A (probably stupid) practical question about liquid dosing with a 1ml syringe

October 9, 2026··

I'm far enough into my taper that I should know this (3 1/2 years), but in relative terms, I cruised till I hit about 0.2mg. I mean, it's been rocky at times, but manageable and for the most part, I've gotten away with taking liberties (e.g., rounding down instead of up). But now that I'm at 0.12mg, I'm feeling everything with bells on, and I'm struggling to get a precise dose on the 1ml syringe, even with a 0.5mg/1ml ratio liquid. Any tips on how I can more confidently get my dose exact every time? Also, I'm suddenly nervous that I might have been doing it wrong all along, as I measure to the bottom of the thin 0.01 line rather than the top - does that mean I'm getting a teeny bit more of a reduction than I intend? I hate that the end of the plunger isn't 100% flat; that very slight protrusion makes it way harder when trying to be very precise.

Mirtazapine — 0.12mg — 3 years, 7 months

2 Replies

Gigi‎19h ago

NavigatorZoloft · active

Hi @Mcat! Who would have known how friggin’ unreliable EVERYTHING is, even syringes?! I couldn’t figure out which line to trust either, so here’s what I did (and still do): I use the syringe to have a basic idea of the amount and get the liquid out, then put it into a little bowl on my milligram scale and weigh it. Water-based liquid weighs about 1 gram per ml, so 0.24 ml (your 0.12 mg at 0.5 mg/ml) is about 0.240 g. If your liquid is not plain water, it can be a bit heavier than 1 g per ml, so you need to weigh 1 ml of your liquid once first and then use your own number. Another option would be to dilute further. At a weaker concentration, your dose becomes a bigger volume, and the same tiny measuring error matters less. Hope this helps!

Withdrawal is not a preview of who you are without the drug.
Zoloft — 10 years, 50 mg — currently 22.5 mg — holding

Mcat5h ago

Mirtazapine · holding

Thanks so much, but OMG, my poor CNS-rattled brain, which is barely functioning, could never cope with that process and maths. I can barely even manage to get my head around the basic liquid dosing maths. That last suggestion might be on the money, though: perhaps if I go to a 0.25mg/1ml ratio, I'll pull off those teeny differences without increasing WDs.

Mirtazapine — 0.12mg — 3 years, 7 months

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