141 replies to this topic

[fishinghat]

That info is already in the ebook but if you have a good form to put this in just shoot it to me.

One Note, Dramamine,, Benadryl and Equate each have several different formulas. I know that Dramamine comes in at least three different formulas so care must be give to look at the specific ingredients of each. The ebook contains a section on over the counter meds used for dizziness, colds and flu etc that discusses the variables of each brand. Most of the non-drowsy version contain a stimulant and can be counterproductive (also in the ebook).

[Polly38]

Thanks both. Do you think I made things worse by going up a bead? Should I have stayed at 28 today and not gone up to 29?

Will stay at 29 for a few days now, see how it goes and maybe try the tablets you are suggesting IUN. The CBD oil has made me feel calmer but I am still shaking and feel like there is food stuck behind my breastbone. Ugh!🤮. At least I am home from work now and it's the weekend and I'm having a massage tomorrow 😬

Sorry to vent. Hope you are both OK today.

[fishinghat]

Vent anytime you want to Polly. I can tell you I spent a lot of time on here venting when I went through my withdrawal.

I don't thin k it did you any harm to go back up 1 bead. It usually takes about 2 or 3 days for blood levels to stabilize so hang in there.

[Polly38]

Thank you. I'll give it a few days on 29 then I'll try and drop another bead. This really is torture but I'm so grateful for this forum so thanks!

[Polly38]

Sorry another question - is it OK to take magnesium at the moment? I was taking it regularly but thought I read in the e-book that it's not a good idea to take it whilst weaning off. I am noticing not taking it as it helps to keep me calm. Thanks

[invalidusername]

Hat - Apologies didn't remember it being in the eBook, but after 400 odd pages, some of it will slip out!! But to fill you both in, the dramamine I bought which I found compared was the "original formula" whatever that might mean... But 12 count in the Dramamine vs 100 count in the Equate. It felt like a no-brainer.

 

Polly - Are you known to have a magnesium deficiency? If you are, then you should still take it to aid the digestive issues it would cause in its absence, however, if you have not been tested, then a higher than required level of magnesium can first and foremost cause GI issues and in (much) higher levels, cause anxiety. The feeling of something stuck in the upper GI area is very common during anxiety. I had it for about 6 weeks during the summer of 2017. Essentially the glands in that area swell under stress and even though the swelling is so minimal, if feels a lot worse than it is. It is like when you feel you have a rock in your shoe and it turns out to be a minuscule piece of grit!

 

Hat is right about letting it balance out. It will take 3 days minimum for the blood levels to balance out. I know it is tough, but the WORST thing you can do at the moment is go up and down and up again. This will make you feel pants... and some - trust me...

[Polly38]

Thanks IUN. I haven't been tested for magnesium deficiency so better not take it then just in case ......

Thanks for the explanation about the swelling in the upper GI area - that explains a lot! Does withdrawal cause anxiety? I will definitely stay on 29 beads for at least the next 3 days.

I'll keep you posted. Thanks.

[invalidusername]

My pleasure poppet.

 

Anxiety always comes with withdrawal. It's as Hat has explained many times before on the forum... because Duloxetine is an SNRI (as opposed to SSRI), it regulates norepinephrine as well as serotonin. This is the neuro-precursor to cortisol and adrenaline. Too much of either will make you feel anxious - regardless of your situation and circumstances. When your noggin is deprived of it, it needs to work out the levels you need all over again, so it will chuck out too much, then too little and so on until it gets back to where it should be. This is why you feel your brain is cataloging all your emotions at the moment. It is because the Dulox has been doing everything on its behalf.

 

It needs to learn how Polly ticks all over again...

[Polly38]

Thanks IUN. You guys are so knowledgeable!It really helps to know the science behind it. Hope your session with the occupational health tart went OK this morning and she wasn't too patronising😉🤮

[invalidusername]

Oh that she was... but I humoured the silly cow. 15 minutes late she was too. How is that possible at a 9am appointment?! 

 

Man do they know how to treat people with anxiety well!!

 

*IUN screams into a nearby pillow*

[Polly38]

Hi. Sorry me again.

Today I am aching in my arms and chest and having random sweats again. I had a full body massage yesterday and I think it may have stirred things up😢.

Are aching arms and chest and feeling like everything is an effort part of withdrawal? Feeling exhausted and scared by all this!

Thanks.

[fishinghat]

Cymbalta withdrawal deeply effects the amygdala and hippocampus in the brain. These are centers in the brain for fear, paranoia, anxiety, etc. I think we all went through the stage where we were fearful if we were damaged or had some other life-threatening condition. A great many of us many of us had trips to the ER during our panic. This may be the worst part of the withdrawal. It is a scary time. Cymbalta effects the pain receptors and therefore all types of aches and pains are common during withdrawal.

Hang in there Polly. I would suggest no more drops until you get feeling better.

[Polly38]

Thanks FH. The scariest thing today is not being able to catch my breath. I will stay on this dose for bit. I can't understand why I felt better yesterday and feel worse today and I haven't dropped😭. Will these symptoms carry on right the way through weaning off? I don't know if I can stand it.

Sorry for venting. Having a bad day today😪

[invalidusername]

Hi Polly - you aren't alone in the bad days today. Things have hit quite bad - but nothing to do with withdrawal - just in general.

 

Because of the random changes in the brain, these things can come and go as they please. We have no control over when these changes will take place. Good days and bad days seem almost random during this time. I remember it well.

 

Hang in there. 

[fishinghat]

What IUN said is true. Usually as the withdrawal progresses it goes through stages. One symptom will fade as another one starts up. Just stay where you are at until things settle down.

