Mirtazapine

[BrownEdgeBoy]

Hi, does anyone with a brain injury have any experience of using Mirtazapine to treat depression? A new doctor of mine has presented it as a ‘maybe’.

Another doctor previously prescribed me Sertraline years back, which was a disaster!

I had a near fatal injury to my right frontal lobe so I suffer with on/off deep depression, chronic fatigue and emotional difficulties. That said, 8+ years on, I do well and have a good routine in place, but sometimes I just don’t have the energy (mentally/physically) left to get myself out of a slump, which can be prolonged, so continuing to consider all options for moving forward.

Thanks in advance for any feedback anyone may have.

Dan

[sealiphone]

I've been taking 45mg Mirtazapine medication for around 10 years and I've not experienced some of the unwanted side effects.

I know one person who put on excess weight, which is a potential side effect and you will see many negative posts on the internet regarding tiredness and fatigue.

45 mg is the maximum dose, which can be prescribed at primary care level but even at that dosage it didn't worsen my already present CFS symptoms and I lost a bit of weight initially.

[BrownEdgeBoy in reply to sealiphone]

Thank you for your response, it’s really appreciated!

[Dvorak]

My friend switched from another antidepressant to mirtazapine about a year ago I think and certainly her mood has lifted since then but that may not just be due to the medication but other factors end of lockdown, the ability to go out more and more activities in the care home where she lives

[CW2002]

Morning,

Anti depressants or the SSRI types which include sertraline and cipramil of which have taken both. Mainly cipramil on and off for a lot of years as the doctor looked at the notes and gave me the same thing every time I went.

It brought me out of depression but then I would loose all feelings and feel nothing just a flat no mood at all. Dead to emotions. I had a lot of years where I refused to take the tablets because of this.

I feel last times depression was as bad as ever after a long spell without any tablets. I was prescribed matazapine due to lack of sleep it really helped in a low dose 15mg. I ended up on a higher dose as I still felt depressed 45mg and I felt like a zombie. It cut out my thinking which sounds weird but my mind felt blank. It got me through a bad time.

I think that’s the purpose of them… on them when you have had enough.

I now look for other things that help my biggest help exercise I started years ago and wanted to know why when I had been to the gym or run I actually felt normal for half a day. I also do yoga that clears my mind. Breathing exercises also help. Getting out being sociable. Good music and comedy. The exercise has changed my life I run with a club and have done some marathons something to be proud of 3 for headway in London. Got loads of new friends by doing this.

I did drink heavy for years another thing I used wrongly to cope but it made things worse.

You will feel better but all I’m trying to say is use the tablet but look for other things make your own luck.

ATB

Cw2002

[dovrob]

Was put on it to help my sleeping as I was waking up through the night due to prostate problems and found it difficult to get back to sleep. The mirtazapine certainly helped me get back to sleep but I couldn't defeat the increased fatigue I felt through the rest of the day.

I've since came of them, tried Imipramine and then trazadone with equally poor results. Still wake up through the night to pass urine, though head not as 'busy' just now and so get back top sleep.

The fatigue is something that has followed me 40+ years post injury, though never managed to find a solution.

Feel so grateful that double vision is the only obvious lasting affect of my injury, though its all the small unexplained things that set my mind going, is it a result of the fall, getting on in years or just part of my general make-up, which make life confusing.

[Nafnaf87]

Good morning Dan

I'm 26 years into severe head injury.

About 4 years ago during a period of extreme family related turbulence (and Covid which happened at the same time) got prescribed Mirtazapine by at local General Hospital. Certain things which happened in the period after provoked tears and sometimes misery and I could not understand why, the normal me would have thought "oh dear, not good" but that would have been it. After a couple of months I realised it was the Mirtazapine and stopped it.

After a while GP persuaded me to go on Sertraline which made no difference so I stopped that.

I am of the mind I hate taking anything and it is always a very last resort. I believe generally my body knows best and I only help it if absolutley necessary. Everybody is different and reacts in different ways.

Best wishes

Michael

[Jpdee75]

hi Dan I to suffered serious frontal lobe damage. Early on in recovery I started suffering from tinnitus it seemed impossible and then pretty much was to start gathering my thoughts and focus back to some normality particularly with this loud noise going on stopping me from sleeping so my dr prescribed mirtazapine Cause of the sedative qualities and it worked well. Discovered that the tinnitus was caused I was over doing it and it subsided with the added rest of sedation. I asked if I could up dosage to help with anxiety and depression which I did but found I could not sleep which panicked me cause sleep was very important to my recovery as you know and there is nothing worse than laying there all night worrying, all day worrying was more than enough. Anyway my GP couldn’t understand it and his words were if a medication makes you tired taking more should make you more tired? He didn’t know. So I dropped dosage back down and eventually stopped completely as I to suffer from conic fatigue and the sedating effects of mirtazapine weren’t helping. But? I have since read that only in lower doses does mirtazapine work like this and the higher doses can stimulate your brain into a higher energy. Which is what happened to me if my doctor knew this I would still be on it as sertraline and many others I’ve tried so not agree with me. You will have to grin and bare with starting on a lower dose get ready for plenty of sleep. Good luck

[westbury200]

I have taken Mirtazipine following a TBI. I found it made my chronic fatigue worse which depressed me .ore than the depression if that makes a y sense. I stopped taking them.

[Wolfie04]

Hi. I’ve been on mirtazapine for a few years now. I thought initially that it wasn’t helpful so doctor changed to another medication (sorry can’t remember the name). That was disastrous so ended up being put back on mirtazapine but higher dose. It seems to help me sleep. I liked to think I didn’t need antidepressants but had to give in to the fact that two brain tumour surgeries was bringing me down. I wasn’t wired up the same as pre surgery. I haven’t found any problems with mirtazapine. I’m now on maximum dose. I’d prefer it if I didn’t need them but it’s just not an option for me. Hope my input helps.

😊

[Crazycatladyuk]

I was taking sertralin which caused me to have quite vivid hallucinations and fekt like they were real so was changed to 45 mg of mirtazapine and the hallucinations stopped so it works well for me

[followfranco]

I tried about 23 different types of medication. The doctor prescribed each one because nothing seemed to work. Then someone suggested I try Omega-3, and within a week, I noticed an improvement. Omega-3 is beneficial for brain health and overall well-being. If Omega-3 supplements are not within your budget, eating Omega-3 enriched eggs might provide some benefits.

It always surprises me why Omega-3 isn’t the first line of defense, the foundational nutrient to build on, whether it be additional food or medication. I wish I had started Omega-3 first.

And it makes sense, really. If you need more muscle, you eat protein. If you need to rebuild your brain, you need protein for your brain, and Omega-3 is like protein for your brain and an oil change combined.