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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 18 of 18. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by theo on September 1, 2005, at 23:02:45
Pdoc wants me to try Cymbalta. I'm hesitant to try, but I guess I will to add it to my list.
I'm suppose to start at 30mg bedtime. Does anyone take it at bedtime?
Any initial weird feelings during startup?
Posted by ClearSkies on September 2, 2005, at 9:57:43
In reply to Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated, posted by theo on September 1, 2005, at 23:02:45
Hi, I take 60mg at bedtime. I initially had headaches - monster, untouchable ones, that nothing helped!! They subsided after a week or so. No other side effects for me.
The lift of depression was vague and slow, but eventually the fog cleared and I'd say this med works fairly well.
I'd give it a "B-"(I'm going to be adding Lamictal to help with residual depression.)
good luck,
ClearSkies
Posted by theo on September 2, 2005, at 17:23:43
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » theo, posted by ClearSkies on September 2, 2005, at 9:57:43
> Hi, I take 60mg at bedtime. I initially had headaches - monster, untouchable ones, that nothing helped!! They subsided after a week or so. No other side effects for me.
> The lift of depression was vague and slow, but eventually the fog cleared and I'd say this med works fairly well.
> I'd give it a "B-"
>
> (I'm going to be adding Lamictal to help with residual depression.)
> good luck,
> ClearSkies
What about sexual side effects? Anxiety? Does it work at all for anxiety or socal anxiety, OCD?
Posted by ClearSkies on September 2, 2005, at 18:09:34
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » ClearSkies, posted by theo on September 2, 2005, at 17:23:43
It did not have any sexual side effects for me.
It has helped with me with anxiety. It is difficult for me to tell whether it's the medication that has helped in this regard, as I stopped working in April and my anxiety dropped dramatically at that point. I do take 1mg Xanax per day for anxiety which keeps it manageable for me, and take 10mg of Ambien for sleep.
OCD is not part of my dx so I'm afraid I couldn't say what effect it would have.
best regards,
CS
Posted by Phillipa on September 2, 2005, at 18:41:48
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » theo, posted by ClearSkies on September 2, 2005, at 18:09:34
I tried 60mg of cymbalta when it first came out. I only took it for about 3months and then quit. But since i had no side effects I figured it didn't work. Clear Skies how long did it take to work for you? And the other thing is I had no aches or pains while on it. When I stopped I started back and joint pains. It's supposed to be approved for peripheral neuropathy too. Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by ClearSkies on September 2, 2005, at 20:33:06
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » ClearSkies, posted by Phillipa on September 2, 2005, at 18:41:48
It took about that long for me to say that I was starting to feel better - like I say, it was a very subtle improvement. I personally don't think it's as effective as Effexor was for me, but the side effects of that med were almost as bad as the depression and anxiety itself. It seemed like a very high price to pay for relief.
I guess I consider Cymbalta somewhat of a compromise; not too many side effects, and not too many benefits either.
ClearSkies
Posted by Racer on September 2, 2005, at 20:49:43
In reply to Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated, posted by theo on September 1, 2005, at 23:02:45
I take 60mg, in the evening, and it's been mixed for me. Yes, it helps, but I can't separate out what helps most with what anymore -- taking too many meds...
At first, I had some diarrhea, don't remember any headaches, calming from the first dose or two, although I had trouble sleeping with it at first. When I tried taking it at night, I couldn't sleep; when I tried taking it with breakfast, I couldn't stay awake through the day -- now I take it around 5 PM or so, and that works out fine.
Good luck with it. If you have any other questions, let me know and I'll try to answer them. OH! Been on it a year now...
Posted by yxibow on September 2, 2005, at 23:07:36
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » theo, posted by Racer on September 2, 2005, at 20:49:43
My experience, if I can recall, since I'm on a polypharmacy of medications, was some faint nausea or something of that sort, but no major side effects. I started at 30, moved to 50, 60, and now 80 (it comes in 20s, 30s, and 60s). I split my dosage with most in the morning, but some just take it all at once. Its a more subtle antidepressant than say Effexor or Wellbutrin.
Posted by blueberry on September 4, 2005, at 7:49:58
In reply to Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated, posted by theo on September 1, 2005, at 23:02:45
I tried cymbalta for just two weeks, so I can't give a full report on it. It felt like a relaxing antidepressant with just a touch of energy boost at the same time. To avoid initial side effects, I started by emptying a capsule into a small bowl, and I would take just a few of the little white beads and wash them down with water. 3 beads the first day, 10 the second, 30ish the third, and then finally a full 30mg capsule the fourth day. I did not have any nausea or headaches doing it this way.
My only problem with it is sexual side effects. Reaching an orgasm was impossible, even at just 30mg. But we're all different, so that may not be a problem with someone else. For example, prozac gives me zero sexual side effects, but it gives other people some sexual problems. The only way to find out is to try it.
Even though cymbalta has norepinephrine reuptake inhibition in addition to serotonin reuptake inhibition, it felt very serotonergic to me. I couldn't feel the norepinephrine part of it very much.
Posted by Racer on September 4, 2005, at 13:21:04
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated, posted by blueberry on September 4, 2005, at 7:49:58
I had initial anorgasmia on Cymbalta, which lasted just long enough to get a prescription for cyproheptidine which has always worked for me -- but by the time I picked that up at the pharmacy, the sexual side effects had passed. I could scream with bliss just as well as ever.
So, I'm giving the cyproheptidine to the cat for his itchies and as an appetite stimulant. Ain't life grand when the cat and I have prescriptions for the same medications?
