HappyGrace Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 experience with it (good or bad)? I'm considering whether to take it or not, and don't know much about it. Please FEEL FREE to PM me if you don't feel comfortable sharing here. I would really appreciate the help on this, thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 I did well on Cymbalta. I took it for several months. The only thing I did not like was the capsule form because I like to break my meds when I go off them (to lower my dose gradually). I got a little more relief from Lexapro and it was in a pill form, so it has been my choice for the last several months. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rwilliams Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 My neighbor/friend was put on this drug for fibromalagia pain and had a very bad reaction. Suicidal thoughts and one attempt. Hospitalization with ECT treatments. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanvan Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 for Fibromyalgia pain. I was not depressed (except about the pain) and was not being treated for depression. I was very hesitant to take it after reading the side effects. My DH did not want me to take it. The doctors I had were not really offering any other solutions, so I finally started on it. For a while everything was fine. I thought it might be helping me to relax a little. I still had pain, but it seemed sort of muted. After about a month and a half I started to feel a little strange at times. From then on everything got worse & worse and I began sliding into depression, though I didn't realize it at first. I continued taking the drug because the doctor I had at the time told me it wasn't the drug, it was actually me and the Cymbalta had just revealed what my underlying problem was! He then wanted me to go into therapy and began asking me lots of questions about my childhood. From then on every medical complaint I had was linked to my depression (drug induced). I started to feel so bad that it was like someone was scrubbing out my brain daily and leaving it empty. I couldn't remember anything and I did not care about anything. I even felt like I was going to lose control. I can't really describe how I felt, but I did not want to be left alone at all. The doctor became so obnoxious with his continued insistence that I was the problem and not the meds that I switched doctors. (BTW, He was also telling me I wasn't praying for the right things and not going to the right church too!) I went off the Cymbalta and got a new doctor. I began researching and exercising. I started taking a quality multivitamin and several supplements that have shown promise in studies -- supplements that both alternative and conventional doctors agree may help. All those weird feelings went away after I got off the Cymbalta. I still have flashbacks to some of the things that doctor said to me. Several family members said I should have reported him, but I don't want anything to do with him. I don't even like to think about him. This past spring at the skating rink, I met another woman who is still being treated by him. At the time I met her she was taking Cymbalta and complaining to me about the side effects. She was somewhat guarded though, so she may have been having other problems with it that she wouldn't discuss. Several weeks after I met her, a friend of mine told me the woman had tried to commit suicide. Another friend at church recently tried Cymbalta and she ended up with the same problems I had. I'm not trying to say you should or shouldn't take it. I have read some good reports from others who say it works really well for them. We're all different. However, if you do decide to take it, be on the watch for any strange symptoms and discontinue it before you get to feeling like I did. It's a med that needs to be discontinued gradually. If you take it, it might be a good idea to tell your doctor that you are taking it as a trial and will choose to discontinue it if you begin experiencing any strange side effects. Hope I haven't scared you, but I wash someone had shared this with me so I wouldn't have believed the things my ex-doctor told me. Shannon Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 (edited) I did pretty well on it. I found after going off it that I was sleeping much better at night. I could tell, while on it, that I was upset, but I couldn't FEEL the upset--which is a very weird place to be. All SSRI's make me sleepy; even Prozac, which is supposed to be energizing, wiped me out. Edited August 27, 2010 by Chris in VA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaS Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 I was put on it for fibromyalgia pain too. I ended up in the ER thinking I was having a stroke and as I was titrating off I had what I call an episode ?possible seizure?. Scary stuff to me. My body doesn't like foreign substances apparently. I went the natural route and started using AIM products. BarleyLife and Fiberblend. It took a while but I am off all prescription pain meds now. If you want info on those products let me know and I'll get it for you. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tree House Academy Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 Wow...looks like using the stuff for fibromyalgia pain should be illegal! Goodness. Taking it for depression, I didn't have any of the issues you all describe. Scary!