Posted by Hombre on April 3, 2010, at 22:59:22
In reply to Remeron Anyone?, posted by bearfan on April 1, 2010, at 18:30:28
I've been on Remeron for about 4 months now. Started at 15mg, went as high as 45mg. Currently at 30mg.
Sedation:
It was hard core the first day. Less so after that, to the point that it wouldn't even make me drowsy. But during the first few days I felt pretty stoned. I wouldn't have wanted to drive a car.
Antidepressant effect:
Strong at first, the first feeling of near-remission in over a year. Unfortunately it pooped out in about 10 days. Went up to 45mg after a few months, but never got back the initial effect.
Weight gain:
Negligible. I exercise pretty consistently, mostly strength based circuit training. I did notice an increase in appetite, but I could stop myself from overeating. I should say that this is a skill I only picked up in the past few years living in countries where portion sizes tend to be smaller than in the Americas.
So why am I still taking it?
When the doctor added venlafaxine XR (Effexor), which I'd had some success with in the past, it seemed to have a synergistic effect with the Remeron. We even tried lowering Remeron to 15mg on the way to eliminating it, but I started to feel flat. It is possible that Remeron takes the edge off of Effexor, which I find activating, mostly in a good way. While Remeron is busy trying to increase monoamine output, the Effexor is working on the "other end" inhibiting reuptake.
I tried augmenting Remeron with lithium first, but that didn't seem to do anything. It was when the Effexor was added that things started to improve. I even started to feel a bit drowsy when taking the Remeron at night.
poster:Hombre
thread:941671
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20100328/msgs/942109.html