33 replies to this topic

[CyMAD]

This is my first post here. I am tired of feeling tired. I have been on this med for over five years at 90mg a night. Yes, at NIGHT. I say this because the quack that gave it to me first had me taking this at night for years and I haven't slept for, well, years. I moved and another shrink told me I should NEVER take this at night. I finally got tired of the medication and dropped myself down to 60 and then to 30mg a day. I had to go into the hospital for depression. I have been "diagnosed" with BP-2 years ago. My questions are many. I feel more depressed than I ever had in my life on this med. The docs increased me back to 60 mg cymbalta plus abilify while I was in the hospital for suicidal thoughts. Now I have taken myself off of Abilify ( another monster ) and I am going to get off of this crap for good. I have been through the mill of meds over the past 10+ years all of which made me worse it seems.

Today is my first day ( again ) trying to wean myself off of cymbalta. As i mentioned I have been on 60 mg for a few months now. Today I only took 30mg.
I guess I will take 30mg for two weeks then try to go to 0, none, nada, zilch. We shall see. My current doctor said she wanted me to INCREASE to 90 again and at this point I decided to do it on my own.

I have a question for all of you. I have read and experienced the withdrawals symptoms. Yes they are hell.

My question is this: WHAT SIDE EFFECTS DID YOU ALL FEEL WHILE TAKING CYMBALTA ?

I felt (feel) these side effects:

1) Fatigue ( EXTREME)
2) More Fatigue.
3) Never feel like I have slept good. No restful sleep.
4) A Hangover type feeling all day.
5) Depressed.
6) Hopeless
7) I have to take naps off and on every day to battle the restless nights.

Please , if you have time or feel like it, list YOUR "SIDE-EFFECTS" while you were on the medication.
I am just curious about this.

WIsh me luck as I know what is ahead for me getting off of this horrible, disgusting medication.

I want my OWN BRAIN BACK and the side effects to go away.

Have a good day and thanks

[Lori]

CyMAD, your best bet would not to stop after the 30. My mind is still a bit on the foggy side, so I am not good at remembering everything I have read on this site. I have to keep going back to different topics to look for the info again. Some of the other ladies have it memorized, but there is a great tapering schedule on here. I myself can not remember if I was taking 60mg or 30mg, but which ever I was taking, for one month, I poured the granules out of the capsules, I tried to keep it all the same for 1 week, in each capsule. I lessened the granules each week until I was through for that month, only then did I stop it all together. But thats the way I did it, and it was much faster for me. Even going cold turkey from 30mg is going to be tough.
Hang in there, there will be more posts in regards to this and if I were you, I would take their advice.

[Sarah J]

My question is this: WHAT SIDE EFFECTS DID YOU ALL FEEL WHILE TAKING CYMBALTA ?

• Could not sleep - maybe 5 hours a night (now I am off - sleep is such a gift)
• Arms numb in the morning, every morning (this side effect has a fancy name I can't remember but this is now gone now that I am off)
• Could never cry when it was appropriate to (family death, general stuff you should cry over)
• Did not care about much of anything.
• missed or late dose resulted in blurry vision, confusion, feeling like I had the flu
• the last year on Cymbalta I would fly into really intense rages for no reason (gone now)
• made my agoraphobia worse (still working on this one, but it is much better)

3.5 years for situational depression. My old doc tried to jump me to 90 3 different times. 90 felt like it would blow my head off so I would always refuse. I went from 30 mg to nothing cold turkey per my old doctors instructions - any questions, plenty of people to ask here. Got a new doctor and weaned off of Celexa over five weeks. Now off of all antidepressants.

Just because you read other people's stories, those things may or may not happen. Like most people can't sleep when they stop, but I wanted to sleep all of the time (which was good, because I only slept 4-5 hours a night for about 3.5 years as shown above). But you are now educated about it, so you will not be shocked if you have any of them. And you had mentioned being on many other antidepressants before, were there any that you did not experience side effects when coming off? Do not rule out working with your doctor on this, if yours will not listen to you, as in realize that your side effects while on the drug are real, then you will unfortunately have to start again with somebody new.

