Fibromyalgia Support Group

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Cymbalta experience?

Dynastinae
Dynastinae

Hi everyone,



Just wondering if anyone else has tried cymbalta for fibro/depression/anxiety and what your experience has been. I was started at 30mg a little over a month ago. I had some really awful side effects for the first week but as soon as they started subsiding, I felt great. My mood was greatly improved, depression seemed to dissolve quite a bit and my anxiety has been at the lowest level I can remember it being in a very very long time. I don't think it has done much for the pain at this point.


About 2 weeks ago, my doc increased the dosage to 60mg to see if it could do me some more good and maybe work on my pain better. I still feel like my anxiety is in a great place right now, which is HUGE for me. However, I don't feel like it's affecting my pain levels and I am feeling super BLAH. I can't tell if it's my depression creeping back in or if it's starting to just make me feel numb emotionally. I've had antidepressants do that to me in the past and I almost find that worse than just coping with the depression. I am a very expressive and emotional person, which I don't see as a bad thing unless it gets out of control, and I just hate feeling nothing. I already feel like the chronic pain, depression, and mental illness have changed me as a person over time. I just can't tell if I'm feeling depresion or feeling nothing :/ because they often feel like the same thing.


Anyone else dealt with something similar on cymbalta? Has anyone seen pain relief as a result?



Thanks! Hope the day has been treating everyone well!

Community LeaderLeo
Leo
I got nothin'. I was on it for 3 days, had a very very very weird reaction, and that was all I could take. Bear in mind, I'm epileptic, so my brain and meds are already weird.

If the cymbalta won't help your pain, and it was prescribed for pain... Well, sounds pointless to me, but that's *me*.

I take prozac for depression related to PTSD. It does zip for pain for me.
AutumnSong
AutumnSong
Cymbalta caused me to become a zombie. I was white as a ghost and curled up in a ball. I couldn't talk or respond to anyone. I was taken to emergency and they admitted me. The doctor pulled me off of it. I take Prozac and it works well for depression but does nothing for my pain.
Jonsparky
Jonsparky
Had some terrible side effects, brain fog, blurred vision, also effected my prostate, did nothing for the pain but distract me with more physical problems. I think it is a real bad idea to give out these drugs off label like this.
Dynastinae
Dynastinae
Yikes, I'm sorry to hear that you all have had a nasty experience with this drug! It was mostly prescribed for my depression and anxiety, but this doctor thought that it may be of help with the pain as well. Once I got through the initial side effects, it really did make my anxiety much better, so I'm thankful for that. I might just give it a little more time and see if it evens out a bit. If not I will try to back off to a lower strength or try something different. I just haven't found anything else that helps with my anxiety like this. In the last year I started having really terrible panic attacks on a fairly regular basis and they have vanished now. The only other thing that has helped with the anxiety is benzos, but those make me feel like I will fall asleep standing up and really aren't a good idea to take unless I'm just chilling at home anyway, which is not usually the time that I need them the most.

I agree with you though Jon, I think there are a lot of dangers involved with prescribing drugs for things they are not intended for. Thank you all for sharing your experiences, I will be cautious with this one and talk to my doctor about it.
Jonsparky
Jonsparky
If you decide to go off it, you have to titrate slowly, by reducing the dose over a period of a month or two, there can be nasty withdrawal symptoms from this. Took me a month, after being on it for 6 months. Good luck!
Fantod
Fantod
I've been on 30mg of Cymbalta for years. I can't tolerate more due to multiple drug sensitivities. It works pretty well for me. Less pain and depression. Not perfect but nothing with Fibromyalgia ever is perfect.
AnnNY
AnnNY
I took one pill and felt like i had swallowed poison. My hand and feet were freezing. Then my hands started shaking. I felt like I was going to pass out. I got into my bed to sleep it off. I threw away the bottle in the morning and said I would never take that again. Worse drug reaction I ever had.

But I know some people feel their pain gets much better. But not the drug for me.
Dynastinae
Dynastinae
Thanks Jon! I will definitely keep that in mind if I ultimately decide to go off it.

Fantod, thanks for sharing, glad to know that someone has found some pain relief from cymbalta. I will give it a little more time but may back the dosage at some point.

Ann, I'm so sorry you had such a bad reaction. I almost gave up too but I've been through bad times with side effects on antidepressants before so I gave it some time. After about a week they lessened and now I get hardly any aside from sleepiness. Sounds like your reaction was way worse than mine though, hope you were able to find something else that helped!
BlueSky
BlueSky
I was on it for 6 months for fibro and migraines. The migraines reduced but it messed up my stomach. I had to get off of it.
Dynastinae
Dynastinae
Thanks for sharing Blue. I have definitely had some stomach upset as well but it has gotten better over time and usually only affects me for the morning and gets better throughout the day. I guess I am willing to take that over the anxiety at the moment. Sorry you had a bad experience with it though, hope you are well today!
Still_911
Still_911
The effects depends on the person. I started also 30mg then 60mg and now 120mg. The pains are still there and with regards to mood, yes sometimes you feel like zombie but sometimes at night I'm still crying. The fact that I'm also taking prescribed marijuana.
KatieHolowanky
KatieHolowanky
I was on cymbalta for just over a month, I didn't find it helped at all with my pain. I'm not a depressed person at all, even with the fibro, I'm always so upbeat and making jokes about myself and always wanting to be happy and around people. When I started this I was such a different person. I'd get sick and could not eat (that never happens to me. Ever lol), I was always super depressed, or really just had no emotion. All my friends noticed I was weird and never happy and not myself at all. I didn't want to leave my bed.
Dynastinae
Dynastinae
Still- Thank you, I hope that the cymbalta is helping you! I have considered medicinal MJ but I want to potentially work for the government when I graduate with my degree and I'm concerned that that would eliminate me from qualifying. Which sucks. Hope it brings you some relief!

Katie- I appreciate you sharing your experience. It seems like I definitely need to revisit my dosage at the very least if not try something else. My psych appointment isn't for another 2 months almost but I think I will need to move it up and discuss these side effects. Thanks! Hope you have found something better that helps with your pain!
linnie
linnie
I take 120 mg of Cymbalta a day. I have taken it for about 10 years. I have Fibromyalgia and Myofascial Pain Syndrome. It was just doubled 6 months ago for the MPS. I have no crazy side effects from it but it does make me sweat more. I have a high tolerance to drugs. It does help with the pain and depression that this chronic pain way of life brings on from time to time. I am glad it helps you. I exercise in the therapeutic pool at our Y, actually I teach the Authritis exercises 3 days a week. That helps a lot too.
WolfgangMinerva
WolfgangMinerva
It lifted my mood but did nothing for pain. To make matters worse, my vision went from 20/20 to 20/200. I couldn't see to drive. The circular for the drug mentioned that a few people get retina problems. I had a history of retina problems. When I complained to the prescribing doctor, she said, see an eye doctor. I replied, no, I'm going off Cymbalta immediately to see if my vision returns. Thank goodness it did. Just one in a long line of horrible doctors. I hate doctors who don't know that they don't know. I suggest you look into gabapentin (neurontin), the predecessor to Lyrica. Gabapentin causes side effects at first. I'm my case, I have never been able to take three per day as the rheumy prescribed. But one/day has helped my pain. It is not for depression.
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