UPDATE: Weaning off Cymbalta - Discontinuation Syndrome

[@ljcooil87]

I've been on Cymbalta for 15 years.. After a bad relapse of anxiety/depression in November of 2022 I was told I shouldn't have been on the drug for so long, and decided to come off of it. I tapered from december to march. 60mg to 30mg, which was horrible. 30 to 20, then when I tried 20 to 0 it just knocked me on my ass, so I bead-counted to 10mg, and after a week of that I came off completely.. I'm 3.5 weeks into being off the tablets, week 1 was brain-zaps, and dizziness, week two was horrible vertigo/dizziness and now in week 3/4 I'm waking up in the morning with bad anxiety, nausea, diarrhea, it's making me feel depressed because I don't feel normal in my head, I can't enjoy things I usually do - and I don't know where to go from here.. The doctors all think this shit vanishes in two weeks, well it certainly doesn't. I'm worried this tablet has permanently damaged my brain's ability to make certain feel-good chemicals now, and maybe that's why I feel so awful 4 weeks in.. I just want it to go away, and I want to feel normal.

[@erikaquinha]

how are you feeling now? did it get better? I hope you're well

[@ljcooil87]

@@erikaquinha after 12 weeks I was suffering with increased anxiety and depression. My therapist suggested visiting the doctor and I was out on a different medicine on a lower dose. I felt defeated at first, but I now feel a lot more balanced and comfortable on the new medicine. I guess I just need that helping hand.

[@ivetteo6473]

hello! how do you feel? Are your dizziness and vertigo gone?

[@ljcooil87]

@@ivetteo6473 The dizziness and vertigo did go after 8 - 10 weeks off the tablets, but I struggled to maintain my mental health so went onto a low dose of something new after 13 weeks.

[@shauntelle_09]

I’m trying to wean off of it now. It’s really kicking my butt. The vertigo, nausea, etc. all are happening and I’m so frustrated. I’ve been taking it every other day and instead of being able to go every two days it just made things amplify. So now I’m going to the lowest dose and keeping at every other day because of how hard my body is taking it. I regret ever agreeing to try it for depression/anxiety and hope I can stop taking it ASAP.

[@dawntreader815]

Shauntelle - my dr ok'd me opening the capsules when I got down to lowest made dose, counting out the little dots, putting them back into the capsule and tapering that way. Ask your dr if that is ok! Every 6 dots is 1 mg. They must go back in a capsule as they are absorbed in the right place. It's not easy but I think it's worth it for me so far.

[@horseph2k]

How long did your symptoms last?

[@katarinasimeone1358]

I’ve been taking it for a little over 10 years the same dosage 30 mg. Starting to have weird zappy feelings every day and anxiety. If I miss one dose I’m extremely nauseous sick and can’t get out of bed. I’m so scared of stopping it!

[@YeeheCS]

@@dawntreader815how are you now?

[@YeeheCS]

@@katarinasimeone1358how are you now?

[@momentswithyahya4239]

Omg! Yes!!!! Even staying on Cymbalta , it will turn against you! Ugh 😑. I’ve been on for less than a year and my body is starting to feeling heavy and weird. I guess the heavy head feeling must be vertigo. I am weaning off now. Just wanted to see what other people’s experience was. Thank you 🙏

[@YeeheCS]

How did it go?

[@momentswithyahya4239]

@@YeeheCS I actually only went down from 40 mg to 20. Turns out the real culprit was something completely unrelated. But I will say this, Cymbalta will make you hot 🥵

[@YeeheCS]

@@momentswithyahya4239 Glad youre doing well

[@FrankieBagz]

I'm on 30 mg of Cymbalta I'm thinking about buying a analytical scale and weaning myself off 1 mg less every 5 days until the very end a long process but probably the best way. Also expensive the scales are 400 dollars

[@momentswithyahya4239]

And I’m happy for you that you are okay. Bless you ❤️

[@DearHuman1]

Thank you for commenting! Hope your journey is going well too :)

[@momentswithyahya4239]

@@DearHuman1 you’re welcome 🙂

[@timothyturner9134]

Anyone else feel like they have a Thorn in the part of your brain that requires focus and thought

[@lynnternet9135]

I've taken it for three years and I regret it entirely, now that I've stopped taking it. I attributed all the negative symptoms to my rather bad mental health during the pandemic. I was already overweight and I gained so much during these years, despite not eating that badly. I'm very angry at my clinic for not doing any kind of follow up during these years. The worst part is, I feel better doing cold turkey than not, even with these withdrawal symptoms, I feel like I can study now.

