Remeron (Mirtazapine) Withdrawal Support Group

[Guest [pe...]]

Thanks Jack and Becky. I ll cut completely artificial sweets or sweeteners. I ll give a chance to fruits. Most people dont report fruits as a trigger. So i ll try.

 

Lookinup, which FB group. The secret group with 50&60 members. I am in this group. (Freedom from Mirt)

 

Perth, you are right, but your condition isnt worse than the others. You are fortunate your GABA receptors are healing now, Remeron receptors are histamin receptors, so dont worry so much. Just wait with patience. Read Dave's and others stories over and over and then see you can get through this journey...

 

I doubt they are just histamine receptors. Why would Remeron cause severe OCD if it was just histamine?  I don't have any symptoms of histamine intolerance so far (At 10mg from 15)

[[ju...]]

Thanks Jack and Becky. I ll cut completely artificial sweets or sweeteners. I ll give a chance to fruits. Most people dont report fruits as a trigger. So i ll try.

 

Lookinup, which FB group. The secret group with 50&60 members. I am in this group. (Freedom from Mirt)

 

 

Perth, you are right, but your condition isnt worse than the others. You are fortunate your GABA receptors are healing now, Remeron receptors are histamin receptors, so dont worry so much. Just wait with patience. Read Dave's and others stories over and over and then see you can get through this journey...

 

Mirtazapine withdrawal and recovery support group.  May want to check it out.

 

I couldnt find it.Is it "Mirtazapine - Withdrawal + Support Group" ?

[[...]]

Hi all

 

I'm in a tricky position with this one - I took a 4 or 5mg. dose from a box of Mirtazapine that had been left over from an earlier prescription that I'd been given for insomnia (and from which I'd taken a total of 30mg. over 5 nights and stopped after it became clear that it was aggravating my epilepsy) in order to soothe the shock of finding out I had to taper and withdraw from my benzo (Clobazam) - and that it would be extremely painful. For some reason, and despite even that earlier experience (that had come while I'd been alternating Clobazam and Zopiclone to try and get myself to sleep during the nighttime), the Mirtazapine doesn't seem to have affected my epilepsy (which is treated with Lamotrigine and only shows itself through aches and twitches in my jaw), even though I've been taking a ~5mg. dose every 5 days -and later every 3 days- on average. Very low doses, but sedative ones nonetheless of course...

 

I'm now on 6mg. of Clobazam nightly, having tapered from an average nightly dose of 20mg. seven weeks ago; my Lamotrigine dose has gone up from 550 to 600mg.. Ironically, I was originally prescribed Clobazam as an occasional-use 'top-up' for "spikes" in my epilepsy symptoms, but ended up using it for three months in order to help taper off Zopiclone (@1'st), help sleep (2'nd), help deal with the stress of the pandemic (3'rd), and finally because I couldn't work out how to withdraw without aggravating my epilepsy - which had already been aggravated by 'medication trials' in the first one or two months of year to the point that my daily dose of Lamotrigine had almost doubled already. I was lucky to discover some tricks that helped me (sometimes unexpectedly) to begin 'tapering' Clobazam successfully.

 

 

My second Mirtazapine dose came 5 days later (far further into my first taper 'step' of a fortnight on 15mg. by that time), after the first sleepless night of the Clobazam taper. However, after reading online that being on an antidepressant slows withdrawal by deepening tolerance and dependence, that going onto an antidepressant at or before the start of the taper makes things worse, and that an occasional dose of another sedative aggravates withdrawal symptoms (and *presumably makes things worse again* if the sedative is also an antidepressant), I realise now that this sleepless night was probably a withdrawal reaction. Likewise, after the second dose had given me three good nights' sleep, I went for 5 straight nights without fully losing consciousness, with the "sleep" I did get falling from 7 to 2 hours. Granted, I was already sleeping pretty poorly by the time I started my taper (owing to benzo tolerance no doubt), with only around 4 hours' solid unbroken sleep most nights, and granted, my sleep would be even worse by now anyway, but my Mirtazapine issue is pretty dire as I'm sure you can understand. The fact that the sedating and sleep-inducing effects of each dose last three nights for me (although any one of those three tends to be an exception for me for some reason) seems to further back up my argument that inter-dose Mirtazapine withdrawal symptoms have greatly aggravated my early-taper insomnia.

