14 replies to this topic

[MLT67]

I've been on 60mg for almost 6 years and decided to get of this evil drug. Went down to 30 mg for 3 weeks then every other day for a week and then just stopped. Now I'm at 3.5 weeks without any Cymbalta and experiencing the typical side effects BUT the Omega 3 I'm taking is helping me manage the awful withdrawal symptoms. What I've found odd and the reason for my post is that my sugar levels have gone through the roof since stopping the drug. I've had more energy since stopping and I've started exercising again but still my sugar levels are very elevated. Has anyone experienced this? Could this be from stopping Cymbalta? Nothing else as far as diet has changed.

MLT

[RickWC]

I've been on 60mg for almost 6 years and decided to get of this evil drug. Went down to 30 mg for 3 weeks then every other day for a week and then just stopped. Now I'm at 3.5 weeks without any Cymbalta and experiencing the typical side effects BUT the Omega 3 I'm taking is helping me manage the awful withdrawal symptoms. What I've found odd and the reason for my post is that my sugar levels have gone through the roof since stopping the drug. I've had more energy since stopping and I've started exercising again but still my sugar levels are very elevated. Has anyone experienced this? Could this be from stopping Cymbalta? Nothing else as far as diet has changed.

MLT

I did about the same as you. Went from 60mg to 30mg for 2 weeks then every other day for 1 week. After that, I just kept increasing the number of days between doses and after hitting 4 days between a dose, I decided to just quit. I'm on day 7 with no Cymbalta and the symptoms are still fairly mild. While I have had occasional high blood sugars, they are rare and I don't believe that it has anything to do with stopping Cymbalta. Of course this drug seems to have an endless number of symptoms and what effects one person may experience may not be the same as another person.

[pamela]

I did about the same as you. Went from 60mg to 30mg for 2 weeks then every other day for 1 week. After that, I just kept increasing the number of days between doses and after hitting 4 days between a dose, I decided to just quit. I'm on day 7 with no Cymbalta and the symptoms are still fairly mild. While I have had occasional high blood sugars, they are rare and I don't believe that it has anything to do with stopping Cymbalta. Of course this drug seems to have an endless number of symptoms and what effects one person may experience may not be the same as another person.

Rick-

Do you think that you are going to take a 30mg at any point or are you done? (lucky )

[cookie]

Dear MLT:

I have taken the drug for 5 years. I gained 52lbs and started having insulin and high sugar problems (with no family history of diabetes). I started a pill for diabetic control. I started weaning very slowly 8 months ago, now that I am at lower dosages, my sugar levels are again rising. I am having other symptoms such as extreme hunger, thirst and urinate frequently. Now that I read your story, I hope this high sugar levels are temporary.

What are you doing to keep your sugar levels down? Did you increase your medication? What are your symptoms now?

Please keep me updated on your progress.

[RickWC]

Rick-

Do you think that you are going to take a 30mg at any point or are you done? (lucky )

At this point, I have no plans on taking another dose of this crap. God willing, I will be able to hod to it. I am a bit concerned when I read about people that have been Cymbalta free for 3 to 6 weeks and are stil having symptoms.

[MLT67]

Well it's been 26 days without Cymbalta and I think I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.... For the past two day's my mood has been stable - no big mood swings or bouts of anger. I can't remember the last time I had brain zaps, the "brain fog" is dissipating and I have TONS of energy. Heck I actually look forward to exercise now so I'm hoping that will help with my sugar. Speaking of sugars - they are still all over the place so I'm not sure what's going on there. Right now all I'm doing is tracking my levels and if they don't settle down by Monday I'll call my PCP.

Bottom line, Cymbalta was a life saver for me 6 years ago but knowing what I know now I would have looked at other "natural" alternatives. I weighed 226 lbs when I started taking the drug and when I hit 280 lbs before Christmas I had enough. Now after 26 day's I'm down to 273 lbs and I've just started feeling like exercising last week so I hope the weight loss continues now that I'm walking. I hope to continue to post my progress because I know how hard it is to be on this drug as well as how hard it is to get off this drug.

MLT

[pamela]

Well it's been 26 days without Cymbalta and I think I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel.... For the past two day's my mood has been stable - no big mood swings or bouts of anger. I can't remember the last time I had brain zaps, the "brain fog" is dissipating and I have TONS of energy. Heck I actually look forward to exercise now so I'm hoping that will help with my sugar. Speaking of sugars - they are still all over the place so I'm not sure what's going on there. Right now all I'm doing is tracking my levels and if they don't settle down by Monday I'll call my PCP.

