Welcome to our community. Please fill in the following template as a way of introducing yourself, and helping others to understand your background and situation.
Where are you from (country)?
Mexico
How did you find this forum (Google search – if so, what search terms? Via link from a forum or website – if so, what page? Other?)
Other website I don’t even want to mention
What is your current age, height, weight?
33, 6 2, 77 kgs
What specific drug did you use (finasteride, dutasteride, saw palmetto, isotretinoin/Accutane, fluoxetine, sertraline, citalopram, leuprorelin, etc…)?
Mirtazapine
What dose did you take (eg. 1 mg/day, 1 mg every other day etc.)?
15mg
What condition was being treated with the drug?
Sporadic anxiety and sleeping issues
For how long did you take the drug (weeks/months/years)?
4 months
Date when you started the drug?
By August 2020
Date when you quit the drug?
January 2021
Age when you quit?
33
How did you quit (cold turkey or taper off)?
Fast taper
How long into your usage did you notice the onset of side effects?
Two months
What side effects did you experience that have yet to resolve since discontinuation?
Anhedonia, muscle wastage, sexual issues, insomnia, tinnitus, skin changes, hair thinning everywhere, loss of body hair…
Check the boxes that apply. You can save your post first, then interactively check/uncheck the boxes by clicking on them. If your symptoms change, please update your list.
Sexual
[X ] Loss of Libido / Sex Drive
[X] Erectile Dysfunction
[ ] Complete Impotence
[X ] Loss of Morning Erections
[X ] Loss of Spontaneous Erections (IMPROVED A BIT)
[X ] Loss of Nocturnal Erections (IMPROVED)
[X ] Watery Ejaculate
[X] Reduced Ejaculate
[ ] Inability or Difficulty to Ejaculate / Orgasm
[ ] Reduced Sperm Count / Motility
Mental
[X ] Emotional Blunting / Emotionally Flat
[X ] Difficulty Focusing / Concentrating
[ ] Confusion
[ ] Memory Loss / Forgetfulness
[X ] Stumbling over Words / Losing Train of Thought
[ ] Slurring of Speech
[X ] Lack of Motivation / Feeling Passive / Complacency
[X ] Extreme Anxiety / Panic Attacks
[X ] Severe Depression / Melancholy
[X ] Suicidal Thoughts
Physical
[X ] Penile Tissue Changes (narrowing, shrinkage, wrinkled)
[X ] Penis curvature / rotation on axis
[ ] Testicular Pain
[X ] Testicular Shrinkage / Loss of Fullness
[X ] Genital numbness / sensitivity decrease
[ ] Weight Gain
[ ] Gynecomastia (male breasts)
[X ] Muscle Wastage
[ ] Muscle Weakness
[ ] Joint Pain
[ ] Dry / Dark Circles under eyes
Misc
[ ] Prostate pain
[X ] Persistent Fatigue / Exhaustion
[ ] Stomach Pains / Digestion Problems
[ ] Constipation / “Poo Pellets”
[X ] Vision - Acuity Decrease / Blurriness (IMPROVED)
[X ] Tinnitus (ringing or high pitched sound in ears)
[ ] Hearing loss
[X ] Increased hair loss
[ ] Frequent urination
[ ] Lowered body temperature
[ ] Other (please explain)
What (if any) treatments have you undertaken to recover from your side effects since discontinuation of the drug?
A bunch of BS supplements like Bromantane, Uridine monophosphate, Ritalin, Etifoxine
If you have pre or post-drug blood tests, what hormonal changes have you encountered since discontinuing the drug (please post your test results in the “Blood Tests” section and link to them in your post)?
Low free T
Anything not listed in the above questions you’d like to share about your experience?
Tell us your story, in your own words, about your usage and side effects experienced while on/off the drug.
I posted my story in the general topics days ago, but it’s more of less like this…
After experiencing some anxiety from heavy work stress and a troublesome relationship I was switched from Paroxetine to Mirtazapine. First weeks I was feeling ok; I was sleeping normally, I had energy… my mood wasn’t wonderful, but I was feeling comfortable. Then one day I noticed I was unable to take naps. I would relax, but just at the moment of the blackout my mind would spring back to consciousness with a tremendous adrenaline rush. I thought this was just a side effect that would go away with time, like all doctors tell you with any bizarre symptoms. It didn’t go away and more strange signs started to appear. One day I woke up and lighted a cigarrette in the backyard noticing something was really wrong with me, but I couldn’t define it immediately… I kept thinking and thinking until I remembered some drug review that talked about loss of self awareness and I noticed it was just like it, but not only that… my emotions were gone. At first it was kind of fascinating. I felt like I was in a Twilight Zone episode living a unique adventure, but that appreciation didn’t last long as the effects of the nightmare started to take more and more territory in my life; I couldn’t close that interesting horror book.
I bacame panicked, left the med with a fast taper that was basically CT in steps. The first line of support I found for the condition was some echo chamber of negativity and fake experiments people would post to get other people to try them. I tried some supplements for a few days and I threw them away scared of them making my condition worse.
The deterioration kept coming… I lost muscle mass and tone, my skin became rubbery, I lost great proportion of my body hair, my hair became brittle and wouldn’t grow as fast as before. I got double vision, lost posture stability, became very suicidal, depressed and my general health went to hell. It’s like my body hard tissue was eaten by some virus through the first year of this disease. I can see bones and tendons where I was never able to see them despite my eating habits. My strenght is still there, but I can’t build muscle anymore; muscles are always cold, deflated and barely get a pump when exercising.
Now I’ll talk about some laughable improvements I’ve been experiencing for the last 3 months.
-Went from 72 kgs to 77 kgs, probably mostly fat, though…
-I get some glipses of the non anhedonic me that last for literally fractions of seconds and come like once or twice every two days.
-Beard fullness is improving a lot, but thickness remains affected.
-I don’t have double vision anymore, could this be a signal of minor muscle fibers recovering?
-Cognition slowly improves and my sense of humor has been showing more, although this could be wishful thinking…