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3 Months After Drop


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#1 Dan

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Posted 18 July 2018 - 01:29 PM

Hello, first of all, thanks for the support you give to those, like me, suffer because of this "medication".

I have taken Cymbalta 7 years for anxiety and frequent headaches, before it i was on Paroxetine for other 6 years. I was never told how dangerous can those drugs be, if i could go back and avoid this suffering...

By the way in mid April i decided to drop from 60 mgs to 30. Of course i didn't even imagine how hard was the fall. After one month i started having all this stuff:

 

Insomnia

Dhiarrea

Extreme anxiety

Hand Paresthesia

Vertigo (just when i lay down and up my head)

Limbs and head feel heavy

Eyes burning / fatigue

 

Now the situation hasn't changed much, i don't know if i had some improvements in that. I started taking Omega3, which seems to help a bit. Sometimes i feel a bit better but it's one day out of 7. 

As this wasn't enough, five years ago (while i was trying to suspend cymbalta for the first time) i got tinnitus, and still i have it. It reacts to Cymbalta, the lower the dose, the higher is the volume.

I'm starting to get seriously worried about my life. I have taken those drugs for a long time, i pray that it is not too late to recover.

I'm not suicidal, but I feel hopeless to the point that i think that this life doesn't matter anymore. I often cry, i don't want to live in this situation forever.

I can manage tinnitus and i know that probably i have to live with it, but i feel that i cannot bear all the rest for eternity.

What do you suggest me to do? I think i can resist but the thought that i don't get better really kills me everyday.   


#2 jenibee

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Posted 18 July 2018 - 01:53 PM

Hi Dan!

You can do this!  The help of this site is amazing and has helped me tremendously--even just by reading everything without posting much.  I dropped from 60 started October , 2017.....by bead-counting as this site suggests.  I had been taking Cymbalta forever (about 20 years) so I read everything on here about being careful not to taper too fast.    I  kept slowly tapering....until my last few beads of Cymbalta on July 3, 2018. I probably still went too fast! The withdrawal is horrible...no way to sugar coat it.  I have had all of those symptoms you listed above throughout my experience and recently added ocular migraines to the list. The worst for me was horrible joint pain and weakness. The head zaps are pretty crazy too.  I am still feeling weird now even after my slow taper and having no drug in my system since July 3rd, but it gets a little better every day.  I'm jittery one minute, tired the next. Can't sleep or sleep too much.  Don't give up!  There are amazing folks on this site who will help you get through this. Hang in there!


#3 fishinghat

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Posted 18 July 2018 - 02:29 PM

Welcome Dan
I wish I had some magic words to take away the suffering but I don't. First of all for most but not all the tinnitus goes away within 1 year of the last Cymbalta dose. I might suggest you read "the answer to the question is..." in the Medical Support Section. It is sort of a collection of what everyone has tried, the results and medical info.

Some people take there normal dose at this point (30 mg, right?) and then on a really bad day take an extra 5 to 10 beads to take the edge off. The Omega 3 was a good idea. Be sure you have at least 2000 mg of EPA and DHA in your capsules and that they are mercury free. There are some other things I might suggest but I hesitate not knowing what else you are on. Many use hydroxyzine and/or clonidine to help the symptoms. Both are prescriptions, neither are addictive and don't have withdrawal. You might talk to your dr about those. Most drs like to jump up and prescribe benzos but they are very addictive and have a bad withdrawal.

Keep us posted and hang in there.

#4 Dan

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Posted 20 July 2018 - 04:17 PM

Hello, thank you for your words. I quit AD's a few times already but never had withdrawls, except for a bit of brain zaps.

In 2012, after one year of Cymbalta i tried to stop in 5 months: didn't feel any withdrawal symptoms at all (which sounds really strange).

Then i got this growing tinnitus, which tbh don't know the cause exactly and decided to reinstate.

This time quitting feels alot harder than the others. My doctor said that my symptoms are just caused by anxiety and i should have gone back to 60 mgs, how can they be so ignorant about it?

Fishinghat i've verified on the vendor's site that my O3 don't contain mercury, so i'm ok with that.

Jenny considering how i feel, two years or more would be a proper slow taper for me. Maybe you rushed a bit too much, how are you emotionally?.

My mood is highly influenced by the amount of fatigue so i usually wake up in shape but working or doing stuff in the afternoon is very hard.


#5 jenibee

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Posted 23 July 2018 - 02:15 PM

Hi Dan! Yes, I am certain I stopped too fast, but I needed to get the ball rolling  :) !!!  I am actually, and surprisingly feeling  pretty strong emotionally, so that is good.  After being diagnosed with a thyroid issue in October, 2017, I began to question why I was ever prescribed the Cymbalta decades ago since my psychiatrist suspected my thyroid was causing my panic attacks and depression all along.  Additionally, once I began taking thyroid with the Cymbalta, I started to get the side effects (horrible joint pain and weakness), thus, the beginning of my taper.  As of today, I seem to be very jittery at least once a day.  A few brain zaps here and there and had an ocular migraine five days in a row.  The joint pain and weakness is diminishing and I'm getting stronger, but working out seems to have a strange effect and I get more side effects after and during exercise. Yesterday, I ran a little 10k that I do every year pretty easily; but the bottoms of my feet were killing me and my knees hurt while I was trying to get through the race. Since that has never happened to be before, I am guessing it is the withdrawal.  Also, night sweats and hot flashes and chills.  While none of this is fun, I want to keep these drugs out of my system as long as I can. If I develop any panic or depression, my dr. has suggested moving me to an MAOI, but said I had to get off the Cymbalta completely first.  I take lots of fish oil, apple cider vinegar and Advil, which seem to help.  Maybe a glass of red wine with dinner if my work day has been super stressful and if I'm jittery, but that is pretty rare.  I hope I can stay off of everything AD, but only time will tell.  Fingers crossed for all of us!