Please be careful because depression is not something to mess with, especially if you have suicidal thoughts. Earth needs to have you here! Love your screen name!

[racefan]

Hi there. You're not alone! Let us try to help you get through this.

Do not go from 30 to 0. I would suggest 60 down to 40 (dump some capsules out) and then down to 30, then dump some out still. I would also highly recommend taking way more than 2 weeks of each reduction. I did 2 weeks and I feel like total doo-doo. Brain fog.

I have not had any trouble with sleep. Ask your dr for Ambien!!!!!!!!!!! Sleep is No. 1 important. It will help with everything else, so make it a priority. Ambien, ambien, ambien.

[CyMAD]

Thank you Sarah_J , Lori and racefan.

I will keep you all posted and take heed in what I find on this site about tapering off.
This site will be my friend for a while I am sure.
Again, Thank you all for replying and have a great day!

[schmb01]

My side effects were

Days of insomnia then
Days of sleeping 18 hours at a time
Total apathy, very antisocial
Massive night sweats, soaking jammies, sheets and mattress pad
Hot all the time, that still hasn't changed, although I am not having night sweats

[CyMAD]

Day 4 - 60 to 30 wean

Every Night I have wicked real vivid dreams ( when i DO sleep ). It feels like I am in deep REM sleep but yet I know everything going on around me. Like knowing I am dreaming but can't come out and then I wake up at the peak of the dream, or something like that.

* VIVID dreams that are rather uncomfortable to say the least
* Feel like total crap all over
* Fatigue to the max
* Diarrhea
* Stomach upset in general
* Dizziness
* Can't make decisions about small or big things ( Never been like this before this med )
This has gotten worse since the reduction from 60-30.
* Feel hungry but my stomach can't handle the food.
* Insomnia

Speaking of the insomnia... When i DO sleep it is the vivid dreaming then I wake. I have been sleeping only about 1 hour at a time maybe getting a total of 4 hours sleep a night. Not in a row of course.

Someone should really do something about this CRAP. The docs think it is the miracle of all drugs or something.
It is totally ridiculous and irresponsible for the drug companies and the doctors to give this out like candy. I withdrew from pain meds and it was about the same symptoms so far.

I will update here as I move along through this.

My brain is very very foggy so bear with the posts.

Good Luck all.

[CyMAD]

By the way,

Who knows how many people that stop taking this medication end up in the ER and no one knows what is going on with them?

[judysworld]

Hi CyMAD -

Side effects? Everything involved with Cymbalta is one big side effect. I ended up with lymphocytic colitis that sent me to three specialists and thousands of dollars in tests and procedures and drugs, before I found out (on my own, mind you), that it's considered a 'serious' side effect of Cymbalta. I've been 'off' the stuff for a bit over two weeks now and have not had a problem with the above-mentioned malady since. What a coincidence, hey?

[CyMAD]

judysworld,

Did you wean or cold turkey? Just curious.
Wondering if I should just go cold turkey and get it over with as some people have. I guess it just depends on the person which is better though *shrug*.

Have a good day

[judysworld]

CyMAD -

Nope.....not cold turkey. I was only on the stuff for about 6 months (60mg/day), and once I found out what was causing the previously-mentioned problem, talked by my neurologist and he suggested I do 30mg/day for at least 2-3 weeks and then stop completely after that. He also told me that if stopping completely wasn't working well, that I could do the 30mg every other day for a while. I ended up doing the 30 for 3 weeks, and then every-other for another week, and then just quit. First week was awwwwwful. Second week slightly better. This week better yet.

My opinion of Cymbalta is .... Miracle drug??? My A@@

[Sarah J]

Day 4 - 60 to 30 wean
I will update here as I move along through this.
My brain is very very foggy so bear with the posts.
Good Luck all.

