Cymbalta withdrawal, here I come

Back in October I went on a 7 day cruise to Bermuda and I forgot to bring my Cymbalta with me. I'm on a 60mg. / day dose. The most significant side effect I'd experienced was what I believe is known as "directional vertigo". Whenever I turned my head suddenly, I would get dizzy. The other thing was I would %-) sleep more soundly and have mild nightmares. I was kind of glad for the nightmares since in the little more than a year on this med, I've had nothing but pleasant dreams. Even though it sounds like a good thing,(the pleasant dreams, that is.) I believe nightmares are necessary from time to time to help your mind process experiences.
When on the medication, about 80% of my libido is gone. Then there's also the blurred vision, the urine retention, the excessive sweating, I gained 30 pounds, and now the results from my last blood work up indicate the numbers for my liver function are off. There is a warning about alchohol use and cymbalta, in that it will cause liver damage, but my psychiatrist poo-poos the notion, saying:" just don't go overboard when you drink. I drink once every two weeks when friend come to visit. I don't see that as excessive. I intend to stop taking the drug with the help of my shrink and plan to treat my anxiety disorder with diet and exercise.

[I've been on Cymbalta for about 6 or 8 months. I had been taking Lexapro and like lots of others, I had weight gain, ZERO sex drive and just wanted to get off. My MD recommended I just taper off of the Lexapro and taper on to Cymbalta. I did...and the rest is one difficult ride to hell. I called the MD office 6 days ago. I had been sleeping my life away for the past couple of months. NO DRIVE..felt horrible, depression is putting it mildly. Brain zaps (Now I know what it was...before I thought I had a brain tumor or something. My fingers tingle, I feel like I am going to throw up, no memory, sleep some more...eat...sleep...eat...sleep. I withdrew from life. Today I cried ALL DAY LONG...I am a zombie. I am told tonight that I have to take more...oh my GOD...what have I done? I am scared...I have never felt so bad. I want off...I don't want to take anything else ever. I am sick....This is awful.

I am experiencing every single side effect on this board. I am sick. I feel like I am dying. I called my MD...I have been off of these pills for 5 days...the nurse told me to stop taking them until I wasn't sleepy anymore. then to start taking Zoloft. HOLY sh*t. I have cried all day long. I am shaking, nausiated, scared to death. My heart is doing strange things. I hear zapping noises in my head. What have I done. I am scared to death.

My fiance' stopped taking Cymbalta 'cold turkey' a week ago after having been on this drug for over two years. He has had NO side-effects.

I can't help but wonder if part of the withdrawal symptoms people experience depend partly on why they were placed on this drug to begin with.

He was on this for neuralgia, not depression.

Just a thought.

Hi! I have been on Cymbalta 30mg for a 1 1/2 yrs & before that Effexor xr for a couple years but it made my blood pressure extremely high. I want to get off of cymbalta & have been reading your stories. If I forget a days dosage, I feel so depressed, cry over anything and when I turn my head or eyes i feel this swooshy sound or feeling, kinda makes me dizzy, do you have that too? It's weird.

Okay I've been on cymbalta for only 3 months. The first month, I took 30 mgs and thought I had found the wonder pill. Not only did it help my anxiety and depression, but it also helped my arthritis in my fingers. It was awesome. The second month, the doctor upped me to 60 mgs. I slept all day and drooled. I went back to 30 on my own. The third month, I was sleeping all day and was so depressed. My doctor suggested I taper off,
and gave e a RX for 20 mg. I opened the capsules and dumped out half of them for a week and then went cold turkey last Sunday. It has now been 7 days and this is living HELL. I have the worst smelly sweat. I itch like crazy, rain zaps and can't sleep. my husband wants me to go back on it for a while - I said NO. I want it out of my system.
I don't know how this drug was approved. It is criminal. The FDA should require trials for withdrawal as well. I found a website which tells you how to detox from antidepressants. I haven't tried any of the stuff because of the cost. I'm just taking lots of Vitamin C, Omega 3, DHEA, and probiotics. Probiotics help rewire the brain.
If anyone has any other suggestions, PLEASE let me know.

oh ohhhhhhh my God, I'm feel like I'm dying trying to taper down from Cymbalta. At least I don't feel crazy all alone. I thought I was the only person on this planet who couldn't kick the Cymbalta. I could understand if it were a feel good high drug. WOW. Thanks for the laughs (although sad for us all) trying to get our life back without taking meds everyday of our life and feeling anxiety if we forget to take it for one day.

