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New to mirtazapine, soooo sleepy!

Posted , 8 users are following.

caz1629
caz1629

Hi all,

I've been on Mirtazapine for 3 days and already I am feeling unbelievebly tired. I was over and hour late for work Thursday and Friday because I couldn't wake up, then struggled to stay awake all day. Today, I literally got up about an hour ago and still feel very tired (admittedly last night I was out for a birthday and had 4 drinks, but didn't expect there to be such an effect).

Did anyone else notice this so soon after taking them? 

0 likes, 31 replies

31 Replies

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  • DarlingBoo
    DarlingBoo caz1629

    Posted

    Hi Caz,

    Sorry to hear about your reaction to Mirtazapine. I feel your pain - I started the drug to treat my depression on Saturday evening (3 nights ago) and have the sensation that can only be described as the walking dead!

    I came off Sertraline (50mg) 2 nights before I started on Mirtazapine (15mg) and at the moment I'm feeling like I made a huge mistake. The reason for stopping Sertraline is because it made me feel so numb to everything, like I didn't care about anything. Plus, my sex drive was ZERO, which is depressing enough in itself.

    I'm hoping the great advice from others in this conversation will help me get through these early days, as I feel so hopeless. Not sad or depressed, just blooming useless! I haven two young children and a stressful job, so these symptoms are not helping with my busy life.

    Wishing everyone suffering a lovely evening and lots of luck in your search for the perfect anti-d 😃

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK DarlingBoo

      Posted

      "walking dead" ....technical name is ZOMBIEFICATION!

      Mirtazapine often has a STRONG sedative effect. Yes helps one sleep ..but it doesn't seem to realise people like to able to function the next day.

      Feel for you Eviemonroe ...maybe (MAYBE) try taking your 15mg does around 7pm instead of at bedtime. If you must feel lethargic/dead to the world ...then let it be in the evening rather during the day. Just a humble suggestion.

      Much peace!

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      Sorry I think I got the name wrong. Apologies.

    • DarlingBoo
      DarlingBoo Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      Thank you Karl for the advice, I will try taking the tablet earlier. Nope, previous name correct too. Probably have an undiagonosed personality disorder too, as decided to change my user name about 5 mins after joining the discussion :-/
    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK DarlingBoo

      Posted

      Sorry about confusion ..I used name Eviemonroe then after saw DarliingBoo...I'm posting on my mobile AND without my reading glasses on ..so got mixed up. Sorry again ..

      Hope you feel better soon

      Best wishes Karl

    • DarlingBoo
      DarlingBoo Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      No need to apologise Karl and thank you - hope all is well with you too smile
    • Calmer
      Calmer Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      Hi Karl

      Do you take yours at 7pm? and does it make a difference for you???   I can't say I've noticed it wearing off at any time to be honest, but maybe I'll take your advice, might be the answer I'm looking for biggrin  Thanks 

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK Calmer

      Posted

      Hi Calmer ..sorry for delay in my reply

      Actually after being on Mirtazapine 15mg (2months approx) before it being increased 30mg post visit to GP for about 2weeks before 'instinct' took over and I decided without consultation to reduce it back to 15mg ...I have after really carefully consideration and hating what i saw as its side effects (as reported by MANY others on here) I decided to ween myself off the drug completely.

      It took me approx 10days of a phased reduction approach (and yes I did anticipate some lesser or greater degree of cold turkeyness/withdrawal, and I did experience some. And even a week or so on from taking my last razor sliced 3.75mg dose ..I am hit from time to time with a lousy feeling. But I rely on Propananol and a little meditation to help see me through).

      That said, poor mental health (anxiety/agitated depression) even when I feel better, has always lurked nearby in the shadows ready to pounce again!

      So my suggestion of taking it earlier was just a suck n see bit of advice as I heard it mentioned by someone else on here a few weeks ago. Seems like worth a go and not likely to cause any harm.

      Hope all that makes some sense!

      Peace and much happiness to you and all...

      Regards Karl

    • Calmer
      Calmer Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      Hi Karl, thanks for your reply.  From what I have learnt from folk on this forum, 2 to 3 weeks after a reduction seems to be the period when the wd kicks in, is that so for you?  

      I used to take Propranolol before the Mirt - tbhink mine was a low dose and not really helped the anx' - what dose would you recommend or do youu take - although a burly 14 stone feller is likely to be less medicated than a 10 stone woman - I guess ...  not sure.

      Best wishes

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK Calmer

      Posted

      Hi Calmer ..

      Hmmm to be honest I can't remember!

      All I know is that immediately on first being prescribed Mirtazapine (15mg) I noticed it was knocking me out at night (sedating me) and in the morning and continuing throughout the day I felt lethargic ..

      I didnt pay much notice to any other effects (good or bad) the drug was having on me, BUT after around 6-8weeks and when GP phased me up to 30mg I shortly after did begin to associate certain 'new' symptoms I was experiencing with the drug. Hence me without consultation returning back to the 15mg after a few weeks.

