11 replies to this topic

[Debbie M.]

I was on 120mg for almost 2 years. I started to wean about 7 months ago. I am now at 1mg.(9 beads).

You can do it! It is possible. If I can you can, the road is long and bumpy but you can make it.

Hey, Someone on less than me!! Nice to meet you. I'll be taking my 16 beads tomorrow. I'm also reducing one bead a day.
My highest dose was 60 mgs. I don't remember exactly when I started weaning but its been several months. Please let me know how you end. I keep wondering if I should take one bead for a couple days or just take the last one and then none. What will you do? Please keep me posted as you will be a week ahead of me.

Be well!
Deb

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Hey, Someone on less than me!! Nice to meet you. I'll be taking my 16 beads tomorrow. I'm also reducing one bead a day.
My highest dose was 60 mgs. I don't remember exactly when I started weaning but its been several months. Please let me know how you end. I keep wondering if I should take one bead for a couple days or just take the last one and then none. What will you do? Please keep me posted as you will be a week ahead of me.

Be well!
Deb

Debbie:
WOW, you are down to 16 beads!!! that´s like 1,7mg.
I think that you could take one bead for a week and then none.
hugs
Cookie

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ive seen a few people that have been on 90mg daily but has anyone else been on 120mg??
googling it and i also dont see where that is a common dosage....now im kinda worried here.

Dear Karen & Laura:
I have taken cymbalta 60mg for 5 years for severe depression. I was always low. There was a period in which the doctor increased to 90mg.

From what I´ve read the -therapeutic dose- for cymbalta is 60mg. The same night I started 90mg I became manic, I took the pill at 10:00pm and at 3 in the morning I woke up with this urge to take my car, and start driving to buy a pack of cigarrettes. In my case, cymbalta 90mg didn´t give any additional benefits than 60mg, only additional side effects.

When I reduced from 90mg to 60mg it wasn´t that bad, the only things that bothered me were extreme itchiness, and numbness of hands. One day I got a feeling of electricity all over my body.

I learned that everyone is different. If you need to keep on using cymbalta, find the dosage that is better for you.
I found that 30mg was ENOUGH for me. I started to -feel- because I didn´t feel or care for anything while on higher doses. Now I am down to 20mg, and have had some physical symptoms, but I am sure it´s just withdrawal.

Karen: I hope that you find the ROOT of your insomnia.
I am becoming an expert in counting beads

Ryan: Well done!!!! going from 120mg to 1mg in 7 months is such an accomplishment!!! wow

Hugs
Cookie

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I never had any trouble sleeping til the first Cymbalta pill I took. I was awake all night, and a pharmacist told me to take it in the morning. My dr had told me to take it at night, because it would make me drowsy. The pharmacist said it causes insomnia for some people. Unfortunately, I'm one of them. That's my main reason for wanting off it along with the fact that it hasn't helped my pain enough to be worth the price of it. Otherwise, I've felt fine taking 120mgs at once. My dr started me out on 60mg samples and told me to take one every night for 2 wks and call him if I wanted him to call in the RX for two a day. I started out taking them a.m. and p.m. and took the pm one a little bit earlier every day until I was taking them both at once. Even though a pharmacist said it was ok to take them together, I was afraid to. Everything I google for Cymbalta for neuropahty treatment said 60mg a day is the dosage and yet my dr told me to take double that. I haven't talked to him, and he didn't tell me to come back. He's a podiatrist I went to for "pins and needles" in my feet. I'd been seeing him once a month and sometimes more for the last year. I think he gave up on me and put me on this. I will not go on one more drug without researching it first, that's for sure.

As for the bead counting, do you just trust that every capsule has the same number of beads in it? Do you count the beads you take out or the ones you leave in. I know that sounds stupid, but I swear the capsule I counted last night had 140 in it. That's a 60mg one. I thought I'd better double check and counted another one, and it had 210 in it. I'm afraid to count another one. I went ahead and took out 5% for 4 more days. Today was my day one. I thought I'd start small and see how I do and reduce another 5% at a time.

Karen

Dear Karen:
It´s so hard for me to fall asleep at night. I usually go to bed at 2:00 o´clock at night. I never related it with cymbalta, but now that you mention your insomnia, it could be linked. The worst thing for me is that it is almost imposible to get up in the morning. An usually I sleep better in the morning than at night.

Well it´s good to know that “you´ve felt fine taking 120mg at once”. I guess everybody is different

As for the bead counting you have to be very CAREFUL. I´ve been lucky that my capsules always have the same number of beads, but I´ve read people on this site saying that there are 60mg capsules which have a different number of beads. I guess, it depends on the manufacturer. So be careful an check the number of beads in your capsule.

