Crazy insomnia - Mirtazapine withdrawal

[MrsGlum]

I’m on day 25 of withdrawal from Mirtazapine.

The insomnia is killing me! I haven’t been able to sleep for nearly a month. I have some sleeping tablets but really don’t like using those on a regular basis.

Has anyone out there experienced insomnia while going through through a mirtazapine withdrawal and if so how long did it last?

I really regret ever going on this medication. It’s totally messed up my life.

@OrlandointheWilderness We seem to have a lot of GPs but they’re not all full time which is part of the problem. I’m also really not a fan of telephone appointments which is my GPs default setting these days.
It’s a long story but I think if I’d been able to actually see a GP on one particular occasion I very likely would not be in the position I’m now in

@MrsGlum - Sorry you're having such a shit time with it. May it all settle down for you soon!

I think the support you might get for withdrawals from a GP varies greatly. Many have a notion that any withdrawals from any psych meds are a) rare b) mild c) short-lived. It's easy to end up having a very quick tapering process enforced on you, or to have your withdrawal issues just seen as symptoms of a mental issue - either the one you were medicated for, or something new. I'm in two minds whether to seek support from mine or not.

@WayshrineNotFound thank you. I really hope so too. There’s a lot of background to why I ended up on Mirtazapine which I now realise I should never have been prescribed in the first place. A complicated combination of my circumstances at the time and poor consistency and communication from the GPs has led me down this path that really I shouldn’t have got on. My own GP fits exactly what you describe in your post. So now I’m left suffering with horrible and, possibly permanent side effects not just from being on the medication but as a result of having to come off them fast.
It’s been and continues to be possibly the worst time of my life so far. I’m just very lucky to have an amazing DH, family and lovely friends who are all supporting and willing me on even though I’m testing their patience to the limit!
I do hope when you start your withdrawal that you get all the right support you need too.

I have stopped countless medications cold turkey and only one I had problems was venlaflaxine. I tried five times reducing slowly and finally doctor put me on another antidepressant and I could finally stop venflaxine. Other than that the withdrawals have lasted around a week.

@guineapigs gosh I think you must have a constitution of steel!
I’ve read that Venlafaxine is one of the more difficult ones to come off (even worse than Mirtazapine) so maybe even the hardiest of folk don’t get away scott free with that one.
I think I’m the opposite - just really sensitive to everything. I couldn’t take the pill because it gave me terrible symptoms, I got horrendous HG in both my pregnancies, I’m allergic to Peneclllin and even Nurofen makes me feel weird! So I suppose it’s not surprising I’ve reacted really badly to the horrible heavy duty drug that is Mirtazapine!
My withdrawal is now nearly into it’s 5th week. My feet have stopped sweating, the nausea has subsided, I can eat a bit better and my anxiety is background and rises intermittently rather than being sky high 24/7, but the awful insomnia is refusing to go. It’s like my brain just won’t shut down and my eyes don’t want to shut because as soon as they do I get jolted awake again. Horrible - I’ve never known anything like it 😩

@MrsGlum
Did you have insomnia before going on this drug?

@WordleAddict17
Not longstanding insomnia no. I was going through a very anxious period about an undiagnosed health problem so I wasn’t sleeping well and was having quite obsessive thoughts so GP prescribed Mirtazapine.
Prior to that I used to sleep well.
So I’m sure the withdrawal from it has now caused this insomnia.

Hi, just a tip, magnesium supplementation can REALLY help with insomnia.
Try 900mg- 1200 a day until sleeping well, then go to 600-900mg.
If you have other symptoms like restless legs, that will also be settled with magnesium. Many medications deplete you of it.

@SukiPook thanks for the recommendation. A pp also recommended magnesium so I’ll certainly start giving that a go.
My biggest worry is that the mirtazapine itself or my quick withdrawal from it may have messed up my brain chemistry and nervous system permanently so i may never regain the ability to sleep naturally

No you won't have messed it up permanently, that's just the anxiety and lack of sleep talking,.. and magnesium is also very calming, your body needs it in abundance for every enzymatic function, and given the right ingredients your body can repair anything really... you will sleep again! A vitamin B complex would also be good for your nervous system and mood, and fish oil for omega 3s which are a precursor for neurotransmitter production. Honestly you should start to feel much better
.. (just if you are on any blood thinning medication go easy on fish oil)
I've seen people go from having panic attacks and insomnia to sleeping soundly and being calm, after only 3 days on magnesium! Good luck

@SukiPook thanks for the advice and reassurance. It’s hard to think logically and rationally when you’re exhausted!
I’ll try your suggestions and hope I can get better sleep.
You mention you’ve seen lots of people benefit from taking supplements for insomnia - do you mind if I ask if this is because you are a professional in this area?

