34 replies to this topic

[ThisBetterPass]

Hello, everyone! I've been lurking here for a few months and decided to make a formal introduction. I'm at the bead counting stage and have made it down to 17.6 mg from the original 60 mg dose. I started in February after also stopping Alprazolam cold turkey. Mindfulness, Magnezium, fish oil, B complex, and Benadryl have been a Godsend....along with all of you here! My heating pad is my best friend.

I've had a lot of the same WD symptoms reported here. My goodness, had I known getting off would be such a challenge, I never would have filled the prescription. The original purpose was to manage anxiety and depression and to simply function. I was on it for about 7 years and looking back, it worked for about two. I got off the Benzo because my body became used to it and I started having panic attacks -- a/k/a withdrawal symptoms.

As I am a mom, wife, and home business owner, the main thing that irks me is that time management goes out the window with tapering from Cymbalta. Also, I am of the mindset that everything counts; while this is a complete pain in more ways than one, I've rediscovered how strong I can be while enduring the WD episodes.

[Carleeta]

ThisBetterPass, Welcome to the forum.  I'm pleased you lurked around this forum and found some helpful ways to eliminate Cymbalta from your being.  I commend your strength for sharing with us your story and how you have been able to deal with the withdrawal symptoms.  It appears you found your own way and listened to what your body was telling you as you continued on the bead count method.  You also appear to have found the tools which work best for you.   

 

You do have a busy life and somewhere you found the strength to continue your life while bead counting and whatever withdrawal symptoms you have experienced/experience.

 

Please keep us posted as we all would like to keep up with your progress.  You will find the most wonderful members here who are very dedicated..

 

Best of luck to you....

[ThisBetterPass]

Thank you, Carleeta.  I have no idea how I would've been able to do this if I had a job outside of the home.  Even then, I've had to put off work assignments and try not to stress out if I got behind.  (I do transcription and book editing.) My kids are now the 'tween' age, so they are more independent.  Also, my husband has been my rock through the WD process from both the Alprazolam and Cymbalta.  

 

My current side effects are loose stools, muscle cramping in my torso, heart palpitations, and weird zingy sensations in my extremities now and then.  Today I started having ice pick headache sensations behind my right eye.  They went away but not before I had the passing thought of "what the heck is this?"  Of course I know what it is...darn taper.

[ShadyLady]

Hello, TBP;) Omg, I am in awe that you ct'd off Xanax while tapering off the C!! What dose of alprazolam did you 'cliff dive' off of? I am still on 1mg a day for 28 years:( I am so glad you joined the forum and your experience is so hopeful for me & others that will come behind you...Wow, your post shined a big ray of sunny hope to my crappy day! Thank you, Reba

[ThisBetterPass]

Reba, thanks. :-)

I was on .5 mg on an as needed basis for about 6 years. That CT experience took about a month and I waited to do the Cymbalta taper until another two weeks after that.

Hey, maybe they decided to call the drug that name because of all the ringing of cymbals in our ears? ;-)

[brzghoff]

ThisBetterPass,

 

you've got a great outlook. a good support system certainly helps. you said "while this is a complete pain in more ways than one, I've rediscovered how strong I can be while enduring the WD episodes." yes ! i relate to that so much. however, i certainly have moments where i don't feel strong at all. i admire your ability to manage while working and with two kids, tweens or otherwise, because i totally relate to what you said about how time management goes out the window. i haven't been able to accomplish many of the things i had intended since i stopped the C and started through the withdrawal/discontinuation process. life we would be easier if i had, but it goes with the territory of choosing to fight this fight to get "clean" 

[ThisBetterPass]

Oh, and I wanted to mention something that I haven't read anywhere yet with doing the bead counting.  I've found it easier if I open the capsule and wet my finger before letting the beads out.  I cover the open part containing the beads and let them stick to my finger, then count what's there.  It gives me more control so they're not scattering all over the place.

[FiveNotions]

Hi TBP, welcome to being an active poster! I also "lurked" for a while before making my first post ... I'd never, ever been inclined to be on one of these forums ... way too private a person for that ... but crapalta forced me out and into being active here ... best thing I've ever done ... I never would have been able to get off the stuff without the support and information I found here!