 

I split off the rest of my post so as to try and get rid of the crossing-out that appeared presumably as a result of the length of the original...

[[...]]

My main questions (which I've mostly worded as statements owing to the fact that Clobazam has wrecked my command of written English despite the fact that English is my only native language!): Assuming I'd be left more or less sleepless for weeks and then completely sleepless (leading to status epilepticus - I'm already epileptic after all!) by the combined effects of inter-dose withdrawal of Remeron and acute withdrawal of Clobazam, it seems I'll need to take more Remeron, more consistently, in the future. And in assuming I'm right, I've come up with a plan: Given the fact that my current Remeron intake would average out at just under a quarter of a 'semi-tablet', i.e. ~1.875mg., if I were to take same dose every night (I can only get 15mg. tablets, but these are heavily scored across the middle),  I'm thinking that a steady dose at this level would be my best bet. I'm assuming here that I can get a liquid form of the drug so as to get an even dosage (after reading that you can procure this in the UK), and I'm also thinking that such a low dose would be easier to taper off following acute withdrawal. Obviously there's not going to be any easy answers, and it looks very much to me as if a build-up of Benzo-related Remeron side effects are pretty much guaranteed at some stage, owing to the increased sensitivity to medication that Benzo withdrawal induces. Likewise, it seems that Benzo-related Remeron withdrawal insomnia, at a worse level than Benzo withdrawal insmonia, is likewise guaranteed at some stage even if no actual withdrawal is made (i.e. if the Remeron 'conks out' as it's prone to do).

 

So give me the worst, even if it's that I'll need to 'up' my dose of Remeron - I'm more than ready! Obviously I wouldn't be withdrawing Remeron before the end of the acute Clobazam withdrawal if I were to take it every night. I would just say that total sleep deprivation might be manageable for some (though with some trauma I'd imagine), but that even a week on a steady 1 hour's sleep per night (pushing the boat out there!) would likely leave me in the constant agony I was in during the week between 'getting' epilepsy and getting medication to treat it with {Basically I was in a constant state of seizure, felt around my jaw.} My main aim is to avoid the need to euthanise myself...

 

On a less-related note, is CBD an option during acute withdrawal? Obviously I wouldn't be using this until I'd got the Mirtazapine out of my system; it's just that I wonder if the calming effects might give me a chance of a little sleep.

[Guest [Lo...]]

Thanks Jack and Becky. I ll cut completely artificial sweets or sweeteners. I ll give a chance to fruits. Most people dont report fruits as a trigger. So i ll try.

 

Lookinup, which FB group. The secret group with 50&60 members. I am in this group. (Freedom from Mirt)

 

 

Perth, you are right, but your condition isnt worse than the others. You are fortunate your GABA receptors are healing now, Remeron receptors are histamin receptors, so dont worry so much. Just wait with patience. Read Dave's and others stories over and over and then see you can get through this journey...

 

Mirtazapine withdrawal and recovery support group.  May want to check it out.

 

I couldnt find it.Is it "Mirtazapine - Withdrawal + Support Group" ?

Thanks Jack and Becky. I ll cut completely artificial sweets or sweeteners. I ll give a chance to fruits. Most people dont report fruits as a trigger. So i ll try.

 

Lookinup, which FB group. The secret group with 50&60 members. I am in this group. (Freedom from Mirt)

 

 

Perth, you are right, but your condition isnt worse than the others. You are fortunate your GABA receptors are healing now, Remeron receptors are histamin receptors, so dont worry so much. Just wait with patience. Read Dave's and others stories over and over and then see you can get through this journey...

 

Mirtazapine withdrawal and recovery support group.  May want to check it out.

 

I couldnt find it.Is it "Mirtazapine - Withdrawal + Support Group" ?  Withdrawal and recovery support group.

[[Ja...]]

