I don't hate Cymbalta at all! I have to say, as far as getting me to a point of healing, it has done what it was supposed to do; it has worked better for me than paxil, zoloft or Wellbutrin (in fact, I actually got suicidal for the first and only time in my life while on Wellbutrin) and because of Cymbalta, I've been able to pull myself up out of a quagmire of depression, anxiety and anger that have arisen from my OCD. I'm currently working on ways to control my anxiety and excessive worrying (by far the worst of my symptoms) that don't involve drugs. I write a blog (Joy365) that focuses on the wonderful and positive aspects of my life and I see a therapist to learn coping strategies for anxiety, stress, and anger. I've decided to keep my obsessive "rules of order" behavior and some of the less invasive OCD traits...I can live with them.
I would never have been able to get to this point without the Cymbalta. Once I feel I have some good coping habits firmly rooted in my routine, I plan to wean off of Cymbalta. That said, the aspects of Cymbalta that I do NOT love and in fact HATE are the weight gain, and the 24/7 sleepiness. Never in my life had I ever weighed more than 130 lbs except when I was pregnant (175 lbs then) and since getting on Cymbalta, I've gained up to 196 lbs. I have no energy, I could sleep round the clock if I let myself do it and even when I'm out doing things, my mind is constantly on when I'm going to get to go home and take a nap. I hate that. I have changed my diet, watch my caloric/fat/fiber/sugar/sodium intake very carefully, kept a food journal, and took four Jazzercize classes per week with no result except a loss of one pant-size after a year of that. It was VERY discouraging. I don't like to look at myself in the mirror now and because for 42 of my 47 years I was on the slim side, I don't know how to dress myself anymore...I mean...I can't figure out which clothing looks flattering on me. I don't really have any desire to try to get down to my pre-baby weight, or anything unrealistic like that, but I would love to get back into a 10 or 12 again...I'm a size 18 right now.
I've tried weaning off of zoloft and it resulted in horrific brain shivers and nausea that lasted three weeks. My doctor switched me to cymbalta and those symptoms went away, but now I notice that if I miss even one day of cymbalta, the brain shivers come back. I am not looking forward to the time when I feel I'm ready to wean off cymbalta completely, which is why I came here. I think I'm going to need a community of people who have been through it during when the time comes.
Well anyway, I'm glad y'all are here.
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