[dsmith]

Hello All,

I have Bipolar I with Depression, and was taking the following meds on a daily basis to manage my disorder:

• Lamotrigine / Lamictal: 225mg (mood stabilizer)
• Wellbutrin / Bupropion: 300mg (anti-depressant)
• Benadryl / Banophen: 25mg (sleep aid)

I felt very anxious in the morning, and wanted to get off Benadryl, so my doctor prescribed Mirtazipene.

It's an antidepressant, but is supposed to help with sleep and anxiety. Here's more info:
Mirtazapine Oral : Uses, Side Effects, Interactions, Pictures, Warnings & Dosing - WebMD

Curious to see anyone's experience or knowledge of it, since nothing turned up in the search results on the site.

My wife is extremely worried about it because it is known to cause a lot of side effects (i.e., manic episodes).

I've been on it for 2 days. Feel more productive and less anxious. However, it's very sedating. Usually I can get up at 6:30am with no problem. Today and yesterday I got up feeling groggy at ~8:30am (granted it was Daylight Savings Time).

Thanks

Hey there dsmith,

I took Remeron for awhile when I was diagnosed with just depression. It helped some, but I was gaining too much weight with it to continue. It also made me a little groggy in the mornings. The grogginess for me kind of subsided within a week or two.

Remember, medication affects everyone a little different-- my experience may be nothing like yours in the end. I hope it works out for you with little/no side effects! The only thing I can say is give it a chance to work, stay hopeful, and if things seem to not be working out, contact your psychiatrist or doctor who prescribes your psychiatric medicine.


Best of luck!

[dsmith]

Thanks - I also read a lot about weight gain. I definitely cannot afford to put on any more weight. Also - I am definitely not a morning person, so something that makes me groggy will not exactly be a welcome change.

I'll give it about 2 wks and see.

Appreciate the feedback and positive vibes!

[MickeyCheeky]

I have never tried it, dsmith, so unfortunately I don't have a lot of advice to give to you. I completely agree with what Brentus has already wisely said, though, dsmith! I'll try not to repeat it too much. Just remember that meds have different effects on different people. Perhaps it will work out great for you! Two weeks seems like a fair time to me. Just try to see how it goes and try to see if it's worth it in your opinion. If there are any problems you can always talk to your Pdoc about this. Try to reassure your wife that everything will be ok and that you're just trying it out to see how it goes, dsmith. It doesn't have to stay that way forever. I hope she'll feel more relaxed! It seems like you have everything figured it out. Good for you! Be proud of yourself for that. It's important to be informed about the meds we're taking. I hope it will work out for you! If it doesn't, I hope you'll be able to find the right meds combination for you, dsmith. Remember that we're here for you if you need it. Feel free to PM me anytime. Let me know if I can do something to help you. Wish you good luck! Let us know how it goes. Sending many hugs to you, dsmith

I take mirtazapine PRN for sleep, and it does a good job at that. I haven't noticed any other effects, but then again I don't take it that often.

[Tryingtobehappy5]

I used mirtazapine for 5 months before my diagnosis. Since they were only treating me for depression at that point I was not on any mood stabilizers etc.

I ended up developing a very bad drinking habit while on it because I felt my moods were changing so many times every day i couldn't deal with it. I mean I have a drinking problem but that was when it got really out of control. Drinking every day to black out and multiple stays in cells. That is now a problem I deal with often though. I didnt have any weight gain or sedation from it.

They changed my AD while I was IP to stop the drinking instead of adding stabilizing meds. So I dont have any experience with it combined with proper meds.

Instead they blamed my drinking for the mood swings. But oh well. Im sure the alcohol didnt help but I know what came first even if they didnt believe me.

I have certainly used worse ADs for myself. Being that I lived 5 months on it actually was pretty good considering most I was IP within 1 to 2 months of starting them.

As has already been said, meds affect everyone differently. Wellbutrin was much worse for me at 300mg. I was severely manic on it. At 150 I could somewhat tolerate it with a mood stabilizer.

[Blueberrybook]

I gained a lot of weight on Remeron, and I usually do not gain weight on psych meds notorious for weight gain (such as Seroquel or Effexor). I never felt full on it, which caused me to try to shift my eating disorder from anorexia/ED-NOS to bulimia. Also, I was exhausted and when I wasn’t eating only wanted to sleep.