Pato,

      So are you taking Remeron daily right now? If so at what dose? I saw you wrote that it may be easier to taper off of a lower dose. There does not seem to be any evidence of this. Some people cold turkey 45 mg with no issues and others have an impossible time trying to taper off of a short term dose of 3.75 mg. It’s a coin toss with this stuff. In my opinion it helped with benzo withdrawal. In my case it was necessary in benzo withdrawal. However, I have been tapering and suffering for almost a year already and still have a ways to go here. I was on 15 mg. In hindsight 7.5 mg would have been a better dose for me than 15 mg. More is not necessarily better with Mirtazapine. Actually the lower you go the more sedating it becomes.

[[Po...]]

I have to reinforce what Jack has said about getting off mirtazapine. Easy for some, hell for others. I spent 18 months tapering off 7.5mg ( this is after a long taper from 15mg and holding a year at 7.5) and got completely off June 1st. I cut the last 1mg at .2mg every 3 weeks and then after .2mg to .1mg then off. 10 days after being totally off WD sxs came roaring back making me miserable.  I reinstated to 1mg and am tapering again VERY slowly from there. So it all depends.

[[Ja...]]

I have to reinforce what Jack has said about getting off mirtazapine. Easy for some, hell for others. I spent 18 months tapering off 7.5mg ( this is after a long taper from 15mg and holding a year at 7.5) and got completely off June 1st. I cut the last 1mg at .2mg every 3 weeks and then after .2mg to .1mg then off. 10 days after being totally off WD sxs came roaring back making me miserable.  I reinstated to 1mg and am tapering again VERY slowly from there. So it all depends.

 

Did the 1mg reinstatement clear things up or are you still suffering with bad symptoms?

[[Po...]]

The 1mg helped a lot. Not perfect, but lots lots better. Amazes me that 1mg can have an affect when some people take 45mg of the stuff. Potent drug!!

[[Di...]]

Hello All...

 

Can I get some advice??

 

I was put on 7.5 mgs of Remeron back in October 2019.  And God, it helped SO much!  Within 2 weeks I was back to my life and working.  I did almost immediately start to wean (because the 7.5 mgs was too much).  I weaned down to 1.4 mgs though March 2020 (.1 mg reduction per week) and was doing fine.  Then at the 1.4 mg, I hit the withdrawal part of it (anxiety, abdominal cramping) and freaked out (wasn't ready for another withdrawal). 

 

I upped my dose to 1.8 and stayed there for 2 months..but it never felt "stable".  I tried a titch up to 1.9... down to 1.7...but just couldn't find a good balance.  7 weeks ago.. I crashed hard and am now in a bad "wave?" "remeron kindling?"  Is there such a thing?  All I know is I have creeped up my dose to 2.0 and still suffering.  I am not going to go up any more. 

 

So today I thought.. okay, I'm suffering anyway.  Maybe I should just finish this wean and be done with it.  I feel bad anyway, I'm sure I'll feel worse as I try this...but maybe it's just time. 

 

I'm going to talk with my psychiatrist today about this, but wanted your input too??  I was thinking of 4 options

.1 mg per week (which would take me 16 weeks to get off of this)

.1 mgs 2x per week (which would take me 8 weeks to get off of this)

OR

.1 mg every 3 days (which would take me about a month to get off of this)

 

Thoughts??  Feedback? Am I insane? 

 

I just don't want to make a knee jerk reaction, but I am ready to just be done with this. 

 

 

[Guest [be...]]

So if remeron acts on histamine receptors, why do some people get mental symptoms when they cut ?

[[Di...]]

So if remeron acts on histamine receptors, why do some people get mental symptoms when they cut ?

 

I wonder, because most people cutting Remeron are hit with the same types of symptoms as they had in benzo withdrawal (to varying degrees).  Do you wonder, if maybe your body perhaps "has" to go through some of those Benzo withdrawals to heal properly?  I don't know, just throwing it out there. 

[[Ja...]]

Hello All...

 

Can I get some advice??

 

I was put on 7.5 mgs of Remeron back in October 2019.  And God, it helped SO much!  Within 2 weeks I was back to my life and working.  I did almost immediately start to wean (because the 7.5 mgs was too much).  I weaned down to 1.4 mgs though March 2020 (.1 mg reduction per week) and was doing fine.  Then at the 1.4 mg, I hit the withdrawal part of it (anxiety, abdominal cramping) and freaked out (wasn't ready for another withdrawal). 

