How long till Remeron helped you? (flushing)

[WrinkledClue]

I started with 30mg of remeron as I had read it had less side effects at a higher dosage.

From the first dose it clearly lessened my flushing.

I had a dry mouth from the clonidine, not the remeron. I use Biotene mouthwash after every tooth brushing so the dry mouth doesn't give me cavities.

The remeron has been amazing for me. I still flush, but much briefer and less intensely, and also every month I get a bit better.

Happy to answer any questions about remeron. I've been on it almost a year now.

It gives me a hell of a sweet tooth.

[BMBM]

Unfortunately, I got no benefit from Remeron (Mirtazipine).

When Dr Chu prescribed it for me he said it worked best in conjunction with Clonidine so I'm not sure if it would be beneficial for flushing on it's own.

I also put on a fair bit of weight (12 lbs) even though my diet and amount of exercise didn't change. Now I've stopped the weight has started coming off but not as quickly. Off to the gym for me!

[bluesky]

Hi again,

Just thought I'd give an update!

Well, I've taken 3 pills so far, will take my 4th in a few minutes here and so far it's been alot better. I don't know what happened that first day but like I said in my previous posts, I felt absolutely horrible, like I was dead walking with a huge hangover, totally drugged and out of it. The past two days though have been fine ... I wouldn't really know I even took the pill aside from sleeping 11-12 hours nightly and feeling a little more hungry, aside from that though I feel normal. It's sooo strange though considering how bad I felt the first day, so maybe that was just a fluke or the drug getting used to my body or something crazy like that but now all seems OK!

Thanks though everyone for your replies, I was going to give up on it after that first nightmare of an experience but decided to pull through after the reassurance here. I think drugs like this really do need a week or two to give them a chance. And Alba, I'm really sorry again to hear of your experience with clonidine and I can't blame you on giving up on it after living in the nightmare for more than a week with it. I too would much rather flush than feel like I did the other day! Oh btw to answer your previous question, I'm taking 15 mgs. I hope though that you're able to try something else that will work better without such side effects, I think maybe some people are just very sensitive to certain meds. Regarding the dosage, I didn't know they only came in 0.1 mcgs! I always thought they came in lower doses because from threads alot of people talk about how they take 0.25 mcgs a day etc. but IDK... I know pill splitting especially with tiny pills can be a nightmare and very difficult to get even cuts.

WrinkledClue, did you start with 15 mgs and go up to 30 mgs or 30 mgs was your starting place?? I'm planning to go up to 30 mgs next month but I'm not sure if 30 mgs has possibly even more of a anti-flush effect and that's why you and Natalja are at that dose? Also; yeah... I think it's going to deff take a week or two to get used to this, even though I don't feel like I was hit by a train any longer I'm still sleeping 11-12 hours a night. I do also notice the increase in hunger and I have cheated from my really strict diet a time or two, which isn't good but I'm going to tighten up again... not because I'm watching my weight (I'm 100 lbs) but because I don't want to eat anything that'll make my skin worse etc. I actually am hoping for weight gain as a side effect but I don't really know how I could ever gain weight off my current diet consisting of mainly veggies, fruits, brown rice, lean meats etc. seems unlikely I would gain but maybe it'll happen! Very vivid and crazy dreams too but thankfully no nightmares!

Oh- also.. Idk if it's just a placebo or my imagination at work here, or being overly optimistic etc. but my face seems less red and flushing less. Again, this could very well be all in my head but I do deff seem less red and I haven't been flushing as much. We'll see what the future holds though but for now there seems to be an improvement.

[banshee]

Thanks WrinkledClue and bluesky for your accounts....I really need something for depression now more so than the rosacea but I wouldn't complain if it helped that too.

[Alba]

Dear Bluesky,

Im so happy to hear that you are feeling better. Wonderful with God's help you will be able to continue the remeron and continue to get better as time goes by.

My doctor already called prescription for me for the Elavil, so im debating if i should try it or not. Im still flushing a lot more since i stopped the clonidine. I was not this bad b/4 the clonidine.

Elavil is used in many patients where they have pain so maybe it would help witht he pain from the horrible flushing. Rosabolic from this forum says the elavil stopped his flushing. We need to take meds to stop the flushing which is the main reason our face gets so bad. I think laser alone cant help.

You are so lucky since you need the weight gain than you wont have a problem with remeron. My doctor told me taht just by taking the remeron you gain, the medicine itself puts weight on and on top of that the remeron's side efffect is appetite increase. This totaly sucks for me cuase i dont need or wnat to gain weight. Rosabolic was lucky enough not to gain weight but then again he's a guy/male they dont usually have weight gain problems.

Good luck and continued success!