      Being back on 15mg again and with my mind convinced the drug was responsible for all too many negative symptoms I was experiencing (i.e. weight gsin, lethargy, intense gloomy thinking, crisis moments, tearfulness, anger, feeling life was over etc etc) I slowly become more and more resolved to coming off them and relying only on propananol (and say meditation and improving my diet, joining a forum etc)

      So once committed and knowing I was going to experience withdrawal ...I opted for the quick but not full on cold turkey approach and did an approx 10day reduction of the drug.

      Something like: 15mg >> 7.5mg for 4 days >>3.75mg for 3days >> miss a day >>3.75mg for 1day >> miss a day >> 3.75mg for 1day >>Totally off the drug

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      Note ...the days since coming 'Totally off' have been better generally but sometimes from nowhere I suddenly get a 'lousy' feeling envelope me and I'm left thinking 'what the hell?' ...but I pop 2 Propananol and sit and meditate a little or try and distract my torment by focussing on say a movie while the negative feelings (which i feel are somekind of delayed withdrawal from Mirtazapine) subside.

      Really hope I've made sense and haven't beaten around the bush too mush in replying to your query.

      All the best Calmer ..keep fighting!

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK Calmer

      Posted

      PROPANANOL? in my case

      - Morning: 2 x 10mg

      - During day: 2 x 10mg

      - Evening/Bedtime: 2 x 10mg

      TOTAL = 60mg daily

      I am a male, 50yrs, 6'3" and around 18stone I think

      Note, I also I see it as a good stand alone anti-anxiety drug and one that helps so this gives me a added PLACEBO effect on top too!

      I think it works well with say meditation and/or deep breathing relaxation.

      Hope this helps...

      Kind regards Calmer...

      Karl

    • Calmer
      Calmer Karl_-_UK

      Posted

      Hi Karl

      Just checked back to when I was taking Propranolol, some doses were 4 x 10 mg an d it didn't seem to help, however I see they come in 40, 80 & 160 mg so there's hope for me yet lol.  My GP back then in July/August of last year said I was hard to medicate, even with sleeping tablets I would only sleep for 2 to 3 hours then wide awake anx'd to high heaven.

      So Mirt' was my saviour, hence doing a lot of work to strengthen my mind as I mentioned before.  

      Glad Propanolol has been good for you, lets hope it'll work for me too.

      Keep up the great work Karl, sounds like you're doing pretty good to me.

      Best wishes.

      Namaste

    • Karl_-_UK
      Karl_-_UK Calmer

      Posted

      Hi Calmer/Namaste

      Yes I hear you ...its all a complicated affair and what one drug or dose works for one person, might not necessarily work on the next. We are all human yes, but we are different ...even our minds in terms of what we convinvince ourselves to be trure or to work or be good vs bad for us can and often does have a bearing on the effectiveness of what we pills we pop into our mouth. I speak largely of that well documented phenomenon called the 'placebo effect'.

      Certainly a strong or rather a resilient mind can in itself can be a great bonus! Catch 22 how can one achieve a fully resilient mind when its that very thing ( the mind ..the brain) that's causing the issue(s)? ...I guess that's where the meds and other clinical/non-clinical interventions come in.

      Hmmm sorry for going on ..just thinking out aloud ...

      Wishing you strength of mind ..peace and a settled weekend ...

      Kind regards

  • anthony40200
    anthony40200 caz1629

    Posted

    Like Yourself I've just started on this medication and am now 5 tablets into it.

    I contacted my GP and he explained that these tablets are also given to patients who suffer from sleep loss so one of their main effects is to make you sleep

    I went onto these tablets on the day I got out of Hospital and for the first 4 days I was sleeping upto 14 Hrs +. At first I was worried about the amount of time I spent sleeping but because of the horrendous lack of sleep that I had had while in Hospital I was quite happy to be sleeping for long periods without being disturbed or needing to attend to the call of nature.

    I am also retired so not waking at a certain time did not bother me.

    Since taking my fifth tablet I seem to have lost the ability to sleep for these long periods even though they were very refreshing.

    I find I wake at 08.00 check my sugar level have a cup of tea then back to sleep for another few hours. By 11.00 I am awake again and no matter how I try to sleep it doesn't happen

    It's Just a case of getting up then and getting on with life as in any normal day.

    As I had come off some other antidepressant that I had taken for over a period of 20 years I find that the only thing that seems to happen now is that I get caught with withdrawal symptoms from the previous Pills and side effects from these new ones

    I'm due to take my next tablet at 23.00 - one of the things the GP did mention was that if I had to get up at a set time each day and kept sleeping when I should be awake, was to take the tablet an hour early than I would normally take it.

    With you needing to get up for work each day at a certain time maybe you could work out how long each tablet keeps you asleep and then take it an hour or whatever time you need for the tablet to reach the full amount of sleep that it causes you to oversleep

    Good luck with the new tablets - I'm sure that once you have taken sufficient you will have worked out some form of sleep pattern that doesn't cause you to sleep when you need to be going to work

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