Earlier I had written a post titled Cymbalta Withdrawal Symptoms Suck where I had gone on a rant of all the shitty Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms I was feeling. To my surprise, that post became very popular and a lot of people have weighed in about their experience while weening off Cymbalta.
I am now completely off of Cymbalta and haven’t had any Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms for a couple of months. I do however, relive my experience every time I read a new comment posted on my Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms article. Sometimes people have questions about certain withdrawal side effects which I don’t have answers to so I’ll try to look something up on line…that’s not easy.
Where Is All The Info?
It seems that Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms only exist on message boards and blogs. Other than that the only cautionary warning is to not stop taking Cymbalta without consulting your physician. If you enter the term Cymbalta withdrawal in a search engine you will see that the top results are message boards.
Just try and find some site actually associated with the pharmaceutical company listed…you won’t. That is completely shocking to me. It is a fact that Cymbalta is causing moderate to severe withdrawal symptoms in people yet the company doesn’t feel that it’s necessary to address this?
Take A Closer Look
Even scarier than the number of message boards and comments being left by people suffering Cymbalta withdrawal is what is actually being said in these comments. There people who have been going through Cymbalta withdrawal for up to 3 weeks just crying out for help from anyone.
A common theme in these messages about Cymbalta withdrawal is that the people suffering are not getting the help they need. They are either going to there doctor and being told that they are being “extra sensitive” about what they are going through which is magnifying the intensity of the withdrawal symptoms. Or they are being told that Cymbalta does not cause withdrawal symptoms.
I have over 80 comments on my Cymbalta Withdrawal Symptoms Suck post and out of those 80 there are about 2 people that were taken seriously by their doctor about the withdrawal symptoms they were experiencing. In those cases the doctors either changed the rate of the tapering schedule the patient was following or got them on a supplement routine that would replace what their body was now lacking due to the withdrawal.
It just seems like Cymbalta is being prescribed more and more for not only depression and anxiety but now also for diabetes nerve pain. People find, after taking this drug for sometimes only a few months, that it is no longer serving the purpose it was intended for. Instead of being able to quickly taper down they are now stuck taking Cymbalta for months and months after it is needed just to avoid severe withdrawal symptoms.
I Gotta Do SOMETHING
I read this stuff and it makes me crazy. But then I say “what can I do?”. Not much actually. Along with keeping this topic in the spotlight on my site I decided to create and online petition which I will be sending to Eli Lilly at the end of 6 months. I strongly urge (and beg you) to please sign my Cymbalta Withdrawal Symptoms online petition. As of writing this article I have one signature and it is my own. Come on…be a pal!
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It is so good to read these posts and know I’m not totally crazy. I have the exact same symptoms when I just miss 1 dose. I have the most bizarre dreams, terrible night sweats, extreme light-headedness, dizziness, etc. I’m scared to go off because I seriously don’t think I could function.
I feel so much better mentally now that I have been off for about 5 weeks. I can think straight with no fuzziness that I used to have. Also I don’t fight sleepiness while driving although im back to my natural insomnia but thats normal for me. I have to deal with a wider ranges of emotions that cymbalta dulled but thats okay. I am up for it now. Still have joint pain and I lose my balance once in awhile but I’m hoping that mig C ht get better with weight loss.