Since my capsules have the same number of beads, I only count the beads that I have to take out from the capsule.

Good luck!! Keep me posted

hugs
Cookie

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I am going to stay on 1mg until Thursday of this week. My journey has been very hard and painful. I have insomnia that is kicking my butt, and I have mood swings that are horrible. I cry hysterically for a few hours and then I get angry for a while. But those two things seem to be my biggest hurdle at this point. I am keeping very busy with work.(On purpose) I do construction and I have purposely taken a lower day rate just so I stay busy. I think the physical labor and sweating does me good. That way I am not siting around the house all day focusing on my side effects, which for me is not a good thing.

Good luck with your drop. YOU CAN DO IT!!!

Dear Ryan:
Tell me more about your journey. How did you manage to get to a such low dose (1mg!).
I have also had mood swings and anger.
The insomnia is really annoying. I fall asleep around 3:00 at night
hugs
Cookie

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Wow, i just found this site and just started heading down from 120mg so i can get the 90 day supply of 120 and make it last 180 days to save money. Now i really wanna do it, i don't sleep at night until 3 or 4am and sleep until 11 or so. Makes it really hard when i have to get up early in the morning for work! I was suprised to see beads in the capsuls but I have only been splitting one and adding it to one of the 60mgs to make 90. I don't really need that high of a dose since it has been 2 years since my micro managing manager ruined my head - I am over that now! Still need something for depression so i hope 60 will work now!
What withdrawl symptoms are you guys having? I don't have any yet but it has only been 4 days....

Dear Victoria:
I am not a doctor but from my experience with cymbalta, I think that 120mg is a very high dose. I took cymbalta for Major Depression, and when I say “Major” is a really “Major” one. I was not able to eat, get out of bed, talk to my friends, work, concentrate, and I had other horrible symptoms. I took 60mg and that was enought. There was a period in which I tried another doctor and he prescribed 90mg. All it gave me was additional side effects (mania and severe itchiness) with no additional benefits for my Depression.

During cymbalta it has been so hard for me to wake up in the morning. I sleep until very late. However since I started weaning I am also experiencing insomnia at night. I do not fall asleep until 3:00 at night and I keep on sleeping until very late.

If you want to take 90mg it would be easier to take a 60mg capsule + a 30mg capsule. So you do not have to count beads or split the capsule. 60mg is considered the therapeutic dose.

I´ve had several withdrawal symptoms. I will mention, the ones that bother me the most.-
-Emotional/mental: Extreme rage, mood swings, mind goes blank, can´t find the words to talk, sensitive to noises and light
-Physical: seizures, shortness of breath, nausea, flu like symptoms, excessive sweating, extreme fatigue, itchiness/needles sensations in hands, electric shocks in the body, extreme hair loss, changes in appetite, blurry vision, jaw clenching, headaches.

However everybody is different. Some people are more sensible to withdrawal than others. I have a friend who quit cymbalta and didn´t experience any w/d symptoms

Hugs
Cookie

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Dear Ryan;
Thank you for giving us such a detailed explanation on your weaning process and such an useful advice.

It is a shame that antidepressants stop working after a while. It seems like the body/brain gets used to it and it loses effectiveness.

I was prescribed cymbalta for major depression (a very MAJOR one) and still 60mg was enough for me. I can't imagine what it would be like to take 120mg for 6 years.
And being down to such a tiny dose now.

I am so sorry you had an episode where you had to be checked into a mental health facility.

You are so lucky you had you wife's support all the time.

You mentioned that when going from 60-30mg you cut yourself with a razor. Was it a NEW symptom? Or you cut yourself while you were depressed prior to start cymbalta.

Yesterday was you last day on the drug. I am very interested to know how you feel on the next days.

Keep me posted!!!
Hugs
Cookie.

[pat]

I've been on 90mg/day for 4 years and then upped to 120mg/day for the last year for depression. I genetically susceptible to depression/anxiety but I have finally discovered that talk-therapy is WAAAAY more helpful than I could have imagined.

Also, my insurance is changing soon. The new plan has prescription drug coverage, but it won't cover cymbalta because it is a "tier 3" (overpriced!) drug. So rather than get into a financial pit, I am going to wean off the medication.

I expressed this to my psychiatrist (who does med management only, not talk therapy) and he was not supportive!! I've only tried two other antidepressants EVER and one was helpful. He didn't want to lower my dose, but I insisted so he lowered me to 90mg for a few weeks. So far I've had NO side effects... except maybe a fatter wallet. ;-)

I am really annoyed with the psychiatrist b/c he as a professional should have the best interest of the patient in mind. (Like, not getting them into a bad financial situation!) The fact that he has me on the ABSOLUTE highest dose and he doesn't want to try the cheaper, generic SSRIs, makes me sick. I am going to find another one with the help of my therapist. He's gotta be getting something from those pharma reps that come in promoting their new meds. I made it clear to him that I CANNOT AFFORD IT! He was not understanding.

