Posted by bleauberry on June 20, 2008, at 18:44:42
In reply to Anyone get wicked tired on Cymbalta?, posted by WickedGirl on June 18, 2008, at 13:13:40
It is hard to judge a drug by the initial reaction. It is the longterm adaptive changes that are meaningful. One day really doesn't say much.
Cymbalta did the same with me. I was careful though to retry it at a much lower dose...5mg (50 of the enteric coated beads from inside a capsule). I got that boost in productivity you mentioined, and only a fraction of the couch potato stuff. Over time I got more and more depressed, a lot worse than I started. A higher dose made it even worse. Felt better after I got off it.
Cymbalta is weird. While clinical trials make it appear as a superior med, there are enough people saying it does not make a very good antidepressant to make one wonder. Mileage varies. It is awesome for some people.
There is no way to predict what might happen 3 to 12 weeks down the road after starting off with the couch potato reaction. It might continue that way, or as your receptors adjust you might just come alive.
Personally I think the starting dose is way too high. I have heard of people doing perfectly fine with it at just 15mg (half of the capsule contents sprinkled on applesauce). As for me, it feels like very potent stuff even at just 5mg.
In the SNRI class of drugs, by far the best I've tried is milnacipran. Had to mailorder from overseas, no big deal, but it blew the other SNRIs in the weeds. Milnacipran had me cheered up, energetic, and productive within days along with awesome sleep. At just half a dose. It was all the good stuff you felt the next day from cymbalta, only better and cleaner, without the couch potato stuff.
poster:bleauberry
thread:835260
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/neuro/20080418/msgs/835708.html