29 replies to this topic

[stoked]

Hello just joined the forum and could use the board's advice. 

 

Medical Background: I have been on a daily dose of 60 milligrams of Duloxetine (Generic Cymbalta) for approximately one year, treating chronic pain from 3 back surgeries. Also taking pain meds and Lyrica. 

 

Issue: 

I recently switched my RX provider to an online/mail RX provider and had a mix-up that caused me to go 8 days cold turkey (no Duloxetine). I had know idea this drug had this kind of effect on the body, especially when it comes to detoxing. The past 4 or 5 days have been rough, to say the least. For the record, I have not notified my Pain management (PM) doctor, I'm seeing her in 2 days.  

 

I finally got my RX refilled and my Duloxetine arrived today in the mail. I'm contemplating to continue to go cold turkey because I want to get off this evil drug and I feel like maybe the worst is behind me now (wishful thinking). I have read many post that recommends that I should go back on the meds to stabilize my system and then start bead counting. However, I feel like all the suffering and discomfort I have been going through is all for nothing if I go back on the drug.

 

Q:  I would like to get the board's recommendation on how I should proceed.

Q: Will the withdrawal symptom slowly subside, a little each day or am I in for a long hard road with very little improvement felt and gained each day? 

Q: My Duloxetine only has 12 beads and if I detox how many beads should I remove and how often should I reduce the number of beads?

 

Thank you in advance.

 

 

 

 

[TryinginFL]

Welcome stoked!

 

I am a cold turkey survivor off of 60mg and I DON'T recommend it!  I was on the poison for 4 1/2 yrs and have now been off almost 2 1/2 yrs.  I am not kidding when I say I went through hell for all of 2014.

 

Since you have only been off a few days, I strongly recommend you get back on it!  You will feel better very soon and as soon as you  stabilize you can start bead counting.

 

Since I did not know about that method I went right into withdrawal..

 

Some of our other members can help you with the bead counting, but please take your 60mg now! Someone else will hop on here soon!

 

Liz

[brzghoff]

stoked: throttle up to full strength then bead count back down. the suffering and discomfort you've felt over the past eight days is a warning of how you could feel for months or more on end. your suffering was not wasted time, but a lesson to be learned. its taken me two years to get to the point where i feel like i can function like a normal person once again - i went cold turkey from only 15 mgs.

[PtldFrank]

I also get the capsules with 12 (or 6, for 30 mg) "pellets" in them.  Each pellet is 5mg of med.  I've been weaning off of 60 mg since February.  I just this week am down to 30 mg.  That is to say I'm taking it REAL SLOW.  I'm bored out of my skull with this approach, but I think it really keeps the withdrawal effects at bay.

 

Here's what I do.  I reduce by one pellet per month.  That's 1.25 mg per week.  It's slow, but that's what my psychiatrist and I have worked out.  I recently started a variation which is to reduce by 1/2 pellet every two weeks.  Same average rate, just smaller steps.

 

To split the pellet, I have a standard pill cutter that lets me line up a pellet with a toothpick and cut it in half.  The pellets are coated and the pill splitter doesn't cut all the way through, so I have to finish the job with my pocket knife.  It's a hassle.  i usually prepare 2 weeks worth of capsules and keep them in a separate pill bottle.

 

When I get down to 5 mg (one pellet) I'll probably stay at 5 mg for a whole month, and then do 2.5 mg for a whole month.  Several posts on here indicate the need to go slow at the end.

 

So far I haven't noticed side effects that couldn't also be caused by something else in my life.  That is to say nothing has been that bad.  Except for my ongoing depression, but I had that for years while on 60 mg and I think it's just who I am.

 

Anyway, that's what I'm doing, and I'm looking at six or seven more months.  This approach may be unpalatable to you, but it seems to work for me.  I just want to leave this stuff behind me.

