1 reply to this topic

[Kim]

Hi All,

I'm a new member and I am SO glad to have found this site!
I have been on 60mg of Cymbalta and .5mg of Klonopin for about 3 years now.
I went to a recommended doctor after having some severe panic attacks that had gone from situational to everyday. The dr I saw I didn't realize at the time, b/c I was so desperate for help was a huge pill pusher. Increased my Cymbalta from 20 to 30 to 60 to 90mg and started me on .5mg of Klonopin 2x a day. I eventually weaned myself to 60mg of Cymbalta and .5 of Klonopin once a day instead of twice.
After Pristiq came on the market, he thought it would be a wise decision to switch me from Cymbalta to 50mg of Pristiq right away and should have had "no symptoms at all". WELL I call BS within 2 days I was out of work for a week, vomiting, diahrrea, fever, brain zaps like crazy, every thing I've read about people basically going cold turkey. He upped my Pristiq to 100mg and still it did nothing. Crying all the time, thinking I didn't even want to live like that anymore. I stopped going to him, stopped taking the Pristiq and went back to my 60 of Cymbalta and have been back to that routine for the last year and a half.
I am getting married in 8 days, and would like to start a family in the next year, therefore want to begin the weaning process soon, in the next few weeks. I know it's going to be rough, as if I've ever even been one day late refilling the Cymbalta the brain zaps, nausea, lack of concentration and balance are prevelant.

I've read many posts on here and besides weaning sloooowly and counting the beads, plus adding Omega 3 and water/vitamins, any other advice?
It's really nice to find a forum in which so many people are experiencing the same things.

Good luck to you all.

I'm hopeful but ready for battle!

Kim

[MaureenV]

Hi All,

I'm a new member and I am SO glad to have found this site!
I have been on 60mg of Cymbalta and .5mg of Klonopin for about 3 years now.
I went to a recommended doctor after having some severe panic attacks that had gone from situational to everyday. The dr I saw I didn't realize at the time, b/c I was so desperate for help was a huge pill pusher. Increased my Cymbalta from 20 to 30 to 60 to 90mg and started me on .5mg of Klonopin 2x a day. I eventually weaned myself to 60mg of Cymbalta and .5 of Klonopin once a day instead of twice.
After Pristiq came on the market, he thought it would be a wise decision to switch me from Cymbalta to 50mg of Pristiq right away and should have had "no symptoms at all". WELL I call BS within 2 days I was out of work for a week, vomiting, diahrrea, fever, brain zaps like crazy, every thing I've read about people basically going cold turkey. He upped my Pristiq to 100mg and still it did nothing. Crying all the time, thinking I didn't even want to live like that anymore. I stopped going to him, stopped taking the Pristiq and went back to my 60 of Cymbalta and have been back to that routine for the last year and a half.
I am getting married in 8 days, and would like to start a family in the next year, therefore want to begin the weaning process soon, in the next few weeks. I know it's going to be rough, as if I've ever even been one day late refilling the Cymbalta the brain zaps, nausea, lack of concentration and balance are prevelant.

I've read many posts on here and besides weaning sloooowly and counting the beads, plus adding Omega 3 and water/vitamins, any other advice?
It's really nice to find a forum in which so many people are experiencing the same things.

Good luck to you all.

I'm hopeful but ready for battle!

Kim

Hi Kim,


congratulations on doing your research and reading lots of posts. Forewarned is forearmed.

Firstly, make sure you've got sufficient supply of Cymbalta to do your full wean before you start. So many doctors are kept in the dark by the drug companies about the severity of withdrawal, that when people turn up suffering withdrawal, they insist it's the underlying depression and whack them back on a larger dose.

There are brilliant doctors around, so hope you have one who will work WITH you to achieve what you want. There's nothing weird about a slow wean for those who need it.

Get your hands on a bottle of empty gelatine capsules. It's only about $10. You mention 20mg Cymbalta, which is not available most places, so assume you're in the US, so not sure where you'd go, but large chemists and health food stores usually stock them.

The best (easiest) prescription to have on hand is 30mg, but if you only have 60mg, that's fine.

The only thing you'll need HEAPS of, is patience. Almost without exception, those of us who've weaned slowly have become impatient and tried to wean too fast.

If you wean slowly, it may take a few months (I spent 10 weeks getting off the last 20mg), but you'll get to the end point suffering minimal withdrawal symptoms.

I wish you a gloriously sunny day for your wedding.


regards, Maureen.