I began a taper off 60mg of Cymbalta in August due to the doctors finally agreeing with me that my frequent hospitalisation for Atrial Fibrilation MIGHT be caused by this anti depressent. One year on this drug did do wonders for my depression and anxiety but oh brother, what a tangled mess it left with side effects. After three weeks on 30 mg and suffering for the first two weeks with ALL the usual problems I ended up in hospital again with AF. It’s fair to say I got really pissed off and threw my Cymbalta away. Now I am three weeks into sudden withdrawal and have the sence that I am not depressed or anxious but adrenalin courses through my veins and it’s very unpleasant. The unreal feeling of being highly stressed without having any reason.I have developed lower limb and hands fingers feet and toe pains that are very extreme and hard to manage. Some palpitations but not as many as I used too and my heart no longer races at night waking me up. All the rest including body zaps which are settling, headaches which are also settling. Brain pain which come and goes. Libido shot. Sudden loose bowels which can be unpleasntly exciting.. Then I had a sudden unexplained breakdown last night. I have been taking omega 3 and vitamins and pain killers (paracetamol) and have started to diet. My weight fluctates wildly but overall I am gaining rapidly and my blood sugar has gone through the barrier and maybe I am now diabetic. Test next week. I wonder how long this shit will last? NEVER GIVE IN!……Have started on St Johns Wart to see if that helps. I am guessing this may take months.
Actually, from re reading all the posts I think that most people may start to feel ok in about the 6 to 10 week range. Some earlier. Some longer.
Mal,
I am worried that you went off so suddenly. Are you working with a doctor since then?
I too consider myself independant and all but sometimes… I am wishing you a better recovery my friend!
Reading your post I was reminded of the limb and digit numbness I used to have and the headaches. I think most my worst withdrawals symtpoms are gone and I am left with a 50 year old body that needs TLC and lots of patience
I found that I felt awesome at 10 weeks. For some reason at 16 weeks I went through a horrible depression. I cried everyday for over a month. I was never that bad before I started CYmbalta. It could have been due to my kids were in school full time, I lost my job, my back is still in horrible pain, and we have 2 kids (8, boy and 6, girl) sharing a room in our 2 bedroom house. Also, our house has depreciated so much that we won’t be able to move for probably 10 years. I bought my house 14 years ago and it is now worth less than what I paid for it. At least we can afford out mortgage though. Sorry for the babbling.
Anyway, the St John really helped. I was taking 3 times a day for about 2 weeks and it worked. I had to stop because we just found out that we are pregnant. SURPRISE!!!!! IUD is not that reliable. Anyway, we are happy about this. The baby will have to sleep in my dresser drawer. Lol
The one thing about the St John Wort is that there was no withdrawal when I stopped 2 weeks ago. I have been a little moody, but I chalk that up to the pregnancy. I rather take something natural that if I miss a dose my head doesn’t start spinning.
Good luck, you’re not alone.
Thanks Mike and Laura,
Yes Mike, I am seeing my doctor and have a back up plan but like most doctors he does not believe that Cymbalta withdrawal is what we all know it to be. He is a good man and I have known him for 30 years. He just believes what the drug companies tell him, I guess . I know what you mean about an old body needing TLC and patience!
Maybe I just bottomed out or it’s all in the mind but I swear after one day on St John’s wart I feel better. Much better. Laura, I think you have done really well. Good luck with everything.
Keep smiling and try to see the funny side of life.
CYMBALTA MAl the OLDFART.
Another week later and I am really struggling with the anxious feelings that i have no reason for. Snapped a cuppla times….poor wife and son. Going on a road trip to get away for a few days. A break for everyone. Well, 4 weeks down tomorrow and looking forward to some relief in the next cuppla weeks. Pains in the lower arms legs fingers and feet persist but seem to be better at times…..driving me nuts…as if i wasn’t
. Palpitations almost gone? headaches managaeable now. Blood sugar through the roof. Walking 30mins daily. Good for everything. Really, just the damn anxiety thats grinding me. If it was better the pain would be easier to take. Will post again in a week.
