72 replies to this topic

[TryinginFL]

So sorry, Renee...

 

That is the most horrible story I have heard re an ER!  Disgusting Doc and care!

 

Maybe you would have had better care at a Walk-In Clinic...

[Flossy]

I guess time will be the best healer for you, hang in there 😊

[DoneWithCrap]

Yesterdays episode, I believe, was caused by my missing 3 days of the cymbalta then starting back on my full dose of 60mg. I'm sure it was a short (3 hour) akathinsa attack which improved because (1) the cymbalta started to kick in and (2) they put Ativan in my IV.

 

If you know of a Dr I'm Massachusetts that can help me withdrawal from this poison or know how I can find a specialist on my own, please let me know.

 

Thank you for all your support. I know you are all having your own difficult time dealing with this too so taking time to help others makes you heros in my book

[fishinghat]

Renee, there are a lot of dr review sites on the web. Each comes with reviews and star ratings. I know I have looked at many of my drs on these sites and find the ratings pretty accurate. In any case at least read the reviews on any dr you wind up choosing.

[DoneWithCrap]

What type of dr do I need? Psychitrist?

[fishinghat]

I assume you are in the USA. You would need a psychiatrist to prescribe meds and preferably a good psychologist to treat the source of the anxiety/depression or whatever. Do not underestimate the effectiveness of a good psychologist. They can teach many good coping skills that can minimize the amount of meds needed but that takes time. For right now a psychiatrist and if he/she is any good they can refer you to a psychologist. One of the bad points of our system here is that a psychiatrist is an md and has only had a couple courses in psychology so they can only prescribe meds. They are not qualified to do therapy. A psychologist usually has a pHd but not am md therefore they can do therapy (like teach coping skills) but can not prescribe meds. Your diagnosis should always be determined by a psychologist as psychiatrists aren't trained on this and are not qualified to do so.

[DoneWithCrap]

Thank you fishinghat. I have a great therapist.
I can't seem to find a psychiatrist that is any good but at least now I know what to look for.

[Flossy]

Hi Renee
3 days without cymbalta would cause anybody to think they were going mad! Thank god you are feeling better, how awful you must have been feeling! Because of your complex med itinerary, go slow girl, you will feel so much better! 😊

[FiveNotions]

Renee,

I just found this thread on www.SurvivingAntidepressants.com ... "recommended doctors, therapists or clinics" that specialize in tapering/withdrawal ... the link is from 2011, but it may give you a place to start ...

http://survivinganti...sts-or-clinics/

Also, here's the link to a resource page on www.MadinAmerica.com ... the first item in the list is "service providers" who will help with tapering, etc...

http://www.madinamerica.com/resources/

[FiveNotions]

Renee,
 
I found the list of meds you take that you posted in one of your early posts ...
 
Here's the link...https://www.cymbalta...igil#entry45703

I also just spent a bit of time checking for adverse reactions between some of them ... here's what I found so far, and I'm far from done ...

I think you need to read about this Provigil you're taking for starters ...

Drug interactions .... http://reference.med...afinil-343000#3
Side effect / adverse effects ... http://reference.med...afinil-343000#4

For example...

Provigil and duloxetine (Cymbalta)... high risk, possibly life-threatening
Provigil and prednisone ... moderate risk, monitor closely
Provigil ... reported side effects include edema, dry eye, extreme fatigue

Also, you're messing with your potassium levels ..

Klor-Con M10 and triamterene ... screws up potassium levels seriously ... triamterene side effect is elevated potassium, Klor-Con's purpose is to elevate potassium ...

Does your current doc have this list of all your meds? Have you ever told him specifically to check for drug interactions and side-effects?

[fishinghat]

I don't understand how things like this can happen. I get my prescriptions filled at the local Walgreen. Every prescription is automatically check by computer for reactions with my other meds. If  an adverse reaction is found it will not allow the order to be filled and send a a message to the pharmacist. My dr's office is the same way. If the dr writes a new script it is checked against my list of meds. Are these OTC meds like the omeprazole?

[DoneWithCrap]

The only thing my doctors have been monitoring is my potassium levels. Even with the triempterine Hcl my potassium is low. The Clor kon M20 twice a day keeps my potassium within the normal range. When I firs went on it, they did an EKG every couple months but they haven't done one in a while.

