Hi
My 81 year old father is diabetic, has declining kidney function and was put in Duloxetine by an Endocrinologist for neuropathy and mild depression. He has been on 30mg daily for about a year.
Due to severely high blood pressure (and nausea, racing heart rate of a night, severe tiredness, urinary infection, severe dry mouth, inability to clench a fist due to swollen hands), plus it wasn't really working for either depression or neuropathy anyway, he decided to not continue the duloxetine. The original prescribing dr can't be contacted so we'll have to deal with GPs unfamiliar with the drug's effects.
He has not tapered off, and it's about day 13 or 14 of stopping cold turkey - but since day 9 he could barely lift his arms due to the shoulder, arm and wrist pain. The pain hasn't worsened, but hasn't improved much either.
He is not experiencing brain zaps etc that others discuss, and is only having suicidal thoughts NOW because the goddamn muscle pain is so severe and not improving much.
We'll have to go to emergency if this continues, and we'll stop the rosavestatin in case that's doing something, but does anyone have any words of wisdom? The pain and muscle stiffness he has now has only commenced since stopping duloxetine, but my father is reluctant to get a prescription for a compounding chemist to create a custom tapering dose now, if it's going to prolong the agony any longer. Over the counter pain killers don't work, and since we've had so many problems due to prescription med. combinations as it is, don't want to add more pills into the mix. The pain is not the usual neuropathy, so things like alovera gel don't relieve the pain either.
I've read that improvements are more likely to happen from about day 18 - anyone with the same muscle/joint issues, primarily in the shoulders and arms, and know what to do about it?
Thanks -
Sharon