[@davidhaswell1074]

Just finished cold Turkey after 2 years on this drug. It took one week. The first night was the worst with improvement every day. Nowhere near as bad has the alarmists make it seem

[@La.Luna.666]

This happened to me,I went from 130-189 in a very short time even when I don’t eat much. I also started to oversweat and the fatigue would make me sleep at times 14 hours.

[@septemberphillips3735]

@@La.Luna.666 this is the same with me!

[@BallKING-]

I was on this pill.. because a counselor prescribed it to me because I was drinking heavily. I was on it for 4 yrs.. in the first 2 weeks it made me feel like I was a kid again.. after that it turned me into a non emotional vegetable. I was numb to feeling emotions.. I tried stopping cold Turkey... and I couldn't do it. I went to a natural path.. they gave me natural form that's in the pill... I was told to open the capsule and remove a few balls everyday along with the natural form . After 2 months I was off cymbalta. Thank God. It's been years now.. looking back I would never advise anyone to take cymbalta or any antidepressant pills.

[@feliciacantu8836]

Do you know what was in the natural pills the naturopath had you take? I'm currently trying to get off cymbalta.

[@susiefloosie8885]

Husband got stage 4 cirrhosis and hepatic encephalopathy. Liver doc said Cymbalta was fine...then I looked into it and found out that it can actually cause liver failure. Hubby has non alcoholic cirrhosis. Getting off this medication is the first thing to do. Not good.

[@alm8538]

My mom had the same diagnosis. She passed away five years ago. At that time they gave her Prozac, if I remember correctly. I'm so sorry you and your husband are going through this. It's definitely a tough sickness both physically and mentally, therefore he needs an antidepressant that is known to be effective with minimal side effects. Not something like cymbalta that is so painful to get off from. Some liver docs suck. They know very little about compassion and mental health.

[@abcdefghijklmnop4551]

Hello I am weaning off at the moment And I have ADHD too and only found out last month! This video was sooooo helpful Thank you so much! Xxx

[@kimmorgan866]

100% resonate!! It's absolute poison. I've been taper 2 years. It's made me so sick!

[@meredithfriday7798]

I absolutely hated Cymbalta! I was on it for 7 months. My doctor kept me going up on it to 120 eventually and I honestly think it made me worse. I seriously think it gave me more anxiety than I had in the beginning. Felt like I was in a dream all the time. Eventually cross tapered to Effexor so I didn’t feel much coming off Cymbalta. I feel like Effexor is a better drug but not a magic pill by any sense. Just glad to be off that gosh awful Cymbalta! Best of luck to you 💕❤️

[@DearHuman1]

Thank you for sharing your experience and taking the time to comment :)

[@Brandon-dk9sn]

I don't mean to be harsh I'm just a blunt type of person. Transparency is important to me for decision-making for me. I have considered taking Cymbalta. Considering the weight gain. Did it just happen from nowhere, or did it just make you super hungry and you overate? Just curious what happened there. I'm proud of you for being so open and thank you for you service for those with me tal health issues. And even during your service during Covid.❤

[@DearHuman1]

"Antidepressants may cause weight gain by interfering with neurotransmitters in the brain like serotonin or histamine that help control appetite. Blocking histamine may boost appetite and also lead to weight gain. Some antidepressants may cause sedation and fatigue that lower levels of activity and exercise which may result in weight gain." It changed my appetite, making me crave unhealthy food to chase any dopamine. Also, made me fatigued for most of the day, which made me more sedentary. Combined it definitely impacted my metabolism, and as soon as I increased my dose... so did my weight. It seems if you're on it for longer, your weight gets impacted. Which means, you need to make sure you're keeping an active lifestyle etc to monitor that weight gain. Thank you for taking the time to watch and comment :)

[@Brandon-dk9sn]

@Dear Human awesome feedback. And thank you. You're not alone. We work together we heal together. Keep it up!!