 

Good luck,

Frank

[Gran23]

I also get the capsules with 12 (or 6, for 30 mg) "pellets" in them.  Each pellet is 5mg of med.  I've been weaning off of 60 mg since February.  I just this week am down to 30 mg.  That is to say I'm taking it REAL SLOW.  I'm bored out of my skull with this approach, but I think it really keeps the withdrawal effects at bay.

 

Here's what I do.  I reduce by one pellet per month.  That's 1.25 mg per week.  It's slow, but that's what my psychiatrist and I have worked out.  I recently started a variation which is to reduce by 1/2 pellet every two weeks.  Same average rate, just smaller steps.

 

To split the pellet, I have a standard pill cutter that lets me line up a pellet with a toothpick and cut it in half.  The pellets are coated and the pill splitter doesn't cut all the way through, so I have to finish the job with my pocket knife.  It's a hassle.  i usually prepare 2 weeks worth of capsules and keep them in a separate pill bottle.

 

When I get down to 5 mg (one pellet) I'll probably stay at 5 mg for a whole month, and then do 2.5 mg for a whole month.  Several posts on here indicate the need to go slow at the end.

 

So far I haven't noticed side effects that couldn't also be caused by something else in my life.  That is to say nothing has been that bad.  Except for my ongoing depression, but I had that for years while on 60 mg and I think it's just who I am.

 

Anyway, that's what I'm doing, and I'm looking at six or seven more months.  This approach may be unpalatable to you, but it seems to work for me.  I just want to leave this stuff behind me.

 

Good luck,

Frank

Frank, I'm so happy you posted this info.  I am also weaning from 60mg and have the capsules with 12 pellets.  I didn't realize they could be split!  I started in January and I'm down to 4 pellets with minimal symptoms.  I've worried about getting to 1 or 2 pellets and starting to have wd symptoms. Great info to have.  Thanks so much.

[Gran23]

Welcome Stoke.  Like TryinginFL, I recommend you go back on your full dose, stabilize a few weeks and start your wean.  This is a dangerous med.  Doctors usually don't know how bad the withdrawal can be and will recommend all sorts of withdrawal plans but you should definitely not follow any plan that doesn't count the beads.  I started weaning in January from 60mg Cymbalta.  I am now at 20mg and with minimal withdrawal symptoms.  Open the capsules and count the beads.  Different brands have different amounts of beads or pellets, so it can be a time consuming effort but well worth it.  Read thru all the posts on this forum and there's other info online, just Google Cymbalta withdrawal and start reading.  I wish you great results.  Post on here and someone will always get back to you.

 

 

Gran

[FiveNotions]

Hi Stoked, and welcome to the forum ! Like TFL and Bryzghoff above, I also went cold turkey. And, like them, I went through hell ... I'm 2 yrs 6 months off the poison now, and still dealing with the after-effects ... if only I'd known about bead counting, and had done it slowly ! 

 

Slow is frustrating and boring, yes, but it's the only sensible way to do this. It's absolutely essential that your brain / body be given maximum time to adjust to a gradually lowered dose, and to get back to regulating serotonin levels naturally.

 

You must be taking a generic of the Cymbalta, based on that number of "beads" in the capsule. Very hard to deal with those I would think.

 

An alternative would be to get your doc to switch you to the Brand, which has a lot of beads per capsule, and thus would allow you much more flexibility in dosing down.

 

Are you drinking lots of water and taking the basic supplements that we recommend? -- omega 3, multivitamin, B complex, and chelated magnesium?

 

Please keep posting, and let us know how you're doing, symptoms, etc ... we've got "tricks of the trade" for coping with pretty much whatever hits you !

 

Hang in there, and BRAVO for deciding to get this poison out of your system !  

[Raven72]

Welcome stoked,

 

If you read everyone's posts here then you will find out that different methods work for different people.  I personally tried the bead counting but the effect it was having on me was hell on me and my husband and kids. So, I went cold turkey as of April 1st and although it's a bumpy road, it's not been near as bad as it was with me trying to bead count my way down. It's not always the best choice to make but sometimes it's the lesser of two evils.  For me I just wanted to be off of it.  I almost lost my husband and kids because of this and I am blessed that he has stayed with me through all this. No ordinary person would put up with the things this drug did to me. I wish you all the luck. God speed and keep going forward and we will help you in any way we can.

