Posted by Racer on July 16, 2005, at 13:02:09
In reply to CYMBALTA, posted by tjeffries on July 16, 2005, at 5:23:29
> Could anyone please tell me of the side effects of Cymbalta???? cannot tolerate any other ssri's I have tried, and doubt I can this one, but doc brought it up.....would like to know your experiences with it?
Cymbalta isn't an SSRI, so don't base your expectations of it on your experiences with those.
Cymbalta is a balanced serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. That makes it similar to Effexor, except that while Effexor's effects on neurochemistry are dose dependent, Cymbalta's are not. For many people, serotonin alone in not the answer, so a medication that also affects norepinephrine might be a good answer.
Also, I strongly urge you to consider your attitude going into this, if you decide to. That's not coming from a nice, healthy person who says, "Oh, that's not the 'right' attitude! Everything is sunshine and rainbows!" That's coming from someone who was ready to starve herself to death rather than take any medication at all for depression back when I started on Cymbalta late last August. At the time, I was convinced that there was NO anti-depressant medication that wasn't worse than the disorders for which I needed medicating, and was ready to stop Cymbalta after less than a week because I didn't feel quite myself.
In other words, I've been there. I'm offering you advice based on my own experience of a few months ago, and it's not really even my own advice -- I'm just passing on what some very special people offered me when I needed it.
For what it's worth, Cymbalta ain't perfect, but it's giving me a pretty darn good ride so far. I've tried a few times to reduce it, but my depression returns, so I will keep taking it. Your mileage will, of course, vary, but it's being pretty good to me, so I can say "try it" with confidence.
Good luck, whatever you choose to do.
poster:Racer
thread:528445
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050713/msgs/528567.html