Mal
I’ve been coming off of 30 mg Cymbalta for 2 months now and am only 1/2 off of it. So many problems. The anxiety started out of nowhere after well into the withdrawal and I’m on klonopin everyday so I can’t imagine what it would be like if I wasn’t. I have been tapering by emptying the capsule and staying at same dose for a while then emptying more, etc. My doctor suggested taking 1/2 of my remaining 1/2 dose in the morning and the rest at night. I don’t sleep but the anxiety is much less of a problem because it evens out the amount in my bloodstream (Cymbalta has a very low half life which makes it hell for some to get off of). My daughter’s psychiatrist said it is one of the worst out there (I take it for pain but decided to get off to see if my cholesterol would go down since increased cholesterol can be a side effect and I didn’t feel it was helping much anyway). He does prescribe Prozac to his patients and after 2 weeks on it they wean off of Cymbalta much easier and then wean off Prozac once done which is much easier than weaning directly off of Cymbalta. I don’t tolerate Prozac so decided not to try it. I think primary care physicians who prescribe these meds don’t know how bad they can be for some people to get off of. My doctor didn’t even warn me to go VERY slowly, just said not to quit all at once. Here I am after 2 months just getting over severe anxiety while on anxiety meds and I’m only 1/2 way off of the Cymbalta. Lost tons of weight since I haven’t been able to eat much due to nausea and then the anxiety (stomach in knots). Good luck – might try splitting your remaining dose if you’re still having problems or anybody else dealing with anxiety (I’d wake up with an anxiety attack when that symptom started).
Wow, I am back to this site and glad for it because I have been soooo depressed this past week. I was thinking that it was how I am when off meds but then Laura – you mentioned the same thing. Most if not all other Cymbalta symptoms seemed gone but I alternate between crying and anxiety. Also, I forgot when I went off and was able to look back to my first posting and can say its been about 12 weeks or more.
Thing is, like you I have legitimate situational things beyond my control and I am perimenopausal so I cannot figure out what it what. I think I need to take something if I am going to make it through menopause. Anyone else have suggestions?
Mal, I’m sorry you’re still struggling. I’m finally over it all but it took a good month to 6 weeks. I lost track. I’m “drug free” other than ativan at night and the odd zopiclone for sleep but at least I know exactly where I’m at. Which isn’t a great place, but better that than doped up or withdrawing. I started taking magnesium citrate – 300mg in the a.m. and 300mg in the p.m. – yesterday after doing a bunch of reading on the internet about antidepressants as I almost went on fluoxetine because the past few weeks have been nothing but tears and suicide thoughts. I don’t know if its a coincidence, but I had a fabulous sleep, anxiety is almost nill and I just feel a bit better all around. Magnesium plays a huge role in our muscle function, among other things, so it might help with relaxing you and maybe (MAYBE) with the pain. I don’t know. But it doesn’t come with any side effects, so I’m going to see what its like.
Good luck to all of you.
barb
I started Cymbalta 4 yrs ago for Fibromyalgia. I have suffered horrendous hot flashes,night sweats,electrical kind of tingling down my arms and the top of my head, which all Dr’s attributed to Menopause. On 10/6/11 I asked my Dr to wean me off Cymbalta in my own desperation to figure out the real underlying cause of my unbearable symptoms. Within approximately four days of being cut from 60mg to30mg per day ALL my sweating and tingling STOPPED!!! COMPLETELY!!! On 10/20/11 I began decreasing to 30mg every other day….WELLLLLL….now I have diarrhea, vomitting, irritable bowel, and basically feel like crap. It used to be HORRIBLE when I would exercise…DRENCHED! But now, doing the same exercises, I am barely sweating. I can’t hardly leave my house being sick like this.
Karen,
I forgot about the sweating. We live in Chicago and it gets cold in the winter. I was always sweating even when it was freezing. My poor family thought there was something wrong because I was always sweating. After I stopped the Cymbalta the sweating stopped. The other issues with the vomiting, irritable bowel, all lasted a few weeks. I went for a colonoscopy because the GI issues were so severe.
Hang in there, it will get better.
FYI I was on Cymbalta for pain and fatigue.
Laura,
I finally turned the corner this past weekend and am doing much better. I am so happy to be off of Cymbalta. I live in Connecticut and my poor husband has dealt with me having centrai air on with a ceiing fan over the bed and a floor fan blowing towards the bed. Yes, that is how bad my sweating (accompanied by tingling) has been. Dr’s always passed it off as Menopause. As soon as I just went from 60 mg to 30 mg this all stopped. I was also put on Cymbalta for pain and fatigue.