Bottom line, Cymbalta was a life saver for me 6 years ago but knowing what I know now I would have looked at other "natural" alternatives. I weighed 226 lbs when I started taking the drug and when I hit 280 lbs before Christmas I had enough. Now after 26 day's I'm down to 273 lbs and I've just started feeling like exercising last week so I hope the weight loss continues now that I'm walking. I hope to continue to post my progress because I know how hard it is to be on this drug as well as how hard it is to get off this drug.

MLT

I have noticed that my weight is starting to drop too. I work out hard 5-6 days a week and haven't been able to lose a damn pound. Now that I have barely any of the 'balta' in my system the pounds seem to be dropping. Thank goodness!

I wish you continued success and enjoy your new found energy. It's awesome isn't it?

[pamela]

At this point, I have no plans on taking another dose of this crap. God willing, I will be able to hod to it. I am a bit concerned when I read about people that have been Cymbalta free for 3 to 6 weeks and are stil having symptoms.

Rick,

I hope that because you are on Prozac you won't have any more withdrawal symptoms. From everything that everyone has ever posted about using Prozac to ease the withdrawals no one has ever said anything about delayed onset withdrawal symptoms.

You are doing so great.......you have been off for a long time now and are feeling ok.

[cookie]

Dear MLT:
I am glad your mood has been stable, and that the brain zaps is gone. Great that you are feeling like exercising, that definitely helps!

I totally agree with you. Cymb. was also a life saver for me 5 years ago, but knowing what I know now I would have looked at other natural alternatives.

I am still at a low dosage of cymbalta, and my sugar levels are also very high. I have constant thirst, hunger and urination. I lost so much water yesterday, that I feel dehydrated, no matter how much water I drank.

[RickWC]

Rick,

I hope that because you are on Prozac you won't have any more withdrawal symptoms. From everything that everyone has ever posted about using Prozac to ease the withdrawals no one has ever said anything about delayed onset withdrawal symptoms.

You are doing so great.......you have been off for a long time now and are feeling ok.

I hope you are right about the Prozac. I barely have any symptoms right now except for anger, depression, and anxiety. For a normal person, this may seem bad but I swear it is nothing compared to what I felt when going cold turkey.

Rick

[RickWC]

I did a search on Google and there seems to be a general aggreement that Cymbalta can affect blood sugar levels. Most of the information just says affects but does not say how. One site did say that Cymbalta use may decrease blood sugar level. If this is the case then I guess your blood sugar levels could rise as Cymbalta clears from your system. You may need to adjust your dosage on your diabetic medication.

I use an insulin pump and test my blood sugar at least 5 to 6 times a day so I maintain tight control on my blood sugar. Being on a pump means that I am constantly adjusting my insulin dose as needed. That may be why I have not noticed any major problems with high blood sugars.

Rick

[pamela]

I hope you are right about the Prozac. I barely have any symptoms right now except for anger, depression, and anxiety. For a normal person, this may seem bad but I swear it is nothing compared to what I felt when going cold turkey.

Rick

I agree.....Anger, depression and anxiety are SO much better than nausea, headaches, the buzz, fatigue and the list goes on.....

You are a success story!

[RickWC]

I agree.....Anger, depression and anxiety are SO much better than nausea, headaches, the buzz, fatigue and the list goes on.....

You are a success story!

I don't know about being a success story. I just know that this time seems so much different then the 4 days that I went cold turkey. Anger now. Full blown rage then. Depression now. Disabilitating depression with thoughts of sucicide then. Anxiety now. Crawling out of my skin then. Plus I got brain zaps going cold turkey and I can gladly say that I haven't had one this time.

[MLT67]

33 day's after being totally off Cymbalta and I've gone from 280lbs to 270lbs. Side effects from withdrawal come and go - no brain zaps for a while and while my my mood (lows and highs) has leveled off my anger is still a problem. Basically I have a very short fuse and sometimes I feel like a war is going on in my head - I hope this gets better soon because it's SOOO hard to get through the day without yelling or smarting off to someone. I'm still having bad headaches and my sugars are leveling back off but this week my energy level is low again. Funny how last week I had tons of energy and this week I've got hardly any energy. Inconsistency is the only thing consistent about my withdrawal Symptoms and how I feel.

Anyone else this way? symptoms change week to week?

MLT

[cookie]

Dear 'MLT67' :
You described it so well "Inconsistency". The same happens to me. I have days with tons of energy and good mood, and then days with very low energy and depression.