I really need a psychitrist to help me sort this all out.

I fill all my Rx meds at CVS which checks for interactions. I have informed my doctors of all Rx and OTC med that I take. They are not impressed.

I take Provigil to help with sleep apnea and for ADD. I have tried stimulants for the ADD but they have a paradoxical effect on me and knock me out.

[FiveNotions]

I'm with you FH, I can't fathom this making it past the pharmacy ... I used to use CVS, and they'd catch issues like this from the git-go ... ditto with Target, who I use now ...

Renee, when did you start the Provigil?

[FiveNotions]

Renee,

You'd better read this info from the Mayo Clinic on Vitamin D3 ... how long have you been taking it? Ask you husband why he told you to take it!

It can mess with blood pressure and bp meds, cholesterol meds, anti-inflammatories, anti-asthma agents (your inhalers), corticosteroids (Prednisone!), musculoskeletal disorders, the list goes on and on!

Interactions ... http://www.mayoclini...ns/hrb-20060400
Side Effects ... http://www.mayoclini...ty/hrb-20060400

I say stop taking this supplement now. FH? TM?

[FiveNotions]

Oh, another serious interaction ... Provigil and Prednisone ... "modafinil will decrease the level or effect of prednisone by affecting hepatic/intestinal enzyme CYP3A4 metabolism. Significant interaction possible, monitor closely."

http://reference.med...afinil-343000#3

And prednisone side effects ... includes headaches, edema, anxiety ..

http://www.mayoclini...ts/drg-20075269

Well, here's what I think, subject to FH, TM and others here ...

Renee, you need to call your doctor, the one you have right now, and demand that he evaluate all of the meds you're on for interactions ... tell him what you've found out just today ...and demand to know why he didn't check this long ago!

Also, call CVS and tell them the same thing!

You also need to go the Mayo Clinic site and look up each and every one of your drugs yourself ... and read every single word that is written about them. You are the one ultimately responsible for your own health and health care. You can no longer just go along taking whatever med is tossed at you.

[DoneWithCrap]

Thank you FN,
I just sent you a PM

[FiveNotions]

Renee,

I just spent some time on their website, and Fallon Community Health offers a full range of resources for "medication management". This is what you need. Call them tomorrow and ask for referrals to docs/psychiatrists/in patient treatment facilities that specialize in this.

Tell them that this is URGENT ...

This is way beyond my "skill level" as to what I can do to help you find a facility.

Here's Fallon's website ... you can also search in the box in the upper right corner of the home page. Type in "medication management" in quotes ... it pulls up lots of resources ...

http://www.fchp.org/

[fishinghat]

FH

 

I was curious about the accuracy of the on line 'drug interaction' websites. So I ran 5 combos including 2 from this thread and 3 sets of drugs where I knew of interactions. I checked 9 interaction websites. Drugs.com and Walgreen.com showed NO interactions for these drugs. The other 7 websites only occasionally did miss one interaction. I would say roughly 6 out of 7 would show the reaction in question. Very surprised by this. RxList.com was the only site to get everyone right.

[FiveNotions]

FH, that's a really important "find" ... and pretty darn scary ... we could be doing what we thought was our best "due diligence," but not be getting accurate info, depending on the source we're using to check the interactions!

I think this info deserves it's own thread ... over in the "Cymbalta in the news" forum, maybe? Where TM posted the info about WebMD being a "front" for the pharma cos. Would you cross-post this over there when you get a chance?

I'm going to go check out RxList.com now, run my own meds and see what the results are ...

[thismoment]

FiveNotions

 

Thank you for taking the time to research this for Renee. You do good work, and I savour your pureness of heart.

[FiveNotions]

Well, looks like RxList.com is "tainted" also ... now owned by WebMD...

---------------------------
About RxList®

RxList.com - Owned and Operated by WebMD and part of the WebMD network.