Thanks for the encouragement!
First of all, I hope your symptoms have improved since this post! I was put on Cymbalta for pain as well, but stopped after only a few months because it became clear that it wasn’t helping. Of course it had to be Summer when I took it, because I too had HORRIBLE sweating problems!! The withdrawal was awful but I found that once I stopped taking it completely it only too a few days for my body to get used to the symptoms. I say “get used to” because unfortunately it took awhile for the effects to vanish, but it got easier to get back to my regular life. I was lucky in some ways because I’m a university student, so I was able to get work done without leaving my house for a few days. I guess what my rambling is trying to say is that things will get better once you get through the worst of it! Good luck and I hope you’re feeling a bit better now!
Katy,
Yes, thank you, my symptoms are so much better now! I seemed to have turned the corner over this past weekend. I just feel a little like I have Vertigo right now….waiting to see if it’s just a lingering feeling from withdrawing or what. Thank you again and hope it’s going well at school for you. Take care.
So thankful I am not crazy. Stopped taking Cymbalta 2wks ago after only being on for 5 months when pain came back in lower back. It worked great for about 3 weeks and then nothing. I talked with my doctor and decided to ween myself off. Only now I have “body zaps” mostly in my face and legs. After reading your post I am hopeful it will not last much longer. I still have the chronic back and leg pain but could deal without the extra.
Hi folks,
Five weeks today and I am improving all the time from the withdrawal symptoms. It’s not a smooth curve, there are ups and downs but the trend is positive. The rageing anxiety is now mostly background that has to be kept under firm control and i still get down and emotional but not as bad as before. No way as bad. The body zaps and brain pains are much less frequent. The gastro intestinal things are still, well, unpredictable, but also much better then two weeks ago. The pains in my arms legs feet hands toes and fingers persists but again it is not as bad as it was and at times is barely there.The palpitations are much reduced in number but when I get ‘em I get ‘em. Body muscle quivers at night still around but again i am sure not as much. Blood suger is still crap.
Yes, I still feel like shit but not as much as I did. No where near as much. It has been a battle but one worth fighting. Keep on through the hardest of times and you will see improvement.
I think my estimate above of 6 to 10 weeks to get through the process is looking about right.
Regards to all,
Mal the Oldfart
You are my encouragement. I am old too but I am going to do this. It has only been four days but to me that is four good days.
I am very proud of myself. I took my last Cymbalta 20 mg on Sunday and even though I have a dull, nagging headache I am working though it. I have tried to come off this drug before and go back to it because of the headaches but not this time. I have been on it for about 4 years and I am tired of feeling like I am in a fog all the time. I want to fell like me again, good or bad. I asked my doctor for prozac to help but he said to just taper off. Wish me luck.
The Prozac has a long half life making it easier to come off than Cymbalta which has a very short half life of about 12hours. Consequently when the symptoms begin to hit they hit hard and it takes longer for your metabolism to recover. I wish I had used a longer half life drug to help the process. Maybe you have to become procative with your doctor, or find a doctor who has a better understanding of antidepressent discontinuance syndrome. Either way, it’s a hard battle but one you can win. Tough love but I promise that you will begin to fell better and regain control of your life. At five and a half weeks the worst is behind me and I know that I have a way to go, but maybe not that far.
Mal
Ok. Day 5. Last night was horrible. Very bad headache but this morning is better. One day at a time. Mal, if you can do it I can too. Good days are ahead!
Well, it’s been a long five weeks, but I am starting to feel alot better. Since I last wrote, I am now completely off of Cymbalta….AMEN! The nausea is completely gone…the sweating is completely gone….Irritable Bowel is improving….. I would NEVER go back on that again. I do have some pain, and almost a feeling of Vertigo….but overall I am so much better off Cymbalta! I just still can’t believe this went on for four years and no one, including myself, figured it out…. oh well, I hope everyone here is getting better. Take care.
