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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 13 of 13. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by lemon68 on October 5, 2004, at 20:09:23
I have been following this board since right before Cymbalta's release, and reading the anticipatory posts largely inspired me to switch meds myself. I've been pretty surprised at the underwhelming response to this new med, and I can't really say it's been a fireball for me, either.
I'm wondering if any previous meds have been so highly anticipated and then found to be less than miraculous by elder members of this site. I think most reviews would tend to be somewhat negative, given the treatment resistant nature of most of us on this board. However, it's hard not to take the lackluster reception of Cymbalta into account when considering if I made the right choice. I know, only I can judge if it's working or not, but I am a little bummed it hasn't helped more of us.
For the record, I am on Cymbalta 30mg for 2 weeks. I was on Effexor XR 225 mg, and I reduced 75 mg per week - thus I am at 75 mg Effexor per day and apprehensive about quitting altogether. I have had no discernable withdrawal symptoms thus far. I also take 50 mg Trazodone at night for sleep, which I have been augmenting with Klonopin .25-.5 mg as needed.
take care all
Posted by boomarang on October 5, 2004, at 20:58:06
In reply to cymbalta - boom or bust?, posted by lemon68 on October 5, 2004, at 20:09:23
i was thinking the same thing as i was reading the different posts here over the past month...the majority of people trying cymbalta have not been raving about it.
we all had high hopes. I'm curious if 60mg is the top dosage? I haven't read a post here yet tho (i don't think) where anyone was taking more than 60mg.
i have to say i'm with you. Cymbalta hasn't been the barn burner i thought it would be. Yet, i'm not ready to give up on it yet. Just went up to 40mg today.
Posted by anxiety_free on October 5, 2004, at 23:27:16
In reply to Re: cymbalta - boom or bust? » lemon68, posted by boomarang on October 5, 2004, at 20:58:06
Are your docs slow to go up in dose, or is mine just over-eager? I was on 30mg cymbalta along with 150mgs Tofranil PM Adderall Klonopin and the occassional sleeping pill. Anyway, week two I go to 60mgs. Is that fast? So far I really don't feel anything...I kinda question whether eli lilly is going to get the blockbuster they wanted.
Posted by lemon68 on October 6, 2004, at 1:53:17
In reply to Re: cymbalta - boom or bust? » lemon68, posted by boomarang on October 5, 2004, at 20:58:06
yeah, but that's what I'm wondering... have previously released ADs been way more decisively effective as reflected on this board, or does it usually take a while for a consensus? For example, were people raving about Effexor XR when it was released, or were people just as apprehensive ?
I guess it doesn't really matter, as I'm already on the Cymbalta boat no matter what. So far, I think it works pretty well on anxiety, compared to Effexor XR , but it's still hard to judge.
I've got a doc appt Friday, which makes it a bit over 2 weeks since I started. I don't know if I'll get bumped up to 60 mg of Cymbalta or not, but I'll keep the posts posted...
Posted by sjb on October 6, 2004, at 8:27:55
In reply to Re: cymbalta - boom or bust?, posted by lemon68 on October 6, 2004, at 1:53:17
I'm on a Prozac/Wellbutrin combo, and although I feel my depression creeping up (more isolation, food cravings, and OCD), my energy level is good during the day, and I sleep well at night but am not oversleeping. Daytime energy is important to me because I am very physically active (distance runner and a gym rat).
My PDoc is thinking about starting me on Cymbalta but wants to first try upping the Wellb to see if that may help with my symptoms. I definately noticed that he was much less enthused about Cymbalta on this last visit, as opposed to month ago. I'm really spooked by the sedation you folks are mentioning, esp. if it lasts for weeks.
Posted by Rayray on October 6, 2004, at 18:47:44
In reply to Re: cymbalta - how does it effect excercise?, posted by sjb on October 6, 2004, at 8:27:55
Mark me undecided as it's only been one and a half weeks for me, but I'm still hopeful. (One week at 30mg and now 60mg). The sleepiness and flushing were not showstoppers for me and have lessened now that I've gone up in dosage.
Yes, Cymbalta has truly been hyped and I have read some of the disappointing results here. It's still too early to tell, but I wonder if people who are responding well are as likely to post or even follow the boards as closely.
