8 replies to this topic

[Baby]

I am 65 years old and have suffered from depression all my life. Have been hospitalized two times. The last hospitalization gave me 60mgs of cymbalta and after going home it was upped to 120mgs.been taking this for three years. I have other health conditions and take a lot of medicines. I was doing ok with the cymbalta. Decided costs too much money and wanted to limit medicines to see if I ok. Did this years ago and the withdrawal was not a problem. This withdrawal is the same or worse than depression. Maybe didn't say I have severe major depression. Anyway I am on day 5 of weening from 120 to 90. My hope at first was to get to 60 but now I want off this killer. I am suffering from all the symptons as most of you tui don't havethebrain zaps yet anyway. I am on day 5 and it's not better. I am taking chamomile tea and the OTC fish oil. Don't know what else to do. Need someone to talk to. I don't have forever to wait. I am very depressed and don't know if I am doing the right thing. Sorry to rattle on. Please help. Thanks so much.

[Carolmc58]

I am 65 years old and have suffered from depression all my life. Have been hospitalized two times. The last hospitalization gave me 60mgs of cymbalta and after going home it was upped to 120mgs.been taking this for three years. I have other health conditions and take a lot of medicines. I was doing ok with the cymbalta. Decided costs too much money and wanted to limit medicines to see if I ok. Did this years ago and the withdrawal was not a problem. This withdrawal is the same or worse than depression. Maybe didn't say I have severe major depression. Anyway I am on day 5 of weening from 120 to 90. My hope at first was to get to 60 but now I want off this killer. I am suffering from all the symptons as most of you tui don't havethebrain zaps yet anyway. I am on day 5 and it's not better. I am taking chamomile tea and the OTC fish oil. Don't know what else to do. Need someone to talk to. I don't have forever to wait. I am very depressed and don't know if I am doing the right thing. Sorry to rattle on. Please help. Thanks so much.

You sound as though you are really going through a lot of pain. I hope you have found someone to talk to? I think you mean a professional? I'll tell you my story. Last week i decided i was sick of being on cymbalta after being on it for 3 years. I took half my capsule and that was working fine until I started getting the brain zaps/light headiness/nausea and bursting into tears a few days later. So I am back on 60mgs. Will research a little more on this forum to get some much needed answers on how to taper off properly. I REALLY hope you are coping.

[Shelly]

So sorry you're having to go thru this! Things any better? For me, I have to go very slowly. I've been doing the bead counting thing. Am sick of it, but i have to do it that way. I'm on day 83...Only you know if you're doing the right thing, by how you feel. Sounds like you're dong everything you can...What a blessing that you've not had to experience the brain zaps, I pray that you don't! I wonder what's different this time vs the last time you went off the cymbalta? Please feel free to message me if you like.

[Baby]

Thank you so much for replying. I am on day 9 now felt better yesterday but not great today. On Friday I lower to another 30mgs making it 60 . I am so scared. Wish me luck. Tt you soon.

[Baby]

Thanks so much for replying. 9th day felt better yesterday but not today. Don't understand. Going down another 30mgs on Friday nite. Really scared. I think I will try to get the empty capsules. Not sure where to find but I will try the health store. I hope you are doing better soon. Please keep in touch. Have to go to another dr now..

[freeme2]

Hang in there baby.. It is so hard. When I reduced from 90mg to 60mg I have had pounding headaches, dizziness, nausea, disoriented, brain fog, no energy, can't sleep and so on. I got a huge cold/flue the first time and so depressed that I went back to 90mg. I thought this would help with my depression which it didn't. I just felt zoned. Then I thought it was useless to stay on the 90mg and went back down to 60mg and got the cold/flu symptoms back. I did the up and down cycle because I had NO IDEA THAT CYMBALTA HAD SUCH BAD SIDE EFFECTS.
I don't know why I even started to look up cymbalta but I started coming across all these posts about trying to get off the drug and feeling so bad.

Even though cymbalta's half-life is 12 hours ( the length of it effectiveness). What is does to your body when the molecule is not there is awful. I think the variation between people is if they go fast or slow off the cymbalta.

I noticed the following.
good days and then the night day will be awful - just when you think you are done with symptoms they are back.
I don't know if the length of time to get rid of all the symptoms is dependent upon:
- age of the person
- overall health (eating good food and taking vitamins)
- health factors (high blood pressure etc. - have to take other meds)

It would be curious to find out if the younger you are the symptoms leave faster. Or does being healthy help to body to reach a balance.

The brain is such a tricky and complex system. Who really knows.. What being on this drug will do to our futures?

[Baby]

Hi freeme2', thanks for responding. I am feeling better today knock on wood. I was going to start to ween off another 30mgs today but I have learned that I need to take care of my granddaughter for a week in two weeks. Now I think I need to wait till that is over. I have told my family I can't make anymore commitments until this is over. I hope that waiting is not going to make symptons worse. Really scary but not scarier than the drug. This is the first drug of many that I did not look up before taking. I was in hospital and at that time I would have done just about anything. It is so calming to know that I have people who understand and I can talk to.thanks so much.

[Ester]

Hi there, I went could turkey after having been on 30 mg of Cymbalta every other day for about a year and 30 mg per day for a year before that. That was exactly two weeks ago and I felt fine for 5 days, then on day 6 I got severe symptoms: brain zaps, nauseua, shivers, flu-like symptoms just like everone here it seems. I am now on day 14 and still not ok but slowly getting better, the brain zaps are a lot less severe but I'm still exhausted and need to sleep a lot. I've heard some horror stories, someone who tapered down very slowly but still got very bad symptoms that lasted 3 months. I just hope that won't be the case for me or anyone else here.

My doctor actually took me off the drug and according to him there should be no withdrawal symptoms, he advised to just stop taking them. If doctors are so poorly informed then what chance have we? I'm scared now as I'm on other meds as well, what they might be doing to me. Is anyone else here on other drugs as well?

[freeme2]

Hi there, I went could turkey after having been on 30 mg of Cymbalta every other day for about a year and 30 mg per day for a year before that. That was exactly two weeks ago and I felt fine for 5 days, then on day 6 I got severe symptoms: brain zaps, nauseua, shivers, flu-like symptoms just like everone here it seems. I am now on day 14 and still not ok but slowly getting better, the brain zaps are a lot less severe but I'm still exhausted and need to sleep a lot. I've heard some horror stories, someone who tapered down very slowly but still got very bad symptoms that lasted 3 months. I just hope that won't be the case for me or anyone else here.

My doctor actually took me off the drug and according to him there should be no withdrawal symptoms, he advised to just stop taking them. If doctors are so poorly informed then what chance have we? I'm scared now as I'm on other meds as well, what they might be doing to me. Is anyone else here on other drugs as well?

DITTO- I went to the doctor day and they are not informed at all.. Reps are suppose to make sure the doctor are writing scripts for drug.