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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 15 of 15. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:30:56
I'm really torn about going above 30mg to 60mg Cymbalta only to find it worse and have to come off a higher dose!
I've been on 30mg for a couple of weeks and feel worse than when I started it.
Is this a med that tiredness goes away with more, like Remeron, or will side effects get worse?
Posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:34:24
In reply to Is tiredness worse with increased Cymbalta dose?, posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:30:56
> I'm really torn about going above 30mg to 60mg Cymbalta only to find it worse and have to come off a higher dose!
>
> I've been on 30mg for a couple of weeks and feel worse than when I started it.
>
> Is this a med that tiredness goes away with more, like Remeron, or will side effects get worse??
Posted by Phillipa on September 17, 2005, at 23:07:33
In reply to SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please, posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:34:24
I'm certainly not Scott but I did take cymbalta for 3 months. I took up to 60mg and just before I stopped it I was starting to wake-up earlier. Since I hate to get up early I stopped the med and that's when all aches and pains came back again. So I should probably stayed with it a lot longer. Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by Racer on September 18, 2005, at 1:07:05
In reply to SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please, posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:34:24
I've been on 60mg of Cymbalta for about a year now. During that time, we've tried both 30mg and even 90mg, finally finding that a combination of Cymbalta, Wellbutrin, and Provigil works best. (Although we've recently added Lamictal to that, since it wasn't enough...)
I have had the horrible fatigue, and have learned that I pretty much have to have a nap at 2PM every day. While it's not ideal, I'm learning to make that work for now. The fatigue got much, much worse at 90mg, but at 60mg it's certainly no worse than 30mg, and since it works much better at that dose, I probably have more energy for that reason.
For what it's worth, the Lamictal, now that I've titrated up to 200mg, seems to be easing the fatigue. Unfortunately, that's going along with insomnia, but mostly it's not unbearable... I can't say that I'm as energetic as I'd like to be, but it's getting better every day. (I managed to get through the day today without a nap, and to hold off on my nap until 7PM yesterday...)
I hope that helps.
Posted by SLS on September 18, 2005, at 8:23:51
In reply to SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please, posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:34:24
My brief experience with Cymbalta didn't yield much information about how this drug affects one longitudinally. I would trust Racer's account for how this drug behaves at varying dosages. I didn't like the way I felt at dosages above 60mg because it did make me somewhat somnolent and amotivational.
In what ways do you feel worse than when you started Cymbalta?
- Scott
Posted by theo on September 18, 2005, at 10:30:55
In reply to Re: SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please, posted by SLS on September 18, 2005, at 8:23:51
> In what ways do you feel worse than when you started Cymbalta?
>
>
> - ScottI feel more emotionally unstable. Being by myself doesn't bother me normally, but I've found myself feeling more hopeless and alone. My girlfriend had something to do this weekend, which usually is a blessing to get a little time apart, but I've caught myself feeling extremely needy. Maybe it's mild anxiety from the Cymbalta, although I feel tired at the same time.
I felt a brief lift at 15mg, I split the pellets and took 15mg for 4 days, and since I went to 30mg haven't felt ANYTHING positive. I know it's just been 10 days on 30mg but normally there is some improvement by now.
I feel like doing nothing. I just sit around gazing thinking about things I need to do and make my stress level worse. Seems like these SSRI/SNRI's are all about the same in this respect.
As I said, my big fear in going up is increasing these negative feelings, to find myself having to wean off a higher dose. Was the discontinuation hard with the Cymbalta for you?
When I'm off meds, I feel more in control of myself, but some depression. When I take SSRI's/SNRI's, I MAY feel some lift of depression, but feel strange around people and feel like I'm going to do or say something stupid, less control, hard for me to speak.
Posted by Declan on September 18, 2005, at 20:42:30
In reply to Is tiredness worse with increased Cymbalta dose?, posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:30:56
Theo
What do you think about going back to 15mg/d?
Do you think the brief lift would be sustained?