 

<Raven>

[stoked]

Thanks to all that replied. It's really nice to know that there is a group that understands this drug. It's very scary that this drug is on the market and doctors don't seem to have a clue on the negatives of this drug.

 

Update:

I couldn't take the cold turkey method anymore, I was totally useless at work, it was like working with the flue, so I went back on my full prescription to stabilize. Since I just received 90 days supply of 60 MG of Duloxetine,  I'm going to ween off using "PTLDFrank" method.  

 

I talked to my PM doctor today and told her about the bead counting and she was fine with this approach, she had another patient that used this approach. My PM doctor normally weens off doping in MG and then going to every other day. Tomorrow I will be going to 11 beads as opposed to 12, hopefully I can adjust. I plan to drop one pellet (5MG) every two weeks, (10 MG a month)... Of course this is subject to change, hopefully I wont get serous withdraws using this approach.

 

Thanks again, I'll keep the group posted. Any additional comments and guidance is very much appreciated.

[FiveNotions]

Thanks for the update, Stoked, I was wondering how you were doing with the cold turkey approach ... you made the right decision ... now just get yourself completely stable before starting your dosing down plan ... and, remember, if you find that even that approach is too much, you can always get your doc to prescribe the Brand name poison ... which has lots of tiny beads in it ... tiny doses per bead ... that would allow you a far greater degree of control over the amount you choose to reduce per day / week, etc ...

 

Sounds like you've got a good doc, who's relatively well-informed about this drug, and is willing to help you get off of it ! Please continue to share your process, symptoms, method, experience with her ... it will all help her help others who follow after you as her patients ! ...

 

And keep us posted on how you're doing ... 

[stoked]

I wanted to update the board on my weaning-off process.

 

I have been removing one bead every Friday (5 MG a week), from my 60 MG Duloxetine (Generic Cymbalta has 12 beads). I have also been augmenting my diet with fish oil and Neuro Mini supplements. 

 

Starting my fourth week today removing my fourth bead, down to 40 MG. So far, I haven't had any physical side effects, brain zaps, heat flashes sickness, etc.. I have had some bouts of mood swings and depression.... I don't consider myself a depressed person, I was prescribed Cymbalta for pain Management. So I'm pretty sure this is a side effect of the drug or not being on it.

 

I think the tail end of this weaning-off process is going to be much worse and I'm a little scared how I will get through 40MG through 0MG but I'll take it one bead at a time and one week at a time. I'll keep the board posted, hoping my journey can help others. 

[fishinghat]

So far so good Stoked. If you get too uncomfortable just stay ay your dose for a while til things settle down then drop some more. For many once the symptoms hit fairly hard it can take 1 to 2 months to stabilize even if the symptoms aren't overwhelming. Patience. So far so good.

[FiveNotions]

Good to hear from you, Stoked ... I've been wondering how you're doing, and it sounds darn good so far ! 

 

FH is right ... go as slow as you need to, stay at your current dose level as long as you need to get stabilized before dosing down again ... the "depression" sensation is related to the drug, not to your real you ... and you can keep that at a minimum by controlling the speed with which you reduce ...

[stoked]

I wanted to update the board on my weaning-off process.

 

I have been removing one bead, every Friday (5 MG's a week), from my 60 MG Duloxetine (Generic Cymbalta has 12 beads). I have also been augmenting my diet with fish oil and Neuro Mini-supplements. 

 

Starting my seventh week tomorrow, I will start five beads tomorrow, (25MG), So far I have had some mood swings that seem to be in the afternoon, (I take my dose at noon). I have also had some heat flashes but no brain zaps yet. So far I have been steadily dropping of removing one bead a week and haven't had to stabilize things and go into a holding pattern... yet; however, I expect things will get harder as I get lower and lower with my dosage. I'll do my best to keep the board posted as I continue to navigate rough waters of this nasty drug. 