Ray
Posted by jrbecker on October 7, 2004, at 14:14:52
In reply to Re: cymbalta - how does it effect excercise?, posted by sjb on October 6, 2004, at 8:27:55
> I'm on a Prozac/Wellbutrin combo, and although I feel my depression creeping up (more isolation, food cravings, and OCD), my energy level is good during the day, and I sleep well at night but am not oversleeping. Daytime energy is important to me because I am very physically active (distance runner and a gym rat).
>
> My PDoc is thinking about starting me on Cymbalta but wants to first try upping the Wellb to see if that may help with my symptoms. I definately noticed that he was much less enthused about Cymbalta on this last visit, as opposed to month ago. I'm really spooked by the sedation you folks are mentioning, esp. if it lasts for weeks.
I'm also a distance runner and confessed gym rat. I have battled the fatigue/anergia/appetitive effects of most antidepressants, much to the detriment of my running. Effexor was really the only med that actually helped my mood AND allowed me to still run well. However, I still did suffer from some of the fatigue and hyperphagia related to the drug.
About seven weeks ago, I switched to Cymbalta. It has DEFINITELY been an improvement on Effexor in terms of an antidepressant and the ability to stay motivated to exercise (as well as exercise performance). I have kept on a low dose though -30mg daily. This was somewhat the equivalent dosage of the 37.5 mg of effexor that I was recently on. Interestingly enough, I was actually a very good marathoner a few years ago while on the higher dose of 150mg. But these days, I just couldn't handle the anergic side effects.In terms of Cymbalta, you might be more tolerant though, you could probably handle the higher dose range of 40-60 mg of cymbalta per day. I in fact my try this higher dosage level myself at some point.
Definitely give it a full 5-6 weeks to stabilize on it. I noticed that the sedation was slowly improving as I progressed up until that point of time.
Posted by Rhapsody on October 7, 2004, at 16:44:16
In reply to Re: cymbalta - how does it effect excercise? » sjb, posted by jrbecker on October 7, 2004, at 14:14:52
jrbecker,
Since you have been on Cymbalta for 7 weeks, have you found that it helps with obsessive thoughts at all?
>
> About seven weeks ago, I switched to Cymbalta. It has DEFINITELY been an improvement on Effexor in terms of an antidepressant and the ability to stay motivated to exercise (as well as exercise performance). I have kept on a low dose though -30mg daily. This was somewhat the equivalent dosage of the 37.5 mg of effexor that I was recently on. Interestingly enough, I was actually a very good marathoner a few years ago while on the higher dose of 150mg. But these days, I just couldn't handle the anergic side effects.
>
> In terms of Cymbalta, you might be more tolerant though, you could probably handle the higher dose range of 40-60 mg of cymbalta per day. I in fact my try this higher dosage level myself at some point.
>
> Definitely give it a full 5-6 weeks to stabilize on it. I noticed that the sedation was slowly improving as I progressed up until that point of time.
>
>
>
>
Posted by invisiblemanpa on October 7, 2004, at 17:07:24
In reply to Re: cymbalta - excercise-- to jrbecker, posted by Rhapsody on October 7, 2004, at 16:44:16
Excellent post with the question about what was happening when Effexor Xr hit the market and what the comments were. As I am hoping for an effective switch from Effexor. And yes as an avid exercisor, Effexor often drained my engergy levels, left me more depressed and no motivation for anything let alone exercise, so I am hoping another (Cymbalta?, Zoloft? , Lexapro?) will work better for me. And I often wonder wether, I would be better off on nothing? I think the Good Lord only knows and I hope and pray I am led in the right direction.....
e
Posted by lemon68 on October 7, 2004, at 21:02:04
In reply to Re: cymbalta - excercise-- to jrbecker/Great Post, posted by invisiblemanpa on October 7, 2004, at 17:07:24
Interesting - one of the main reasons I stayed on Effexor XR for so long was /is because it is so much more energizing than other ADs or the SSRIs, and I got into exercise for the first time in a long time ( jujitsu is my flavor - try it if you haven't - it's a lot of fun).
I haven't been working out for the past few months due to depression creeping back up,but I really hope that Cymbalta, with its supposed affinity for NE action, will be energizing as well and I will be able to get back on the mat as soon as I can get my head balanced.