 

I upped my dose to 1.8 and stayed there for 2 months..but it never felt "stable".  I tried a titch up to 1.9... down to 1.7...but just couldn't find a good balance.  7 weeks ago.. I crashed hard and am now in a bad "wave?" "remeron kindling?"  Is there such a thing?  All I know is I have creeped up my dose to 2.0 and still suffering.  I am not going to go up any more. 

 

So today I thought.. okay, I'm suffering anyway.  Maybe I should just finish this wean and be done with it.  I feel bad anyway, I'm sure I'll feel worse as I try this...but maybe it's just time. 

 

I'm going to talk with my psychiatrist today about this, but wanted your input too??  I was thinking of 4 options

.1 mg per week (which would take me 16 weeks to get off of this)

.1 mgs 2x per week (which would take me 8 weeks to get off of this)

OR

.1 mg every 3 days (which would take me about a month to get off of this)

 

Thoughts??  Feedback? Am I insane? 

 

I just don't want to make a knee jerk reaction, but I am ready to just be done with this.

 

My guess is it’s not Remeron. It is probably a Xanax withdrawal wave. I have been off short term benzos a few times and the withdrawal is years not months. You are doing better and then a year later you get slammed and then it goes away after a few months. The waves decrease in severity over time. I could be wrong but you have not even been off Xanax a year at this point so it really could still be Xanax withdrawal.

[[Di...]]

Hello All...

 

Can I get some advice??

 

I was put on 7.5 mgs of Remeron back in October 2019.  And God, it helped SO much!  Within 2 weeks I was back to my life and working.  I did almost immediately start to wean (because the 7.5 mgs was too much).  I weaned down to 1.4 mgs though March 2020 (.1 mg reduction per week) and was doing fine.  Then at the 1.4 mg, I hit the withdrawal part of it (anxiety, abdominal cramping) and freaked out (wasn't ready for another withdrawal). 

 

I upped my dose to 1.8 and stayed there for 2 months..but it never felt "stable".  I tried a titch up to 1.9... down to 1.7...but just couldn't find a good balance.  7 weeks ago.. I crashed hard and am now in a bad "wave?" "remeron kindling?"  Is there such a thing?  All I know is I have creeped up my dose to 2.0 and still suffering.  I am not going to go up any more. 

 

So today I thought.. okay, I'm suffering anyway.  Maybe I should just finish this wean and be done with it.  I feel bad anyway, I'm sure I'll feel worse as I try this...but maybe it's just time. 

 

I'm going to talk with my psychiatrist today about this, but wanted your input too??  I was thinking of 4 options

.1 mg per week (which would take me 16 weeks to get off of this)

.1 mgs 2x per week (which would take me 8 weeks to get off of this)

OR

.1 mg every 3 days (which would take me about a month to get off of this)

 

Thoughts??  Feedback? Am I insane? 

 

I just don't want to make a knee jerk reaction, but I am ready to just be done with this.

 

My guess is it’s not Remeron. It is probably a Xanax withdrawal wave. I have been off short term benzos a few times and the withdrawal is years not months. You are doing better and then a year later you get slammed and then it goes away after a few months. The waves decrease in severity over time. I could be wrong but you have not even been off Xanax a year at this point so it really could still be Xanax withdrawal.

 

Thank you so much for responding...  I am just at a loss, because in the 5 months I was on Remeron, I never did get this type of wave until I got to a really low dose.    What has been your experience??  Have you gotten bad waves/symptoms while ON Remeron?   

[Guest [Lo...]]

It’s the Remeron. Going through the same thing and stuck at 3.50. Still have Valium taper to go!  Have to decide which one to go first.  Remeron is going to take forever!

[Guest [be...]]

Jack, are you healed from the benzos ?

[[...]]

Hi

 

I did a bit more reading and discovered it's not always all as drastic as I'd thought from early impressions. I'm deciding whether to go on to 2mg. per night of Mirtazapine to help with the 6 of 20mg.s of my 'benzo' (Clobazam) taper, and have found out that I can get a liquid solution of Mirtazapine that should allow measurement to the nearest 0.75mg..

