59 replies to this topic

[kathyms3150]

Kathy, I'm sorry you're experiencing these things, but this post has helped me and I'm sure many others.  After reading thru this I've calmed down a bit.  I have to keep reminding myself that this IS normal.  It sure doesn't feel normal though!  I'm at 4 weeks off Cymbalta and it's been tough emotionally!  The anxiety and fear is overwhelming and downright scary.  I appreciate FH and 5notions thoughts and prayers.  Faith is the solid base beneath my feet but I feel like that rock is in the middle of a tossing sea right now and boy am I seasick!

Hi buntbean2,  I'm so sorry that you're going through this too. I'm glad that the post has helped to calm you down a bit. Like you, reading that others have been having the same symptoms as me calms me a little too. No, this sure isn't normal, and it can be frightening. It's tough physically and emotionally since we don't know what to expect or how long it's going to last. For me the anxiety has been overwhelming also. It's a crime that we weren't warned that this could happen. FH and 5notions have been very helpful as well as a few others. It's good to know that you have your faith to cling to, but I know it doesn't take all the fear away. Hang in there and I'll keep you in my prayers. Oh, and while as I was at my regular doctor last week I had an EKG and the doctor thought there was a slight abnormality too.

[kathyms3150]

Buntbean2

 

     Was the ekg results during periods of high stress are not unusual. Some of the common arythmias are;

 

      PVS (Preventricular Contractions) which feel like a skipped beat.

      Atrial tachycardia - The atriums of the heart beat at a very fast rate, 120 to 200 bpm.

      Atrial Fibrillation - The atriums beat are a very erratic pace.

      Trigeminal Rhythm A PVC every third beat.

fishinghat,  if we have one of the arythmias you listed here will they go away?

[fishinghat]

Absolutely.Kathy. Just like when you over use a muscle you get cramps, muscle spasms and such. The adrenaline from stress makes your heart pump hard and fatigue. It then develops "muscle spasms" which are the irregular heart beats I mentioned. Drs use atenolol or magnesium to treat these irregular heartbeat. The best thing of course is to get rid of the stress.  For most of us as we get over the stress of withdrawal these irregular rhythms fade away.

[FiveNotions]

Kathy, are you taking a chelated magnesium supplement? FishingHat is right, it really does help ...

 

I had high bp and tachycardia while on the poison, and that lessened / normalized soon after I quit the stuff. (It's now crept back a bit, but again, I'm assuming that's due to the stress I've been under job hunting.)

 

During withdrawal I'd lie in bed listening to my heart ... it was skipping beats, beating irregularly, giving me chest pains, etc etc... the folks here reassured me I wasn't dying, just moving into / through another physical manifestation of my brain rewiring itself to regulate it's own serotonin level without the artificial control of Cymbalta ...

 

when I started taking the chelated magnesium, all that began to fade ... the magnesium also helped the muscle twitches and spasms I was having in my legs ... restless leg syndrome?

 

You're still in the early months of discontinuation ... the crapalta is out of your system, now your brain is re-learning how to regulate serotonin.... this set of symptoms shows what parts of your brain are currently being re-wired ...

 

Not to worry, these will pass, and you'll get a whole new symptom or set of symptoms to "entertain" you ...

[buntbean2]

"Not to worry, these will pass, and you'll get a whole new symptom or set of symptoms to "entertain" you ... :P"

 

Oh lovely 5Notions LOL!!  Either they will pass or we will pass!

 

As far as my heart palpitations they come and go without any real reason.  I'll just be going along and suddenly it feels like my heart skips a beat and then tries to make up for it by beating quickly.  It actually takes my breath away.  Like I said the echocardiogram was fine so I'm not worried.

[kathyms3150]

Absolutely.Kathy. Just like when you over use a muscle you get cramps, muscle spasms and such. The adrenaline from stress makes your heart pump hard and fatigue. It then develops "muscle spasms" which are the irregular heart beats I mentioned. Drs use atenolol or magnesium to treat these irregular heartbeat. The best thing of course is to get rid of the stress. For most of us as we get over the stress of withdrawal these irregular rhythms fade away.

It's a relief to know that fishinghat. It makes a lot of sense that the heart can get muscle pain from beating so hard and fast. If only we could not stress out over the withdrawal. Thanks.

[kathyms3150]

Kathy, are you taking a chelated magnesium supplement? FishingHat is right, it really does help ...
 
