8 replies to this topic

[jetersmom]

I'm so grateful I found this site! I felt so alone going through this. Here's my story...

About six years ago, I was diagnosed with severe PMS and put on Prozac. That worked great for the PMS but not so great for most everything else. From then to now, its been one antidepressant after another with one or another side effects. My worst experience happened about two years ago when my doctor recommended I try Effexor. It made my blood pressure skyrocket. When I tried to wean off of it, my body went crazy with withdrawals. What bothered me most at the time was that my family doctor said there was no connection between going off the Effexor and my dizziness, etc. "Yea, right!" Next I took Wellbutrin. That made my hair fall out. Once again, the doctor said that it couldn't do that. "Yea, right!" I stopped taking it.

I wasn't on anything for awhile and then we got the news that my husband was offered a promotion and transfer from PA to CA. I've never lived farther than 10 minutes from my childhood home and now I was moving across country. My DH had to leave immediately, so I was left in PA with my son to sell our house, pack everything up, etc. I was able to handle all of this without any medication. When we finally moved to CA, I guess the change was too much for me. I went to see my NEW family doctor and told him how I felt. I specifically told him how I had reacted to Effexor and guess what? He put me on Cymbalta! I did not know at the time that these two drugs were in the same "family". I didn't look online to research Cymbalta because I knew that I would read bad things and then I wouldn't want to take it. I felt I needed to take something. Boy was THAT a mistake. After a few months, the blood pressure started rising again. I went back to the family doctor and they put me on high blood pressure pills. I asked if the blood pressure could be related to the Cymbalta and they said absolutely not. "Yea, right!" The high blood pressure medicine made me feel awful. I could hardly move. I had absolutely no energy and found myself needing a nap by 10:00 a.m.! Deep down I knew the Cymbalta was causing this but it took me awhile to face it. Finally, I thoroughly read one of those Cymbalta ads in a magazine and of course there in black and white it said that Cymbalta could cause high blood pressure. Again, I went back to the family doctor where they tried to tell me no, but I pulled the ad out of my purse and they had to admit I was right. Then they offered me advice about weaning off the Cymbalta. Can you guess what they said? Try taking the 60 mg every other day..."Yea, right!"

I tried it their way for one day and then decided I was on my own. I went from 60 mg to 30 mg slowly and then tried 30 mg every other day--but I was just really sick every other day. Fed up, I stopped taking it. That was last Thursday. I'm sick all the time. Dizzy, nauseous, hot flashes, headaches, earaches, and many, many trips to the bathroom. Yesteday, I was able to meet with a psychiatrist for the first time. She tells me I'm almost through the worst of it and I should just try to stick it out. She did give me a prescription for Prozac but asked me to try to wait instead of filling it. One thing that made me feel good was that she didn't try to "stick up" for any of the medications. She is the first doctor that admitted to me that there are withdrawals from antidepressants and also that they cause a variety of side effects including high blood pressure and loss of hair. She was very dismayed that my family doctor would put me on Cymbalta when I had such bad reactions to Effexor. So maybe I've found someone who can help me!

Please give me your opinions on whether I should try the Prozac or not. Every morning I wake up thinking that this will be the day that I feel better but then I don't. I know its going to take awhile but I'm not feeling very strong and able to get through it again. I NEVER thought I would have to do this twice in my life!

[kristi]

Hi, i'm not sure if you should take another med. I have been told on some sites, that it can make it better for a bit, but worse in the long run, but i am not sure......i too am looking for lots of advice, and i know what you are going through. I am calling today day 2 of hell for me. I can't focus, move, stand alot, i am dizzy all the time!! I am constantly in the bathroom, my whole body shakes, and i just feel Horrible!!!!! When i first stared taking cymbalta over a year ago, i actually did research it a bit, but obviously didn't ask the right questions. I was NEVER informed what withdarawl would be like. When my doctor prescribed this for me, she was like "oh it is wonderful, i think it is a great idea.....and so on. Never once did ANY of my doctors have anything negative to say about this miracle drug. This site is great, i thought i was going crazy until i heard some other peoples stories....hang in there and i hope someone can give you advice on taking another med.

[jetersmom]

Thanks Kristi!
I am feeling slightly better today so maybe there is light at the end of the tunnel. I found ginger gum at my drugstore and I'm trying that for the nausea. I'll let you know if I think it works.

[Attorney_Victim]

Jetersmom,
I personally used the Prozac to help me, and I believe it was a great decision for me. I went cold turky from 60mgs, and my psychiatriast prescribed the Prozac on Day 4. Within 24 hrs I felt significant relief. Within 4 days, I was out of bed functioning at work close to normal. Depending on what your specific side effects were while on Prozac, it might not hurt to take it for a few weeks to allieviate the severity and duration of the symptoms. I too had taken Prozac previously, but I had no side effects while on it, it just quit working. This time, I took it for about 5 wks and then stopped it completely with my drs permission. I had no problems at all stopping the Prozac. I've read a lot of people's stories, and I think the Prozac helps alot, both in the severity and the duration of symptoms. But, that is my unmedical opinion.

You will get through this! It does get better. Even with the Prozac, I had some mild symptoms (including diahrrea) for about 2 weeks. So don't get discouraged if you have a good day, then feel lousy again for a few days. It was a good month before I felt near "normal." (Whatever normal means.)

Like you, I switched from antidep to antidep for several yrs. Now, with my drs blessing, I am off all antidep meds. And I feel pretty darn good. Someday, I may need them again, but for now, I want to establish a "baseline" for my depression while I'm not medicated. Looking back, I really think these meds were causing some of my depression problems, although I do remember how bad I could feel before starting them...so we'll see.