 

So are you taking Remeron daily right now? If so at what dose? I saw you wrote that it may be easier to taper off of a lower dose. There does not seem to be any evidence of this. Some people cold turkey 45 mg with no issues and others have an impossible time trying to taper off of a short term dose of 3.75 mg. It’s a coin toss with this stuff. In my opinion it helped with benzo withdrawal. In my case it was necessary in benzo withdrawal. However, I have been tapering and suffering for almost a year already and still have a ways to go here. I was on 15 mg. In hindsight 7.5 mg would have been a better dose for me than 15 mg. More is not necessarily better with Mirtazapine. Actually the lower you go the more sedating it becomes.

 

I meant easier in the sense that it wouldn't take as long to taper off from a lower dose. Or does the process work in a way that makes it harder to start tapering if you start from a low level?   Anything's possible with drugs, it seems...

 

As for sedation, I find Mirtazapine to be less sedating below 4/5mg. at least, as well as less sedating above 7.5mg.. Others have found this too, and still others only feel in any sense 'woozy' on higher doses. Benzodiazepines and their withdrawal will complicate things though - The sedative effects of both drugs combine, and I won't be surprised to find any messages explaining that 0.5mg. (or some such) was actually more sedating than any of the higher doses of Mirtazapine.

 

So anyway, thanks for your input

 

I wonder, because most people cutting Remeron are hit with the same types of symptoms as they had in benzo withdrawal (to varying degrees).  Do you wonder, if maybe your body perhaps "has" to go through some of those Benzo withdrawals to heal properly?  I don't know, just throwing it out there.

It looks like Mirtazapine works very differently for people who've been on Benzos, and that whatever Benzo withdrawal symptoms the Mirtazapine may had prevented are actually just postponed until the Mirtazapine withdrawal. I'm guessing the GABA system can only get back to normal after the Mirtazapine is withdrawn, since both drugs affect this brain system in different but (from first impression) broadly similar ways.

 

Some input here would be good   Is it possible that Mirtazapine adds pain to Benzo withdrawal over the long run, or might it still (perversely really) make things easier overall?

[[Di...]]

It’s the Remeron. Going through the same thing and stuck at 3.50. Still have Valium taper to go!  Have to decide which one to go first.  Remeron is going to take forever!

 

Do you feel well now on your current dose?  I read that some reinstate on higher levels of Remeron to stay well if they cut too much? (and does that work after going down and being hit with symptoms?) 

 

Will we have breakthrough withdrawal/waves regardless of the dose?  I weaned so consistently (weekly) the first 5 months that I just didn't make any distinction of what was what.  My psychiatrist thought it was better to stay at this dose (or go up).  Not to wean anymore.  I thought I am sick anyway, might as well get this over with...but not sure now. 

 

Ughh!

[[Di...]]

It’s the Remeron. Going through the same thing and stuck at 3.50. Still have Valium taper to go!  Have to decide which one to go first.  Remeron is going to take forever!

 

Thank you for the info... Do you feel better now that you upped your dose from 1.8 to 3.5?  I read that some reinstate on higher levels of Remeron to stay well if they cut too much? (and does that work after going down and being hit with symptoms?)  I am learning, as you can tell.

 

Will we have breakthrough withdrawal/waves regardless of the dose?  I weaned so consistently (weekly) the first 5 months that I just didn't make any distinction of what was what.  My psychiatrist thought it was better to stay at this dose (or go up).  Not to wean anymore.  I thought I am sick anyway, might as well get this wean over with...but not sure now. 

 

Ughh!

[[Ja...]]

Jack, are you healed from the benzos ?

 

That’s hard to say. I don’t think so. I would say I’m close but I know from past experiences that the setbacks or waves can come back out of no where way after initial withdrawal. So sometimes when I get slammed hard during this mirt taper I wonder if it’s Xanax or not. Very similar withdrawals so it’s hard to say.

[[Ja...]]

So if remeron acts on histamine receptors, why do some people get mental symptoms when they cut ?

 

Because all antihistamines cause mental symptoms. This is why some people take Benadryl for anxiety. The type of antihistamine is what determines to what degree it crosses the blood brain barrier but even though they all vary they all cross that barrier.