Speaking of information, that "ice pick behind the eye" thing you mentioned is "optic neuritis" ...inflammation of the myelin wrapping around the optic nerve ... I had it very bad for a few weeks... had to wear a blindfold and / or sunglasses inside, found that at first ice packs helped, then towards the end of the worst part, it was warm packs ... also, if it continues with you, taking a Glycine supplement helps, as does Gello ... I ate tons of the stuff, which was also helpful because I wasn't able to eat solid food for quite a while ... I still get the neuritis once in a while when I get overtired ...

Here's a link to a thread I started about it ... https://www.cymbalta...optic +neuritis

[ThisBetterPass]

Thanks for the info, FN. I'll keep that info in mind.

Hey, I'm wondering about any correlation between Asperger's/Autism and the withdrawal experience. I'm on the spectrum myself and would one to know if anyone here either has been diagnosed or identifies.

[thismoment]

Hi TBP

 

Welcome! You're a bead-counting champ! This better pass; I couldn't agree more. It definitely gets better and better, but perhaps a better verb to describe its denouement is fade. 

 

Take care.

[FiveNotions]

Now that's a question I don't recall see asked here before, TBP .... a possible connection between Asperger's/Autism and the withdrawal experience .... being a research librarian, plus just plain curious (ummm, nosey ) I'll see what I can find ... FH and TM are research gurus too... if we find anything, we'll post it here ...

[ThisBetterPass]

Cool, thank you, FN. :-)  We have a lot of great people here!

[fishinghat]

Well Guys and Gals I couldn't find any research linking the two together. Sorry

[FiveNotions]

Well, I got lucky ... I think this research indicates that there's likely a connection between low serotonin (or excessive uptake in the brain) and Aspergers / autism ... and that some research has tried ssri's to treat, but been found not to work well, or at all ...

Bipolar disorder in adults with Asperger׳s Syndrome: A systematic review (2014)
http://www.sciencedi...165032714004108 (abstract only, fee-based source)
Abstract excerpt: Although controlled data on pharmacological treatments in BD–AS comorbidity are substantially lacking, information is derived by open observations, case series and chart reviews. Mood stabilizers should be considered the first choice, and antipsychotics, especially second generation drugs (SGA) with 5-HT2a antagonism, have been shown useful in controlling psychotic and behavioral symptoms and improving social withdrawal. Some evidence of efficacy for the treatment of anxiety, obsessive-compulsive symptoms and depression is reported for SSRI antidepressants. The use of these drugs should be carefully monitored, because activation with hypomanic or manic switches is reported up to 54% of the treated subjects.

Family-Based Clinical Associations and Functional Characterization of the Serotonin 2A Receptor Gene (HTR2A) in Autism Spectrum Disorder (2014)
http://onlinelibrary...enticated=false (abstract only, fee-based source)

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for autism spectrum disorders (ASD) (Review) (2013)
http://www.update-so...EN/CD004677.pdf (full text)
Authors' conclusions: There is no evidence of effect of SSRIs in children and emerging evidence of harm. There is limited evidence of the effectiveness of SSRIs in adults from small studies in which risk of bias is unclear.

The 5-HT2A receptor and serotonin transporter in Asperger’s Disorder (2011)
http://www.ncbi.nlm....les/PMC3225493/ (full article, free)
Abstract excerpt: "Evidence from biochemical, imaging, and treatment studies suggest abnormalities of the serotonin system in autism spectrum disorders, in particular in frontolimbic areas of the brain."

Cortical Serotonin 5-HT2A Receptor Binding and Social Communication in Adults With Asperger’s Syndrome: An in Vivo SPECT Study (2006)
http://journals.psyc...articleid=96601 (full article, free)
Abstract excerpt: "The cause of autistic spectrum disorder (i.e., autism and Asperger’s syndrome) is unknown. The serotonergic (5-HT) system may be especially implicated. However, cortical 5-HT2A receptor density in adults with the disorder has not been examined, to the authors’ knowledge."

The Use of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors in Autism and Related Disorders (2006)
http://online.lieber...cap.2006.16.181 (abstract only, fee-based source)
Abstract excerpt: "This paper reviews the published literature on the use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for the treatment of symptoms associated with autistic disorder and other pervasive developmental disorders (PDDs) in both children and adults. To date, placebo controlled studies of SSRIs have involved only fluvoxamine (in children and adults) and fluoxetine (in children). Open-label and retrospective studies of all other SSRIs in PDDs have also been published that suggest effectiveness."

[ShadyLady]

Wow, awesome job, FN...your research talent is unsurpassed!!