[fishinghat]

So far so good. We will keep our fingers crossed for you.

[stoked]

The journey continues as I remove one bead, every Friday (5 MG's a week), from my 60 MG Duloxetine (Generic Cymbalta has 12 beads). I'm now down to 3 beads (15 MG) and so far, so good.

 

Experiencing some minor bouts of hot flashes but no brain zaps yet. I have had my share of moodiness but all in all, doing pretty good, my family may see things different. I keep waiting for the horrible withdrawal to take place... like when I tried to go cold turkey.

 

Coming down the back stretch I'm hoping this time next month I'll be off this nasty drug and I'll be telling you all a success story. I think the next 3 weeks is gong to be a challenge, I'll keep the board posted with my progress.

[gail]

Stoked,

Thank you so much for taking the time to update!

We all appreciate this so much, it's looking good for you.

Do come back, looking forward for another update, take good care!

[fishinghat]

Don't forget Stoked, that last little bit is the hardest. If it was me I would slow down some for the final stretch.  Doing great. hang in there.

[Lorelei67]

Thanks for the update, Stoked. Hope the rest of your journey goes well!

[stoked]

I started taking 2 beads Saturday, so far, so good. I'm now down to 10 MG's.

[TryinginFL]

Bravo, stoked!

 

I hope all remains good for you!

[gail]

Hi Stoked,

So far so good. Down to 10mg, marvelous!

What I like most in your post is the "So far,so good".

Waiting for the next update in one or two weeks. See you then!

[stoked]

I wanted to update the board with my weaning off progress. After going down 5 MG a week, I'm now totally off Cymbalta (0MG) for 7 days. I have had some minor hot flashes, mood swing's and minor brain zaps. The brain zaps are nothing like the brain zaps I had when I attempted to go cold turkey but I'm definitely dealing wth the zaps. The brain zaps seem to be worse later in the day. Those who are thinking of doing this cold turkey, I would recommend not doing it. I still have this nasty drug in my system but I'm hopeful every day will get better. I'll keep you posted as things progress.

[gail]

Hello Stoked,

Again thank you for the update. Well well appreciated once more.

Sounds good, not perfect but ok.

See you in a week or two, we have a render vous then. You must be so happy to be free of this crap. Expect a bit of ups and downs now and then.

My hat to you for having been able to follow through that bead counting.

Always good to hear from you Stoked!

[Pittbullmomma]

God Speed my friend

[stoked]

Well, my journey started in June and tomorrow it will be one month Cymbalta free. Still getting hot flashes, mild brain zaps and mood swings. Brain zaps and hot flashed are defintly worse in the afternoon when I'm tired. I continue to take fish oil and Neuro Mini-supplements, not sure how much it helps but I'm willing to try anything. 

 

I'll keep the board posted, hopefully my journey can help others.

[stoked]

Just wanted to stop in and provide an update. Totally free of zaps and hot flashes. Still dealing with some mood swings but I feel much better now that I'm off this drug. 

[fishinghat]

Great news stoked!!! How long you been off the C now?

[gail]

Stoked, thanks for the update. Sure is looking good!

[stoked]

My journey started in mid-June (removing 5 MG a week) and I was totally off Cymbalta the first week in September.  It's now late October and I'm Cymbalta free and it has been quite the journey.

 

When I was taking Cymbalta I felt like crap every morning because my Cymbalta was wearing off. I never realized it was the Cymbalta making me feel so bad until I tried to get off (cold turkey). It was then I realized the bad feeling I was having in the morning was the Cymbalta. My cold turkey side effects was the same, just 10x worse.  

 

The side effects and feeling like crap is now gone... thank god! Anyone trying to get off this drug, don't do it cold turkey, be patient. I tried to do it cold turkey and it was a nasty event.