Remeron

What is the standard dosage of remeron for sleep

my doc started me on 7.5 milligrams

Which puts me to sleep but not the whole nite

He told me to increase dosage to 15 milligrams

Will that do the trick

Anybody have any experience first hand with this particular

Medicine

Thanx

Be very careful. It has many bad and permanent side effects

Tigerpawn, remeron is more sedating at lower doses. Sometimes lowering the dose works better. I’ve gotten good results with as little as 1.6mg. I took it at my first wake up and usually would wake up twice only. Try not to use it every night - I’m not sure the right ration, maybe three on / three off. Once dependent this then requires a taper. That said, Andros01 used it I think 6 weeks at 3.25mg and cold turkeyed with just a few days of headaches. I think he cycles on and off.

Thanx

Another words going to a higher dose won’t help sleep

But it might help anxiety at higher dose

My experience with it was that whilst I was on Zopiclone it did not work at all, such was the damage that drug was doing to my sleep architecture. Once I was off Z for about 3 weeks, it started to work at doses around 7.5mg. Now I only use it if I have a few bad nights which are fortunately becoming less and less, and if I do, I only need 2-3mg as anything more knocks me out for the day after rather than just the night. My understanding is that above 15mg most of the sedative effect disappears, and that it is most potent as a sleep aid at low doses. That certainly correlates with my experience.

My experience with it was that whilst I was on Zopiclone it did not work at all, such was the damage that drug was doing to my sleep architecture. Once I was off Z for about 3 weeks, it started to work at doses around 7.5mg. Now I only use it if I have a few bad nights which are fortunately becoming less and less, and if I do, I only need 2-3mg as anything more knocks me out for the day after rather than just the night. My understanding is that above 15mg most of the sedative effect disappears, and that it is most potent as a sleep aid at low doses. That certainly correlates with my experience.

 

I've used it once at 15mg, and it's like you got knocked out by the Hulk. You can barely move around the house. Forget trying to do anything outside.

 

3.75mg I believe is safe enough. 7.5mg is probably the max I would recommend anyone, but if you need 15mg to sleep, I would have probably done it also.

Didn’t help me at all at 7.5mg or 15mg. But I was deep in tolerance. Not sure how well it works during taper might need to be off first. And oh yes I remember the dr saying this will definitely help u sleep. Nope

I would start with the 7.5mg.  In the past, 15mg worked best for me.  But, some people do better at 7.5mg.  I would prepare to feel sort of zonked out during the day for a week or so.  My body just felt heavy for a few days until I got used to it.

 

Tigerpawn, remeron is more sedating at lower doses. Sometimes lowering the dose works better. I’ve gotten good results with as little as 1.6mg. I took it at my first wake up and usually would wake up twice only. Try not to use it every night - I’m not sure the right ration, maybe three on / three off. Once dependent this then requires a taper. That said, Andros01 used it I think 6 weeks at 3.25mg and cold turkeyed with just a few days of headaches. I think he cycles on and off.

 

It depends for who. For me 22.5 mg is the best dose.

15mg reved me up lower dose was much better for sleep for me

Be very careful. It has many bad and permanent side effects

 

What are the permanent side effects?

I haven't heard of bad or permanent side-effects at low doses for a short period of sleep. I'm curious about this too.

I haven't heard of bad or permanent side-effects at low doses for a short period of sleep. I'm curious about this too.

 

Some people seem to experience histamine intolerance with it. That's the permanent effect I've read about.

 

It can also cause rebound insomnia when stopping it, but I imagine it would have to be large doses for a while (like taking the full 15mg or even more than that for a couple of months or more).

 

I'm juggling this with TCH so that I don't reach tolerance with either, and can stay at these low doses for sleep.

I just think saying that it could cause bad or permanent side-effects sounds vague and really scary regarding a medication that is helpful for many. But then again, what do I know?

Whats all this talk about remeron why not escitalopram?

I haven't heard of bad or permanent side-effects at low doses for a short period of sleep. I'm curious about this too.