[brzghoff]

 

Professor Notions,

 

is the final exam gonna be essay or multiple choice? 

[fishinghat]

Good job FN. I found it interesting that the first article found that bipolar was the most common psych issue with Autism and the next 2 articles it didn't even make the list of psych issues that corelate to autism.

[thismoment]

Dr. Notions, I presume? 

 

The famous "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?" quote was made by Henry Morton Stanley upon coming across Dr. David Livingstone on October 27, 1871, in Ujiji near Lake Tanganyika (present-day Tanzania). Henry Stanley and Dr. Livingstone had never met, hence the inquisitive-- yet formal-- greeting. Henry Morton Stanley became Sir Henry Morton Stanley when he was knighted in 1899.

[DoneWithCrap]

I don't know if it means anything but 3 of my 4 children have ASD traits. My older son has been diagnosed with Asperger's.
I have been taking SSRI/SNRI's since before I ever became pregnant and continued to use them during my pregnancies. I have often wondered if my taking these drugs is what caused my children to have developmental delays. The 4th child of mine doesn't have any ASD traits but he has ADHD, dysgraphia and dyslexia. He also has asthma and had reflux with projectile vomitting as a baby. All 4 of them needed early intervention and IEP's thought school.
I wasn't taking Cymbalta until well after they were born but I was on Prozac, Zoloft and other antidepressants

[thismoment]

It's reasonable to assume the brain of the fetus would be simultaneously affected with the mother's brain.

http://wp.rxisk.org/...s-in-pregnancy/

[thismoment]

Renee
This is all so new to medicine (1987 first SSRI- Prozac) that you and I are among the first subjects to feed back data. Long term effects are not known for anyone including children born to mothers exposed during pregnancy.
It is just beginning to unfold now.

[DoneWithCrap]

TM thank you for that link. I'm feeling both angry and guilty right now but what has been done has been done. Three of my children are overcoming their challenges and I'm sure they will do fine as adults. My oldest is 22 now and my fear is that she won't live long enough to get the help she needs due to her bad judgement and dangerous life style. I will try not to let this new information bring me down and instead see if I can share my story with any research program that might be interested in knowing what has become of my SSRI pregnancies.

I'm going to need some extra puppy hugs tonight

[DoneWithCrap]

I just noticed that there is a link on that site where I can report my side effects. I will need to gather all my history about what I was taking during each pregnancy before I can do that. My husband has records of this info somewhere. I'm going to do my part to inform the world about the dangers of these drugs!

[fishinghat]

Nearly all the ssri/snri manufacturers now have a warning to stop taking the meds during pregnancy.  This whole ssri/snri effects is simply a sad sad state of affairs.

[FiveNotions]

Hey, have we heard from ThisBetterPass? I think we sorta' hijacked her thread ... maybe we made her feel unwelcome?

[ThisBetterPass]

No worries, I'm doing well. Thanks for the research posted!

I'm at 16.25 mg today and taking it easy. Today was a little rough with the drop but I'm amazed at how positive events can perk me up. I just found out that my favorite high school teacher from 22 years ago lives three doors down from us! Mind you, the town I went to school at is 2.5 hours from where we live now. Simply amazing and gratifying to have the opportunity to reconnect after all these years. :-)

[brzghoff]

the drops are always "jarring" but glad to hear that your emotions are functioning. our experiences are unique, however symptoms of withdrawal, and then discontinuation, tend to cycle - but typically they continue to move in an improving direction in the long term.

[ThisBetterPass]

You're right, BRZ. I'm feeling mighty brave with dropping the beads lately. Actually, it's at a faster rate than I originally planned. I'll be leveling it out within a week or so and holding at the same dose as I have my first business trip coming up during the week of the 10th. The trip is an exciting opportunity and I'm comfortable with the logistics of flying. Since I do all of my work via technology, this is the first time I get to spend time with a client in person. He does life coaching, so the work I do for him goes hand-in-hand with the tapering journey.

[TryinginFL]

Congratulations, TBP!

 

What a new and wonderful opportunity!  So happy to hear that you've been doing well in your tapering.  I commend you on your decision to hold steady until after your trip!

 

Good luck!!

 

Liz

[FiveNotions]

Wow, TBP, what a terrific opportunity ... and you're right, it sure is a perfect with your own "tapering journey." I'm thrilled for you!