I am a type 1 diabetic and hav...

[AEM46]

I am a type 1 diabetic and have been taking 30mg of Mirtazapine for a couple of weeks now, i have found i have higher bloodsugars than ive ever had before in the 43 years ive had diabetes, and ive put on alot of weight in this short time.

[Cb1963]

Can I ask why you were given mirtrazpine? I also take this and have done for 5+years, I was given it I believe to help with my sleep, I'm not diabetic, but have peripheral neuropathy, nerve damage, I think it's a pretty good medication, but Im taking pregabilin which is notorious for gaining weight, it's always difficult weighing the pros and cons with medication,my weight gain hasn't got out if hand and to be honest I was under weight, so as long as I don't put any more weight on I'm happy enough with the tablets, so it might be something that you'll have to accept, even though they say being overweight with diabetes can cause issues, so a tricky one for you, but as all the specialist's say exercise always help, so good luck for now

[AEM46 in reply to Cb1963]

Hi Thanks for your reply, ii was given it for anxiety and for sleep, it does make me sleep but it hasn't helped the anxiety.

[Cb1963 in reply to AEM46]

Yep unfortunately as humans we have not much control from the outside world and if you are a person who gets easily stressed it's so difficult to keep under control, hence the fight or flight mode kicks in, which gets adrenal pumping through the body, if your finding people that are causing you issues keep them at arms length, and as selfish as this sounds look after number one, otherwise you'll find unknowingly that you're under pressure and it's your body that will bare the brunt of it, I lead a single life and do as I please, so I'm in my mid fifties and quite happy to live alone, but if your in a long term relationship and your partner isn't listening try to explain it's outside pressure that's adding to your anxiety and I'm sure they'll be with you on that one, so peace and calm, and a little down time for you, can do you the world of good maybe

[saj01]

Hi... There's a few side effects with mirtrazapine, weight gain is one! I believe that originally it was designed as an appetite stimulant - certain studies have shown that it doesn't raise blood sugar levels for those on a controlled diet. Just wondering if you are finding that your appetite has increased and possibly you may be eating more of the foods which can increase the glucose levels? I hated mirtrazapine, it made me feel 'sluggish' and I had the munchies all the time... even at night!! I foud myself up in the middle of the night eating bowls of cereal and banana sandwiches.

Maybe the answer is to ask to be changed to a different antidepressant...As yours is for anxiety... maybe imipramine might help... I was fine on that and it does help panic attacks etc. My sleep was better as I took it at night. Some Gp's like to stick to SSRIs because someone can't overdose on them and a lot of them do have weight gain effects.

As yours isn't a 'depressive condition, they may consider imipramine which is a tricyclic .... Without knowing your situation, would an increase in exercise be possible? , even walking and swimming can be beneficial... not only for weight loss but to increase that 'feel good factor' , thereby increasing a positive mental attitude.

Maybe looking at relaxation techniques, yoga, tai chi... anything which help to focus and quieten the mind. I do hope that your health provider has talked about counselling, because just taking tablets isn't the whole answer, especially for anxiety... it's identifying the cause and learning to overcome it.

Hope that helps you

[AEM46 in reply to saj01]

Hi Thank you, yes i have been eating too much also but i always take insulin to cover the carbs, i have social anxiety so in find it difficult to go out but i do have an exercise bike and treadmill i use, im also on the waiting list for counselling, in the past the Dr tried me on Citalopram and Sertraline but i couldnt take because i had too many side effects.

[saj01 in reply to AEM46]

Hi... just wondering if there's anyway you could reduce the carbs to try to compensate for the meds. I changed my diet knocking out quite a lot of the carbs and now eat more veg... also there's a certain amount of carbs in those. For instance i make cauliflower ice and flavour it with onion red pepper, garlic, chopped mint or thyme and lemon.. it's not rice, but it's tasty and far less carbs. I often have that instead of potatoes or rice or pasta.

I know that ssri's are the pits as they can give you anxiety... even when you didn't have it. I'm sorry to learn about your type of anxiety, it must make life difficult for you. Is it the 'going out' which is the problem... or having to interact with others. If you could make those first few steps, both walking and swimming are things where you don't really have to interact with others very much... unless you wan to. Where I go for swimming, it's ladies only or men only and it's lane swimming, which is divided up into slow, medium and fast. ... you just get in the zone and go! I didn't know anyone when I first started and apart from just a brief, hello, how are you, that's about the extent of the conversation as the time goes so quickly. The same with walking, apart from saying good morning as I pass, that's it.. Like most things, it's just making those first few steps...they are the hardest.

I do hope you won't have to wait too long for the counselling as the winter will soon be here.. Good luck.