Each day, what you feel is what you feel. No need to worry about that here on this forum.

My best to you in your journey. Obviously, we all want to get through this quickly, but give your brain chemistry time to adjust. From the research I have done, the people who come out best are the ones who stay at each dropped dose for a couple of weeks feeling good (emotionally and physically), then drop down some more.

What are your plans to drop after you stabilize on the 30 mg? They do make 20mg capsules.

[CyMAD]

SarahJ,

After stabilizing on the 30mg I plan on pouring a little out of the 30mg capsules each day for a couple of weeks
OR going to zero from 30. I have not decided yet. I have seen posts where quite a few people had success pouring out the capsules
little by little.

[schmb01]

I agree with emptying some out, but put them in a jar or baggie and if you have a waste disposal place nearby, one that takes paints and pesticides, take the leftovers there. I have almost a full bottle and that is where I am taking mine. Wow, imagine an entire world on and withdrawing from this stuff! I shudder to imagine!

I think you will find weaning slowly to be more comfortable, and if you haven't already, read some of the posts about nutrional supplements and foods to help. Omega 3 has helped me immensely.

Day 71 here, and I beat it too!!!

[jeff3298]

Please do the taper method, I have tried the 30 to zero and 30 to 20mg and had bad effects with both. Now I am doing the CAtherin e Taper modified a little. I do every two days of her schedule for one of mine. Instead of 6 grains per day I take out 12 grains. So far so good, pain yes but I can live with it so far.

Do the taper, it is easier on your brain and body I believe.

Jeff

PS check in here often and vent if you need to, it is a safe place

[CyMAD]

Hello all,

Being on day four or five of NO CYMBALTA I have not had the energy to do much of anything so I haven't checked out the forum for a while.

Yesterday I saw/found an ANTI-DRUG psychologist and told him where I am on the cymbalta withdrawals.
He is very up to date on psych drugs in general. You will have a hard time finding a "psychiatrist" that is anti-drug at all because...



A) He referred me to a Nutritionist.

It was very enlightening to talk to a PHD in psychology that really cares ( at least he seems to )

C) I went to him because my regular psychiatrist wanted me to INCREASE the dose after talking to me for a total of five minutes and not listening to me about what this drug is and has done to me .

D) My cure and approach is for me and me alone ( do what is best for you )

E) I trust not any psychiatrists anymore.

So, in my current fog I will say that the brain zaps and vivid acid trip dreams are the worse at this point.

If I have to I will start back on a small amount by pouring out capsules of the 30's. We shall see.

Good luck to all. We all need it.

PS: Thanks for the tip I found here for the Omega-3 and B-12. They seem to ease the zaps a "little"

Google this and make up your own minds -> DSM: psychiatry an industry of death
Also google -> John Breeding ( Or search for hiis videos on youtube. )

Peace to all.

[jeff3298]

I will jump in here, I have done both and I could not handle cold turkey, it was way to much. I went from 90 to 60 to 30mg ok. But 30 to 15 was hell. Now I am on a slow taper and doing better. Try on eand change if you need too. Stablize between changes. Get a doctors help is always advisable. Read and Read and Read the post on this website and learn as much as you can going into a taper or CT.

Remember you are not alone and it is the drug, not you that has caused this in your body!

Blessings
Jeff

[CyMAD]

Thanks Jeff,

This forum has been a lot of help so far.
I certainly hope that something is done about the use of this drug and many other psych drugs as a result of the "people" speaking out.

