I have been off and on a couple different anti-depressants, mainly Wellbutrin. over a period of 15 years. It seemed like it wasn't working anymore and I was prescribed Cymbalta back in mid-Jan 08. Within a week I felt great but started breaking out in hives. I was at 60 mg but dropped down to 30 to see if they went away which they didn't. My doctor and I agreed to stop the Cymbalta and see for sure that that is what's causing the hives. I made the mistake of going cold turkey at 30 mg. A Really Bad Mistake. Went back on the 30 mg then dropped down to 20 mg with the plan to go every other day and then stop. I asked about opening the capsules and tapering to lower dosages that way but was advised against that.
My last pill was on 4/8 and by that Friday, I started having some symptoms which I expected considering the cold turkey experiment. I had pretty much no problem going off of Wellbutrin except for headaches for a few days. I had read about withdrawal with Cymbalta on-line but thought they were anomalies possibly BUT it has all turned out to be true. The "brain zaps" when turning your head, the constant hissing noise, very disoriented, crying jags, tired but not able to sleep, all of it. I'm really glad to know I'm not imagining all this but sorry that some people have to go through this.
The brain zaps are somewhat better today but but still there. I was off work for two days this week because I was pretty much non-functional. At this point, I'm staying off everything I don't have to have and then re-evaluate the depression.
What has irritated me is that my doctor didn't talk to me at all about any withdrawal symptoms with this med. Even though some people have no problems, information should be provided. It used to be that only psychiatrists could prescribe anti-depressants. Now that your Internist or GP can, I don't see that they are being provided or just aren't aware of the consequences of some of these drugs. Was it worth it...from hindsight, no. If I hadn't broken out in hives, I would still be on it.
One week off Cymbalta
Started by nancyweNW, Apr 16 2008 02:17 PM
3 replies to this topic
#2
Sarah J
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Worker Bee
Posted 16 April 2008 - 03:17 PM
So sorry that you have had this experience. Hopefully you will bounce back quickly with minimal impact on your life.
You said you don't want to take anything and see where you are, but is your doctor now aware of this, have they done any research and did s/he offer any solutions to make this more comfortable on you?
I tried acupuncture to help get through this, not really expecting much, and have found that it has had a very positive impact on my overall well being.
Now that you are off of the Cymbalta, have your hives gone away?
All the best to you!
You said you don't want to take anything and see where you are, but is your doctor now aware of this, have they done any research and did s/he offer any solutions to make this more comfortable on you?
I tried acupuncture to help get through this, not really expecting much, and have found that it has had a very positive impact on my overall well being.
Now that you are off of the Cymbalta, have your hives gone away?
All the best to you!
#3
nancyweNW
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Posted 16 April 2008 - 03:26 PM
Interesting you mention acupunture. I went yesterday and had a session as I'd had really good results in the past using it for other things. I did feel better with a little more energy. I have scheduled 6 more sessions. However, I still feel far from my regular self whether that be depressed or not.
And my doctor to me has somewhat let me down on this whole experience. I called my doctor on Monday when I had to be driven home from work by a colleague. That call was at about 10:30 AM. They called back, the nurse, at 5:55 PM when I was on the phone. They left a msg. saying I should taper on my dosage which we had already discussed. I was calling because I was looking for some help with the withdrawal. I was pretty disappointed in not only the response itself but in the time it took to call back. It's a busy practice as most doctors are these days, but I felt that I was on my own to deal with this. My sister is the one who recommended the acupuncture, thank God!
And my doctor to me has somewhat let me down on this whole experience. I called my doctor on Monday when I had to be driven home from work by a colleague. That call was at about 10:30 AM. They called back, the nurse, at 5:55 PM when I was on the phone. They left a msg. saying I should taper on my dosage which we had already discussed. I was calling because I was looking for some help with the withdrawal. I was pretty disappointed in not only the response itself but in the time it took to call back. It's a busy practice as most doctors are these days, but I felt that I was on my own to deal with this. My sister is the one who recommended the acupuncture, thank God!
#4
Sarah J
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Worker Bee
Posted 16 April 2008 - 03:57 PM
You mentioned in one of your first posts that you were told to taper by taking a dose every other day, right?
With Cymbalta, it has a really short half life of approximately 12-14 hours, and total elimination is around 3 days. You know, I never wanted to know some of this stuff, because our doctors should know this! With older antidepressants, every other day doses could help somebody wean, they have much longer half lives, but with Cymbalta, this method of weaning usually does not prove successful as it puts you into withdrawal, every other day. Your doctor may not be aware of this.
Read some of the weaning section, there are some people who have had significant relief from the symptoms with a single 20mg dose of Prozac, there are some links to medical websites that recommend it for "discontinuation syndrome", unfortunately, what you now know to be something that does exist.
Good luck to you, hang in there. Know that you don't want to take any more medication, but if you have some info to talk over with your doctor, it can't hurt to ask them about options that might make this more comfortable for you.
Glad that you are doing acupuncture and hope that it helps you return to a nice balance and functional life really soon.
With Cymbalta, it has a really short half life of approximately 12-14 hours, and total elimination is around 3 days. You know, I never wanted to know some of this stuff, because our doctors should know this! With older antidepressants, every other day doses could help somebody wean, they have much longer half lives, but with Cymbalta, this method of weaning usually does not prove successful as it puts you into withdrawal, every other day. Your doctor may not be aware of this.
Read some of the weaning section, there are some people who have had significant relief from the symptoms with a single 20mg dose of Prozac, there are some links to medical websites that recommend it for "discontinuation syndrome", unfortunately, what you now know to be something that does exist.
Good luck to you, hang in there. Know that you don't want to take any more medication, but if you have some info to talk over with your doctor, it can't hurt to ask them about options that might make this more comfortable for you.
Glad that you are doing acupuncture and hope that it helps you return to a nice balance and functional life really soon.
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