14 replies to this topic

[Maddy777]

Hello!  Day 13 without the generic.  Took it for fibromyalgia.  It worked like a miracle for a yr and a half then it didn't work at all.  Was upped to 60mg.  Nightmare!   The side effects were the same as the withdrawal I'm going through now!   Went back down to 30mg.  Stayed on it for another 6 months.  Now I have the time and motivation to kick it. 

 

News flash!  I read somewhere on this forum that benadryl helped the brain zaps & dizziness,  IT DOES!  One 25mg in the morning has lessened them a great deal!  I can actually go to work now! It makes me sleepier so I take it just once.

 

I can cry over a dead fly and I might bite your head off but I know I'm getting better!

 

Thanks for the forum, you're all doing good work!

[fishinghat]

Thank you Maddy.

 

The kind words are appreciated. I am glad you re hanging in there and be sure and keep us posted on your progress.

[TryinginFL]

Welcome Maddy!

 

You're off to a great start and have come to the right place!

 

Yes, please keep us updated - I have been off for over 4 yrs now and am a cold turkey survivor.  Yikes - what a year of hell during that withdrawal!  I understand about the mood swings and I am still extremely sensitive - crying at the drop of a hat but the anger has left for the most part - it takes a lot!

 

Take care of yourself and be kind to you.

 

Liz

[gail]

Hi Maddy and welcome,

I'm so happy for you that Benadryl helps you, as for the sleepiness, who cares, right? As long that it helps you. Better deal with that than anxiety!

Where are you at, withdrawal speaking? Seems you started as you have brain zaps.

I didn't know that Benadryl took care of brain zaps. Can you tell us what kind of Benadryl you are taking? Important we know so we can help others. Thank you!

Looking forward to hearing from you Maddy. You are at the right place for sure.

[Farfaraway]

Glad that helped you out! Thanks for sharing!

[KathyW]

Any more information on Benadryl for brain zaps? They are the worst thing I've ever experienced. I've been weaning since February. Down below 20 cc in liquid form and gave had 2 brain zaps in the past 3 days. None before except the tone I accidentally went into withdrawal because I forget my meds while traveling

[fishinghat]

Diphenhydramine, (over the counter) also known as Benadryl, is an antihistamine and as such is not only used for allergies/colds but also as a sleep aide. It does have a mild anxiolytic effect. May lower blood pressure and cause irregular heartbeats. Long-term use of Benadryl often affects mental cognition, especially in the elderly. Your body does build up tolerance to it after a few weeks. There is evidence of dependence in cases of long-term heavy uses, It is a histamine H(1)R antagonist in the brain. Do not take this medicine with any other medicine that can cause sleepiness including benzos, most blood pressure medicines, ssri/snri, buspar and others. Please check for compatibility before using. This medicine has many drug interactions.

 

Begins working in 15 to 30 minutes
Peak levels - 2 to 2.5 hrs
Half Life – 4 to 6 hrs

 

Use by members for anxiety relief, brain zaps and to help sleep is too numerous to mention.

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm...pubmed/24530460
Moderately effective

https://www.ncbi.nlm...pubmed/19415242
(50mg dose)

https://www.ncbi.nlm...pubmed/16156843
Effective

https://www.ncbi.nlm...pubmed/16111835
Effective

Can cause dependence with constant heavy use. Some moderate withdrawal symptoms possible.

Diphenhydramine should NOT be taken with hydroxyzine. Drugs.com

http://www.cymbaltaw...elps#entry68017
Technical information on Diphenhydramine(Benadryl)

serendipity - I found Benadryl to produce hangover effects, and cause palpitations when taken long term. Even if you wake up in the middle of the night, and can't get back to sleep, even a teeny amount (say, 15mg) can induce sleep again.

 

Schmb - Benadryl worked on a limited basis for me, because sometimes it makes me jittery, and that only made the zaps much worse, so just use some caution in case you are sensitive to it.

 

FH - One caution on benadryl. It is famous for bad reactions with other medicine so check your compatability closely. The maximum dosage of benadryl is 25 to 50 mg every 4 to 6 hours and do not surpass 300 mg in a day.

 

Benadryl Total

Medicinal ingredients:
•Acetaminophen, 500 mg
•Diphenhydramine Hydrochloride, 25 mg
•Pseudoephedrine Hydrochloride, 30 mg

It contains diphenhydramine which is the active ingredient in regular Benadryl and also pseudoephedrine which is common in most cold medicines. The Diphenhydramine helps with sleep and anxiety and the pseudoephedrine helps block the action of adrenaline which produces a calming effect.

Therea re at least 75 products sold in the USA that contain diphenhydramine.

 

Also Kathy if you go to that thread I mentioned and did a search for brain zaps then you would find many suggestions.

[hatecymbalta1]

Hi Fishinghat,

 

I have a quick question, I had serotonin syndrome back in January and the hospitals didn't believe me, so I did my research on what is the treatment for it just in case it ever happens again because CYMBALTA interacts with a lot of other medications especially another antidepressant such as fluoxetine (prozac).  

 

1. Cyproheptadine (Periactin), a drug that blocks serotonin production. My question is -- Is this medication similar to benadryl?  

 

Thank you.

Mary

[fishinghat]

Cyproheptadine (Periactin) is a very potent antihistamine or antagonist of the H1 receptor. At higher concentrations, it also has anticholinergic, antiserotonergic, and antidopaminergic activities. Of the serotonin receptors, it is an especially potent antagonist of the 5-HT2 receptors, and this underlies its effectiveness in the treatment of serotonin syndrome.

Antagonist is a type of ligand or drug that blocks or dampens a biological response by binding to and blocking a receptor rather than activating it like an agonist.

Diphenhydramine (Benadryl) acts primarily as an inverse agonist of the histamine H1 receptor. Diphenhydramine has also been shown to inhibit the reuptake of serotonin.

In the field of pharmacology, an inverse agonist is an agent that binds to the same receptor as an agonist but induces a pharmacological response opposite to that agonist.

Very similar. Bottom line...Periactin blocks the serotonin receptor.

Diphenhydramine binds to the serotonin receptor and produces a reaction the opposite of serotonin.
Severe overdoses of Diphenhydramine produces symptoms similar to serotonin syndrome.

I hope this helps.

[hatecymbalta1]

I understand a little bit but not everything you wrote.  So, I guess if someone were having serotonin syndrome could they use benadryl and would it block serotonin?  Would it work to treat the syndrome?  

 

Thank you.

[hatecymbalta1]

Fishinghat,

 

Btw, Thank you for being so helpful with all of these questions we all have and knowledgeable.  

[fishinghat]

You are very welcome.

Benadryl (the one that contains diphenhydramine)would help block some of the serotonin syndrome as long as it was a moderate dose.

[jujubean]

Hello--I found this post from googling brain zap remedies. I am going through withdrawal from Venlafaxine. Just took a Benadryl about 20 mins ago and already feel that the severity of my brain zaps has decreased. I hope this continues to assist. Thank you to the person/people who suggested this!

[fishinghat]

Thank you so much for bringing that up jujubean and for thinking of us.

 

I hope all goes well with your withdrawal.

[invalidusername]

Ditto - and don't be a stranger. Although we are a cymbalta forum, there is a lot of similarities between these dreaded meds!

 

Feel free to engage, ask questions... whatever you feel!

 

IUN