[@tyrel-fg7zf]

​@@DearHuman1 Try weed

[@timgoodwintv]

I’ve been on cymbalta since 2016 I’ve been tapering off painfully slow over the last couple years and I’ve gotten from 90mg down to 30mg I’ve been on the 30mg for well over a year and I’m gonna go down 20mg soon hopefully. What I’m not looking forward to is eventually having to jump from 20mg to 0 and I feel like that’s gonna be hell. Every time I drop in dosage it’s terrible. But I really wanna get off the stuff.

[@Mr.Pink1992]

How’s it going since you posted your comment? I have been tapering off this for the last few days. 60 mg to 30 mg.

[@YeeheCS]

@@Mr.Pink1992how are you now?

[@chrissieduplessis1111]

Hi there! Thank you for sharing your experiences. I'm thinking about coming off of Cymbalta because I feel like it's not making much of a difference. Is that a good enough reason, because doctors are hesitant to help me come off even though I really want to. Thanks!

[@DearHuman1]

Hi, I can't really answer that as I don't know you or your medical history. It's something to discuss with your doctor. Medications for mood disorders take weeks to months to really see if they work for the individual. Any relief of symptoms, etc, isn't seen right away and people get discouraged. It's a long process and requires patience and self awareness. If you've been on it for a long time and see no changes, could be a matter of changing the dose or it's not the right class for you. However, if you've just started, maybe you need more time to assess? Or if the side effects outweigh the benefits, then continue to advocate for yourself. While your doctors may know your medical history, you also should evaluate whether this is working for you and advocate for yourself -which is easier said than done! Another thing I'll mention, don't rely on just medication alone. Add in therapy and other good support systems. Medication is not a catch all, unfortunately. Best of luck!

[@heartfullofhippies]

Girl, I think I have ADHD too. That’s literally what started me on my mental health journey. I was in the military at the time & they told me “You have Major Depressive Disorder.” Ok, cool… then they told me I had Borderline Personality Disorder NOW I’m out of the military but I still see the VA and they now think I have bipolar disorder 😑 All of this, just so they can avoid saying I was misdiagnosed. My brother and my dad have ADHD so like, I’m not surprised if I do actually have it. But of course, I’m an adult woman who did well in school so the doctors don’t take me seriously when I say I think I have ADHD. I’ve quit Ariproprizal and now I’ve quit Cymbalta. These withdrawal symptoms aren’t it. I feel terrible. 😓

[@safaasgari3115]

I'm dying every day. I was on many drugs for my OCD and then they misdiagnosed me with bipolar put me on many other drugs my life is over. It's been six months. I am off my meds, but it's like nightmare😢 Akhatisia,anhedonia, cognitive impairment, insomnia, DPDR, racing thoughts, and severe mood swings،Hyper sensitive nervous system. Hyper salivation,horrofic nightmare. I'm getting worse every day. I can't take it anymore 😢😢 I really want to live, but I can't take it anymore. I am so close to suside everyday.

[@aprilprescott4192]

I pray that you are feeling better.

[@350R19]

Im on day 4 and weed is helping me so much! Not only the flower but edibles have been a huge help. Seems to relax the body with some good indica! Thankfully its legal here in AZ! I recommend 😅

[@CitizenofthenewJerusalem]

My experience is like a horrible hangover with severe anxiety and it's out of nowhere and out of character for me. Extreme exhaustion in my chest, nausea, clenching teeth, ears ringing and headache. It just lingers and sticks around and I'm taking it for fibromyalgia. It makes me feel so sick 🤢 and it causes a horrible low mood like after a big, ugly break up and profound broken heart feeling. It zaps the life out and yet hard to get to sleep. Too exhausted and tense to relax, and when I do finally doze off I wake up from night terrors and weird livid dreams. It's not worth the suffering when there's other treatments available. This medicine should be banned.

[@gamingwithking136]

Have you thought about using natural alternatives❤

[@dwilson6769]

Cymbalta changes hormones. I felt so sick on it. I'm tired of taking pills. No more pulls just to exist for money because the doctors won't do surgery. Also, causes such horrible fatigue. Good luck.

[@katarinasimeone1358]

Did your pain come back?

[@lisabreeden2295]

I'm weaning off of it and it's kicking my butt

[@Carnivorelion]

Try the carnivore diet :) you look good though.