Good luck to you. Take the Prozac if you feel you need it. You can always stop it anytime in the future without side effects. However, I will warn you, that if you do decide to start it, you may want to stay on it for at least a few weeks. I tried stopping it too soon after 2 weeks, and the withdrawal symptoms kicked back in. So, make sure you give it enough time.

Good Luck, and keep us posted...we're here if you need us!

[mspat08]

I'm right there with u jettersmom...today not feeling so good...we will get through this..look forward to hearing more of ur story.

[jetersmom]

Thanks for all the support! The weekend wasn't too bad. I now have periods of dizziness and nausea but not constantly. I was surprised to find that taking two Advil helps. The ginger gum I found at the drugstore also helps, but I'm not sure if it does anything or if I'm applying "mind over matter". Doesn't really matter to me...as long as it works!

I haven't filled the Prozac script. I am surprised that the withdrawal symptoms have subsided so quickly. They didn't when I was getting off of the Effexor. Another thing I use constantly is "The Secret" or in plain English "positive attitude". I tell myself before bed that tomorrow I will wake feeling good and that seems to be working.

One thing that I need to explore thoroughly with my new psychiatrist is whether I have ever had "depression" or has it always been "anxiety disorder". If it is anxiety disorder, then we'll see what she suggest I do to proceeed. I really would love to learn to handle the anxiety/irritability and not have to take any more drugs. What an exciting thought! LOL

[jetersmom]

Hello, I thought I'd post an update and hopefully provide some encouragement for everyone. I feel MUCH better! I don't feel dizzy all the time--in fact, yesterday, I don't think I had one dizzy spell! Of course, it could be that I'm getting used to them and not noticing . Now that the withdrawal symptoms are subsiding, the effects of not taking my antidepressant are starting to kick in. I am SO annoyed at practically anything anyone says, especially my husband! But, I just tell myself that I have to re-learn how to deal with my emotions and feelings and I don't say or do anything that I would later regret. I'm also starting to deal with some of the withdrawal after effects, for instance, the 8 pounds I gained. It seemed the only thing that made me feel better was eating so I just kept doing that. Now, I'm walking with my dog twice a day and watching what I eat.

My psychiatrist appointment isn't until the end of September so until then I plan to keep a log about what's going on so I have an accurate account when talking to her.

If you are going through the withdrawals now, remember you aren't alone and you WILL get through it. No matter what those around you think, consider in your own mind that you are going through an "illness" and do what you need to do to get yourself better.

Lotsa love jetersmom!

[Attorney_Victim]

Jetersmom,
Glad to hear you are doing so much better!!

[manwiththemic]

my story could fill a book about brain meds, but I'll stick to my experience with Cymbalta. Like many readers online here- the phrase uttered as the ink scrolled out "Cymbalta" on the prescription pad was, "let's give this one a try, let me know how you're doing next time". I am hoping that if enough of us make our Cymbalta experiences known that docs might get the hint and change that utterance to, "This medicine is going to really &@?! you up worse than anything out there, so let me know how you're doing in about 5 years". Unfortunately, in this field of medicine, it is impossible to blame Eli Lilley, or the doc. We are all different and too many variables exist to categorize the answers to our question of how we did while on Cymbalta. But my answer is simple: "TERRIBLE"

I started taking Cymbalta about 4 years ago. Missing doses gave me the brain zaps, so I learned early to take it consistantly as prescribed. Two years ago I resolved to stay off the the medicine and weaned to get past the zaps. I knew nothing of other withdrawal symptoms and started to wean back on it as emotional difficulties arose. Shortly after that my life was changed for ever when I fell twenty feet off a ladder. My skull cushioned my fall onto the driveway. Luckily, God knew about frame impact crumple zones (before Mercedes) when we were created. (I need humor to get through ;) )

Med-evac'd downtown, surgeons performed miracles. I stayed there several weeks, then transferred to a rehab. hospital. There my wife told them I was previously on Cymbalta. As I regained conscious awareness a doc put me back on Cymbalta (while he was quitting the rehab. hospital). Inpatient a while, then back home as outpatient for as little as I could stand, then back to work for myself. Passed the two year anniversary of my fall and resolved to get off Cymbalta for good. I weaned gradually for 3 months, and now have been about 6 weeks clean. I am on guard for depression, but try not to overanalyze. Hopefully my withdrawal experience is different than yours, because my situation is compounded by the traumatic brain injury. So here it is in list form:

Daily dose was 60 mg.
brain zaps on occasion, more prevalent at each step down (approx. 40, to 20, to 10 every other day), now none
major short term moodswings ("pms on crack" is how I described it; but I'm male, and don't do drugs)
Distracted easily, difficulty focusing.
Excessively long time to communicate in writing. (re-writing, and difficulty figuring out in words how to express thoughts in writing)
balancing priorities, and sticking to plans
poor estimation of "how long" and "when" for timing

The last few were prevalent while on Cymbalta, and hopefully are diminishing. I am more aware of these as a problem now, because while on the drug NOTHING bothered me. The drug gave me long strung out dull mania. Withdrawing from Cymbalta is very difficult: facing reality and the consequences of being disconnected for so long. The hardest part of withdrawal is this BOUNCE into reality, which I think gives the tight moodswings. The best part of being off it is relearning how to make a "bad day" better, and understanding that we all have bad days. It is part of life and life is good.