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Short Time User-Want To Get Off


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#1 Soup

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 08:44 AM

Hello. I'm posting on behalf of my wife.  We had a series of personal events back in 2015 that created anxiety for my wife.  She has come to terms with those things finally but still had the low level anxiety issues on a daily basis.  long story short, the doc put her on 30 mg Cymbalta this july. Eventually went up to 60 mg with zero improvement.  She wants to get off the stuff, and we understand it may take awhile to ween her off of this. Being that she really hasn't been on it for very long, do you think the process will go quickly?  We're new on this site, but everyone seems so helpful.....appreciate anyone's comments!


#2 gail

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 10:27 AM

Hi Soup,

Wonderful of you to take care of your wife.
We don't know the outcome. Some stop cold turkey with a few days of feeling weird, others go nuts.

Your wife may want to go down straight to 30, could be an easy step. See how she feels for a while. She may take a chance to cold turkey it at 30 or bead count.

20% have real tough withdrawals, is your wife in that range? We don't know. I would think that since her problems are now resolved, it could be easier. My thoughts only here. I could really be mistaken.

A chance to take, if your wife should decide to cold turkey this and encounters difficulty, she can always reinstate at 30 then bead count.

I wish that I could help you more. Others will chime in!

#3 fishinghat

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 11:33 AM

Welcome Soup.

 

I think Gail is right on. Jump down to 30 and stay there a couple weeks. If no issues she can either go cold turkey or drop to 15 and see how that does. Be prepared, if that leads to a severe set of symptoms then she will have to reinstate at 30 and bead count down over 2 or 3 months. Only time will tell. Keep us posted.


#4 Soup

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 01:03 PM

Thanks to both of you for your comments...much appreciated. i do have another question that hopefully you can comment on...let's say she weens herself off of Cybalta, but this low level anxiety remains and the doctor suggests trying another med. Does she then go back to square one, where it takes months to see any benefit?  I'm so glad I stumbled onto this site....you guys are great.  Did you go through this yourselves or do you have some sort of technical  background? Your comments are so reassuring and helpful!


#5 gail

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 01:31 PM

Hi again Soup,

Low grade anxiety is pretty normal for most. If it gets out of hand, there are a few meds that your wife can take, like Hydroxyzine(antihistamine) or clonidine(blood pressure med) that work on the same day, if I can express it that way. Pretty safe meds.

Fishinghat is our mentor, he has great knowledge and does a lot of research. He is a walking encyclopedia in the matter of medication. Plus he has references on most information he shares with us. And we also learn from all members, from their experience.

Come back anytime, we care!

#6 Soup

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 01:58 PM

thank you again Gail.  I will keep you posted.  Take care.


#7 fishinghat

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Posted 19 October 2016 - 02:12 PM

Gail is right. Those are the two best bets on meds. The hydroxyzine takes 30 minutes to an hour to kick in and the clonidine takes about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Neither have a withdrawal so that is a plus. Normally the drs like to prescribe a benzodiazepine like Xanax or valium to treat low level anxiety but try to stay away from those. They work great for 2 to 4 months and then require higher and higher doses to keep the same effect. They also have a rough withdrawal. Even the manufacturers recommend them for 4 weeks only.

 

I would also highly recommend a therapist. A good one that is familiar with cognitive behavioral therapy or mindfulness can teach you a dozens of little tricks to control anxiety. This helps reduce the need for meds.


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