Anyway, just had to get that off my chest. I'm in a really good place mentally, and have a great support system with my fiance and close friends, so I am confident that I'll be successful in this weaning process. (But I'm sure it won't be much fun for a bit.)

Just found this website today and I read a bunch of threads. Thanks everyone who has been posting. Glad to know I'm not the only one in this situation.

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I've been on 90mg/day for 4 years and then upped to 120mg/day for the last year for depression. I genetically susceptible to depression/anxiety but I have finally discovered that talk-therapy is WAAAAY more helpful than I could have imagined.

Also, my insurance is changing soon. The new plan has prescription drug coverage, but it won't cover cymbalta because it is a "tier 3" (overpriced!) drug. So rather than get into a financial pit, I am going to wean off the medication.

I expressed this to my psychiatrist (who does med management only, not talk therapy) and he was not supportive!! I've only tried two other antidepressants EVER and one was helpful. He didn't want to lower my dose, but I insisted so he lowered me to 90mg for a few weeks. So far I've had NO side effects... except maybe a fatter wallet. ;-)

I am really annoyed with the psychiatrist b/c he as a professional should have the best interest of the patient in mind. (Like, not getting them into a bad financial situation!) The fact that he has me on the ABSOLUTE highest dose and he doesn't want to try the cheaper, generic SSRIs, makes me sick. I am going to find another one with the help of my therapist. He's gotta be getting something from those pharma reps that come in promoting their new meds. I made it clear to him that I CANNOT AFFORD IT! He was not understanding.

Anyway, just had to get that off my chest. I'm in a really good place mentally, and have a great support system with my fiance and close friends, so I am confident that I'll be successful in this weaning process. (But I'm sure it won't be much fun for a bit.)

Just found this website today and I read a bunch of threads. Thanks everyone who has been posting. Glad to know I'm not the only one in this situation.

Dear Pat:
I´ve mentioned previously that I took cymbalta for major depression. My depression was very disabling, I could not function at all (couldn´t eat, couldn´t talk with my friends, couldn´t get up from bed, felt helpless, etc). And still a dose of 60mg was ENOUGHT for me.

I rather take the therapeutic dose and do talk therapy (to find the root of my depression) than being “overdosed” and not being able to feel.

Even thought you stress/focus on the price of the med, and the finantial point of view. I think the most important thing rather than economy is our own body/brain. If you want to decrease dosage, your doctor should listen.
Is there a way you can find a psychiatrist who does both (talk therapy + prescribe antidepressants)???.

It is so GOOD that you have a support system with fiance and close friends!!!! That is excellent.

Hugs
Cookie

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My dad is bipolar and on 120 mg of cymbalta every day, for roughly 10 years he was on paxil, but it seemed to not work anymore and he was at the highest dosage possible, now he's been on cymbalta for 4ish years, going on 5, and it seems like he's going backwards as far as his behavior, he keeps acting out and having episodes and last night was the worst - something like this hasn't happened for 15 years (before he was on medication at all...)

I seem to be the only one he doesn't lash out at and actually listens to (i'm his daughter, he snaps all the time at my brother and mother) and my family is expecting me to talk to him, he's a wonderful person and father but his behavioral issues (Regarding his manic depression) his life story is so complex so i know that his temper isn't something that can be changed (he's 57...) but it can be managed but how can we (him and us) manage this if it's almost everything setting him off? my mom thinks he needs to change medication, cause its like not working on him anymore! please advice please...

Dear Tiffany
Has he tried mood stabilizers??

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Not that I know of, all I know he takes is aspirin, metoprolol, lipitor, and warfarin. Most of it is for his heart except for the cymbalta, what are mood stabilizers? He also drinks occasionally, just like one beer at night, maybe two? But everything says youre not supposed to drink

Dear Tiffany:
From the source wikipedia I summarized what mood stabilizers are.

“Mood stabilizers are medications used to treat Bipolar (example: Anticonvulsants and atypical antipsychotics). They diminish the swings between depression and mania. They are effective in treating mania....”.
“...Antidepressants can induce mania in bipolar patients—particularly when taken alone, but sometimes even when used with a mood stabilizer...”.

Since you say that your Dad need a change of medication, ask your dad´s doctor about them, to know his opinion, and if he considers -based on his knowledge- if it will or not be useful to your dad´s condition.

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Hi Ryan:
It is good to hear that your last drop has been easy. I am glad that the anger issues subsided. I have also had insomnia.
Hugs
Cookie