 

Some people seem to experience histamine intolerance with it. That's the permanent effect I've read about.

 

 

I'm juggling this with TCH so that I don't reach tolerance with either, and can stay at these low doses for sleep.

 

1. Everybody is histamine intolerant. Histamine causes symptoms in everybody; that's how it fights some pathogens or toxins.

2. Remeron is an antihistamine, which means it blocks the effects of histamine. That is the opposite of causing "histamine intolerance".

Whats all this talk about remeron why not escitalopram?

 

Remeron is helpful for sleep.  Lexapro is unlikely to provide much relief there during withdrawal.  I have actually tried both during withdrawal.  Lexapro definitely helped my baseline mood but I couldn’t tolerate it whatsoever, even at 2.5mg.  I just felt really wound up and started having lots of muscle pain.  Remeron has helped me with sleep and it also quiets my nerves and the general buzzing sensation I have going through my body.  Overall I’m less restless.

djej2010, did you heal after your 11 months off the first time, or did you go back on when not healed?

I haven't heard of bad or permanent side-effects at low doses for a short period of sleep. I'm curious about this too.

 

Some people seem to experience histamine intolerance with it. That's the permanent effect I've read about.

 

It can also cause rebound insomnia when stopping it, but I imagine it would have to be large doses for a while (like taking the full 15mg or even more than that for a couple of months or more).

 

I'm juggling this with TCH so that I don't reach tolerance with either, and can stay at these low doses for sleep.

 

People don't experience histamine intolerance (whatever that is) because mirtazapine is a very strong antihistamine.

I haven't heard of bad or permanent side-effects at low doses for a short period of sleep. I'm curious about this too.

 

Some people seem to experience histamine intolerance with it. That's the permanent effect I've read about.

 

It can also cause rebound insomnia when stopping it, but I imagine it would have to be large doses for a while (like taking the full 15mg or even more than that for a couple of months or more).

 

I'm juggling this with TCH so that I don't reach tolerance with either, and can stay at these low doses for sleep.

 

People don't experience histamine intolerance (whatever that is) because mirtazapine is a very strong antihistamine.

 

Remeron causes histamine intolerance. Not while you are taking it of course. It starts when you begin to taper and discontinue the drug. Much like how you don’t have anxiety when taking Xanax but we all know what happens when you discontinue it. Remeron has a similar effect on histamine as benzos have on gaba. It takes a long time for your histamine responses to return to normal. I am not sure that it is permanent but I am sure for some it could be. For most it will be minimal or at worst lessening in intensity over several years until full recovery is achieved.

djej2010, did you heal after your 11 months off the first time, or did you go back on when not healed?

 

I was definitely not healed and had a partially delayed withdrawal.  In the first three months off, I felt crummy and had plenty of symptoms, but overall it was manageable.  Insomnia, DP/DR, general restlessness, and the general malaise that comes from poor sleep were the predominant symptoms. After getting off, I was also immediately put on other meds (propranolol and Viibryd).  Remeron and Abilify were later thrown into the mix.  Around three months off, the terror just hit me and it took a long time to figure out what was going on.  Some of those meds had definitely ramped up the anxiety, particularly the Abilify.  Higher doses of Viibryd did it as well.  I also learned the propranolol was making me severely depressed and fatigued. 

 

Looking back, there were signs that withdrawal was about to get real.  Although I felt ok two months out, I started waking up with that internal buzz and thought “this is weird.”  I also remember getting lots of crazy head pressure stuff at work and strange sensory/perception stuff like sitting in conference room chair and feeling like I was falling.  Walking up to go to bathroom and the floor felt like it was moving beneath me.  One night three months out I was driving my family and a huge thunderstorm came really suddenly.  I guess I panicked a bit but I’d been through this plenty of times before.  But, it sent me into a full blown panic attack and from that moment it was like the gates of hell opened.  But, with all the meds I was on it was so confusing and my ignorant doc didn’t chalk it up to benzo withdrawal.  At 11 months was when Covid hit and my young kids were yanked out of school and I started working from home.  I just couldn’t deal and reinstated. 