Alba

[nataljaoo]

Originally Posted by bluesky

I just started taking remeron- one night ago. I feel like I was literally run over by a truck- I initially slept for 8 hours, woke up, felt very very spaced out, things were not really registering and still felt very tired. After 2 hours awake I decided to lay down for a "nap"... a 19 hour nap?? I am still feeling very very spaced out and tired, also have had a terrible headaches every time I've been trying to wake up, feels like the worst hangover of my entire life and then some. I don't know if I can take this drug if this is going to continue on; any advice anymore?? I don't know if I'm going to take the pill "tonight" I'm still feeling totally spaced and hungover yet I took the pill almost 32 hours ago.

sorry if this whole thing doesn't make sense all that much, like i said.. I'm still very spaced out. sorry.

Hi all,

yes, the first weeks can be tough, but your body needs to get adjusted to this med. The thing with remeron is, that it works at different ways. At a low dose (what a starting dose is), from 7,5 to 15 or even 30 mg, remeron as a strong antihistamine action. Like normal antihistamines, this will cause you to feel dizzy, tired and sleepy, as well as HUNGRY : )
Don't worry, the sleepyness will wear off after some time. Best is to take the meds before you go to bed. I sleep 9 hours straight on them, and even more if I want. This med is also prescribed by some as a sleep aid, although it's not really designed for that. At a dose higher than 30 mg the noradrenaline effects take over and most of these side-effects wear off. But for flushing 15-mg is the best, so I would say, give it some time. As your body adjusts things will get much better and easier for most.

For me it worked after a week or so for the flushing. But it can take longer. The antidepressant actions will take about 3-4 weeks to kick in for most.

I love this med, have been on and off some times and have to stop again soon (pregnancy wish), but I dread being off it. It is the most important med for keeping my flushing under controle. I don't like how it makes you hungry, but I managed to shed some of the extra weight I put on initially by watching my diet and being active.

Best wishes Natalja

[nataljaoo]

Originally Posted by WrinkledClue

Remeron helped me with flushing from the first dose.

I've been on it a year now, 30mg a night, and it continues to help more and more. I"m slowly improving from catastrophic, debilitating rosacea like Nat's.

The Remeron made me feel incredibly sleepy for the first week or two. I knew it would, so I started it during a week when I didn't have to do much.

My body adapted to it. It still gives me a good night's sleep, but I no longer have any daytime sleepiness.

My dr insisted I give it a week before I quit when he first prescribed it because he knew of the sleepy side effects. From the first dose, it shut down much of my flushing, so I knew I had to stay on it and find a way to manage the side effects.

I've been on it continuously for almost a year now, since last thanksgiving. It's a godsend for me.

I suspect it works best with women over 40 dealing wtih estrogen withdrawal as far as shutting down flushing, just my opinion.

HI WC!

I'm so happy for you remeron keeps helping you with your rosacea! About the 40 age limit; I just turned 30 and have used remeron for almost 4 years now and it works pretty good for me as well, so I'm not too sure about your theory. But remeron is prescribed for menopausal women with hot flashes and has a proven track for it (google it if you like). The same for clonidine, but to a lesser degree. I agree with you that one really needs to take into account that the first week (for me actually WEEKS) can be difficult, with sleepyness and other side-effects. I had some restless legs as well just after I took it in the first month. But if you really want to give it a go, you really should give it a go and don't back out when you experience the first side-effect. It is a chemical after all and your body needs to get used to it. And I know this sounds bad ("chemical")< but I believe it's worse for the body to have constant inflammation, flushing attacks and stress.

Hugs Nat

[nataljaoo]

Originally Posted by bluesky

Hi again,

Just thought I'd give an update!

Well, I've taken 3 pills so far, will take my 4th in a few minutes here and so far it's been alot better. I don't know what happened that first day but like I said in my previous posts, I felt absolutely horrible, like I was dead walking with a huge hangover, totally drugged and out of it. The past two days though have been fine ... I wouldn't really know I even took the pill aside from sleeping 11-12 hours nightly and feeling a little more hungry, aside from that though I feel normal. It's sooo strange though considering how bad I felt the first day, so maybe that was just a fluke or the drug getting used to my body or something crazy like that but now all seems OK!

Thanks though everyone for your replies, I was going to give up on it after that first nightmare of an experience but decided to pull through after the reassurance here. I think drugs like this really do need a week or two to give them a chance. And Alba, I'm really sorry again to hear of your experience with clonidine and I can't blame you on giving up on it after living in the nightmare for more than a week with it. I too would much rather flush than feel like I did the other day! Oh btw to answer your previous question, I'm taking 15 mgs. I hope though that you're able to try something else that will work better without such side effects, I think maybe some people are just very sensitive to certain meds. Regarding the dosage, I didn't know they only came in 0.1 mcgs! I always thought they came in lower doses because from threads alot of people talk about how they take 0.25 mcgs a day etc. but IDK... I know pill splitting especially with tiny pills can be a nightmare and very difficult to get even cuts.

