7 replies to this topic

[QueenTimely]

Please keep us posted -- preferably on the Weaning forum. Why did you quit cold turkey? Are you sure it's worth it?

[QueenTimely]

You're right: cold turkey wasn't a smart choice but lots of people try it out of frustration. My suggestion: increase your dose to maybe 10 or 20 mg (open the capsules if necessary and save the extra beads) and start weaning from there. Probably your symptoms will subside, you can have some of your life back and still be in the process of coming off. Then reduce by 10% or so and you'll be fine. After taking the medication again, you'll probably feel better quite soon.

After being on 60mg of Cymbalta, I stopped cold turkey...not a smart choice, I know. I am experiencing dizziness all day long and it will not subside, along with night sweats. How long will the dizziness last and what can I do to stop this, or do I have to deal with it?

[MaureenV]

I just stopped taking 120mg of cymbalta 3 days ago and think I might die. I have come off a lot of drugs (cocaine, morphine, diloted ) in the past but this takes the cake. Sick as hell, can't get out of bed, brain zaps to the point of not being able to function as well as all the common ones. My insurance ran out and my scrip cost 389.00 per month. I'm F%^#D.


What do I do???????

I'm assuming you're in the US, being the only developed nation without a universal prescription scheme. Generally in the US though doctors have plenty of samples to give away. Also, with your doctor's approval you can get some free samples from Eli Lilly.

It is acknowledged by everyone (even those who don't believe the symptoms are as bad as we're experiencing) that you should NOT do cold turkey off any of these drugs, and Cymbalta is one of the worst.

Keep in mind that every further day you go without Cymbalta reduces the amount you'll need to take in order to feel o.k. again. Given you're probably not going to be able to get ahuge amount of samples, you might even feel much, much better taking just 30mg. Lots of people find that even when they taper properly, they can drop down to 30mg without toooo many problems, so let's hope you're one.



I wish there was more I could suggest,

Maureen.

[Hangaku]

I'm in the unfortunate position of having to abruptly stop 60MG of Cymbalta after a year of being on it. My long time doctor who has in the past given me samples when I could not afford even the co pay, has run out of them. I recently lost my COBRA insurance. My last dose was three days ago. The voucher for 14 free pills from Lilly is only for those who have not been given a prescription before. I had night sweats the second day and muscle pain. Now I'm very tired, sore, dehydrated, teary had vivid nightmares and have the brain zaps non stop. Quite a ride....Some of the former posts are a bit frightening. I'm trying to keep an upbeat attitude. I've never been on recreational drugs or alcohol dependency so I would not be able to compare this with anything else. I saw some "generic" forms being sold from Taiwanese, Indian and Australian distributors but they won't be able to get those here for at least 10-12 days and also they are suspicious due to not requiring a prescription. The prices are attractive.
I hope to get back on it as soon as possible as it helped my quality of life considerably but I've no options at this point...
Good luck all...

[MaureenV]

I'm in the unfortunate position of having to abruptly stop 60MG of Cymbalta after a year of being on it. My long time doctor who has in the past given me samples when I could not afford even the co pay, has run out of them. I recently lost my COBRA insurance. My last dose was three days ago. The voucher for 14 free pills from Lilly is only for those who have not been given a prescription before. I had night sweats the second day and muscle pain. Now I'm very tired, sore, dehydrated, teary had vivid nightmares and have the brain zaps non stop. Quite a ride....Some of the former posts are a bit frightening. I'm trying to keep an upbeat attitude. I've never been on recreational drugs or alcohol dependency so I would not be able to compare this with anything else. I saw some "generic" forms being sold from Taiwanese, Indian and Australian distributors but they won't be able to get those here for at least 10-12 days and also they are suspicious due to not requiring a prescription. The prices are attractive.
I hope to get back on it as soon as possible as it helped my quality of life considerably but I've no options at this point...
Good luck all...

Many people find Prozac (of which the generic versions should be inexpensive) helps enormously with the Cymbalta withdrawals.

