Mirtazapine withdrawal timeline - help!
Posted , 76 users are following.
Hi, just wondering if anyone can give me some guidance of what to expect during withdrawal from Mirtazapine.
I have been taking 15 mg for about 8 months then tapered to 7.5 for a month and 3.75 for another month. I stopped taking it completely 3 weeks ago. Mirtazapine has helped me with sleep and anxiety to some extent but the weight gain (17 pounds) is more than I was willing to put up with.
I had no withdrawal symptoms during tapering or for the first 10 days after stopping. Since then my sleep has been getting gradually worse and right now can barely sleep at all without sleeping pill. I'm also feeling very tearful and having lots of negative thoughts. My appetite has reduced slightly although haven't lost any weight yet (unfortunately)
So questions for anyone has been through it... When did your withdrawal symptoms 'peak' and then start to get better? How quickly did your ability to sleep come back? And how long did it take you to lose weight gained?
I appreciate that everyone has a different experience, but it would be helpful just to have some idea of what's to come! Starting to feel a bit desperate especially with the insomnia. Thanks
2 likes, 213 replies
lu31517 helenj289
Posted
Hi everyone,
I have recently reduced from 30 to 15 very slowly ( 30 / 15 alternating then 22.5 / 15 alternating a few weeks each). I've now been 15 for 4 weeks and have been more tired than usual, for 2 weeks, but nothing else that I have noticed. I am now wanting to reduce from 15 to ending and from reading on here will do it very slowly.
I am planning on doing the same to go from 15 to 7.5 that I did for 15 to 30, ie, 15 / 7.5 alternate then 10-12/7.5 a few weeks each. Then the same down to nothing.
I went up to 45 this time last year and went back to 30 with no issues.
Is this a good sign that so far my reductions have not created much in the way of wd symptoms?
It's been freaking me out a bit reading this thread, as I had been thinking the next stage would go the same way (as long as I was as careful as I have been), but it seems like the last bit is potentially more difficult.
paun59797 lu31517
Posted
Hi Everyone,
Today is Day 34 off Mirtazapine. I am still feeling terrible with the worst symptoms being, painful sinuses, dry mouth, throbbing gums (basically all mouth/tongue issues) sweating at night has re-appeared, buzzing in head, dizziness and diarrhea. It turns out I have developed sinusitis (never had it before in my life) probably from Mirtazapine.Most other symptoms have settled down. I do not talk much about my mental state as I mostly feel heightened anxiety and panic. I know that going cold turkey may not have been the best route but the twitching and pain made me just want this poison out of my system and may in the end be as difficult... for me, as it sounds like this withdrawal is inevitable no matter how you do it. I am otherwise normally healthy at 58 years old and not overweight at 125lbs. I am sure my weight is more since Mirtazapine but I know that I have lost it over the last 5 weeks. If I don't lose a tooth over this I think I will be lucky. (been to dentist twice). To all of us hang in there and keep us posted.
lorraine52317 helenj289
Posted
Hi Helen
I have now been off venlafaxine for 4 weeks. I didn't taper as well as you did, but nevertheless tapered. I got really. Unwell for the first week e.g. nightmares, brain zaps, overwhelming nausea and headaches, tears, vertigo and a sense of despair 😯
Week 2.
It was hit and miss! Bad day, good day, 50 50 day etc.
Week 3
Nightmares continued, vertigo but less of it, minor zaps but very tearful.
Week 4
Mood swings, sleeping better (Nightmares on and off) little vertigo but importantly feeling so much better 😁 (Still feel dips of tiredness
2 days into week 5
Feeling a little moody/aggravated but 95% feeling normalised again.
I think 6 weeks or more is a good time to review progress. So much has changed for me over this period, I think the key is to go with whatever works for you, I cried buckets, slept a lot, wretched a whole lot, had headaches and vertigo like never before, but.... all this has brought me to this point. 😊😊😊😊😁
You will get there 100% Helen.
Well done for getting this far ?
Here if you need me
Lorraine
lorraine52317 helenj289
Posted
Sorry just noticed you on mirtazapine, I have recently come off this too after
Previous failed attempts. I followed the guidance of Evergreen on this site and tapered so slowly it was unbelievable I ended up taking a crumb for about 2 weeks before stopping all together. it is worth visiting her thread as they really work for me. On previous attempts I stopped at 3.75 mg but still had dreadful withdrawls. I then reinstated and kept reducing by way of a pill cutter until I scrapped a crumb of mirt off with my fingernail! which I did for about 2 weeks, then I can honestly say I had no discontinuation side-effects apart from a week of not sleeping very well. I hope this helps you a bit.
How are you today?
Morning_Rain lorraine52317
Posted
Have a couple questions on your taper of Mirtazapine please.
- How long were you on Mirtazapine, and at what dose?
- How did you taper down?
Thank you!
paun59797 helenj289
Posted
I am 42 days off Mirtazapine and I can say that things are a little better than last week and much better than when I started to withdraw. I am still VERY irritable and cranky, have intense sinus pressure now mostly around my nose (does not spread into my cheeks and face as much), dry mouth, rough/active tongue, diarrhea (but better), buzzing/humming in head and sweating. The brain zaps are gone and the unsteadiness when walking is almost gone too.I will be seeing both my GP and psychiatrist in the next couple of weeks and I will be letting them know that if they ever took this poison they would NEVER prescribe it again, or at least not without extensive discussions about the side effects and withdrawal problems.I have noticed that many people have dropped off this site after about 6 weeks. I take this as a good sign meaning that the symptoms have abated so much that life has become liveable. For those starting on this withdrawal road, I hope the information on this site gives you hope as it did me. It does get better. I will try to continue to post.
