaints.

He had an appointment scheduled to see the doctor again to come off the drug completely. But the drug had made him suicidal and he took his own life three days before the appointment.

There is an inquest in to my Dad's death but nothing will bring him back, it has destroyed my family. This was totally out of character as my Dad was a real fighter, the bravest man I knew, with a loving family and little grand daughter he adored.

I implore anyone considering mirtazapine to read the side effects before considering whether it is worth the risk.

Oh Rachel. I'm so sorry to hear your sad news. It is devastating to hear that a drug drove your father to take his own life.

I am even more Determined to come off them now!

I am so sorry about your father. Never forget that is was his illness combined with his meds that made him do this. Mirtazapine is a black box med,

Thank you Sam Denison.. I'm sure you will do it. Good luck and my very best wishes to you

Hey guys, have not checked in in a long while. I'm totally 100%. Took me a good 3 weeks I think to get through it. I had to see a psychologist a couple of times while going through it. He said another reason why I was feeling so bad too is because I was amping my symptoms up MORE by having anxiety about withdrawal. Which I think it was true to an extent.

Finally what I learned to do was turn "what if" thinking into "so what" thinking and it REALLY helped my withdrawal. I will never touch Mirtazapine again!

The insomnia was awful, the pacing, shaking, night sweats, 120bpm heart rate, body shocks, HORRIBLE.

Epsom salt baths helped! Magnesium uptake helped too!!! And seeing a psychologist really helped too I think.

Good Luck everyone!

Chris. Congratulations on getting clear of mirt. How did you stop taking mirt. Ct or reducing the dosage? Plus did you work at the same time?

I'm definitely coming off mirt and am going to try ct I took my last tab on Saturday night. I'm frightened of how withdrawal will affect me tho. Will I be able to work through it?

Rachel, my sincere condolences about your father,,really that's just heartbreaking news,i have learned over the years that some medicines work really well for some and others have terrible consequences.

I'm reducing my dosage on mirtazapine,,it's a tough medicine to get off of,but it has really helped me over the last year,but it's time for me to stop it..

No words from me can console your loss..and i guess you must be asking why?over and over?, i guess all drugs especially anti depressants effect different people in so many different ways,

God bless you and your family

Hello everybody,

I have been on a daily 45mg dose of Mirtazapine for three years. In all this time I have felt that the medication has done nothing to improve my depression (I once told the doctor who prescribed them that I wish I had never seen the damn tablets. Believe me,he wasn't impressed with that remark). I know antidepressants are not a magical cure,but what they have done to me is make me feel tired,lethargic,disinterested in many things,and feel sick. In the past I have tried to come off them gradually,with the doctor's consent,but doing this made me feel even worse,and I ended back on 45mg. Well,two days ago,I went back to the doctor to ask if I could try again to come off the tablets.He agreed,reluctantly. Now I have been taking a 30mg Mirtazapine pill for the past two nights,and don't I know it. That horrible worthless,sick to the stomach,nauseous and doubly lethargic feeling has returned. Now I feel I just want to sleep......and 45mg tablets were bad enough for making me want to sleep. I am off my food and just feel horrible. I have recently had lots of blood tests done to check if anything else is wrong with me,but all results were fine. The doctor now sees me as a nuisance patient,having to go back again and again,because I feel unwell. It seems that he,my doctor,does not want to acknowledge the fact that Mirtazapine have been a disaster as far as I'm concerned.