#6 fishinghat

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Posted 23 July 2018 - 02:34 PM

JB, did your dr tell you that if you go on a maoi it is permanent? That is nasty stuff that is hardly ever used these days.

"I was given Cymbalta for anxiety/depression way back then, which now it turns out I never actually had--I have a thyroid condition which went undiagnosed (until late last year) and that is what was causing my symptoms of anxiety and depression."

If this is caused by a thyroid issue then why can't they just treat that and not bother with a maoi or ssri/snri?

#7 jenibee

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Posted 23 July 2018 - 03:32 PM

Hi FH-

Yes, good question.  I have not contemplated taking an MAOI--I think he was just throwing out options of what he would put me on next after the Cymbalta if I show symptoms of anxiety/panic/depression.  He has mentioned that he "hates" my antidepressant (Cymbalta) several times and I'm guessing was trying to figure out what to put me on next in the event that my prior "chronic major  depression" diagnosis was correct.  However, I have no intention of taking anything unless I start becoming suicidal or psychotic--which I presume the odds of that are quite low.  I hate taking drugs.....except for the thyroid which seems to keep me functional as opposed to unable to get off the couch  :D


#8 jenibee

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Posted 23 July 2018 - 03:40 PM

Sorry FH -- forgot to answer this question:

 

If this is caused by a thyroid issue then why can't they just treat that and not bother with a maoi or ssri/snri?

 

At this point, yes, we are presuming everything was caused by the thyroid issue....but in the process of testing that theory now as I eliminate the Cymbalta.  I feel good in my head, if you know what I mean, other than dealing with withdrawal--not sad, not panic stricken, not even really anxious (other than the jitters which I am hoping is just the withdrawal and not "me")


#9 fishinghat

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Posted 23 July 2018 - 04:46 PM

Gotcha. The jitters is probably just the withdrawal. Thanks for the reply.

Are you on thyroid medicine yet?

#10 jenibee

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Posted 23 July 2018 - 05:15 PM

Hi FH-- Yes, started taking the thyroid in October, 2017 and began to taper down shortly thereafter.  As soon as I began the thyroid, I started to get weird side effects from the Cymbalta--like the thyroid angered the Cymbalta--joint pain, weakness, etc. My Dr. hated the Cymbalta anyway, so he said to go ahead and start the taper...and here I am now!!!


#11 Dan

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Posted 27 July 2018 - 11:03 AM

Hello again. Fishinghat a few days ago there was a sudden change: i woke up with the vertigo and paresthesia almost gone but since then i feel emotionally strange. I have much less interest in doing what i like the most and my anxiety is a bit worse. Is there something that i should do? Would it make sense to go back to 60 mgs and start a "slow taper" as you call it in a better period ? I'm just scared...


#12 fishinghat

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Posted 27 July 2018 - 11:56 AM

I don't see any sense in going back up to 60 mg. Most would take their 30 mg each day and an additional 10 to 15 beads. This is usually enough to bring some relief. It is not necessary to take those 10 to 15 beads with the 30. I would recommend taking them whenever the symptoms start to flare up. Some days you may need them and other days maybe not.


#13 gail

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Posted 27 July 2018 - 04:31 PM

Hi Dan,

I have a different opinion here. Since you're on 30, three months ago, you've not felt relief nor much improvement. And since you've been on antidepressants for a long time, I would reinstate to 60mg.

Stabalize at that point. When you're ready, do the bead count. Let's just hope that the 60 does it's magic

Let us know how goes whatever option you chose.

#14 Dan

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Posted 28 July 2018 - 10:01 AM

Hello, i decided to stay at the same dosage. It looks like that reinstating could lead to other problems. I feel in a bad situation, i also have the suspect that this change of symptoms could have bene triggered since i may accidentally have taken two doses of 30 mgs one night. I don't remember! However Is It normal to have a sudden change of symptoms during WD?

#15 fishinghat

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Posted 28 July 2018 - 12:15 PM

Sudden changes are normal unluckily. Good luck and keep us posted.


#16 Dan

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Posted 11 October 2018 - 03:51 PM

Hello, just a small update and a question...Vertigo, paresthesia and eye burning totally disappeared.

Even if i mostly feel like crap i had a couple of good weeks, meaning that it's like if i had my old feelings back for a while. I want to believe that it's somehow a positive sign, what do you think?

Of course i'm still stuck at 30 mgs and will be for many months i believe.

Here's my question: i'm using generic Cymbalta and still not opening capsules, is it ok in terms of effectiveness if i get different brands? 


#17 fishinghat

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Posted 11 October 2018 - 06:13 PM

In general most see little difference between the two. I hope you continue to do well. Hang in there.


#18 gail

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Posted 12 October 2018 - 08:25 AM

Hi Dan,

Thanks for the update. A few weeks doing ok is a good sign. Remember that it's wax and wane for many months. Progress is not linear.

As for the generic that you are using, my doctor firmly believes that you should always stay with the same generic. Same for my psychiatrist.

Stay on the 30 mg as long as you feel that the timing is right for bead counting. Keep updating us please.



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