I'm puzzled by your comment about the free caps from Eli Lilly because I've seen others here commenting about getting them. I'm not in the US so that's all I can go by.

I'd be very, very wary of buying anything like 'generic' Cymbalta online anywhere. To my knowledge, Cymbalta is still under protection. In Australia it is illegal to supply prescription drugs without a prescription. Also I'd be suspicious because Australians do not have the US problem of having to pay through the nose for prescriptions. A month's supply of almost anything we need is less than $40, regardless of your dose.

Taiwan and India do not have the controls which apply to the pharmaceutical companies in other countries. Bhopal is enough evidence of that.

sorry I can't help more,

regards, Maureen.

[Hangaku]

[quote name='MaureenV' date='25 March 2010 - 12:35 PM' timestamp='1269549309' post='11666']
I'm assuming you're in the US, being the only developed nation without a universal prescription scheme. Generally in the US though doctors have plenty of samples to give away. Also, with your doctor's approval you can get some free samples from Eli Lilly.

It is acknowledged by everyone (even those who don't believe the symptoms are as bad as we're experiencing) that you should NOT do cold turkey off any of these drugs, and Cymbalta is one of the worst.

Keep in mind that every further day you go without Cymbalta reduces the amount you'll need to take in order to feel o.k. again. Given you're probably not going to be able to get ahuge amount of samples, you might even feel much, much better taking just 30mg. Lots of people find that even when they taper properly, they can drop down to 30mg without toooo many problems, so let's hope you're one.

[Hangaku]

Many people find Prozac (of which the generic versions should be inexpensive) helps enormously with the Cymbalta withdrawals.

I'm puzzled by your comment about the free caps from Eli Lilly because I've seen others here commenting about getting them. I'm not in the US so that's all I can go by.

I'd be very, very wary of buying anything like 'generic' Cymbalta online anywhere. To my knowledge, Cymbalta is still under protection. In Australia it is illegal to supply prescription drugs without a prescription. Also I'd be suspicious because Australians do not have the US problem of having to pay through the nose for prescriptions. A month's supply of almost anything we need is less than $40, regardless of your dose.

Taiwan and India do not have the controls which apply to the pharmaceutical companies in other countries. Bhopal is enough evidence of that.

sorry I can't help more,

regards, Maureen.

Thanks for your wealth of info Maureen...
The printable vouchers from Eli Lilly do require a doctor's prescription and clearly state that it is "Not valid for patients who have previously filled a prescription for Cymbalta."
My doctor is a highly principled man and would not break this requirement. The vouchers are also limited to one per patient.
I've done a bit of research in the last few days and starting today I will be taking Omega3 supplements (made with krill oil) which are supposed to help with mood swings and I'll be drinking green tea for its anti-inflammatory support.
I am also using my Alpha Stim electrotherapy stimulator which is supposed to help with Seratonin levels. I purchased this machine over a year ago for depression but found it at the time not helpful. Hopefully, it will be of some help to alleviate withdrawal symptoms.
I'm pretty dizzy as of this moment and the zaps continue to annoy.
Good day,
Kathy

[MaureenV]

thank you so much for your advise, hangaku
I guess what i am really asking is "is this a normal duration of with drawl". My general doc giggled at me last Friday as he pulled out his calculator and told me i should have been over the with drawl symptoms a week ago, since i'd only took Cymbalta for a month. I have RA and i wonder if it is going to take a little longer because of my immune system. I have been taking flax seed oil, cod oil and vitamin e. Could it still be the Cymbalta? thanks again -J

This is just my opinion, but it could easily still be the Cymbalta. Some people have only been on it for two weeks and then suffered three weeks of awful withdrawal symptoms. I was on 30mg for a month, 60mg for a few weeks, back to 30mg for two weeks, then tried alternate days without success, eventually talking 10 weeks to wean slowly from 20mg to zero, with some mild withdrawal effects for three weeks after stopping completely at 1mg. So it took me longer to wean off it slowly, than I was on it in the first place.

Coming off it too fast, can actually mean your body takes longer to adjust than those who wean slowly.

regards, Maureen.