Mirtazapine.

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I've been put on mirtazapine for severe OCD, periods of depression and in a hope to help my meltdowns (I'm on olanzapine but I've been on that for 6 years - psych considered changing it to quetiapine but I've built up a massive tolerance to the side effects of olanzapine so we decided I stay on it as quetiapine would mean spending two years building up tolerance again).

I took my first dose (15mg) last night. I didn't notice any extra sedation on top of my other meds (I take multiple meds) but this morning I woke up feeling rather dizzy.

I am a pharmacology student so I know the pharmacology behind it, I just want personal experiences as you don't get many of those in textbooks.

Additional: I've tried sertraline, citalopram, fluoxetine and clomipramine before but it seems that inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin for me is a bad idea (makes me go manic) so mirtazapine was chosen as it acts much more on noradreanline than serotonin.

I took Mirtazapine a few years ago. It made me feel very agitated. I had to stop taking it for that reason.

Why did you make your post blue?

But anyway, I've been on a fair few drugs now. Tried one for a while, upping the does as I went, then tried another, etc. In the end, I realized they weren't working. I got the affects, like feeling numb, sick, emotionally cold, etc. But none of them stopped me feeling depressed etc. So I haven't been on any drugs for over a year now, and tbh, I'm better for it. I don't like being on drugs.

My mother is on Mirtazapine and loves it for the sedative affect. She highly recommends it to me to help with my insomnia. But I've been an insomniac since day 1, it's part of ASD apparently. She takes it an hour before bed and it pretty much knocks her out for the night, or so she tells me. I have little to do with her and hardly see her.

My posts are blue because I have visual problems which make it hard for me to read regular text. I have accessibility features on my computer.

I am currently taking it...to help depression and take it in evening for its sedative effects, or at least I take it before bed. Kinds helps me sleep...have not noticed a huge effect on the depression, though it seems to somewhat mellow my general edginess which is helpful. Though I would like to try and learn more about how exactly it works, what it does to the brain...and how it interacts with various things, since on occasions I've been known to take other substances, wouldn't want to risk a deadly interaction. Interested in how it effects psychedelics though since those are a class I do enjoy indulging in here and there....mixed info on the internet some people say it makes them stronger, some people say it makes them less effective so idk no substantial research based, I personally feel like if I smoke cannabis while taking it I get a little more stoned. I did actually try DMT since starting it, but i had forgotten to take it the couple days before that...so hard to gauge if it effected that or not.

Also regardless of reason changing text color is cool, changes things up a bit from the plain old black text.

I've been taking it for the past 2 weeks. Asked for it specifically as I found research indicating it might be useful in alleviating akathisia in addition to depression and anxiety. It actually has helped some with that, although it seems like I need to be more careful about caffeine intake than I used to before starting mirtazapine.

I'm curious as well. The drug does act as an inverse agonist on the 5-HT2B receptors, which are the sweet spots in one's brain that psychedelics tickle just right.

I'm a regular user of marijuana. Since starting mirtazapine my highs have been significantly less cerebral, more couch-lock.

To combat my alarmingly frequent "mind blanks", which have been attributed to exorbitantly high levels of anxiety, my GP prescribed 15mg of Mirtazapine today. I am, however, somewhat apprehensive because, according to both he and online reviewers, weight gain is a common side effect for those whom take this medication.

After being disparaged by my peers in high school for my heavyset physique, I lost a lot of weight in an attempt to increase my pitifully low self-esteem. For over four years now I have never allowed my body mass to exceed eleven stone. One could argue it has become obsessional.

Has anyone's appetite not increased whilst taking mirtazapine?

I tried it & it made me very tired & hungry. I'd wake up & eat, go back to sleep after a couple hours, wake up after a couple hours & the cycle would repeat.

I went on it a couple of months back after being on citalopram then escitalopram for many years. I had a 1 week break between stopping escitalopram and starting mirtazipine. Within a day or 2 of starting mirtazipine I was bouncing off the walls agitated hyperactive couldn't stay still or settle on anything. I went from struggling to ride a few miles cycling to going on 30mile rides and was buzzing from the exertion. Absolute change from the fatigue I so frequently suffered prior.
Thing is I was verging on Hypo Mania so Dr took me off after 1 week.
Things settled down and for a few weeks I was doing OK with no antidepressants.
Then a short sharp spiral back into the depths ...
Went back to Dr for help and saw a different Dr who has put me back on Mirtazipine. This time no energy increase. If anything the first 2 weeks back on it were even more devoid of energy than ever. It's 3 weeks in now and I'm only marginally improving on the depression side of it.
So not only can this drug do different things to different people it can do a different thing to the same person! (Arguably we aren't the same person from one week to the next I know, also I have a suspicion that 1 week break from escitalopram hadn't been long enough for it and it's effects to leave me completely)

kind regards,
Soldersplash

Brief review after a week on mirtazapine:

Although I have probably gained some weight (can't say for certain because I decided to dispose of my scales) contrary to what many have experienced on the drug, my appetite, if anything, has decreased. The most apparent side effects have been a depletion in my energy levels, vivid dreams and improved sleep. A usually effortless walk downtown currently feels like a marathon, and my walking pace is even slower than usual. It's almost as if I am stoned. I can't say it's elevated my mood but I do seem to be somewhat more stable - but that's bordering on complete emotional numbness. It's been better than I expected but apathy does still afflict my disturbed mind. I should be seeing my doctor in a fortnight's time and if he proposes an increase in my dosage then I would be tempted to accept.

I was on mirtazapine for a couple of years. It's antidepressant effect was mild enough for me to use. I didn't gain weight on it, but I'm unusual in easily losing weight. Most SSRIs give me really bad reactions so I continued mirtazapine for awhile. Its sedative effect is dose-dependent: low doses produce sedative effects which go away at higher doses (25 mg I think). I'm glad this topic was brought up as I recently started lorazepam and seroquel again after years of no meds. My anxiety is helped - barely. But to say I lack motivation would be a profound understatement. Even eating is too much work to be worth it. So maybe mirtazapine would be a good thing. And anything that helps me sleep is a plus. I'm in the States - the drug was prescribed to me under the name "Remeron" originally.

my mom is on remeron. she hasn't gained weight over a few years and has no daytime effects.

One of the many sleep drugs I rotate in and out of taking. I build tolerance to every sedating medication I've ever taken, and I've taken a lot. Eventually the drug becomes a sugar pill to me and I have to swap it out and let the cooldown for the tolerance reset before swapping it back in again.

(at risk of necromancing ...)

Update: I'm still on Mirtazapine. Dose was upped each month until on highest dose GP will prescribe - 45mg.
Been at this dose about 3 months now. Not convinced it is helping much re:Depression. It still helps knock me out to sleep at night. Sleep is unrestful though and I wake early, usually in a pool of sweat and feeling anxious (before I even have a thought). Daytime side effects still include anxiety, fatigue, stoned feeling, falling asleep, and dry mouth (which has likely accelerated tooth decay and lead to an abscess - really f'ing painful).
Very fed up of waiting to see Psychiatrist so I can finally get this medication changed. Another 2 weeks to wait though.

This is why I take Mirtzapine (30mg), too.

I've been on Mirtazipine since October 2014.

The bad- it's given me a hell of an appetite, and my weight has gone up hugely.

The good- it's the first drug (out of something like a dozen) that's actually touched my depression. I have feelings of being an OK person sometimes. It also helps my sleep, although that's diminished in the last few months.