Mirtazapine? Has anyone taken it for an appetite stimulant?

Has anyone here taken mirtazapine? (Brand names are avanza, axit, mirtaz, mirtazon, remeron and zispin.) my doctor prescribed it to help me eat but I'm looking at the side effects and they're kind of scary.

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I take it, but for insomnia. I don't think it has a side effect list that's worse than any other antidepressant. I have really experienced fewer side effects than I usually get from an antidepressant.

Hi i have had two fairly long periods on this drug , both times it helped me to sleep tho was prescribed for depression, both times i came off it due to weight gain it made my appetite increase a lot.

I wonder if it would work the same for my appetite because I had weight loss surgery and it cut out the section that tells you when you're hungry so I can't eat. No doctor will give me an appetite stimulant. This is the closest I've gotten. I'm 8lbs from being underweight, so I need to gain weight. I just wonder if it'll have the same effect without that hormone center.

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Never thought that would be an issue I bet! This coming from a big girl so I would completely understand.

I was prescribed it for Major Depressive Disorder and noticed that it increased my appetite.

It did not help with my MDD so my psychiatrist and I decided to try something else.

I gained 15KG in 3 months on mirtazapine while I was just on 15mg/day. It definitely increased my appetite.
What I dont understand, you got a surgery to help lose weight? But it worked too good to the point that you are near underweight? What does your doctor say about it?

Yes, it will increase your appetite. I don't know how it does that in your body, but I crave sugar an hour after I take it.

You don't really say whether it's also being prescribed for its antidepressant effects, is this as a switch from another anti-depressant you were formerly taking? If not, if you're not looking to take an anti-depressant or weren't looking to switch, there are things that can be prescribed that are just to stimulate your appetite, such as Megace which is not at all psychoactive (and doesn't tend to conflict with other medications).

my husband has been precribed this, and it has certainly given him more of an appetite

What was removed in the surgery you mention? Outside of bariatric surgery, where the GI tract is made smaller, I've never heard of any other surgery that lowers appetite. You mention not having an appetite related hormone center. Did you have surgery on your brain?

So did you use to overeat?

I haven't taken this, but it was one of the anti-depressants my pdoc suggested. I didn't want to try this, because I read a lot of comments from people about it and there were so many that gained weight. So it could help you with your appetite.
But isn't there something else to try. Taking an anti-depressant when you're not depressed... I don't know if it can cause harm? And not everyone gets side-effects.

It didn't help. It just knocked me out.

I'm currently now being prescribed Marinol to eat.

The surgery I had is the gastric sleeve. They cut off a large portion of your stomach. So it makes your stomach much smaller than before. I never had a problem with over eating or not eating enough before surgery.

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If you didn't have a problem with over eating, then why did you have the gastric sleeve surgery? Also, I never heard of that surgery cutting off any hormones.

If you are only 8 pounds under weight, that's hardly much of an issue. Anyway, I hope the Marinol helps you. I see it contains THC, the same active ingredient in Marijuana. Let us know how that works out for you.

It cuts out the section that secretes hunger hormones to your brain. So I can go days without eating and not even realize it because I don't feel hunger.

The reason the doctors decided on surgery is because I was 265lbs at 5'6". They said that's why I had back and knee pain. They didn't bother doing X-rays until after when the pain actually got worse to find out my back had a degenerative disc and my knee is still undiagnosed. So there was no real need for the surgery other than the fact that I couldn't lose weight and since I was so big, that's what they blamed my weight on. Now I've lost 140lbs and I keep dropping in weight and I'm going on 2 years post op now. I'm about to start TPN therapy to try to help me retain weight.

The Marinol is slightly effective. I have been more hungry but not by much.

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Thank you for sharing the information above. I was able to look up more information and now have a much better understanding. One of the hormones you mention is ghrelin. There sure is a lot more to appetite than I had any idea. I'm so sorry for what you are now going through.

It sounds like you may have gotten pressured into this surgery. Your weight was excessive for your height, but perhaps more could have been done to assist you in a weight loss program. A friend of mine has a similar level of excess weight, but enjoys rather good health, nonetheless.