I too thought I had found a wonder drug after my mother passed away 2 years ago. I would never take an antidepressant again if I survive getting off this one.

My doc has me slowing weaning to effexir because it has a pill form and she thinks it will be easier for me to wean off. I don't know......I am still very sick and can't hardly function.

I sleep every day after work and my husband is being very supportive but for how long if it takes me months to get off this stuff.

I have been on Cymbalta for almost one year now. My doctor said she didn't think I would need to be on it for a long time as she didn't think my depression was extremely severe. I suffer from Major Depressive Episodes...and most of the time its dormant.

I want to get off of the drug and start taking Saint John's Wart...Does anyone have any thoughts about this herb? Is it good? did it work?

I saw the post about taking out the small beads inside the Cymbalta capsule...I do believe that is a clever idea, however, are all of those beads the same thing? some beads might have different things in them, I wouldnt want to throw off the balance of chemicals that make up Cymbalta. Anyone know?

I am about to stop taking Cymbalta and I am very nervous...I am on the lowest dose 30 mg and it is STRONG, I know because if I miss one pill I could tell, I get very dizzy.

A lot of people on here say they have experienced brain zaps, that is interesting, I'm glad I have not but I have experienced zaps on the tips of my fingers, esp when I am trying to fall asleep...


Does anyone recommend taking Saint John's Wart? I was to switch to something natural.


And, does anyone know if the beads inside of the Cymbalta capsules are all the same? I dont want to mess up the chemical balance by taking some out if they are all not the same.

Hi Cristal, I think it's good you want to get off Cymbalta if it's making you unhappy to be on it, but you do need to talk to your doctor about quitting it effectively. Your doctor should support you in it and maybe give you an alternative medication to take instead so you transition well. If s/he doesn't, see another doctor. Does that make sense?

Thank god for these posts!!! I found out last tuesday that i was pregnant, i've been on cymbalta 60mg for about six months, i'm an rn and know that cymbalta is not safe in pregnancy so i stopped the med, i had the brain zaps and buzzing inmy head at first which i kind of expected since i'd get those if i'd miss a dose,but then the moodiness and tearfullness started (thought it was pregnancy hormones), (all along ive had forgetfullness and periods of not being able to find the right words or even speaking clearly, to the point i'm thinking maybe i have a brain tumor), then anger i hated everyone and i was yellling at my kids, then today i had visual changes, dizziness and i though oh my god i'm preeclamptic again, saw my ob-gyn today and he took me off of work for next two days because i couldn't quit crying, i felt out of control and i was wishing i wasn't pregnant, i came home and googled withdrawal from cymbalta and i can't believe what i saw, i was sooo relieved because i thought i was losing my mind until i saw everyone's comments, it gave me hope that i can get through this, i can't/won't take any antidepressant during pregnancy so i had no choice to stop suddenly but i am glad it is not just me, i even suggested tomy ob/gyn that maybe it was withdrawal from cymbalta and he kinda blew me off thinking HORMONES, i see him again tomorrow and i am showing him this site, iwill tell all of my pt. who are on this med to get off, this is a drug that should not be on the market... thanks for allowing me to "vent" my frustrations

Hi Guest, I'm so glad to hear that you're feeling so normal again, and I am sorry to hear that you weren't able to do so hot with Cymbalta withdrawals. Thanks for posting on your experiences. Do you have any other experiences you'd care to share?