April1304 paun59797
Posted
Hi paun,about a year and a half ago having been on Venlaxine 150 for about two years (for depression and panic attacks) I had a bad panic episode which landed me in a/e I was interviewed by the resident psychiatrist and he started me on 7.5 of Mirtazapine and increased it to 15 mgs which I was on till last week.At one stage he upped the Mirtz.to 30mg as I didn't think I was getting any better but the increase only made me worse so back to 15mg,however almost 2 weeks ago I started down to 7.5 on his advice.Withdrawal is auful,racing heart,weakness and shakyness Im feeling so bad that Im considering visiting the a/e again!I hope I can get through this without doing so and oh yea,sweat is pouring off me as well.This drug should seriously be looked at again,I had to miss work today because I feel so bad I hope you are feeling much better yourself paud take care.
paun59797 helenj289
Posted
Hi April,
I am so sorry that you are going through this. I was also on veneflaxine (Pristiq). I was on 50 mg for several years with no problems then increased to 100 mg with terrible side effects and withdrawal. I am about 6-7 weeks off Mirtazapine cold turkey from a 45mg dose. I had been on this dose for 5 months (i.e. mid August 2017-early February 2018).I also have the side effects that you are suffering from such as the sweating, heart pounding and terrible unsteadiness/shaking. I could not drive for about 3 weeks as I was so shaky. Because of the impact most anti depressants have on your central nervous system, your entire body may be impacted at some point. I know mine is. I still have your symptoms and more but I must say that they are subsiding. I did not taper and I would not recommend it especially off a high dose like mine, but I felt I was in a lose lose situation. The side effects had poisoned me and made life unliveable but the withdrawal was just as bad. I want you to know that things do get better and for me it is time that is helping my body heal. My mind is trying to deal with my new life (withdrawal) and some anxiety/depression has returned. i am sure that you have read on this and other forums that people who tapered still had withdrawal symptoms. All I can say is that what you are going through sounds normal for withdrawal. At points I worried that I "had" something else. I will see my doctor next week and I will let her know that these medications should be thoroughly discussed with people prior to taking. I do believe that there is a light at the end of your tunnel and I hope that today is a better day. xo
Guest helenj289
Posted
paun59797 Guest
Posted
Hi Joy,
I stopped cold turkey 7 weeks ago and still have many symptoms of withdrawal. Hunger and weight gain were intense but have abated. I had a hollow hunger as if food was dropping into a bottomless pit and I could not get enough. I tried to fill up on protein instead of carbs but it was hard. Bananas seemed to fill me for a while as well. I was trying not to put on weight as well. After cold turkey the crazy hunger stopped after about 3 weeks. I did not find the Mirtazapine did anything but make my body and mind feel sick all over. Today I still have a very tense jaw, active tongue, terrible tinnitus, clumsiness, memory problems, vivid dreams, facial tension and irritability. I went to the dentist today because of the pain in my gums/mouth (for 6 weeks now) and due to the sinusitis I developed, I also started to grind my teeth. I have worn down the enamel off of my front tooth, so it is flat and bruised the root and possibly the nerve. I have been referred to an endodontist. So the pain and hell continues but many of the other terrible symptoms have gone. Crying was a part of it for me and it seems for many others. I believe that your issues sound "normal". It has taken a long time for me to feel a little better but I can tell you that it does get better. I think that once my dental issues are resolved things will be much better. Do not give up hope though, you can do it. I think I feel the same way as you do in just wanting this out of my system. Good luck and remember you can only do what you feel is best for you.
jen35333 paun59797
Posted
hi paun! i know its been awhile. did the tinnitus go away? this is my most distressing symptom
alexisacula helenj289
Posted
So after all this research on Mirt withdrawals what I am gathering is: No matter how slow you taper, you're completely screwed for who knows how long? This is horrific for me; I have a toddler who demands my attention 24/7 plus a photography business. Does this mean I shouldn't leave the house for the year and cancel all the weddings I have booked? Because it sounds like I need to become a hermit for the next, well, what could be ages. This is beyond maddening.
joanne00689 alexisacula
Posted
You will be taking Mirt for a reason. When you’re ready to come off it, do it really slowly and it shouldn’t stop you living your life. There was a member on here called ‘evergreen’ I think, who did just that and didn’t have the withdrawals like us who were in a hurry to ditch it.
Keep following the posts on here. There’s some good advice on some of them! Good luck x
paun59797 alexisacula
Posted
Everyone here is trying their best to cope with symptoms and withdrawal. Please try to remember that everyone is different and we all respond in our own way. I guess we must try to think is that there are many many others that are/have come off Mirtazapine and suffered no symptoms at all as this site should have many more people on it. I do know of one friend that had slight dizziness and that is all. I did not taper at all but there are comments from some that tapering was not so bad. You never know until you try but please try to do so under medical supervision. Good luck and keep us posted.
joanne00689 paun59797
Posted