 

 

I haven't heard of bad or permanent side-effects at low doses for a short period of sleep. I'm curious about this too.

 

Some people seem to experience histamine intolerance with it. That's the permanent effect I've read about.

 

It can also cause rebound insomnia when stopping it, but I imagine it would have to be large doses for a while (like taking the full 15mg or even more than that for a couple of months or more).

 

I'm juggling this with TCH so that I don't reach tolerance with either, and can stay at these low doses for sleep.

 

People don't experience histamine intolerance (whatever that is) because mirtazapine is a very strong antihistamine.

 

Remeron causes histamine intolerance. Not while you are taking it of course. It starts when you begin to taper and discontinue the drug. Much like how you don’t have anxiety when taking Xanax but we all know what happens when you discontinue it. Remeron has a similar effect on histamine as benzos have on gaba. It takes a long time for your histamine responses to return to normal. I am not sure that it is permanent but I am sure for some it could be. For most it will be minimal or at worst lessening in intensity over several years until full recovery is achieved.

 

I would appreciate references to support your statement that tapering remeron causes histamine intolerance and that takes a long time to return to normal.

 

As an aside, Andros said that remeron causes histamine intolerance when one is taking it. There is absolutely no evidence for that.

To begin with:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6881111/

 

So it's been reported albeit by a more scientific name.  I know the term 'histamine intolerance' is imprecise and jargony, but it describes a general class of related-symptoms that many people in the forum believe they are confronting.  Please give them a little space.  You won't find an article on 'benzo flu' in PNAS either, but it's a legitimate topic for discussion.

 

Jack37 - please don't make it worse.  A little editing would be appropriate.

djej2010, that sounds so hard! I am so sorry. This sounds like what my withdrawal has been like, except you were more functional I'd say. I've thought a lot about reinstating so that I can function and slowly tapering, but it feels so scary and risky. It sounds like you did the right thing reinstating. I hope you were able to stabilize and are having a better time now. Are you finding this taper to be harder because it's the second time? I've thought a lot about psych drugs through this thing, because I've wanted help for my brain, but nothing I try works the way it should. Serotonin is a stress signal in the brain. I suspect that we are all loaded with it, and giving serotonergic anti-depressants are just adding fuel to the fire. I take tianeptine to try to mop some of this up as well as modulate glutamate, but I am not sure that it's doing a lot. I am getting better, so maybe it is, but it's not like amazing or anything.

 

I don't know what to make of remeron. I have been on and off of it for months for sleep at tiny doses (anything above 2mg turns me into a zombie). Each time I take it for a bit, I start getting middle of night anxiety. Then, after a few days of stopping, it stops. I thought it was my imagination, but this is the third time. It makes no sense, but I guess it's not for me. I've asked around a bunch of times, but no one seems to relate to this. Too bad since it is a stellar sleep aid. I didn't have any histamine issues, just weird anxiety. Doxylamine started working again after 6 weeks off, so I am super happy about that.

 

Cyproheptadine is an anti-serotinergic antihistamine that can be useful for high serotonin situations. I take low, low dose Zoloft (1/10th dose to increase neurosteroid production), and take it just in case, though binding studies show minimal binding at this level.

 

Anyway, I hope people can be kind on this thread. We are all suffering, trying to learn, and trying to help.

To begin with:  https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6881111/

 

So it's been reported albeit by a more scientific name.  I know the term 'histamine intolerance' is imprecise and jargony, but it describes a general class of related-symptoms that many people in the forum believe they are confronting.  Please give them a little space.  You won't find an article on 'benzo flu' in PNAS either, but it's a legitimate topic for discussion.

 

Jack37 - please don't make it worse.  A little editing would be appropriate.

 

Citation from the abstract of your reference: "Considering this information, it is suspected that the abrupt discontinuation of mirtazapine in the following patient case resulted in pruritus due to the reversal of antagonism at histamine receptors."

 

So this article talks about pruritus, which means itching. Itching is not a class of symptoms, it is one symptom.

 

I never said do not discuss. I just voiced my opinion.