I had high bp and tachycardia while on the poison, and that lessened / normalized soon after I quit the stuff. (It's now crept back a bit, but again, I'm assuming that's due to the stress I've been under job hunting.)
 
During withdrawal I'd lie in bed listening to my heart ... it was skipping beats, beating irregularly, giving me chest pains, etc etc... the folks here reassured me I wasn't dying, just moving into / through another physical manifestation of my brain rewiring itself to regulate it's own serotonin level without the artificial control of Cymbalta ...
 
when I started taking the chelated magnesium, all that began to fade ... the magnesium also helped the muscle twitches and spasms I was having in my legs ... restless leg syndrome?
 
You're still in the early months of discontinuation ... the crapalta is out of your system, now your brain is re-learning how to regulate serotonin.... this set of symptoms shows what parts of your brain are currently being re-wired ...
 
Not to worry, these will pass, and you'll get a whole new symptom or set of symptoms to "entertain" you ...

FN, I am taking magnesium, but it doesn't say chelated. Wow, I haven't heard of having tachycardia while on the poison. Glad that your no went back to normal. There's always going to be some stress in our lives, it's hard to avoid it totally. When I lay down my heart seems to pound more, it drives me crazy. I sure hope that my brain goes back to working properly. Oh boy, I don't want to think about any new symptoms. Thanks.

[fishinghat]

Hey Kathy what type of magnesium is it? Mag oxalate, mag oxide, mag chloride?

[gail]

Hey FH, what is the difference here? Mine is oxide.

Is that as good as chelated, whatever that means?

They are 252mg. Thanks

[TryinginFL]

Now I'm curious too....  mine is oxide 250 mg

[fishinghat]

Magnesium oxide is fairly easily absorbed but the oxide reacts with your hydrochloric acid in the stomach to form lye (caustic, high pH). With time it can really eat up the lining of a stomach.

 

Magnesium oxalate and magnesium tartrate are both readily absorbed and are easy on the stomach but in some people can cause some constipation.

 

Chelated magnesium (Chelated means lightly bonded to) is magnesium that is lightly bonded (attached) to amino acids (the building block of proteins). It is nearly 100% available for absorption and has very little constipation effect.

[gail]

Eat up the lining of the stomach!

Tfl, my goodness, we are given courses in medicine here.

Let's open our own cabinet and have Fishinghat as our supervisor here.

And that chelated magnesium is found in a drug store or a health food store? What is the dosage?

While I am at this,FH, what would be the dosage for vit D for someone who is difficient?

Doc did not mention. Love those docs!

[kathyms3150]

Mine is magnesium oxide too

[brzghoff]

mine's magnesium citrate - is that good? i take as a 3 way suppliment with calcium and vitamin d. its a chalky liquid - raspberry flavored - tastes good.

[fishinghat]

Well first of all, Big B. The first thing wrong with your magnesium is that it is raspberry flavored. lol Not my favorite but to each his own.

 

Magnesium citrate (1:1) (1 magnesium atom per one citrate molecule), (which can also mean magnesium citrate (3:2)), (3 magnesium with 2 citrate) is a magnesium preparation in salt form with citric acid. It is a chemical agent used medicinally as a saline laxative and to completely empty the bowel prior to a major surgery or colonoscopy. The citric acid also contributes to heartburn in the stomach. It is available without a prescription, both as a generic and under the brand names Citromag and Citroma. It is also used in the pill form as a magnesium dietary supplement. It contains 11.3% magnesium by weight. Compared to magnesium citrate (3:2), it is much more water soluble, less alkaline, and contains 29.9% less magnesium by weight. (Wikipedia)

[fishinghat]

Gail

 

Most health food stores carry chelated magnesium.

 

Magnesium/Calcium– Most people who are exposed to significant stress excrete higher than normal levels of magnesium and calcium. The RDA (recommended daily allowance) 400 mg/day.  Serum levels should be between .7 and 1 mmoles/L. Studies used 400 – 800 mg/day. (avg. 600 mg/day)  I currently take 300 mg/day (recommended by my dr.)

.

Studies recommend using 600 to 1,000 mg calcium with the magnesium. RDA 1,000 mg/day, UL 2500 mg/day. 

 

Dietary numbers of magnesium and calcium vary from day to day and present a moving target. In my case my daily intake of calcium is well above the RDA. As both magnesium and calcium is processed by your body very easily build up of toxic amounts are unusual.