[[Ja...]]

Hello All...

 

Can I get some advice??

 

I was put on 7.5 mgs of Remeron back in October 2019.  And God, it helped SO much!  Within 2 weeks I was back to my life and working.  I did almost immediately start to wean (because the 7.5 mgs was too much).  I weaned down to 1.4 mgs though March 2020 (.1 mg reduction per week) and was doing fine.  Then at the 1.4 mg, I hit the withdrawal part of it (anxiety, abdominal cramping) and freaked out (wasn't ready for another withdrawal). 

 

I upped my dose to 1.8 and stayed there for 2 months..but it never felt "stable".  I tried a titch up to 1.9... down to 1.7...but just couldn't find a good balance.  7 weeks ago.. I crashed hard and am now in a bad "wave?" "remeron kindling?"  Is there such a thing?  All I know is I have creeped up my dose to 2.0 and still suffering.  I am not going to go up any more. 

 

So today I thought.. okay, I'm suffering anyway.  Maybe I should just finish this wean and be done with it.  I feel bad anyway, I'm sure I'll feel worse as I try this...but maybe it's just time. 

 

I'm going to talk with my psychiatrist today about this, but wanted your input too??  I was thinking of 4 options

.1 mg per week (which would take me 16 weeks to get off of this)

.1 mgs 2x per week (which would take me 8 weeks to get off of this)

OR

.1 mg every 3 days (which would take me about a month to get off of this)

 

Thoughts??  Feedback? Am I insane? 

 

I just don't want to make a knee jerk reaction, but I am ready to just be done with this.

 

My guess is it’s not Remeron. It is probably a Xanax withdrawal wave. I have been off short term benzos a few times and the withdrawal is years not months. You are doing better and then a year later you get slammed and then it goes away after a few months. The waves decrease in severity over time. I could be wrong but you have not even been off Xanax a year at this point so it really could still be Xanax withdrawal.

 

Thank you so much for responding...  I am just at a loss, because in the 5 months I was on Remeron, I never did get this type of wave until I got to a really low dose.    What has been your experience??  Have you gotten bad waves/symptoms while ON Remeron? 

 

Yes I have but it is impossible to tell whether it is mirt or benzo related. However I have gone through benzo withdrawal before without taking Remeron or any other drug to help and still went through the same thing getting hit with severe symptoms at 1 year off the drug out of nowhere and then it would go away after a few weeks. I am sure it is happening to me this time as well but I think it’s mirt sometimes when it’s not. If you’re curious why I would go through benzo withdrawal more than once it is because I was unknowingly going through it trusting my doctors. When the symptoms kept coming and going for years they had me convinced I had fibromyalgia/CFS. Then one day I was miraculously cured out of no where. And then after my daughter died the docs put me back on benzos to “help” with the grief and here we are again. If only I knew I would not have signed up to do it again. And yes, it does get worse every time. This time almost killed me. But at least I know now and will never touch that stuff again.

[[...]]

Can I just ask something - Why are people trying to withdraw from Mirt. in the 1st place? It's an antidepressant - Doesn't anyone just say "if you can't beat them, join them" (about surviving post-Benzo depression without antidepressants)? I know people are using it as a sleep aid, but are people still able to sleep at least a reasonable amount when they start withdrawing? And of those who've tried a higher (15mg.+) dose, did it do anything? What about 'poop-outs'/"conking out"?

 

On a less related note, does anyone know why everything has to be 're-instated' if a taper attempt fails? - If someone is struggling with a benzo taper, say, then why can't they just 'float' on a minimal dose (e.g. a quarter of the lower therapeutic dose) for a few months and then try again?

 

Come to that, what is a 'failed' benzo taper/withdrawal anyway?* Is it a term that's only used when the acute withdrawal (following the last dose) leaves the patient in so much mental and physical agony that they need the drug back  just to stop themselves from killing themselves?

 

Sorry for all the questions. If I request a Psychiatrist's referral rater than just taking the Mirt I have left over from an earlier prescription (which failed because it instantly aggravated my epilepsy for some reason), I could be in limbo for a long time while I wait in the queue, and will probably be ordered back on a higher dose of the drug by a GP in the meantime.

