SOLUTIONS

Treatment and medication
1

As I was sitting on my chair, crying in despair because I can't see the end of it...a thought occurred to me.

I cannot do anything to speed up time. But what I CAN do is make a list of things I discovered could help me...and could help you too.

Let me list down what I discovered.

[ FOR ANXIETY ]

- Magnesium oil (acts faster than Magnesium pills)

- Acupressure on the wrist (according to Traditional Chinese Medicine it's linked to the Heart) and 4 inches above the wrist. Should help a little bit with sleep.

- Potassium (should help with muscle relaxation and muscle twitches)

- Elevating legs for 10-15 minutes or until symptoms subside. I don't know why but this one always works for me. 

- L-Theanine (increases GABA and Dopamine) I use chewabale ones. They are non-adictive and use them as needed. 

- Taurine - an amino acid which increases GABA. Completely natural. I'm not aware of any side effects. 

- Binaural Beats (on Youtube) - they use different frequencies to stimulate the brain. These were and still are my salvation. Listen to binaural beats which: increase endorphins, calm anxiety, increase dopamine/gaba/serotonin....you can literally find Binaural Beats for ANY ailment these days! 

- Essential oils - Lavender, Frankinscense, place on wrists. 

- Meditation - just 3 minutes a day. Increase over time. All you have to do is sit comfortably in a quiet place and concentrate on your breathing. An app called Headpsace (free of charge) should help you get started. It's awesome for beginners. 

- Omega 3 - studies have showed that omega 3 helps with depression and anxiety. Whenever I feel really bad I pop a pill of cod liver oil and it helps. 

- Vagus Nerve stimulation - it turns out that this nerve is responsible for depression, anxiety, palpitations. (see below for details) 

- Incense under wrists - my Acupuncturist taught me this. Be careful not to burn yourself. This should increase Qi/Chi in the body and relax you. I use this one A LOT. Incense I use - lavender, frankinscense, myrrh, sandalwood. (The Chinese use Moxa. If you can get your hands on it, try it) 

- Warm milk - if you can't stand milk, buy Milk Peptide pills. Some people find them sedative. I use 2 when anxiety strikes, and 2 every night before bed. 

- EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) also called Tapping - you tap with your hand on some areas of your body while doing some positive self-talk. There are a lot of tutorials on Youtube.

- Chamomille tea or Chamomille essential oil drops under tongue

- Bach Remedy Sleep spray. This didn't help my sleep, but helped my anxiety. 

- Safe sun exposure - it increases serotonin and resets circadian rhythm

- Warmth on stomach - as lame as it sounds, it's incredibly soothing. Just use a hot waterbottle or a warm towel. 

- Dark Chocolate - it increases dopamine and endorphins. Be careful if you have adrenal problems, it could be a tiny bit too stimulating. I use it only occasionally. 

- Deep belly breathing

[ FOR NAUSEA ]

- Smelling Peppermint oil

- Gently rubbing stomach

- Ginger Tea 

- Binaural Beats

[ FOR FATIGUE ]

- Incense under wrist (see above for details) 

[ PALPITATIONS ]

- Vagus Nerve stimulation - coughing, gargling, chanting, popping ears (gently) while blowing through nose, massaging side of neck

Note: I will continue to add on to this list. 

Do you know of things which might help? Please do share them. We have to stand and fight together. We are divided by geography and circmustances, but we are connected by our suffering and our hearts' will to fight.

Let's fight together.

2

DISCLAIMER:  I am not a Medical Professional. The above are simply the result of personal experiments on trying to get my life back. These are just the result of my own personal experience. Please do your own research before attempting the above. What worked for me may not work for you. 

3

HI do u take these on top of your meds im thinking of the omega 3 and magnesium oil 

4

Are you coming of mirt ?

5

I used to take Magnesium pills before Mirtazapine. But while on the Mirtazapine I started the magnesium oil with no ill effects. I had read that a lot of people were deficient in Magnesium these days due to depleted soils. It turned out I was still deficient even thought I took the pills. (my body probably couldn't absorb the pills) 

Still, always monitor how you feel when you start something new even though magnesium is very safe. 

6

I'm off Mirtazapine. Been off it for 1 month 4 days. But I'm still deep in withdrawal so I had to keep on finding ways of healing myself without falling back on antidepressants/benzos/anti-acids/anti-nausea etc etc. Synthethic pills have screwed me really bad. I wish I had taken the natural approach before even touching that crap. 

7

Am start my taper tonight.

What dose where you on ? Did you taper ot stop cold turkey ?

8

I was on 30 mg for 10 months. I tapered, decreased by 1/4th every 2 weeks then I got fed up and made it every 1 week.

It was a BAD BAD move. I was so sick in bed that my doctor told me to take half of 1/4th for 1 week, then alternate on the second week - 1 day on, 1 day off. It helped A LOT.

Still, it's very hard. Some moments I just want to cry in my bed and curse my life. Most of the time however I'm on the internet searching for alternative remedies. I have to. It's what's keeping me sane. 

9

I understand.