I have never been on such horrible medicine in my life time. My doctor has refused to take me off of it maybe because he knows how horrible it is to get off it. So I've been trying to take myself off without his help. He put me on it. Now, I feell so disappointed that he would give me something like this. The withdrawals are horrible.....awful.....! I have felt all the brain things you all have mentioned, the nasuea... after decreasing the med myself, gradually. I figured a few weeks would do it, but NOT. After a few weeks I stopped.... ohhhhhhhhh my brain felt like it was swelling up, was big, heavy. Had all these strange feelings in my brain, plus the nasuea. So I went back on it after two days off. However the dosage is very low. I am trulyworried about what this medicine has done and is doing to my body. I've never been a prisoner of any medicine by choice... and now I feel like I'm one against my will.

I am very happy I found this site. I have been on Cymbalta for years. I have fibromyalgia. My doc (new, young guy) decided I should go cold turkey off Cymbalta and start Savella. Oh, my gosh. Not only has my pain intensified to the point I have had to cut my work day down to 5 hours, I cry, have the brain shocks, fell completely as if my world is falling apart, have lost friends, my kids (18 and 26), my daughter-in-law and my sister think I am nuts... Today I described it as if I had been standing in a safe, secure room...sheltered from the rain and storms...then the walls came tumbling down. I can't stop crying, I am short with my family and take things completely out of context. My doctor is the one who must be out there. I asked a pharmacist and he said "no way" should he have had me just stop the Cymbalta cold turkey and tirtrate onto the Savella. Even my eyelids hurt...now after reading the withdrawals, I am wondering if so much of what is happening is "withdrawals". Makes sense.

I went on the Cymbalta for the fibromyalgia pain and yes, as I have read on other sites, I had an increased desire to drink. Bad idea. Of course, I stopped that as well. I have gained 70 lbs during the three years I have been on this drug. I asked the docs over and over if it could be the meds...and they said, "no way".

I have severe pain in my right, upper side, just under the rib area. My numbers have been off, off, off, triglcerides off the charts...but no doc has agreed with me that any of this could be the drug or that it could be connected. Last year, had cyst in liver duct and had to have it cut out put in stints. Of course, they think this is hereditary...but also had to have stint put in pancreas.

I am in a bit of a panic. I don't trust my doc now, the doc that treated the liver cyst doesn't think the Cymbalta has anything to do with any of this....additonally, I am alone, alone, alone.

today I had to leave work, I knew why too as even missing one dose of Cymbalta causes dizziness and brain zaps. I have missed 2 days though and felt like I was getting the flu. could not think straight at all !!!! made that excuse of flu to leave too. I'm home now, in bed waiting for the Cymbalta to 'KICK" in. ughhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Been on it for about 1 1/2 yr.

I go to my doc this Thursday and will have these post printed and with me. he is a very good doctor that i trust and will give him these post to read on his own time, and I do trust he will.

not only do I have the brain zaps but if you use this site and go to increased alcohol use on Cymbalta I have that issue going on as well and most everyone of the post there I can totally relate to. thank God (really) for this site and me finding it by accident. Everything that I have experienced on this c**p now makes sense, and it's nice to know I'm not crazy, nor meant to have a craving for alcohol like I do.

I liked one of these post that said he/she will take a 6 month period to ween off these little monster pills as that is my plan as well after I see my doc this week, and my doc told me one time do NOT just stop taking these, so he knows....... thank goodness.

I hope to revamp my life as I think it has affected every aspect of it from work, to my family and interest in things I used to enjoy.

I honestly think when I go to this website to read and re-read all of the stuff this c**p does, that I wish everyone knew it existed so they would now understand what is going on with them due to this little monster pill and know that they are not alone. thats what I thought until I came across this site. So thankful that I am not alone in this but sorry for all of us who are in it as it is a terrible place to be and very scarey to think of the suffering that is so disabling just because you stop taking it.

I could just go on and on..........oh wait, I did LOL. for what ever reason each of us seeked help form our docs, God Be with us and see us off of this.

You would truely have to experience this to understand what we are ALL saying!