Ok. 6 weeks down the cymbalta free pathway. Like Karen, I am feeling a lot better. Still have pain in the hands arms legs and feet but it is improving. Irritable bowel also now is a lot better. Raging anxiety and dips into the emotional well also almost completely gone.Still have some vertigo at times as well. No headaches, nausea, brain pains, flushing and only an occassional body zap. Much more energy. However….I am having racing heart at night again…..think I figured it out…I went on St Johns Wart to help ease the symptoms after 2 weeks and I am certain it helped but SJW can affect the thryoid in some people and as i have also had a few bouts of slow heart rate I am thinking that it may have had an unintended consequense. SJW has a very long half life so I should be free of its effects in about another 3 or 4 days (from 4th Nov when i took the last one). Otherwise, apart from the feeling that I am coming down with something nasty I feel relatively well and normal! I will post again in a week and I will try and recall all the side effects and list them if that might be helpful to others. Congrats Karen. We are thinking of you L Warner. We did it and so will you!
I’m on day 20 and I am so scared and frustrated
Dizziness
Nausea
Some vomitting
Constant panic feeling
Very Irritable (making me very hard to be around)
Crying spells
Intermittent Tremor
Hard getting words out
The only thing that is helping ease (not stop) these symptoms is dramamine…
I don’t want to become dependant or become tolerant on this drug…
I need hope…
Rebecca,
Persist. Cling on. Be stubborn. Be fierce and determined.
You are in the worst spot right now but in three weeks you will be over the really bad stuff, I promise.
Mal
Thanks Mal
I am 9 weeks Cymbalta free!!!!! Hardest thing I have ever done in my lifetime. It does get better. Stijl having the most awful jaw pain, anyone have any suggestions for this. Also headaches and shocks in all extremities. Aniexty comes and goes…. Started the wean July, 14, been a rough road, but come such a long way. Exercise, supplements and positive mental attitude. Gets a little better each day! Good luck to everyone still struggleing. Stay strong!!!
Rebecca, Dramamine is not a drug that you get dependent on.
Seven weeks yesterday. I am through it, I think. It’s a bit hard to tell at the moment. I would like to say I feel well but I have picked up a re-occurence of a bacterial infection in the secret mens business area and feel like shit and the strong anti biotics make me feel ill as well. SO, I will postpone my 7 week report for a few days.
First – I’m from Sweden, so excuse me for my bad english.
Iv been using Cymbalta for about a year. Have been using different kinds of antidepressant on and off since -92. The reson I got Cymbalta this time was that all the other once gave me big weight problems. But … They have never been as big as they got on Cymbalta.
So … on doctors orders, I´m have now gradually and slowly dosed down from 90 mg to 0 mg (the plan is I will try Voxra instead, since I suffer from such severe panic attacks that I can not be free from medication) and I feel like I´m dying. … I took my last pill last Sunday.
The worst of my withdrawal symptoms is constant brain zaps. Can not move my eyes even the slightest, without getting them. It s horrible!
I also have pain and pressure in the head and the neck. I feel sick, weak and ill and crying all the time and I have terrible nightmares. The only positive thing is that the terrible sweats I had last year- (thought I had the menopause, haha) – is gone.
Anyway – Yesterday I was sent to the emergency hospital, because my local doctor thought I suffered from something really dangerous, when I described my symptoms. Not one of the staff at the emergency had heard about brain zaps and the only reason I have, is that I first experienced them – (but to a much lesser extent) – when I stopped with Zoloft for a number of years ago and also sought facts over the net. As said here before – if it wasn´t for personal blogs and patient forums, one would not be able to find information about the problem at all. :-O
To find information in swedish is even harder, that´s why I´m here now.
Even though I´m sad to read about all suffering here, I´m glad to find out I´m not alone.
/Tette Merio, Sweden.