I started my taper last night. Been on 45 mg nearly 2 years. I am on 2 other meds as well. I dropped from 45 to 41.25 plan to hold for 4 weeks. Got a 2 year old so can t risk being too ill.

Did you get symptoms during the taper or just after you stopped completely ?

Do you think the mirt helped you at all ?

10

How are you feeling on your first day of tapering? It seems you got it all planned out. Sounds like a good plan. I wish you the best of luck.

I didn't have withdrawal symptoms when I started tapering. They kicked in like crazy when I was down to 1/4th (3.75 mg).  I'm still haunted by the withdrawal even after almost 5 weeks. I guess it's still too soon. 

As for Mirt helping me....I don't think it did. On the contrary I think it has pretty much screwed my body. For starters, it acts like a Proton Pump Inhibitor so your stomach acid is lowered. (and doctors aren't even aware!! I found it by reading studies and analyzing research papers) My anxiety increased with Mirt and as for sleep it did nothing at all. I became almost obese and more depressed than ever. My health deteriorated pretty fast. Eating healthy was of no use, I still got worse and worse no matter what. So Mirt pretty much ruined my life and my body. But I'm determined to heal. No more synthetic crap this time.

I ardently and most passionately hate Mirtazapine. I hope that at least it has been of some help to you. 

11

Hi

I feel quite tired and a bit anxious with some head pressure. But i get all that anyway.

I have got a long journey down from 45mg so i best get settled in. Even when i get rid if this one i have 2 more to go.

I have been very ill hence being on 3 meds.....was 4 till recently. I am not sure if the mirt has helped as they have tried me on so many meds and i had a newborn....now a toddler so crazy hormones. It does help me sleep but i wake up every 2 hours. I have definately gained weight cos i eat really healthy and only 1200 calories a day and just manage to stay stable.

I have been through some horrific withdrawals so know they can be traumatising. You will heal. It will take time but the worst is over.

12

Wow I really admire your courage and determination. You are an incredibly strong woman. I doubt I would be able to manage 4 meds and more than one withdrawal. It takes such a strong will and fortitude. 

I can relate to the erratic sleep. It's very frustrating. Waking up every 2 hours is still much better than no sleep at all, though. I suffered from total lack of sleep for 2 years (hence the Mirtazapine...which didn't help). Listening to Binaural Beats for sleep, the magnesium oil and essential oils do help. And the good thing is that they don't interact with meds.

I don't want to preach or anything, but you got me a bit worried. 1200 calories a day sound too few to keep you going. The brain burns a lot of energy, especially us people with mental/health conditions who need the extra boost. As long as the calories are from healthy foods like avocados, eggs, butter, meat etc you should be fine. With Mirt I came to realize that even on a starvation diet, we still put on weight. (it happened to me) So if we are going to put on weight anyway, at least we have to make sure that we are taking the right vitamins and minerals from the right foods. Fat especially is extremely important. The brain uses fat for fuel. It creates good Cholesterol which then our body uses to make hormones. Without fat, our brains cannot function. 

Thank you for the encouragement and support. I appreciate it very much. I hope I can be of equal support to you. Take care 

13

Wow thank you so much for this list of amazing tips and "potions" I need now to read again and digest.  I am new to this forum, 2016 I underwent an emergency appendectomy thongs went horribly wrong, and I went from a very healthy 66year old to a quivering wreck, who when discharged from hospital was literally unable to eat, my body said yes to food my mind, no.

i ended up with continuous panic attacks and anxiety levels of the ricta scale, ended up in The Nightingale Hospital in London was prescribed a cocktail of drugs Mirtazapine 45mg. One of them.

i thought this drug wonderful at that stage as suddenly I could eat again.

I am now at the stage where I have reduced down to 15mg. One day and 7.5mg alternate days.

I will get this drug out of my system and like you, I so wished I had looked at alternate treatments but I was do not in a strong place.

Read Dr. Chatterjee The four pillars and look at The Calm App you get 7days free

i listen yo the sleep stories, yet to hear the end as I have nodded off.

take care everyone, will let you know if I find anymore to help us on this flipping journey.

Anghared 

14

Sorry about the grammatical mistakes, particularly liked "thong" not sure how I managed that, made me chuckle though.

i keep telling myself when anxiety overwhelms me :-

This will pass, this will pass, and I will not die from this hideous feeling !!!! 

15

Hi Anghared, how are you doing? I can really relate to the struggle with food. I too couldn't eat because of the panic attacks. It's a horrible experience.

Thank you for the suggestions. I'll definitely take a lot at the book and app you suggested. Much appreciated! I'm glad that you have found sleep stories to work for you. Sadly, my mind concentrates on stories/music which prevent me to fall asleep. 

I want to share a little something I found today. It's called the Super Brain Squat by Dr Jockers. It's very simple - you do a squat while pressing your earlobes and pressing your tongue against the roof of your mouth. It's supposed to be incredibly good for anxiety and should help calm our overstressed bodies. 

I'm going to do 3 Super Brain Squats a day. I'll report my results. I encourage people like us to try it as well. We've got nothing to lose.