Of course everyone is different, but this is one med I am not taking again.

[Carmina]

Ir was very bad for me, helped me sleep but didn't do anything for the depression apart from that, but also slowed my metabolism and increased my need for carbs so I put on weight and ended up with diabetes. Also when I came off it, because I had become so dependent on it to sleep, my body was no longer producing enough melatonin to activate sleep so I just couldn't sleep properly for several months.

[Shadesofdark]

I have been taking Remeron for a long time. Helps with depression and anxiety. It can make you groggy, I take mine before bed and it helps me to sleep. When I first started taking it the first two weeks or so were the worst for groggy/sleepy, don't notice it now. It takes a few weeks to really take full effect so I wouldn't expect much after a couple of days. Taking Lamictal at the same time helps with it not making you manic/hypo. Good Luck!

[BipolaRNurse]

When I was a nurse unit manager at a nursing home, I asked several of my residents' doctors to put them on Remeron because they were depressed and not eating. That killed two birds with one stone: they felt better and they started gaining weight. It took a couple of weeks for the med to take effect, so I wouldn't expect overnight miracles, but it's a good drug for some people if you don't mind putting on a few pounds.

[BeyondtheRainbow]

It was a really good drug for me and I'm hard to medicate. One trick is that it is less sedating and has less weight gain on the higher doses. I went on and off it a few times and after the first time I asked them to get me to 45-60 mg really fast to avoid side effects.

I actually think that it helped keep my moods fairly level for a while. i know it shouldn't have been able to do that but it really seems like it did looking back.

I thought it was a good med; I had to stop it because it started messing with my blood pressure (rare) but I'd still take it now (with appropriate AP or mood stabilizers) if not for that.

[Wander]

I gained a lot of weight and was still depressed. Slept well though.

[sarahsweets]

One thing I can tell you about Remeron is the lower doses are best for sleep and the highest doses better for the antidepressant properties.

[dsmith]

Thanks everyone for the feedback.

Incidentally, I came across two good review pages for the medication

Mirtazapine Reviews | Everyday Health

Mirtazapine Reviews & Ratings at Drugs.com

I can't afford to have the following side effects:
Grogginess: As I mentioned, I'm already not a morning person; I feel lethargic and unable to focus unless I have several cups of coffee. This completely ruins my productivity and (already compromised) ability to interact with people. I have a somewhat different form of hypergraphia - which, @Blueberrybook, I believe you have as well. I need to literally write down everything I see and hear, for fear of not being able to retain it. Whenever a task is assigned to me, I have to create a new Word document, write the background, and then jot down every piece of minutia about the task. For example, if you asked me what time it is, I'd write an "Abstract" about the evolution of watchmaking through the ages. This saps me of energy and completely wipes out my productivity.

Weight Gain: I'm 5'10 and weigh about 185 lbs., which is on the obsese side. I am already very conscious of my weight. When I look in the mirror, I feel completely worthless. Also during the day it's hard to focus and concentrate because I feel like "my gut" is hanging over my belt. This greatly diminishes my self esteem. Packing on 10-20 extra lbs is going to lead to a further decline.

So thanks everyone for the feedback; I appreciate it, I appreciate you, and I appreciate Psych Central forums!

Have a wonderful week!

[Fairy102]

I recently started remeron and was nervous too. I have had bad reactions to five other anti depressants. I was having anxiety insomnia and nausea from anxiety and this medication has been great! I sleep well and it doesn’t make me drowsy I just get sleepy and lay down and fade to sleep. I hate feeling drowsy. And my nausea and anxiety has been more manageable. I’ve been on it for three weeks now and have had no bad side effects. This one is worth a try I think.

[pirilin]

I have.

Good for sleep and diet.
If you're underweight.

Cheers.

[dsmith]

Thanks again everyone!

I decided to switch back from Remeron to Benadryl 25mg and feel MUCH better: less groggy in the morning. Also - the weight gain would have been too much for me to take. I'm already about 10 lbs overweight, which has really affected my self esteem. Last thing I need is for this to get worse.