What blows my mind is that these pharm reps (that wine and dine those who are selling their product – THE PROVIDER prescribing it), always stress how great THEIR product is.
WHY??? Its the mighty and powerful $$. Do you REALLY think these pharm reps are gonna tell the BAD? Probably not. They like their paycheck better then the people who are being prescibed this terrile drug. So, providers, who do not know the VERY bad possible problems with this drug because it is hardly anywhere in the research.
So, they keep prescribing it (not warning about the potental HELL one will endure if they miss a dose or try to stop) , the pharm reps make their money and the Manufacturer is making millions.
Its sad but true. Money ‘seems’ to be more imprtant/valuable then the human life. I feel sorry for those who can actually wake up in the am and do that to others.
Hi there..I’ve been on Cymbalta for over 3 months..had to do cold turkey off it because I had no insurance anymore..I would say I’ve been off it for a week now..few days ago I felt dizzy, crying spells, mood swings, etc…and still going through it…does anyone know when I might be myself again? I know its causing distance now with my boyfriend…I need HELP!
Hi Katrina
To answer your question,
Noone really knows and it depends on a lot of factors such as
How much your dose was and how long you were taking it
So, hopefully, since you did not take it long, you won’t have to deal with this horrible
Withdraw long.
I took 60 mg for around 5 years and I’m still having the horrible withdraw
I’m over 3 weeks on 0 cymbalta after a taper over 5 weeks.
Good luck… You are not alone
Hi Rebecca,
Thank you for your response…I was on 60mg for 2 months and 30mg for the first month..I just hope this goes away soon since Thanksgiving is next week…this sucks!
Hi Katrina,
Hang in and you will be ok. The ammount of time it takes depends on the individual but most people seem to be through the worst in the first 4 weeks and pretty well recovered in th 6-10 weeks range.
I am 8 weeks tomorrow and now just about symptom free. Well, I bloated like a toad and I might now be a diabetic, but if thats all and I’m cymbalta free, I’m happy.
Mal
That goes for you too, Tette. Hang in. You will get there. Just remember that the things you feel right now will pass. It isn’t you. It is the after effects of Cymbalta.
Mal
Going on 4 weeks!!! Still with symptoms and so frustrated
I am reading many at 5, 6, 7 plus weeks starting to improve and I’m so happy for you.
So why do I feel like this is never going to end????
Thanks Mal..I saw a few posts that people have used Dramamine to help the withdrawal symptoms so I bought it today..I can say it has definitely helped me…hoping to be 100% very very soon…I think if I knew about these withdrawal symptoms, I would have never gotten on it..I wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving and I’m here to listen since I know first hand about my family not really being there for me these past few days..
Rebecca,
You are just about through the worst of it. You will start to see little improvements over the next two weeks and sometimes you will slip back a bit but overall the trend will be good. Your body is relearning how to make it’s own hormones and chemicals that have been affected by the cymbalta. At about 6 weeks you will notice the difference. Looking back over old posts will confirm this and help you along the way. It’s tough. Try a website called The Road Back…
http://www.theroadback.org/
Mal
I am so thankful that I saw this website! I went cold turkey off Cymbalta 8 days ago and I have been pretty miserable. I have been taken 60mg daily for about a year and a half for fibromyalgia and depression.I just never felt right on it. I knew I would have some side effects getting off cold turkey but what everyone called “brain zaps” had me really confused. It feels like the roadrunner is zapping across my brain! Plus I have always had ringing in my ears and now they ring so loud!!! I’m sweating bullets and burning up one minute and cold the next. The dizziness is bad but i always thought that the Cymbalta added to the dizziness. My tears started about the fourth day but seems okay now. I will be so glad when this is all over, just concerned how long this will take. I have come too far to stop now, last time I tried I only lasted 4 days. I just want to be my old self again and i think taken the Cymbalta made me lose me. Wish me luck!
