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456d
My doctor was asking me if I want to go on duloxetine for pain and depression, has anyone got experience with it? Can anyone give me a list of pros and cons?
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Generalized pain
Duloxetine
Abdominal Distention
Anxiety (Including GAD)
Chronic Generalized pain
Dizziness
Lansoprazole
Depression
Diarrhea
Amitriptyline
Milnacipran
Fibromyalgia (FM)
Gabapentin
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425d
It did wonders for my anxiety and overall pain level. Look up reviews and make form your own opinion š
1
I tried it and maxed out on it with no help for pain, but it did help the depression a little.
426d
I personally have experienced massive benefits while on duloxetine for my fibro pain. Iād say itās like a 90%-95% improvement to the point that I donāt really think about pain much any more. I mainly experience pain if I push myself too hard and experience post-extertional malaise or forget a dose. I love it, and Iām sure how much people benefit or donāt varies between individuals but I personally would give it a chance. The first 2 weeks of side effects were pretty rough, but those subsided and I have very few side effects now. It took 3-4 weeks for me to start noticing the benefits and about 8 weeks for full benefits (which matched my doctorās estimated timeline). Iāve never been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, but I am known to be a āworrierā and an anxious person overall, and the medication has also helped me deal a lot with that in ways I didnāt expect. I still can tell the anxiety is there, but itās like itās being smothered with a blanket, so itās much quiet and easier to push past. I find myself able to stand up for myself easier and able to more confidently put myself in positions that are more in the forefront rather than staying safe and comfy in the background. Only negatives are that for some reason I find it more difficult to get out of bed in the morning, I require more hydration, and I can overheat easily if Iām not carful, but none of those have affected my quality of life. For me duloxetine has been great. Itās works wonders for some people, and does little for others. Iād say give it a chance for at least a month (unless you canāt handle the initial side effects of your body adapting to the pill), but ideally give it 8 weeks if you can to see if it seems to have any positive effects for you or not and to decide whether the pros or cons you experience outweigh the other.
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427d
I'll be honest, the biggest con I know is probably just the long term effects and the symptoms of when/if you decide to get off it. Both me and my mom were on it and it was very helpful, but we had to stop for different reasons and the withdrawal can get really bad. You can have weird intense dreams/nightmares up to a year after stopping. But if it's your best option now, it could be worth a shot. Just possibly see what your doctor says if you bring up the concerns
449d
I was on it for a couple of months. They had to take me off my normal anti depressants as they'd clash in some way. It was brutal for me. I ended up really poorly, throwing up and stomach pain. Had to go onto lanzoprazole to combat the stomach issues. Mentally I was massively suicidal and unable to control my emotions. I've heard plenty of people have had amazing experiences so I'm not entirely sure why it was so awful for me. But as I always say anything is worth a try! Hope it helps you!
Im on 60mg of it rn and its helped a lot with energy
Duloxetine/Cymbalta was a nightmare for me. I hated it. The intention was to wean me off of lyrica and move me on to Cymbalta/duloxetine for pain and depression, however, I reacted horribly to it. When I wasnāt in class, I was in bed. It was terrible. I got no relief for depression or pain.
@kateafranklin It helps so many though!
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450d
It has helped me so much with anxiety and chronic pain, and I only need to take paracetamol alongside it.
Genuinely a lifesaver for me. It helps so so so much with my chronic pain, anxiety, OCD, and tics.
I've been on it for two years, currently weening off it. It was alright, but my biggest take away was that it is AWFUL to go off of
452d
It helped me with my pain and a little with mood, but I found I needed to up the dose after a bit as it wasn't doing enough. I've now ended up on something else but it did help for a while.
This med was a nightmare for me. I couldnāt get out of bed.
thank you so much for that information. That's so helpful. Amitryptaline to be honest has helped my sleep wonders but not even touched the pain. For pain, the best thing I've found, which I've found a lot of people saying, is weed. I got prescribed it through sapphire clinic who is completely remote and it's really easy for an assessment. That makes the pain very bearable. As far as amitryptaline, it really knocks me out at night which is amazing for my insomnia and it makes the sleep feel more restful than without.
iāve been on it for a year and 4 months now and have a lot of thoughts! not sure if theyāre that helpful cos everyone reacts differently. iām currently tapering off, partly to do an in lab sleep study (it interferes w the stuff theyāre testing) and partly because it hasnāt been helping with pain and i want to switch to a different antidepressant that has less severe withdrawal effects (iām now on bupropion xr). my maintenance dose was 80mg, i bumped up from 60mg to see if it helped (it did) then i tried up to 100mg which didnāt help any more than 80. PROS - it helped a lot with my mental health, both depression and anxiety. once i was on a full dose the day to day side effects werenāt too bad. itās one of the main meds recommended for fibro so i think doctors were more willing to help me try other meds for pain because i had already tried duloxetine. CONS - it didnāt do anything for my pain (or at least not enough to be very noticeable). i lost weight at first due to suppressed appetite then gained it back and then some. going up a dose and occasionally while at my full dose, i would get the brain/body āzapsā lots of people talk abt having in withdrawal. i also felt pretty shaky when i was first going on. i think it made me more heat intolerant and sweat very easily. even missing one dayās dose would cause withdrawal symptoms for me, at first just brain zaps, then if i was off for longer (one time i had trouble filling my prescription and was off for 4 days, cold turkey) i would have bad orthostatic intolerance, dizziness, nausea, low appetite, stomach pain, and diarrhea. now that iām doing a managed withdrawal (since november) iāve had much fewer symptoms, but the brain zaps still come back when i step down a dose. iām going completely off this week, which iāve heard can be the hardest transition, so iām anticipating worse withdrawal effects.
451d
@nettle good luck to you!!
@nettle Penguin1 sorry to derail but i saw youāre on amitriptyline, has that been helping with pain? thatās one that i was thinking of trying. my rheumatologist also recommended milnacipran, but thatās another SNRI and iām not sure if itāll be similar to duloxetine in terms of side effects and not helping with pain.
I started it about a week and a half ago. The first two days were rough. It made me feel nervous and shaky, but that part is way better now. As far as mental health, I donāt feel I struggle with depression, and anxiety is quite rare for me, so I donāt see a change there. I think itās starting to help with my pain though. I also take Gabapentin, which my doctor is hoping to lower if the Cymbalta really works. On the 1st, Iām due to go from 30mg to 60mg. Hoping I donāt get nervous and shaky again.
455d
My doc recommended it too.. I haven't tried it. Everyone is different though! If you and your doc feel comfortable that it will help, I think it's worth a shot šø
I have been in it for yrs. So far it has worked the best for my mental health. Just recently I had to add on another med, but it definitely has helped me. I tried so many different happy pills before this one that either didn't work or the side effects weren't worth it
it helped me a little bit with my pain, but not mentally. its absolutely worth a shot though, medicine is different for everyone and thereās definitely something for you out there!! medicine is trail and error. š
I'm on it rn and it's been really helpful. Im still in pain but it's much better. I go swimming and take frequent baths to help with the rest of the pain. The only downside to this medication is if you miss a dose you can go into withdrawal and it sent me into the hospital, so be aware of that.
I like it. I can definitely tell if I miss a dose as far as pain levels go. For mental health it doesnt do enough for me so I'm on additional meds. Would def say it's worth a shot in my personal opinion. Honestly losing weight helps my fibromyalgia the most so that's my goal
ā This content is generated by our users and it is not a substitute for professional medical advice. Please consult with your physician before making any medical decision
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