Peace

[sailor07]

Hey! What you felt/are feeling is what I felt as well. Thankfully I think I had only one or two of those "zaps".
Other things were (as you mentioned) feeling like you just woke up from a night of heavy drinking, fatigue, muscle aches, nausea, intense headaches, quick temper, feeling irritable and violent, feeling hopeless, and not wanting to do anything but lay down. I even stopped paying attention to myself and my hair looked like I had just been struck by lightning. Sleep was the only thing that was on my mind. It was ugly, one of the worst things I've been through in my life. I will never... EVER take an anti anything again. I am not willing to go through what I did. My doctor handed it to me like candy, I still haven't seen him yet but I'm definitely going to reject any other meds he offers. I am glad to say that I am done with withdrawals! My memory is still foggy, I forget the littlest things which I hope to God will go away since I have a learning disorder I don't want any more memory loss! I've been eating like crazy, singing again, and just feeling great in the morning. I thought I had a lack of energy before Cymbalta.. now I know it's not as bad as I thought. The last withdrawal was major headaches, which I'd take over nausea any day. I feel like I hurt my body and brain by taking this medication, and that's one thing I still have to come to terms with. All that matters is you beat this and move on from it a better person. Fortunately, I had only been taking it for about 4 weeks, after I started feeling I couldn't benefit anymore I threw them all away. I know what I did was dangerous but who knows how much danger I would be in if I still had taken Cymbalta. One of my goals now is to talk to people who are going through this feeling they can't go on and just helping them realize there is hope. I still need help with anxiety and panic attacks, but all I know is, no more pills like Cymbalta! I even have to change the channel whenever the commercial is on =p

This site really needs to be advertised a lot more, reading personal stories and helpful tips could possibly save a life. This stuff is serious and unfortunately not a lot of people know or want to talk about how hard you really fall after stopping medication. Best of luck to all of you who are still feeling like crap, I can positively say the pain will subside and life will go on =)

-sailor

[CyMAD]

Hey sailor ( and everyone else )

Day 8 no cymbalta here. I can't even remember howo long I have been on this med exactly. between 4 and 5 years.
I "trusted" in my doctor as a big mistake that was concerning this particular med indeed. My head is still foggy I am starting to sleep a little better at night. The brain zaps and GI issues seem to be the worse. Well, the headaches are bad too. I personally, did not do the slow taper. I tapered rather quickly. The brain zaps are less intense and less frequent already for me, but not gone that is for sure. I am just so angry with psych docs in general and the pseudo-science they use.

Get this, I went to a psychiatrist for the first time years ago for "marital / personal" issues and within talking to the doc for ten minutes he said I had a "chemical imbalance" and put me on lithium. Through the years they put me through the mill of the different meds all of which mad me physically SICK. I would tell them I was sick , they would say "well it takes longer for your body and brain to get USED TO IT". After taking whichever med they had me trying to get one that "works for me" they would say take it longer or switch me to a different one. In my ignorance, I listened to them through the years. All the meds made me sick.

[Sarah J]

CyMAD - It might take a week or two, but Omega 3 really did help with GI issues for me. I took Cymbalta for about 3.5 years. It is unfortunate that we live in a society that we tell our "care" givers that the medicine makes us sick and doesn't work, only to be told to wait it out, you are "still depressed" etc. With that kind of environment of being basically ignored, how does one get better?

In my 20s and early 30s I did talk therapy, tons of it, specifically to keep from resorting to drugs to "make me feel better". As humans, we are not supposed to "feel good" all of the time. Life is about the highs, lows and middle grounds. The experience of these peaks and valleys is what life is about. The talk therapy is not always "easy" work to do, but it is effective.

You mentioned in a previous post about seeing a Nutritionist. Have you gone yet and did you like the experience?

One thing that I tried during the worst of the withdrawal is acupuncture. It really made a difference in my overall outlook on everything, not in a magic bullet kind of way, but my sense of being aware and wanting to take better care of myself seem to be heightened by the experience. The cost investment was initially high, I went once a week for 6 weeks, now I go for maintenance, every 6 weeks. So, the acupuncture cost initially was about the cost of a 3.5 month supply of Cymbalta. I think it was worth it. Unfortunately, I did have to put it on plastic, because when I first came off of Cymbalta, I was pretty much useless in my job for about 6 weeks, very little income from that time. If acupuncture is going to work for you, you will know after the first treatment.