I have so much going for me right now; but I still feel so sad and meloncoly. I only ever got on Prozac and then Cymbalta for my Fibromyalgia. They said Cymbalta was so much better than Prozac and I was put on it back in 2006, at 30 mg a day. I tolerated the side affects, which at the time seemed better than the horrible body pains with the Fibro. Then the side affects became daily affects, which disturbed me…the brain zaps, the ‘non-feeling’, the horrible nighmares, the robotic existance. I knew this wasn’t really me, and I took a chance and decided to face the Fibro should it return full force. I began reducing the crystals in my capsule. The first week, I reduced the capsule by 1/4, then after two weeks, I reduced to 1/2 a capsule, then after two more weeks, I went down further and further each couple of weeks, until I took my last capsule of probably 5mg on November 11th. Since that time, I have had terrible side affects, digestive issues, with pain and diarreah, hot and cold flashes, sleeplessness, flu like symptoms, and this past ten days has been worse with a Migraine headache, followed by Vertigo. The Migraine lasted seven full days, and my vision was so impaired I could not see normally. Then the Vertigo hit and is still causing me problems. I have tried taking Dramamine on the worse days, but did not take one yesterday, and there wasn’t much difference. I try to carry on and keep my daily routine, but feel so awful and now the anxiety and depression is here, which I don’t normally have an issue with. I am sixty-five and retired now. My husband suffers from many health issues and is in the bed much of the day. It’s just tough. I believe that medications might be helpful, but only ‘short term’. Doctors are medicating without knowing their client well enough, and they don’t keep up with the side affects as they should. It’s up to each of us to know our own bodies and take full charge of our health these days. Fortunately, I am in good health, and the Fibromyalgia has not shown itself at all since 2006, and after I got off Cymbalta. The brain zaps were the worse, as I was getting them every few minutes all day long that first week I went off. Then they stopped and I got the Migraine. My poor brain is trying to adjust it’s circuits and get me back to ‘me’. It just might take longer than I thought.
Things will improve for you Karen.
I’m 9 weeks out now and still getting bouts of withdrawal symptoms but I am a helluva lot better than I was. I am just about through it. For me, the withdrawal has not been an even slope but full of waves of improvement and bouts of worsening symptoms. I suspect every one has this this to some extent.
Way back I guessed this would take 6 – 10 weeks and it might take a little longer for me but after the 6 week mark I started to notice marked improvements.
Keep at it,
Mal
How is everyone?
I can say I’m improving… but some of the symptoms are still at full force (irritability, crying spells, nausea)
Ha! LOL! posted at the same time as you Rebecca.
ditto and see above.
Mal
I am starting to wean off Cymbalta from 120 mg. I have been on some form of AD for 14 years. Have experienced withdrawal when getting off of similar meds to switch . Awful. Zaps…the worst
I’m down to 60 , 2 days in, not bad. Aches/pains, in a bit of a fog, but nothing big. Will be doing the rest VERY slowly (hoping to get RX for 20 mg and 30 mg so I can do 50′s for a week or two, 40′s, etc). Not looking forward to withdrawal while trying to work. Waah
But these medicines have destroyed me. I have major sleep issues. My sleep study showed that I woke up over 120 times in the night. The AD’s have ruined my REM sleep. I also have adrenal fatigue and all kinds of problems that a normal 28 year old female should not be dealing with.
Scared…but EXCITED to get off once and for all. I just hope all my problems don’t come back once I am unmedicated for the first time in over a decade! : /
Hi J,
I recommend reading the Mood Cure by Julia Ross. Depression can be treated effectively with key amino acids such as tryptophan and GABA. By starting a supplemental regimen, you should be able to avoid going back to anti-depressants.