Posted by theo on September 4, 2005, at 13:25:23
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated, posted by blueberry on September 4, 2005, at 7:49:58
> I tried cymbalta for just two weeks, so I can't give a full report on it. It felt like a relaxing antidepressant with just a touch of energy boost at the same time. To avoid initial side effects, I started by emptying a capsule into a small bowl, and I would take just a few of the little white beads and wash them down with water. 3 beads the first day, 10 the second, 30ish the third, and then finally a full 30mg capsule the fourth day. I did not have any nausea or headaches doing it this way.
>
> My only problem with it is sexual side effects. Reaching an orgasm was impossible, even at just 30mg. But we're all different, so that may not be a problem with someone else. For example, prozac gives me zero sexual side effects, but it gives other people some sexual problems. The only way to find out is to try it.
>
> Even though cymbalta has norepinephrine reuptake inhibition in addition to serotonin reuptake inhibition, it felt very serotonergic to me. I couldn't feel the norepinephrine part of it very much.
>
>So if it weren't for the sexual side effects, would you have continued Cymbalta? Besides orgasm difficulties, did you also have a loss of sex drive? What about motivation, did it also kill that? This is my fear, starting another SSRI/SSNRI just to find out the same side effects are going to happen. I'm like you, Prozac doesn't really bother my sex drive, maybe a little delayed orgasm which is kind of nice!! (I'm Male)
Are you currently taking Prozac?
Posted by theo on September 4, 2005, at 15:17:04
In reply to PS -- About sexual side effects, posted by Racer on September 4, 2005, at 13:21:04
> I had initial anorgasmia on Cymbalta, which lasted just long enough to get a prescription for cyproheptidine which has always worked for me -- but by the time I picked that up at the pharmacy, the sexual side effects had passed. I could scream with bliss just as well as ever.
So how long did the initial anorgasmia last?
Posted by theo on September 4, 2005, at 15:20:16
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » theo, posted by Racer on September 2, 2005, at 20:49:43
Is urinary hesitation a problem with this med for you?
Posted by Racer on September 4, 2005, at 21:38:33
In reply to Re: Pdoc Suggests Cymbalta, Any Input Appreciated » Racer, posted by theo on September 4, 2005, at 15:20:16
No urinary hesitation for me -- keep in mind, though, that one of my little anorexic habits is polydipsia. I drink about 6 quarts of water on an average day. (And get lectured about it by my nutritionist regularly...) That means that I have a certain amount of polyuria...
As for the anorgasmia, that passed within about a month, maybe two. I can't remember. What I do remember, though, is that it was gone by the time the Cymbalta worked well enough that I wanted to do anything about it...
Hope that helps. I've been on it for a year now, and when I've tried lowering or dropping it -- I'm on other meds, too -- there was some withdrawal, but the depression was so much worse that I started it again and have decided to stay at 60mg.
If you have any other questions, let me know. I can tell you about my own experiences, for what they're worth.
Posted by theo on September 5, 2005, at 14:39:19
In reply to 2 answers for the price of one » theo, posted by Racer on September 4, 2005, at 21:38:33
Posted by theo on September 7, 2005, at 23:01:25
In reply to 2 answers for the price of one » theo, posted by Racer on September 4, 2005, at 21:38:33
Did you ever have any results at 30mg or did you go straight up to 60mg?
I just took half a 30mg, yes, I actually counted the pellets in the capsule and split them, and I feel that same initial SSRI first dose feeling of the weirdies.
Posted by Racer on September 8, 2005, at 18:25:35
In reply to Re: 2 answers for the price of one » Racer, posted by theo on September 7, 2005, at 23:01:25
> Did you ever have any results at 30mg or did you go straight up to 60mg?
>
> I just took half a 30mg, yes, I actually counted the pellets in the capsule and split them, and I feel that same initial SSRI first dose feeling of the weirdies.When I first started it at 30mg, there were certainly effects -- but it wasn't at therapeutic levels by any means. The first effects I noticed reminded me of Effexor, but smoother.
Keep in mind that I'm apparently treatment resistant at this point, but Cymbalta on its own never did do enough for my depression to stick with it as monotherapy. I'm also on Wellbutrin XL, and just added Lamictal (which doesn't seem to be helping at this point, but I'm not up to the Magic Dose yet, either).
For a while, before adding Wellbutrin -- I have an eating disorder, so Dr CattleProd wasn't thrilled to be prescribing Wellbutrin -- we tried 90mg Cymbalta, but it didn't work out. I was too sedated, and apathetic, and amotivated, and so on. Just not acceptable to me.
Hope that helps.
Posted by theo on September 8, 2005, at 23:02:24
In reply to Re: 2 answers for the price of one » theo, posted by Racer on September 8, 2005, at 18:25:35
> Keep in mind that I'm apparently treatment resistant at this point, but Cymbalta on its own never did do enough for my depression to stick with it as monotherapy. I'm also on Wellbutrin XL, and just added Lamictal (which doesn't seem to be helping at this point, but I'm not up to the Magic Dose yet, either).
>
> For a while, before adding Wellbutrin -- I have an eating disorder, so Dr CattleProd wasn't thrilled to be prescribing Wellbutrin -- we tried 90mg Cymbalta, but it didn't work out. I was too sedated, and apathetic, and amotivated, and so on. Just not acceptable to me.
>
> Hope that helps.Are you taking 150mg Wellbutrin XL? Does it help with the Cymbalta, good combo?
By the way, good luck with the Lamictal. I tried it for a long while (because of the slow titration) but gave it up because I couldn't find a magic dose. No matter how high I got in dose, each increase only lasted a couple of weeks, then pooped. When I got above 150mg I had major side effects, cognitive, headache, nausea, agitiation. Some people swear by it, but my body rejected it, plus it pooped out.
This is the end of the thread.
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