51 days antidepressant free today, while I am not experiencing the "tripping through the daisies" kind of happy, I feel emotionally stable and functional. I care about myself and the world around me and deal with life and the everyday situations in ways that I am proud of. That is all we can really ask of ourselves. It sure beats the "I don't give a crap" feeling of being numbed out on Cymbalta.

CyMAD and everyone else- hope that you are having as gentle of an experience as you can with this. It can be done and you will make it through.

[CyMAD]

Thank You all for the comments and support through this. It really helps.

SarahJ: I am taking Omega-3 and b-12. Also, no i have not made it to the nutritionist as of yet but I plan to. I did have my first acupuncture treatment about a week ago. That seemed to help a little in an overall sense.

Greybeard: You are exactly right! I always wondered how they could tell me I have a chemical imbalance after just talking to me for 10 minutes about NORMAL life bumps. From the very first I was skeptical of taking the drugs but I was ASSURED by the pdocs and most of my family that I should do what the professional said to do and not question it basically. They have NO IDEA if anyone has a chemical imbalance. I have been doing much reading as of late on the entire psych industry. I remember asking the doc and myself and friends and family "JUST HOW THE HELL DO THEY KNOW IF SOMEONE HAS A CHEMICAL IMBALANCE WHEN THEY DO NO TESTS FOR IT AND JUST GIVE OUT DRUGS?!?!?!?!" I was right the entire time.

The worse part is I had been off all psych meds for years when I was prescribed CYMBALTA because I had just had a failed back surgery, could not perform at work , had to learn to walk again, deal with the pain.. DOH, anyone would be a little depressed. So they started me on cymbalta 4-5 years ago. Every time i tried to stop , well you know, the dreaded withdrawals from hell. I was ASSURED that this drug had NO SIDE EFFECTS NOR WITHDRAWALS by my GP and Pdoc when I started it!!!!!!!!!!!. So i kept taking it. I am on the road to better health now. NEVER EVER will i NOT LISTEN TO MY OWN BODY AND MIND AGAIN! NO MORE PSEUDO SCIENCE.

I AM GOING TO MAKE IT with flying colors.

Peace to all

[Sarah J]

When I went searching for another doctor after my "esteemed" psychiatrist who is the head of a major hospitals psych department told me to go cold turkey off of Cymbalta, I did have a bad experience that I never posted. This woman was such a crackpot. She violated HIPPA laws by coming out and speaking the first and last names of people, which is illegal. So I am seeing this woman and telling her where I am with everything. It turns out, that the "doctor" actually had a chart of another patient, also one who was having trouble with Cymbalta withdrawal (hey, imgaine that, something that doesn't exist!).

This woman asked me if "I heard voices" and other weird crap and after being with her for 5 minutes (at this point, she still has a chart of somebody who isn't me) and then she told me I was bipolar, because I was really getting upset with her. She then went into the whole "Cymbalta does not have withdrawal" thing, which was another clue to run, not walk right out of there. Then she asks me how old I am, laughs and tells me that she has the wrong chart. No testing, reading another persons chart and basically telling me I am bipolar with no real point of reference, other than I was agitated! Well of course, she accused me of "hearing voices" and being manic because I knew that she was clueless. Wrote a letter and refused to pay for this "visit". So far I have no idea if I actually have to pay for my "treatment" but at least the dispute has been filed. The next doctor I saw did listen to me and helped me get off antidepressants, she listened to me and realized that I was at a point where it was appropriate to do so.

Hope that you can find some humor in this journey you are on. A good sense of humor is imperative in getting through this mess. Now I can look back on that ill fated doctor visit and think it was funny and be grateful that I was of sound enough mind to not take being treated so poorly.

CyMAD - you will make it through this. You sound like you have some good plans in action and a desire to make it happen. Keep it up - you'll get there. Oh yeah, I realized how much acupuncture was helping me after the third treatment, I went once a week. So, I hope that it provides some benefit to you.