Declan
Posted by theo on September 18, 2005, at 22:43:46
In reply to Re: Is tiredness worse with increased Cymbalta dose?, posted by Declan on September 18, 2005, at 20:42:30
> Theo
> What do you think about going back to 15mg/d?
> Do you think the brief lift would be sustained?
> DeclanIt might be worth trying the 20mg dose.
Posted by leslieamy8 on September 21, 2005, at 19:55:33
In reply to Re: SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please » theo, posted by Phillipa on September 17, 2005, at 23:07:33
I have been on Cymbalta for a couple of months now and I can't really say its done much for me. I was hoping that it would have saved me the trouble of having to have ECTs but it isn't any better than any of the other meds that have failed. I went from 30,to 60, to finally 90mg and am extremely disappointed with this drug. Good luck with your search.
~Amy
Posted by theo on September 22, 2005, at 7:38:05
In reply to Re: SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please, posted by leslieamy8 on September 21, 2005, at 19:55:33
> I have been on Cymbalta for a couple of months now and I can't really say its done much for me. I was hoping that it would have saved me the trouble of having to have ECTs but it isn't any better than any of the other meds that have failed. I went from 30,to 60, to finally 90mg and am extremely disappointed with this drug. Good luck with your search.
> ~AmyAmy,
What differences did you feel when you went from 30mg to 60mg? Did it make tiredness or any other side effects worse? Did you ever feel it "kick in" for any period of time?
Posted by leslieamy8 on September 22, 2005, at 13:32:26
In reply to Re: SLS, your Cymbalta knowledge requested please » leslieamy8, posted by theo on September 22, 2005, at 7:38:05
never really felt it "kick in" as you say,but it did make me even more tired during the day. I guess I'm just hanging with it because I'm sick of going through med after med. Good luck.
~Amy
Posted by barbaracat on September 25, 2005, at 14:23:49
In reply to Is tiredness worse with increased Cymbalta dose?, posted by theo on September 17, 2005, at 19:30:56
I haven't been posting for awhile. Just can't seem to rouse myself to get off the couch, can't seem to wake up. I was getting an AD response from 3 pellets of Cymbalta (a sensitive bipolar), then 10 pellets. Somedays I felt great, others not so great. Always the lurking anxiety. So I graduated to a full 30 mg capsule around a week ago hoping it would be just enough, and after visiting the Bab Board, jeez if I didn't once again learn something. It's the Cymbalta that's turning me into a mess of ooze.
I'll try the Adderall I just got from my pdoc. If it helps with this duh! I'll take it cause I think Cymbalta could be a good drug and was for me at very low dosage. Maybe I'll go back down again and do those other things to for dealing with the anxiety. It's either Se up D down or vice versa.
Why can't someone come up with a new drug? I don't care if it's legal. I just want to feel better long enough so it can sink into my memory circuits and won't kill me. - Barbara
Posted by theo on September 25, 2005, at 22:37:24
In reply to Is tiredness worse ? - YES!, posted by barbaracat on September 25, 2005, at 14:23:49
Are you taking Cymbalta morning or evening?
Posted by barbaracat on September 26, 2005, at 10:49:40
In reply to Re: Is tiredness worse ? - YES! » barbaracat, posted by theo on September 25, 2005, at 22:37:24
> Are you taking Cymbalta morning or evening?
**I've been taking it morning. This morning I haven't taken it yet and am feeling pretty good, so do you think taking it evening is a better idea? Won't it cause a morning hangover? It's hard enough to get me out of bed in the best of circumstances.
Posted by theo on September 26, 2005, at 22:35:05
In reply to Re: Is tiredness worse ? - YES! » theo, posted by barbaracat on September 26, 2005, at 10:49:40
> > Are you taking Cymbalta morning or evening?
>
> **I've been taking it morning. This morning I haven't taken it yet and am feeling pretty good, so do you think taking it evening is a better idea? Won't it cause a morning hangover? It's hard enough to get me out of bed in the best of circumstances.
>
>Sometimes I don't feel rested, and I'm thinking about switching to mornings for a try.
This is the end of the thread.
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