[Polly38]

Thanks both. Sorry you are having a bad day too IUN. Hope tomorrow is better for us both🤞

[Polly38]

Hi.

A quick update. Having a bad day on the breathing front - like I can't catch my breath a lot of the time😤. Keep having random sweats too. My stomach has settled a bit as I am taking Lansoprazole regularly.

I am having breathing physio (which I've been having for some time) so am trying to focus on breathing properly but it's so hard😪. Is it normal to feel like this in withdrawal or have I got something else going on?!

Have been on 29 beads for 5 days now. Should I try dropping another one tomorrow?

Thanks.

[fishinghat]

Very common to feel like that. With the problems you are still having I would recommend waiting until you get stronger before dropping anymore.

[invalidusername]

Hi Polly...

 

Glad your stomach has started to settle - that should help with the anxiety side of things. I know this breathing thing has gone on a few days now... do you have a faster pulse during these times when you can't catch your breath? With the sweats and everything else, it sure does sound like anxiety.

 

Personally I would maintain the 29 beads for a few more days while the stomach settles. You may find that with the stomach in place that this calms the rest of you down, but this will be difficult if you start dropping before this occurs.

 

I really overdid it yesterday, so am what I have learnt people refer to as t'wired (tired and wired). Horrible feeling...

[Polly38]

Hi IUN.

Sorry you're having a bad day too. Occasionally I get palpitations but not normally. I went for breathing physio this morning and the physio taught Ms the way I should be breathing as I'm taking shallow breaths and I need to retrain myself🙄.

It really is a horrible feeling and feels like I'm going to stop breathing but I never do of course!🙄.

It does make me panic and I'm doing my best to sit with it at work.

Thanks.

[invalidusername]

It is a precursor to hyperventilating - but as you say, it is impossible to stop breathing. It is when you thinking about it that you convince yourself that you need to always maintain it through a thought process. It is then when people feel they cannot do this correctly that they hyperventilate. 

 

You want proof that it is anxiety... I have started to do it now, just from reading this and thinking what I am typing...! Oh my....

[Polly38]

Thanks IUN. How do I stop? It's so scary😢

[Polly38]

I think it is hyperventilation because I keep going really lightheaded too. Is this all part of the withdrawal process? Sorry to keep venting!

[invalidusername]

It is - you are right.

 

The worst thing you can do is fight it as you give it more attention and more power. You need to get to a state that you simply do not care anymore. Give in to it - just let it happen if it wants to. It is so paradoxical, but it is the only method that works. It is the same with all anxiety states. You can try to distract yourself, but it doesn't deal with it directly. 

 

Just try to stop thinking about a pink elephant and you can't, but if you just let that pink elephant come in to your thoughts, it will eventually get bored.

 

Shallow breathing will also make you light headed. This is where you need to do the box breathing every now and again if you can.

 

It is so bad - I really do understand Polly...

[Polly38]

Thanks IUN. I am really trying to go with it. I don't understand why it has got a lot worse today as I have stayed at 29 beads for 5 days now. Is this breathing issue likely to continue for the whole withdrawal?

[fishinghat]

IUN is completely right. Just keep doing the breathing exercise

I just remembered something. Do you drink a lot of soda pop. The CO2 in carbonated drinks make this worse. CO2 in the blood stream adds to acidity and competes with oxygen. This is an old trick, A lot of high school track teams would by soda for the other team before a meet. The extra CO2 would slow down the other team as oxygen uptake was lessened.

[Polly38]

Hi FH.

No. I don't drink any fizzy drinks. I never have really. Will keep doing the breathing. Thanks.

[invalidusername]

That's a nice anecdote Hat - and one that is easily remembered. 

 

Polly - I can tell just from your posts how much the anxiety is impacting on you in asking whether it will last for the whole withdrawal. It is a nightmare state it really is. You are doing fantastic if you are still at work. I have just been out to see a client for an hour. Fine when I was there, but now home for a few minutes, my thoughts get carried away again. I'm just telling myself that I had a rough Sunday, then I foolishly overdid it yesterday, so what do I expect for today? I'm just trying to rationalise it all so that I do not blame myself and get caught in the self-pity cycle of it all. 

 

Unfortunately, in order to learn how to cope (and eventually overcome) these types of situation, we have to let them happen. The more we accept what is happening, the less the fear and depression gets hold of us. But it is still soooo hard. Over the last few weeks, my days have become more "tough" than "bad". I no longer surrender and let the feelings take over me, and I just let everything be, and this is why I am exhausted so much of the time. I keep going and let life happen around me.

[fishinghat]

I agree with IUN's last paragraph. It seems like during the withdrawal one symptom leads to another and a slow downward spiral, BUT when one symptom fades it leads to another one fading and a slow upward spiral. It all takes time.

[Polly38]

Thanks very much both for your words of encouragement. I am just having a bad day so I need to move on! You are right about how it is easy to get caught up in the self-pity cycle IUN.

My husband has been dropping me off at work these last few weeks but I drove myself yesterday and today I had to drive myself to the hospital for my physio and then to work. This was way out of my comfort zone but I did it and survived without having an anxiety attack!😁. I had to have a blood test at the hospital too and whilst I was sat in the waiting room there was a clinic for cancer patients. Some of them looked so ill and I kept reminding myself that I am lucky I don't have a terminal illness and I will get through this. It sort of put things into perspective, even though the anxiety and shortness of breath are awful🙄.

It's the shortness of breath which is the scariest. Anyway, I'm off to do some breathing exercises and meditation😉. Thanks again and I hope you both have a good day tomorrow!