For your doctors to be setting you up for TPN is quite a drastic measure, but you must have been losing quickly. I do hope you are getting your treatment through a reputable medical facility and medical practice. I had no idea the aftermath of bariatric surgery could go this far wrong.

So you started with orthopedic problems, and then doctors who were not orthopedists came up with gastric surgery as a solution. That seems a disturbing way for a medical treatment plan to evolve. I truly hope your situation improves. It seems to me that the doctors have a grave responsibility to help you turn around an outcome of elective surgery gone bad. We at PC care and are ready to listen to whatever issues get tough for you. I'm sure the psychological toll is considerable, what with ortho pain and, now, increasing weakness. Take care, A1.

You might possibly want to consult an attorney. This would be especially appropriate, if these doctors are not tops in their field. What matters most, now, is that you get the very best care available for your current situation. If these doctors are not quite up to the task, they should assist you in having your care transferred to a top notch healthcare center. A lawyer might see a case for them having some liability for you having an outcome that is not what anyone desired. Also, the basis upon which the surgery was recommended might be worth a review by an attorney experienced in medical malpractice.

I'm not saying that the doctors did anything wrong. IDK. But it does seem like you do not have a great deal of faith in their judgement.

I hope you can maintain your current weight and, even, gain some. You don't sound horribly underweight, yet. But surely you can't afford to lose more. Let us know how you are doing. This sounds like an awful ordeal that you've been going through. I hope you have family and/or friends that are supportive of you during this tough struggle. We at PC are here to listen to whatever issues get tough for you. The psychological toll must be considerable, what with the ortho pain and, now, increasing weakness. Take care, A1.

Thank you. Your reply touched my heart.

I was thinking about contacting a lawyer before my dad beats me to it. The surgeon made my sleeve "extra tight" and didn't tell me until after surgery. I had no say in that.

I tried to ask my doctor for a referral because suddenly, he only did injections. So I asked for a referral to a pain medication management specialist and they refused based on the fact that I tested positive for thc. Of course I'm going to test positive for thc when I'm actively prescribed Marinol.

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Hi, I've been prescribed mirtazapine for appetite boosting, though I found it extremely sedating.

I was then switched to cyproheptadine (anti histamine) for appetite boosting. It helped.

My problem is being underweight and unable to gain. As I'm female, yasmin (birth control brand) helped me gain weight, though I don't recall it boosting my appetite.

I gained 10 pounds in 2 weeks. It does increase your appetite, Not sure how it affected mood, switched to the generic brand of Celexa, 2 mnths- decreased weight, went back to normal appetite but it gave me heavy hours long sweat spells in the middle of the night as I paired it with trazodone.

I'm going on a month and a half now of taking Marinol. I've gained 10lbs. That's better than anything else I've tried.

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Gained 10 pounds in 6 or 7 weeks! That's very good news. Sounds like Marinol has been a great help. I hope you get to your ideal weight and can stabilize there. Also, I hope you can find healthcare providers whom you can trust. The future will bring health challenges now and then for you, as for all of us. It's so important to have confidence in what your doctors advise.

I'm so glad to hear that you are doing better.

it does increase your appetite. I gained 10 pounds in less than 2 weeks. switched to celexa, now on zoloft

very strange,ive been on mirtazapine for a few months now and have actualy lost weight whilst on it,i take it at 9pm,i dont know if that makes it any better.

Sigh. I thought I was gaining weight but I'm back to be one pound away from being underweight.

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I'm down to 116lbs because I haven't taken any Marinol in like 2 weeks. I don't know how this can be possible. *cries*
My endoscopy showed nothing. Now I get to chug barium, again, to make sure everything is going down right. No infections or bleeding anywhere in my stomach.

I'm going to end up needing a feeding tube to help me stay alive. Surgery was the worst thing I could have done. I haven't weighed this little since I was 12. I'm 12 years older than that. My body literally disgusts me. The first time I looked fully in the mirror, I just dropped to my knees and flew into the border of a panic attack. I don't understand what's wrong.

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