3 replies to this topic

[OWhatAThrill]

Short history - been on anti-depressants for ten years now. Have never had one that made me feel like I wanted to feel...like care about what's on my walls...if my house was clean, etc. I was first put on Zoloft for bad PMS. I can't even remember what order anything was taken or how many mgs but I have also been on Lexapro, Prozac, Effeczor, Wellbrutin, and add a few more in there that I can't even remember right now.

The doctor who is handling my AD's is an internist and a chronic pain/depression doc. This has been for the last year. My PCP put me on all the other drugs. Anyway, I recently told my pain doc that I would like to get off Cymbalta because didn't really feel like it was helping me. I was on 60mgs a day. He decided to up it to 120mg to see how that worked and upped my pain meds to see if that would make me feel better too. This was a month or so ago. Two weeks ago I told him that the 120mg wasn't having any effect either and would like to come off. He suggested I move to Imipramine. Said to take the cymbalta every other day or so for a week or so, then start taking the imipramine. Well, after this visit I started did some random searches on the net and found this place. Since that doc visit and before finding this place, I decided I'd take 60mg for a couple weeks before trying the Imipramine. That is where I am today.

I have been taking 60mgs for about two weeks. After finding this place I recognized some mild withdrawal feelings, slight headache, nauseous...a few days over the course of two weeks was a little more anxious that others, but I'd just take a xanax on those days.

Other drugs I am on:

Oxyxodone/Roxicodone 15mgs every 4 hours or so
Oxycontin 40mg twice a day or every 8 hours (as prescribed if the pain is bad)
Xanax 1mg 4 times a day if needed (as prescribed) but maybe once a day every couple a days in reality
Premarin hormone
Amphetamine (adderall) 10mgs - prescribed up to 6 tablets a day, but just take if I feel like it might give me energy
Promethazine 25mg (as needed)


I have always been haphazard in taking my ADs. The only times I would really panic was if I'd go off somewhere and forget the meds and would know I wouldn't be home for more than 3-4 days. I know realize some of my days in the past where I might have been extra tired, or had a headache, or nauseous, might have been from not taking meds regularly.

I've been reading here for about a week...would love to hear your suggestions on getting off cymbalta...when I should start the Imipramine...or maybe IF I should start it at all. Would like to see if I needed any AD at all. Your comments welcomed!

Oh, pain meds are for degenerative disk disease...have had 3 back surgeries in the last 9 years, two fusions, the last one being December 08.

[MaureenV]

Short history - been on anti-depressants for ten years now. Have never had one that made me feel like I wanted to feel...like care about what's on my walls...if my house was clean, etc. I was first put on Zoloft for bad PMS. I can't even remember what order anything was taken or how many mgs but I have also been on Lexapro, Prozac, Effeczor, Wellbrutin, and add a few more in there that I can't even remember right now.

The doctor who is handling my AD's is an internist and a chronic pain/depression doc. This has been for the last year. My PCP put me on all the other drugs. Anyway, I recently told my pain doc that I would like to get off Cymbalta because didn't really feel like it was helping me. I was on 60mgs a day. He decided to up it to 120mg to see how that worked and upped my pain meds to see if that would make me feel better too. This was a month or so ago. Two weeks ago I told him that the 120mg wasn't having any effect either and would like to come off. He suggested I move to Imipramine. Said to take the cymbalta every other day or so for a week or so, then start taking the imipramine. Well, after this visit I started did some random searches on the net and found this place. Since that doc visit and before finding this place, I decided I'd take 60mg for a couple weeks before trying the Imipramine. That is where I am today.

I have been taking 60mgs for about two weeks. After finding this place I recognized some mild withdrawal feelings, slight headache, nauseous...a few days over the course of two weeks was a little more anxious that others, but I'd just take a xanax on those days.

Other drugs I am on:

Oxyxodone/Roxicodone 15mgs every 4 hours or so
Oxycontin 40mg twice a day or every 8 hours (as prescribed if the pain is bad)
Xanax 1mg 4 times a day if needed (as prescribed) but maybe once a day every couple a days in reality
Premarin hormone
Amphetamine (adderall) 10mgs - prescribed up to 6 tablets a day, but just take if I feel like it might give me energy
Promethazine 25mg (as needed)


I have always been haphazard in taking my ADs. The only times I would really panic was if I'd go off somewhere and forget the meds and would know I wouldn't be home for more than 3-4 days. I know realize some of my days in the past where I might have been extra tired, or had a headache, or nauseous, might have been from not taking meds regularly.

I've been reading here for about a week...would love to hear your suggestions on getting off cymbalta...when I should start the Imipramine...or maybe IF I should start it at all. Would like to see if I needed any AD at all. Your comments welcomed!

Oh, pain meds are for degenerative disk disease...have had 3 back surgeries in the last 9 years, two fusions, the last one being December 08.

I don't know anything about most of the other drugs, so won't comment on those. i WILL say that frequently people dropping from (eg) 120 to 60 have few problems (ESPECIALLY when the increase from 60 to 120 has done little to help them), can even go down to 30mg without too much difficulty, but then strike problems.

My suggestion would be: once you feel all withdrawal symptoms have gone, drop to 30 (the alternate days thing is useless with Cymbalta) and then IF you're o.k. with that, do a SLOW wean from there, opening and dividing the contents of the capsule to do so.

If you're not o.k. on the 30m, you can take a dose somewhere in between there and 60 and taper down from there.

regards, Maureen.

[OWhatAThrill]

Any suggestions on when to start the Imipramine?

[MaureenV]

Any suggestions on when to start the Imipramine?

I didn't comment on the other drugs because I don't know what they are - I'm not really very well educated on how they all work, or why the different ones are useful in different situations. I can never even remember the difference between SSRIs and others. I did have a quick look on wiki for Imipramine and it does say that the side effects can often be an issue, so the problem with taking a new drug, along with withdrawing from something like cymbalta, is that you don't know what's causing what.

I feel for you, your pain issues must be really severe to be on this level of medication. I don't know much about them, but recognize Oxycontin from major surgery a few years ago, and know how powerful that is on it's own. Interesting to hear about your back surgeries not solving your problem. I've been recommended to have three discs fused, but as I 'manage' with Voltaren (and have been taking it for 15 years without problems) and a chiropractor.


Again, I can't really comment because I'm not familiar with the drugs, but do be aware that one of the withdrawal effects of Cymbalta for many is an aggravation of pain beyond what was there in the first place, temporarily. I'm 57, and by that age most of us have collected a few war injuries, and I'm no exception. Every single spot in my body which has ever suffered trauma hurt at stages during withdrawal (until I went to the slow taper method), including some places which had not been a problem since I was 13. Every single 'weak' spot in my body hurt.

It bothers me that you might not know what to attribute problems to if you're dealing with more than one drug at a time.

Is the imipramine for depression as well,or just for pain?

regards, Maureen.