[CyMAD]

Woah!

I am seeing glimpses of CLARITY and feelings! Not all day but the last couple of days I have had some real emotions and my fog is lifting!

the brain zaps are hardly noticeable today and were very few yesterday!
I am not at the end I am sure but I am feeling better ! feeling better I SAID.

I can think clear today. It was as if some heavy fog started to lift yesterday and even more so today.

Like I said, not ALL day but at least half the day today I feel GOOD.

GI is getting SLOWLY better too.

This is doable as you all said and I knew it would be rough but THERE IS A LIGHT people

No more PSYCH DRUGS!

EVER

PEACE

I AM GOING swimming with a few people right now and relax.

There is light...... YES YES YES ....

http://www.stopshrinks.org/

Peace to all....

One day at a time...

Finding your inner peace is a journey. If one can only find bits and pieces of it from time to time it is a blessing.

[Lori]

Have a great day, CyMad!!! It feels so great to have the fog lift, if only for a little while, even when you become foggy again, you know it wont last and the clear headed days become more often....hang in there, my thoughts and prayers are with you.

[CyMAD]

Have a great day, CyMad!!! It feels so great to have the fog lift, if only for a little while, even when you become foggy again, you know it wont last and the clear headed days become more often....hang in there, my thoughts and prayers are with you.

Thank you so much for the encouraging words and prayers Lori!

Today the brain zaps are still less, a little foggy. And now a real life test of "Family Issues". People that shouldn't be are getting into me and my girlfriends business.
I will not go into details here ... you all know the drill. I have to try and handle the situation without being just "numbed" to it all now. My anxiety level is sky high right now and it was triggered by real life situation(s) that I need to deal with on a real time basis. So, I will. Even when not on psych drugs in the past I was able to deal with these things. It just seems that the anxiety associated with handling life situations has escalated 10 fold from what it used to be for me BEFORE the brain altering crap.

I will deal with it and NOT hold it in. Most times I try to be the one that just lets things go and holds all the stress and crap inside for the world. I can not do that , especially right now while my brain is being "rewired". Holding it in can be devastating to ones entire being it seems. I am not talking about approaching it with anger but just all sitting down and talking about things.

Just venting here a little.

Peace

[schmb01]

You are so right about having to let it out, and it is good that you recognize that. It is hard though when our emotions run to the extreme in the early stages of withdrawal. Take some time to think it over, breathe deeply, listen to some relaxing music, and then approach things. You've already won half of the battle, just knowing that you need to address it. You can do this, and you know you can come here to vent about it to help you get it into perspective.

Good luck!!

Babby

[Lori]

I agree with Schmb01, and we are all backing you up. Most of us, seem to stop and think before we act.....however I cant say that I did in the early stages. Nope not me. Anxiety is at a high level during the early stages and I did not handle them very well. You seem to be trying to rationalize everything and that is a plus for you, CyMad, but take a break and relax, when you start feeling too overwhelmed, and like Schmb01 said, we are here for you to vent if you need to.

[CyMAD]

Hello,

The vivid dreams/nightmares and tiny brain zaps (at least they are tiny comparatively speaking now)and fatigue have all returned after a couple of days of clarity.

Immodium had to be my friend this morning. Damnit these GI issues. My foggy head is back in full force. No good sleep all night as of yet. Although I am sleeping/dreaming longer than two hours at a time now. Maybe more like 4 hours at a time I would guess. Hard to tell with the nightmares being so wicked.

Today I have been "relaxing" as much as possible. Trying not to over-think it all.

Question: I have read on other anti-depressant withdrawal sites this in particular "you need to SEDATE your system as much as possible through diet and mental exercises and environment while going through the withdrawal". DOES B-12 ACT AS A STIMULATE TO THE BRAIN OR A SEDATIVE? I just do not have the inclination to look it up as of right now.

Thanks all
Peace