 

My problem is that I researched benzo withdrawal *only in part* when I began tapering - I didn't realise that on average for someone in my position (3 months' regular use of a long-half-life benzo but with some 'kindling' from two previous 1-month courses [plus occasional 'PRN'/occasional use]), any side effects of a slow benzo taper will only appear, on average, at the point where only quarter of the lower therapeutic dose is remains to be "tapered off", and that the term 'withdrawal symptoms' refers mainly to the months after the last [usually-tiny] dose.

 

I believe I wouldn't have had any of the side effects I'm experiencing now (still on more than a quarter of the lower therapeutic dose of my benzo, Clobazam), apart from a slight worsening of an insomnia that had already started to creep back before I began tapering, if it weren't for the 'PRN' use of Mirtazapine that I decided on just to soothe my panic over a false belief that it was the *taper*, more than the actual post-withdrawal period, that was painful. I'd probably still have worsened my insomnia simply by believing it would get worse, however.

 

It's almost as if my tendency to deceive myself worked with the cognitive side-effects (of the benzo) to persuade me to skim-read vaguely relevant material and make it sound (to me) as if the whole process of tapering was something I could just face and defeat straightaway...

[Guest [be...]]

Can I just ask something - Why are people trying to withdraw from Mirt. in the 1st place? It's an antidepressant - Doesn't anyone just say "if you can't beat them, join them" (about surviving post-Benzo. depression without antidepressants)? I know people are using it as a sleep aid, but are people still able to sleep at least a reasonable amount when they start withdrawing? And of those who've tried a higher (15mg.+) dose, did it do anything? What about 'poop-outs'/"conking out"?

 

On a less related note, does anyone know why everything has to be 're-instated' if a taper attempt fails? - If someone is struggling with a benzo taper, say, then why can't they just 'float' on a minimal dose (e.g. a quarter of the lower therapeutic dose) for a few months and then try again?

 

Come to that, what is a 'failed' benzo taper/withdrawal anyway?* Is it a term that's only used when the acute withdrawal (following the last dose) leaves the patient in so much mental and physical agony that they need the drug back  just to stop them from killing themselves?

 

Sorry for all the questions. I suspect there's some head docs' trade secrets involved, but if I request a Psychiatrist's referral, I could be in limbo for a long time while I wait in the queue, and will probably be ordered back on a higher dose of the drug by a GP in the meantime.

 

My problem is that I researched benzo withdrawal *only in part* when I began tapering - I didn't realise that on average for someone in my position (3 months' regular use of a long-half-life benzo but with some 'kindling' from two previous 1-month courses [and occasional 'PRN'/occasional use]), any side effects of a slow taper will only appear, on average, at the point where a quarter of the lower therapeutic dose is reached, and that the term 'withdrawal symptoms' refers mainly to the months after the last [usually-tiny] dose.

 

I believe I wouldn't have had any of the side effects I'm experiencing now (still on more than a quarter of the lower therapeutic dose of my benzo, Clobazam), apart from a slight worsening of an insomnia that had already started to creep back before I began tapering, if it weren't for the 'PRN' use of Mirtazapine that I decided on just to soothe my panic over a false belief that it was the *taper*, more than the actual post-withdrawal period, that was painful. I'd probably still have worsened my insomnia simply by believing it would get worse.

 

It's almost as if my tendency to deceive myself worked with the cognitive side-effects (of the benzo) to persuade me to skim-read vaguely relevant material and make it sound (to me) as if the whole process of tapering was something I could just face and defeat straightaway...

 

I started taking mirt for the weeks of zero sleep I had in benzo acute and it helped big time , it also helped with anxiety and other mental crap, now I wish I never started taking it as the withdrawal is not fun and the thought of another long taper just is so frustrating

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now I wish I never started taking it as the withdrawal is not fun and the thought of another long taper just is so frustrating

Thanks for the input    I was kind of asking why one should even try to stop taking Mirtazapine after acute Benzo withdrawal, given the fact that Mirtazapine is an antidepressant. I know the Mirt has side effects like overeating and (for low-dose users especially) some sedation, but if the "fix" is worse than the problem, then why attempt it?