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted August 27, 2010 Author Share Posted August 27, 2010 Well, I can't say I'm very encouraged about taking it-lol! But I know it affects everyone differently and I really do want to hear the good and bad. Thanks to those who have shared so far! I'm sorry it was such a bad experience for some of you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 I would never consider an anti-depressant and I take some pretty serious meds. Of course, I don't have any answers but I would try just about anything else. I know some people have had a good response but I have just heard about too many terrible ones. I hope you can find something that helps though. :grouphug: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hoosiermom Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 I began taking Cymbalta 9 months ago for fibromyalgia, and it has literally changed my life. Altho Cymbalta hasn't 'cured' my fibromyalgia, it has decreased the pain and improved sleep quality and mood. I have no idea whether the improvement in my mood is due to the Cymbalta or the decreased pain/improved sleep. But I still feel like I'm improving after 9 months on the med. And yes, in the past 10 years I had tried almost everything else for fm--countless supplements and prescription meds, including Lyrica. Lyrica didn't help and withdrawing from it was a nightmare. There was an unpleasant adjustment period w/ Cymbalta--dizziness, nausea, etc. And it was bad enough that I considered just quitting. I'm now thankful that I didn't. I know with this type of med you have to consider the risks. However, the benefits, for me, have been worth it. I still have to pace myself, watching closely how I schedule my activities. I will still have flare-ups, but they aren't as intense and don't seem to last as long. I'm just so thankful that I can now participate more fully in life. Best of luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mommy22alyns Posted August 27, 2010 Share Posted August 27, 2010 I've taken it in conjunction with a few other meds and it worked well for me. I've just gone off of it and on to Zoloft because we're TTC though. I hope it works out well for you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted August 28, 2010 Share Posted August 28, 2010 (edited) I took it for uncontrolled nerve pain. I could barely walk and was in near constant, unbearable pain. I was running out of other options so I decided to give it a try even though I know it is notorious for bad side effects. Month #1 was great as I started getting good pain relief. I was very, very nauseous for the first month, but was doing great-felt great-great mental place. I lost 15lbs in 6 weeks due to not eating. This wasn't a healthy weight loss, I was barely eating enough to stay alive. #2 the pain relief continued but so did the nausea. Once I figured out that I wouldn't really puke, I started eating through the nausea and my weight stablized. I also started having severe restless leg syndrome at night and had odd discomfort in my arms and legs during the day. It was still worth the pain relief. #3 the pain relief continued but I was in a dark place mentally. Not suicidal dark; just quiet and lethargic dark...I could hardly move. I also noticed that my memory was starting to go. I couldn't remember ANYthing. I had to take notes on basic phone calls. To do the most basic chores, I would skip a day of meds-do my chores and then take it again the next day. I stopped taking it soon after. My pain had got under control with steroid injections and the lethargy-induced-limited-mobility :lol: . This summer I started a new med called Savella. It is for fibromyalgia but I am taking for my leg pain. IT has helped SOO much and I have virtually no side effects. Edited August 28, 2010 by Tap, tap, tap Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariannNOVA Posted August 28, 2010 Share Posted August 28, 2010 :bigear: I have been reading this thread with great interest. Thanks to everyone who has answered. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pip Posted August 28, 2010 Share Posted August 28, 2010 I took it but had horrible thoughts. However, I am extremely sensitive to medication and tried 5 antidepressants before going on prozac. No side effects. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HappyGrace Posted August 29, 2010 Author Share Posted August 29, 2010 Thank you all for responding! I am still unsure. The doctor said he has had wonderful results with it, but when I first got the sample (a month and a half ago), I took ONE pill and felt so sick and dizzy I had to go to bed. I was so disappointed. I've been thinking of trying again but too scared. I seem to be sensitive to meds-always get side effects-so I'm struggling to find something that will work. I don't want to go through five meds, with all the startup/withdrawal stuff, trying to find the right one. I'm very discouraged. Dh takes Lexapro; toying with trying that but can't get myself to commit to meds instead of natural. Anyway, thanks for sharing! I think due to my initial reaction to the Cymbalta, I won't try again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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