@MrsGlum How are you now? I really hope things settled and you found a solution. I am coming off after 2 and a bit months and I'm not sure whether it's me or the withdrawal but I'm in a bit of a state. I was at 15mg for 4 weeks and 7.5 for the same then 3.75 for a couple. I could really use some positivity if anyone got through the other side. Thank you x

@MrsGlum how is your withdrawal going? I’m also withdrawing and finding the insomnia very difficult

@Spottyfourtysomething How are you? I am 5 weeks in and feel absolutely dreadful. I was only on it 2 months. I don't know whether my current feelings are coming off the medicine or actually what I'm like now. I feel at rock bottom . I hope you're improving

I’m 2 and a half weeks in and I’m doing ok thank you. This time last week I felt awful and thought I’d had to start taking them again….I hadn’t slept for more than 3 hours per night for 10 days and felt awful. I felt nauseous as well but I think that was the impact of no sleep rather than withdrawal. But I pushed on and gradually got a little more sleep per night and now feel I am getting enough to function (around 6 hours per night). I don’t regret stopping the medication…it made me obsessed with food and apart from helping me sleep and giving me my appetite back when I was going through a mental health crisis, I don’t think it’s done anything else for me. I.e it’s not helped my anxiety and depression. How are you doing? Do you feel worse than before you began the medication?

I'm so glad you are getting some relief at 2 and a half weeks. I just feel like I'm getting worse and worse.
Crisis team again and I have no idea where to go from here. I hope the psychiatrist can help in a few weeks. I have been trying to get the right medication for a long time and have tied lots of different ones but all have made me really ill. I wasn't having suicidal thoughts before I started them but I am now. I was hoping it was withdrawal as my brain tries to get used tomanaging without. Thank you for replying

Mirtazapine discontinuation induced insomnia? You're not by yourself. When this drug is stopped, many people develop sleep difficulties. To reduce withdrawal symptoms, get advice from your healthcare professional and consider progressive tapering. To overcome the difficult insomnia, prioritize self-care, relaxing techniques, and maintaining a consistent sleep routine.

Is it mainly the lack of sleep that’s making you feel awful @Pootlethethird ? The psychiatrist should give you something else to help with that. Or is it everything else too?

Mirtazapine made me pile on weight so I came off it pretty much cold turkey
I did have some sleep issues and also headaches but both stopped within about three weeks
I have taken zopiclone for sleep but ended it because I worried it could make me sleep through a noise from my then very elderly and poorly cat
I take Amitryptilline at night for nerve pain and this seems a milder help for sleep as a side effect
I think all withdrawal can cause some people some side effects but it will be self limiting in time

How is everyone?

I wantnto stop mirtzapine and would o9ve to hear you you did it.

• did the weight come off quickly after
• insomnia. This is my biggest fear. How do you handle it?
• do you have more energy?!

I so want off but scared off not coping.

Tbh I have been on and off it for ages, haven't noticed any sleep problems, I do find it easier to fall asleep whilst on it. I'm not sure why it has become the antidepressant du jour. The similar one I was on years ago was doxulepin which did seem to work but that seems to have been withdrawn, tbf the Dr did say to a suicidal me that this one was deadly , he was an odd bloke.

I took myself off it after about 8 months by gradually decreasing dose over a month or so. I did it in Feb when it is a quiet time of year for things going on. So that if I didn't sleep it didn't matter so much. Also I had time to walk regularly and meditate several times a week. I probably should have gone to doctor but didn't want to be tapering dose over months and months (don't know if that is what they would have demanded). I think my sleep reverted to how it had been before but as I said a quiet time of year so didn't suffer too much.

Thanks great to hear it has been okay.

I think where I've googled I've got all the horror stories! And I really don't want to go back to waking at 3 ....

I'll see what my Dr says.

I’ve posted on your other thread. Sadly I think there will be sleep issues for anyone coming off mirtazapine, so just be prepared for it, accept it will be awful for a few weeks, but it will pass and you will go back to normal sleep eventually. Honestly, it was so awful it was so difficult not to resist going back on the medication, but it was only for a few weeks and I’m so glad I pushed through and am no longer on the medication.

Oh gosh that sounds bad. I teach so really have to be "on it" every day. So not sure when to do this.

But knowing "it will pass" is good rather than "help i can't live without it". Do you feel better off it?