I was on Cymbalta for 18 months for fibromyalgia. I developed muscle and nerve damage as well as pulmonary hypertension, which is progressive and fatal. On my withdrawal I ended up in the hospital with atrial fib and had to take medication for that for four months. During my withdrawal I had extreme mood swings and tried to commit suicide three times. I had intense itching with blistering, muscle and joint pain and stiffness, anxiety, headache, feeling “out of body”, vertigo, dizziness, vision changes, abdominal pain, a cracked molar root from teeth grinding that had to be pulled, and a trip to hell for myself and my family. Google Cymbalta Martha Rosenberg and you will see that Cymbalta should never have been put on the market.
Cymbalta is bad been taking for some months and Im getting off its complete horse shit and Im not taking nothing else, Im moving back to the surf the best drug in the world. All these drugs are crap just find something in life that makes you happy and do that. Try not to be a sheep and live a dull 9 – 5 life with a mortgage and kids and you might have a chance.
How long will these brain zaps last? I’m on day 5 – yesterday was really bad, the zaps and dizziness is really scary. I’ve seen a few posts from people that have tried Sam-e and Omega 3 – I went to the store last night and bought both. I hope this helps!!
I was on Cymbalta for 6 years. I have been weaning off for about a month now. I didnt wasnt to be on it anymore becuase of how out of touch and “dead” i felt inside. I had no emotions. Everything was just on an even keel, no ups and no downs. Also, as you all know, Cymbalta makes you extremely constipated. However, now (sorry for being so blunt) I go 2 to 3 times a day. I dont think that is normal but maybe its just some of the anxiety coming back from cutting down on the cymbalta. Hopefully it will gradually be normal again. I’ve tried to go at least 4 days without taking a pill but at day 4 I start to feel nauseous so I take 15mg every 4 days. I wish I had never ever started this horrible drug. The doctors just want to keep increasing dosages.
I have not been a regular follower of this site. However, I see that many here are just as troubled by discontinuing Cymbalta (Cb) as I was in late 2011. I was prescribed Cb in about 2005 primarily for diabetic neuropathy, and secondarily for mild-to-moderate depression. Cb quietened the neuropathies within a couple of days and I continued the regimen for the neuropathies alone, as it never seemed to be effective for the depression. After several years of Cb I’d had enough of all its side-effects and decided to quit it. Anecdotes on Message Boards and Forums had me quite concerned. I was not going to replace 60mg/daily Cb with another poison, and decided that I would discontinue it using a method I read about: by COUNTING THE PELLETS in each capsule, taking out from 4 to 10 pellets daily. This didn’t work, though, because each capsule had differing pellet quantities: I suppose the capsules were filled by weight, not pellet volume or count. The first capsule had 540 pellets, the second one had only about 300, but the pellet count varied with each capsule. I had already made the decision to quit Cymbalta, so I gave myself about 6 months to wean to zero. I simply took several pellets from each daily capsule and hoped for the best. After a month of doing this, I was done and haven’t taken Cb since. I will warn, though, that the ‘brain zaps’, convulsions, nausea, and most every other description of withdrawal is true, with the severity being interpreted by each individual. It was not a fun three month period as my body must have enjoyed its long, warm association with the poison known as Cymbalta. I am now (Jan. 2012) 3 months without it and am happy to report that all my old friends have returned. That is, everything that Cb had dulled, including below the waist, is discovering renewal and rebirth, and restoration. Oh, yes; the diabetic neuropathy has totally abated. I never discussed this beforehand with my doctor as I had already made my decision and done my homework. Anyone who has not suffered through taking, and then discontinuing Cymbalta has no clue. THEY HAVE NO CLUE. IT’S UP TO YOU. If you want to kick Cymbalta, withdrawing is probably going to be one of the most unpleasant periods of time that you will endure. Hellish, even. But I wish you success as it will be a worthy task, and worthy of your best efforts. Fair Warning: Cymbalta will kick your bottom. Hard. You’re going to need your Big-Boy or Big-Girl pants. I strongly suggest that you do not take another prescription poison to withdraw from a prescription poison, do not attempt the on-off method of taking every other day – that won’t do it, either; just throw away a few pellets a day for a month or so, and don’t give up on yourself.
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