Jump to content



Photo

Newbie Here, Need Advice Please


  • Please log in to reply
4 replies to this topic

#1 loulzb

loulzb

    Newbie

  • Members
  • Pip
  • 2 posts

Posted 03 November 2016 - 10:23 AM

Hi,

 

I'm a newbie to this forum and found it out of desperation for some answers as to why i've been feeling this miserable since I stopped taking Cymbalta. 

 

I went on Cymbalta a year ago after trying multiple anti-depressants that weren't really helping. I have Hashimoto's disease (an auto-immune disease that attacks the thyroid) and one of the symptoms is depression and anxiety. Fast forward to early 2014, I was put on antidepressants to treat my depression and anxiety. After trying about 4-5 different medications and seeing 4 different doctors, I was put on Cymbalta and it was helpful but hell I would've tried anything else but Cymbalta had I known the withdrawal symptoms are this horrible. 

 

The doctor started weaning me off to the medication in June. I went from 60 to 30 and was told to stay on the 30 dose for 3 months. After that, I would take that 30 dose every other day for 4 weeks and then every 2 days for 2 weeks and then I stopped. When I started the one day on, one day off, I started getting these horrible migraines; losing my appetite; I feel drowsy all the time; fatigue; insomnia and when I finally do sleep, I can barely get out of bed; sweating (i can go on and on)... Some of the symptoms I had overlap with symptoms I get when my thyroid is out of whack so I brushed it off as that. 

 

My last pill was October 15, so it's almost been 3 weeks since I stopped taking it. I thought it was bad when I was weaning myself off of it but that was nothing compared to the withdrawal symptoms I'm going through now. 

 

I want this poison out of my system and I wanna feel like myself again. The anger, the insomnia, the fatigue, the anxiety, the dizziness, the nausea, the nightmares when i do actually SLEEP, the lack of appetite, the constant stomach aches and nausea whether I eat or not, the unbearable night sweats, and the list goes on.. are becoming too unbearable that I barely function as a human being. And again, some of those withdrawal symptoms are the same as when my thyroid is out of whack but I had that checked a month ago and adjusted the dose accordingly and by now, my thyroid should be functioning properly. But just in case it isn't, I got a blood test done yesterday to see whether my thyroid is acting up again. 

 

I feel helpless, I can't believe I was put on this and not even told about the withdrawal symptoms. I can't believe not a single one of the 4 drs i saw mentioned any of this. As fine as it made me feel when I was on it, I want nothing to do with this medication and never want to take another pill again. 

 

I don't know what it is I need help with, I just feel absolutely miserable and as horrible as this sounds, I'm glad to know that I'm not the only one going through this because I feel so alone right now. I snap at any and everything/everyone for no reason (or shall I say over things that on my worse day, I wouldn't usually snap at). It's gotten to the point where I hide in my room all day and avoid all human contact in order not to lose it on anyone and i;m just furious at myself and the world right now. I'm not usually an angry person, far from it so this just feel like an out of body experience. I cry on and off all day, and I can't seem to be able to control anything right now. 
I just feel helpless and I don't know what to do. What can I do to ease this misery? How long will it last for? 

My general practitioner now wants to put me on something else and I don't want to go through that again because god knows what crappy withdrawal symptoms are going to come from that. 

 

The worst part is, I have times during my day where I'm ready to talk and deal with all of this but that tends to be when I'm in my room alone and there's so much I can do to help myself. And when I try to talk to anyone about this, they just tell me, maybe I should just go back on cymbalta. But this is POISON and I don't wanna do that to myself again. I just want to go back to being a calm collected functioning person that doesn't snap over the stupidest things and doesn't hide in her room in order to avoid conflict or because I literally am not functioning properly.

 

Any advice, words of wisdom, or anything to ease this misery is greatly appreciated. 

 

(Please excuse me if some of what I wrote doesn't make sense, I'm currently a weeping mess and can barely formulate proper sentences in my head - and sorry if this is long, some of this is probably me venting)


#2 TryinginFL

TryinginFL

    Site Partners

  • Active Members
  • PipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 6,274 posts
  • LocationFlorida
  • why_joining:
    Now that I have been off this poison for over 6 years, I hope to help others as they join us

Posted 03 November 2016 - 12:07 PM

Hi lou!

 

Welcome and we're happy that you found us!!

 

Sorry to say that it sounds as if all of your doctors are total asshats...the every other day thing is the worst you can do.  This poison has a half life of only 12 hours, so when you take it you're fine and the day you don't you are immediately in withdrawal.

 

I went cold turkey off of 60mg in Jan. of 2014 and spent one hell of a year.  I was so happy to find these wonderful people who helped me.  I totally understand exactly how you are feeling - it was exactly the same for me.  The crying, anxiety, rage, migraine headache that wouldn't stop for 2 weeks - yep, all of it.

 

You might want to go back on the 30 mg and stabilize and then bead count your way down.  If you decide to do this, there are people here who can help you.  Another choice is to take a small amount - say 10-15 mg when it becomes unbearable and you feel better.  In time, hopefully you will need less and the time  between the small amounts will become longer.

 

Are you taking anything for the anxiety?  Mine lasted for a very long time - even into the 2nd year, but that does not mean it will happen to you.  Try Benadryl to start - it calms your anxiety and also makes you drowsy.  If this does not help, there are other things that you can take that do not give you any withdrawal.

 

Please let us know what you decide and we will help you!

 

Liz


#3 gail

gail

    Site Partners

  • Site Supporter
  • 6,016 posts
  • LocationSherbrooke, PQ
  • why_joining:
    5 months on cymbalta, scary side effects, to get help and to return the favor if I can.

Posted 03 November 2016 - 03:42 PM

Hi IOU,

Yes, Liz said it all. I really have nothing to add to this.

One question though, how did you feel on 30mg? Tolerable? Awful? Good?

Come back anytime, we will help you!

#4 fishinghat

fishinghat

    Site Partners

  • Active Members
  • PipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 13,869 posts
  • LocationMissouri

Posted 03 November 2016 - 04:08 PM

You have already received some good advice. I would especially recommend Liz's suggestion of going back on 30 and bead counting down from there. Much more controllable that way.


#5 Clara

Clara

    Like a Family Member

  • Active Members
  • PipPipPipPipPipPipPip
  • 542 posts
  • LocationSouth Carolina
  • why_joining:
    Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms others have and support for myself and help others

Posted 04 November 2016 - 04:23 PM

loulzb,  You are in the right place for help and support. I too went through what you are going through and more. An ocean of tears, body aches, depression, you name it. That would be three years ago this month and though my memory is horrible now, the nightmare of those withdrawals is still very vivid. Just reading what you are going through brings it all back and my heart breaks for you. Also, I have Graves disease, another thyroid related autoimmune disease. I suffered horrible last year being hyperthyroid with some of the same symptoms of Cymbalta withdrawal. So I feel your pain and anguish!  All that being said, you can get through this. Liz, fishinghat and others have done their research and are very knowledgeable and helpful as to what helps and what does not with the withdrawal process. I agree that you may need to go back on 30 and bead count from there. I went cold turkey b/c I didn't  know that my doc was not up on how Cymbalta stays in your system and the every other day just throws you right back into w/ds again. I hope this makes sense and is of help. Cymbalta and Graves have robbed me of so much. Some days it's hard to think clearly b/c of the brain fog, much less put thoughts in writing. BUT, I am slowly getting better and you will too! God bless you! come often to the forum and vent, rant, whatever, we get it and it's ok here to let it out! Keep us posted!





0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users