RxList is an online medical resource dedicated to offering detailed and current pharmaceutical information on brand and generic drugs. Founded by pharmacists in 1995, RxList is the premier Internet Drug Index resource. Acquired by WebMD in 2004, our knowledgeable staff at RxList continuously reviews and updates the site with articles written by pharmacists and physicians and data provided by credible and reliable sources like the FDA, Cerner Multum, and First Data Bank, Inc. to ensure the most accurate and beneficial information is provided. RxList Writers and Editors

On RxList information on medications can be found using the Drugs A - Z list (an alphabetical listing of both brand and generic drug names) or by entering the generic or brand drug name in the search box at the top of the page and clicking search. Need to identify a pill? Use our pill identification tool.

If you are a consumer, you can contact RxList using our Contact Form. RxList's main office is in San Clemente, California, and the corporate office is in New York, New York. Please reference www.wbmd.com for corporate information. For ad sales inquiries contact adsalesinquiries@webmd.net

Last Reviewed: November 20, 2013

©2008 WebMD, LLC. All rights reserved.
--------------------------------

[fishinghat]

FN

 

"Well, looks like RxList.com is "tainted" also ... now owned by WebMD"

 

Not good at all.

 

Could you do me a favor?  Can you find out who owns Drugs.com?

 

"I think this info deserves it's own thread ... over in the "Cymbalta in the news" forum, maybe? Where TM posted the info about WebMD being a "front" for the pharma cos. Would you cross-post this over there when you get a chance?"

 

Are you kidding me? I worked on that for the drug information on MS Contin and gave up after an hour. Then you come along and say "Oh, you trying to do this?" Like it is so easy. Considering you are so good at that I will let you cross-post.   LOL

[DoneWithCrap]

Thanks for all you do for me and others on this forum.

I am not very good at researching this stuff and I'm clueless when it comes to copying and pasting.
Wish I could help others as much as you all have helped.

Thank you again

[FiveNotions]

Renee, but you do help others ... your posts are filled with information, and you ask excellent questions ... questions that others who read here have, or will have ... and they will know that they aren't the "only ones" working on issues like yours ... that's huge, to find out that we're not alone ...

 

And, the questions you ask, and that we try to research and answer, means that every bit of information we find for you is also now available to all the others who visit this site ...

 

Your gift to this forum is the gift of yourself... your honesty, humor, courage, and eagerness to learn/grow/heal ... you've grown so much that you now are jumping in to help others ...

[brzghoff]

 

from the About page on drugs.com

 

Corporate

The Drugs.com website is owned and operated by the Drugsite Trust. The Drugsite Trust is a privately held Trust administered by two New Zealand Pharmacists. The Drugs.com website is hosted in a data center located in Virginia, USA.

Contact address: 

Drugsite Trust
25 Apollo Drive, Suite A
North Shore
Auckland 0632
New Zealand

Phone: +649 476 8500 (after 3.00 pm EST, due to time difference)

 

[thismoment]

FH

For what it's worth, this is from the Drugs.com website.

 

"Drugs.com is NOT affiliated with any pharmaceutical companies. The only funding we receive from pharmaceutical companies is by way of advertisements that appear on the Drugs.com website. This advertising in no way affects the content of the drug information we supply."

[DoneWithCrap]

Thank you FN 

[Carleeta]

FN

 

"Well, looks like RxList.com is "tainted" also ... now owned by WebMD"

 

Not good at all.

 

Could you do me a favor?  Can you find out who owns Drugs.com?

 

"I think this info deserves it's own thread ... over in the "Cymbalta in the news" forum, maybe? Where TM posted the info about WebMD being a "front" for the pharma cos. Would you cross-post this over there when you get a chance?"

 

Are you kidding me? I worked on that for the drug information on MS Contin and gave up after an hour. Then you come along and say "Oh, you trying to do this?" Like it is so easy. Considering you are so good at that I will let you cross-post.   LOL

I agree Fishinghat.  We need to know who is behind this sites.  WebMD is definitely 'tainted' ....my point of view on this.....

[Carleeta]

Renee, I agree with FiveNotions on how much you contribute to this forum.  Each member here brings something different to the table which is essential and such a big contribution to others.  You've told your story and you keep telling your story, and this is so beneficial to others.  Members and guests are learning so much just from your posts.   Thank you for all you have offered us and others. 

[FiveNotions]

Here's a bit more information about Drugs.com

http://www.empowher....ess-information