So far, Cymbalta has been a bit sedating, but not enough to bug, as I feel a bit better after going through some ugly life stuff.....
cheers
Posted by jrbecker on October 8, 2004, at 9:20:32
In reply to Re: cymbalta - excercise-- to jrbecker, posted by Rhapsody on October 7, 2004, at 16:44:16
> jrbecker,
>
> Since you have been on Cymbalta for 7 weeks, have you found that it helps with obsessive thoughts at all?In the past, I never really exhibited too much severe OCD or obessessional thoughts. But I did ruminate quite a bit. For me, the SNRIs did a lot better job at decreasing introspection than did the SSRIs. So yes, Cymbalta does really help with staying "outwardly focused." But my symptom of rumination and your symptom of obssessional thoughts are probably not one in the same. So it might be good to get some other opinions from other posters who suffer from your type of issue.
JRB
Posted by utopizen on October 11, 2004, at 21:26:18
In reply to Re: cymbalta - how does it effect excercise? » sjb, posted by jrbecker on October 7, 2004, at 14:14:52
> About seven weeks ago, I switched to Cymbalta. It has DEFINITELY been an improvement on Effexor in terms of an antidepressant and the ability to stay motivated to exercise (as well as exercise performance). I have kept on a low dose though -30mg daily.
>I'm glad to see that it's help you be motivated enough to exercise! This past summer, with my Zoloft not working, I would just wake myself up at 8 and immediately get out of bed and put my bike garb on and run out the door with my bike, because it was my only shot at fighting off the depression-induced negative thought cycle "oh, let me sleep in" or "oh, what's one more hour of not doing anything" lathargia.
With enough routine, it sort of became programmed into me and helped a lot.
But I think you should talk about uping the dose of Cymbalta with your doc to 60mg or more. Exercise is great, and you should continue with it regardless, but my only concern is if you're relying on it just to keep away the creepy thoughts of depression like I used it for.
That's no way to live... I hope to try Cymbalta shortly, and hopefully it'll let me feel like waking up in the morning has a purpose again. I haven't felt that way for two years now. I don't know how it got like this, but all I can do lately is wish I lived in the past again as a happy sophmore college student and not a lonely depressed senior who feels meaningless. I want my life back. I want it back. I sort of feared getting depressed when I was younger, thinking I'd never get out. I've tried every AD now. Lexapro 20mg right now. Cymbalta. Hope.
Posted by jrbecker on October 12, 2004, at 15:26:26
In reply to Re: cymbalta - how does it effect excercise? » jrbecker, posted by utopizen on October 11, 2004, at 21:26:18
> > About seven weeks ago, I switched to Cymbalta. It has DEFINITELY been an improvement on Effexor in terms of an antidepressant and the ability to stay motivated to exercise (as well as exercise performance). I have kept on a low dose though -30mg daily.
> >
>
> I'm glad to see that it's help you be motivated enough to exercise! This past summer, with my Zoloft not working, I would just wake myself up at 8 and immediately get out of bed and put my bike garb on and run out the door with my bike, because it was my only shot at fighting off the depression-induced negative thought cycle "oh, let me sleep in" or "oh, what's one more hour of not doing anything" lathargia.
>
> With enough routine, it sort of became programmed into me and helped a lot.
>
> But I think you should talk about uping the dose of Cymbalta with your doc to 60mg or more. Exercise is great, and you should continue with it regardless, but my only concern is if you're relying on it just to keep away the creepy thoughts of depression like I used it for.
>
> That's no way to live... I hope to try Cymbalta shortly, and hopefully it'll let me feel like waking up in the morning has a purpose again. I haven't felt that way for two years now. I don't know how it got like this, but all I can do lately is wish I lived in the past again as a happy sophmore college student and not a lonely depressed senior who feels meaningless. I want my life back. I want it back. I sort of feared getting depressed when I was younger, thinking I'd never get out. I've tried every AD now. Lexapro 20mg right now. Cymbalta. Hope.Hi U-
actually, I'm fairly sensitive to meds, so 30 mg is actually a pretty robust dose for me. I'm an atypical depressive, and so my concern about increasing any medication is that it might make me feel too tired and anergic -- which is definitely the possibility considering the profile of cymbalta. Right now, my functionality in terms of energy level, work performance, and ability to be fairly self-sufficient is good. In the past, many of the meds I tried proved to be good antidepressants, but only at the expense of this functionality.
As for the antidpressant response that I receive from cymbalta, I'm currently doing very well. Hopefully that won't change too much. We all have our peaks and valleys though.
Hopefully Lexapro will do the trick for you. I faired rather poorly on it myself. But we're just all so different to our responses to each of these meds.
If you don't end up having a good response, perhaps you should add cymbalta to the list of options once you and your doc discuss an alternative strategy.good luck,
JB
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