WrinkledClue, did you start with 15 mgs and go up to 30 mgs or 30 mgs was your starting place?? I'm planning to go up to 30 mgs next month but I'm not sure if 30 mgs has possibly even more of a anti-flush effect and that's why you and Natalja are at that dose? Also; yeah... I think it's going to deff take a week or two to get used to this, even though I don't feel like I was hit by a train any longer I'm still sleeping 11-12 hours a night. I do also notice the increase in hunger and I have cheated from my really strict diet a time or two, which isn't good but I'm going to tighten up again... not because I'm watching my weight (I'm 100 lbs) but because I don't want to eat anything that'll make my skin worse etc. I actually am hoping for weight gain as a side effect but I don't really know how I could ever gain weight off my current diet consisting of mainly veggies, fruits, brown rice, lean meats etc. seems unlikely I would gain but maybe it'll happen! Very vivid and crazy dreams too but thankfully no nightmares!

Oh- also.. Idk if it's just a placebo or my imagination at work here, or being overly optimistic etc. but my face seems less red and flushing less. Again, this could very well be all in my head but I do deff seem less red and I haven't been flushing as much. We'll see what the future holds though but for now there seems to be an improvement.

Hi Bluesky,

I don't pop in every week, but when I do I write too much prbably... anyway, about the dose. Dr. Chu told me at the time he normally prescribes 15 mg for flushing, but 30 would be ok as well. I started off with 15, but because I was very depressed then I wanted to go to 30 mg, as the antidepressant action is higher at this dose. It has worked extremely well for my depression and anxiety and for my flushing and burning (which were very extreme, actually 24/7 and debilitating). The last year I have taken only 15 mg remeron and IU find it works just as well for my flushing. My depression is gone for years now and even when I was off the remeron it didn't come back. But the flushing did, so I know for sure that remeron helps a lot, (together with clonidine and propranolol for me, but I was only taken remeron for a month and I was still doing pretty ok, so it's mostly the remeron for me). Be aware of the increased appetite though.
That is the only side-effect that really bothers me. When I take the med before sleeping I am fresh and awake all during the day, but the increase in appetite and weight gain, even when you stick to your old eating and excersize regime for some, is a downer. I did gain weight, but I was underweight for years and to start with (50 kg........, 1.69 tall) and went up to 65 kg and then back again to 60, which is good for my length. But it took a lot of walking daily and strict food intake for me, as I normally can eat everything I want without gaining any weight, so be aware of that. I felt so relieved and happy and over the moon the first year, when my flushing was getting less and I could eat more and felt great, that I treated myself with nice food a lot, as I enjoyed life so much, but your metabolism does change a s bit on the remeron.

BUT the good thing is that the wextra weight is temporary and will drop off once you stop it. I lost 6 kilo's in just 4 weeks off the med. Without any adaptation to my normal eating and excersize routines....

Hi Alba,
I'm sorry about your clonidine ordeal. Clonidine gives side-effects as well, but less than the remeron for most and they will pass for most. It can make you dizzy, spaced out, sleepy and light haded. This is partly because it is a blood pressure lowering med, so withy normal blood pressure yours can go down too much. But, your body will most likely adaot to it in time. For me it took some time, I would say at least a month, before the sleepyness wore off. But it was worth it for me. My bp is now normal, even on two blood pressure lowering meds.
With clonidine you always should taper it off when you want to stop. Immeditae discontinuing gives rebound flushing...

hugs Natalja

[Alba]

Dear Natalja,

Thanks for your wonderful advise. I should have stuck it out more, such a chicken i guess. I still have more left. I want to see how my period goes in 3 weeks if i get the severe flushing again, if i dont than it was definetly the withdrawal from the clonidine. my poor ears were purple all last week. this week i've taken warm showers and thankfully my ears are not purple. I should have tapered off but my doctor told me to just stop. He is a primary doctor not derm so I dont think he knows much about rebound flushing. He tries at least to help me.

Alba

[nataljaoo]

Dear Alba,

the problem with this is that not everyone responds the same to medication or treatment, so it's trial and error for most. Only you can decide if the side-effects that you experience are worth it or not. But if you do try a med, you might indeed give it a bit more time, as most initial side-effects often wear off in time. Not all perhaps, that depends on the person I guess..
Hope your ears turn back to normal soon : )

Best wishes Natalja