[Manimal77]

I am new to prescription drug forums. The only reason I am sharing this information with others is that I don't want anyone else to make the same mistake that I have. I am 34yrs old and have been on the medications Cymbalta, Tramadol, and Lisinopril for going on 4 years. When I began taking the meds my Dr. told me to be carefull with alcohol. I have never had any problems on these meds and alcohol in the past. I would only drink a few beers now and then. Last Saturday I met up with my friend at the bar and we had a few beers. Then we had 2 shots of strong booze. I had no previous problems so I didn't think anything of it until the next thing I can clearly remember is waking up in jail. Turns out that shortly after the shots of alcohol I blacked out and was escorted out of the bar. Not easily as it turns out either. It took 2 large bouncers both weighing over 260lbs to remove me from the bar. My friend says that she has never been so scared or seen someone that enraged in her life. My wife says that she tried to calm me down but says "there was nothing there" when describing my awareness of what was going on around me. My blood alcohol content was only .14. Apparently the police thought that their breathalizer was broken because I was obviously more intoxicated than that. I have now been charged with disorderly conduct and may have to sit some time for my violent behavior. I can only assume that the cause of this unusual behavior is the alcohol and medications mixed. Like I said, I had never had any problems previous to this incident with my meds. I am terrified to drink alcohol now and don't plan on having a drop ever again. I am wondering if anyone else has had this kind of violent blackout problem also?

[neveragin]

Manimal77,

I have had problems with pills and booze...not any violent blackouts, but the problems that I had were a marked increase in the amount of alcohol I drank, and the frequency also increased...started drinking alone, and crying once drunk, sending drunk texts that made no sense at all...yelling at my kids, or whoever happened to be around...
I had been taking cymbalta for only a month when this began...also I take the occasional xanax....not with any regularity or frequency.

Now that I have been off the cymbalta for approx 50 days or so, when I do have a drink, I have a hard time finishing it and not wasting it...a very good thing!

I will never take another psych drug again as long as I live...I don't care what else is going on for me...One decade of my life is gone to this kind of drug...cymbalta by far the absolute worst to come off of!!

Good luck!
Neveragin

[PenPenPenguin]

I have experienced the exact same thing before. I've been on Cymbalta for about 3 years now and usually I don't have any problems drinking a couple beers here and there. However, there have been a couple times where I have violently blacked out from drinking 3 shots max. I never remembered the next day, but I'm told by my boyfriend that I tried to start fights with people I didn't even know. He told me that when he looked into my eyes "there was nothing there" in the exact words of your wife. Now, I try to limit myself to 2 drinks, but it still scares me that I could randomly black out again.

I'm going to see what my psychiatrist thinks about switching to another anti-depressant, maybe one that's not an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor). Cymbalta is seriously scary. If I go a day without it, I cry non-stop, have severe nausea..and the nightmares are horrible (which I found out is a side-effect). I'm 21 years old and I should be able to go out and have a couple drinks with friends without worrying about getting dangerously unstable.

I suggest that you talk to your psychiatrist as well.
Best of Luck!