Hello all – I have been referring this site for months through my Cymbalta wean and greatly respect the community.
My background: I was on Cymbalta 60mg for depression and chronic pain for 12 years. I have always been sensitive to withdrawal as if I forgot to take a dose, hours later I would have a terrible headache and nausea. I tried to wean off 6 years ago, got down to 40mg, experienced withdrawal (worsened depression and lots of crying) and stopped as I had a life change and didn’t feel it was the right time. I was scared to try weaning off again, but decided last year that it was the right “time” to try as I felt my life was good and stable (was in a relationship, happy, didn’t feel I needed talk therapy anymore). I knew it was going to take a while to wean off the Cymbalta and I want children, so I bit the bullet.
Starting April 2019, I weaned from 60mg to 50mg in about 2 weeks, to 40mg in about 2 weeks, then started experiencing the same emotional withdrawal issues I had the first time around. I then went to the bead counting strategy and dropped 1mg every few days. I struggled through this with depression, anxiety, and just not feeling happy. It was affecting my relationship and partner was not supportive at all (just told me to get off of the stuff already). My psychiatrist presumed my underlying depression and anxiety were coming through as less and less Cymbalta was in my system, yet I opted not to do a cross taper. Once I hit December 2019 and was on 6mg and struggling even more emotionally, I started on Trintellex 5mg and halted the Cymbalta wean. I then had a mental breakdown of sorts in January 2020 while I was both struggling with major jetlag (Asia to NY) and finding out my job was changing. I increased to Trintellex 10mg and upped the Cymbalta by 1mg. 2 weeks later, I started weaning off the Cymbalta again mg by mg every few days/dependent on how I was feeling. When I hit 1mg I started reducing by bead every few days only. End of February, I got down to 3 beads and was a wreck emotionally. Psychiatrist suggested I go back up to when I felt “fine” and based on my log, I increased to 17 beads. Once stable after about a week, I reduced bead by bead every few days.
Then my life situation drastically changed – 2 weeks before I was to move in with my now ex in mid March, I was blindsided and broken up with. I am from NYC and Coronavirus was about to explode, and so I temporarily moved down to my parents in Florida to have support and safety during that time. 3 weeks later, I was furloughed from my job. No relationship, no work. The Florida sun helped but with these 2 things compounded by Coronavirus, suffice to say my situation was extremely difficult. I increased to Trintellex 20mg.
I am now back down to 3 beads and not doing well (will find out if/when I get the job back this week). My issue now, besides being depressed, is I have more anxiety than I have ever had. I now wake up with it. It tends to go on and off in severity during the day. I’m crying more lately, irritable, and generally struggling emotionally, but the anxiety is what’s really making me uncomfortable. I’d love to get Fishinghat’s and IUN’s advice about staying on 3 beads until I feel “better” and not dropping to 2 beads until that happens? Separately, could “better” take months, and then once I’m on 2 beads, same thing for months?
Supplement and medication-wise, I am taking the following, in addition to my 3 beads :
Trintellex 20mg
Hydroxyzine 10mg for sleep – I understand can take as much as 100mg/day split into 4 doses for anxiety but it makes me very drowsy
Xanax .25mg as needed for anxiety
SAM-E 400mg
Fish oil
L-Methyfolate 15mg (I have both MTHFR gene mutations)
Vitamin B12 Complex (my level is 1,157 pg/mL and Fishinghat I’ve read you have some B12 concerns)
Vitamin C
Vitamin D
Magnesium Citrate (just read here last night from Fishinghat that Magnesium Oxide can react with Cymbalta, and I had been on Oxide for many months during the beginning of my wean and likely suffered from that. Citrate is ok, or no?)
Calcium
Turmeric
CoQ10
Many, many thanks for your help and for making this forum available to those who need help beyond what the psychiatrists are able to do.