My dr normally recommends starting with 300 mg/day Mg and 100 mg/day Ca. He only recommends it for people with heavy stress, restless leg, cardiac arythmias or other muscle associated conditions (chronic cramps, muscle spasms, etc).

[fishinghat]

Gail

 

There is a good reason that your dr did NOT recommend how much Vit D to take. It is not only affected by your diet but also by the amount of sun you get. It varies on a constant basis. Normally drs will take a blood sample periodically call for a shot of vit D if the blood test indicates a need. Be aware high levels of vit D can cause a toxicity problem in several systems of the body. Trying to adjust your own levels of Vit D (usually in the form of Vit D3) is inadvisable. After several blood tests over a period of time the dr may put you on a standard daily dose (tablets) if he/she sees a pattern. The dr will still do routine blood tests to be sure you are maintaining control of your Vit D.

 

P.S. FYI  About 1/3 of all Australians have vitamin D defeciency. I have never found out why.

[gail]

Thanks FH, she did say to supplement on the D.

Said to look on the bottle for dosage.
It says one tablet a day,1000 ui, or as directed by your physician.

So, as she does not know the dosage, I go for 3 tablets till the next blood test in October.

Will look for the calcium as I don't take any.

Thanks Doc from Missouri!

[fishinghat]

Hey Gail, if the bottle says 1000 IU a day why are you going to take 3 tablets?

 

"Adults (18 years and older)

Vitamin D is included in most multivitamins, usually in strengths from 50-100 international units (IU). It can be found as softgels, capsules, tablets, and liquids. The new 2010 recommended daily allowance (RDA) is 600 IU for those 1-70 years of age and pregnant or breastfeeding women, and 800 IU for those over 71 years of age. An adequate blood level of vitamin D is 20 nanograms per milliliter, which can be achieved through daily skin exposure to sunlight. Levels over 50 nanograms per milliliter may cause side effects."

 

"For deficiency, at least 1,000 IU (25 micrograms) of vitamin D has been taken by mouth daily (or 8,400 IU of vitamin D3 weekly)." Mayo Clinic

 

Anytime I can help with meds, supplements or treating other conditions please feel free to contact me.

[FiveNotions]

Whoa, Gail ... 3,000 mg is the dose level for horses! https://www.smartpak...sium-3000-1819p 

[gail]

I feel like I am in deep sh** here.

OK, why am I taking this amount? Since I am deficient, and the usual dosage is 1000, for people not being deficient, I thought it would be OK. After looking it up on internet, found that you could take as much as 5000, went in the middle here.

Dosage for a horse? Gee,well, I am a small horse and will remedy to that.

As for side effects, I have had my share of that this year!

Thank you, you two lovely people, love xx
FN, just checked your link, that is magnesium, which I take 252mg.
The 3000 mg I take is vit D. You gave me a little teeny weeny scare. No horsing around,lol!

[Amysgarden]

No....wait....I think something is confused here? Gail is talking about 3000 IUs. I just entered it into a conversion chart, and it is the equivalent of 0.074999998 milligram (s). Whew! No need to worry about horses here!

[FiveNotions]

Oops.... Sorry guys ... Gals .... Horses .... :-@

[gail]

Confusion, am I ever confused here!

Full moon! That could explain why we are confused and up early!

[FiveNotions]

Good morning, Gail!

I think I'm the cause / source of the confusion! I thought you were saying you take 3000 mg of magnesium... But you were talking about the vitamin D .... and the 3000 referred to "3000 IU" ...Amy pointed out that's "international units" not mgs ......

Anyway... Gnome everything I said.... just listen to FH on this one.... I had a big big brain fart there... ;-)

(I'm back on my iPad and the damn thing won't let me use emoticons....@&$#% !)

[gail]

Morning FN, as I said, full moon! At 20% here.

[FiveNotions]

PS .... "Gnome" is supposed to be "ignore" ..... IPad autocorrect sucks!

I give up...had my pee run, checked in here, and clearly am not functional ... Returning to bed for more sleep.... :-)

[thismoment]

When I was withdrawing I experienced a strange interaction of dyslexia and hallucination-- I was walking through the back yard and a garden ignore suddenly spoke to me but I chose to gnome it.

lol

[TryinginFL]

TM - LOL !!!

[FiveNotions]

OMG, TM .... hahahaha