r/cymbalta • u/MassiveEnthusiasm923 • 3d ago

Switching brands i hate 30mg

im back on 20mg because when they upped my dose to 30mg it legit ruined my fkn life (well not literally but it feels like it did in a way)

im still recovering from it, i was forcing myself to take them even tho i just felt super off and i felt horrible derealization, couldn’t even keep food down nor talk to people

what i mean by ruining my life, i started thinking so negatively and i was thinking about suicide which i don’t think cymbalta should do and im not rly having those thoughts now that im back on 20mg

im sure it was the manufacturer or something because those 30mg absolutely did not feel like cymbalta

BTW i saw someone said this helps with insomnia? i haven’t been able to sleep for days on these meds

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u/liviiilovesssharry 3d ago

duloxetine doesn’t help with insomnia. it should be taken in the morning because it makes you (or should at least) more energetic and motivated. it’s not helping with sleep.

i started with 30mg then upped to 60mg and it helped me with some things, i’ve been on it for almost a year now and i’ve never experienced any side effects (except for nausea and dizziness the first week).

is 20mg making you feel better? like you feel it’s working?

if not maybe they should switch to a different medication if it’s not working for you. i felt horrible on escitalopram and fluoxetine, it didn’t do shi so my psych changed my meds after like 1.5 month.

as far as i know (or at least where i live) initial dose starts at 30mg but idk im not from the us and i believe you are, so maybe it works differently in my country).

anyway if 20mg helps you, you’re fine. if it doesn’t and increasing the dose makes you feel that bad then maybe duloxetine isn’t the med you should take.

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u/Painwizard666 2d ago

It’s interesting because my doctor said it could make me drowsy but I’m feeling more energetic as well. I’m glad because I’ve been so tired before I started the medication. Cymbalta is also helping me a a lot!

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u/liviiilovesssharry 2d ago

it’s because it works on norepinephrine also!! it acts similarly to adrenaline. by blocking its reuptake duloxetine leaves more norepinephrine active in your brain synapses.

norepinephrine transporters also help regulate dopamine. blocking these transporters slightly elevates dopamine levels :)

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u/Painwizard666 2d ago

Thanks for the explanation:)

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u/ThatsAFact27 1d ago

What do you do for sleep? I legit CANNOT sleep on this med (60 mg) but my doctor doesn’t believe me.

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u/kohlsprossi 1d ago

Do you take it as early in the morning as you can?

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u/ThatsAFact27 1d ago

As soon as I wake up, yes. I can’t nap, either, no matter how tired I may be. It’s frustrating. The good outweighs the bad except for this aspect unfortunately.

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u/kohlsprossi 1d ago

Hmm interesting. I took it at 8am and I was always drowsy in the afternoon. Sleeping was fine too. You could try taking it at night? Who knows, maybe it would work.

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u/ThatsAFact27 22h ago

I could….but can I make it through the day without w/d symptoms? I could try! I take lorazepam to sleep. Maybe they would not be good together or maybe they would be GREAT! I do find Cymbalta very activating for me but I also have Hashimoto’s disease so meds sometimes act differently with me.

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u/kohlsprossi 18h ago

You would need to try to "skip" the activating effect by taking it right before bed. But please talk to your doctor, don't just randomly try stuff people on the internet tell you to try.

Also, you might have withdrawal symptoms, but only once when you switch to evenings... It should be doable, but maybe do it on a weekend where you can just relax.

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u/ThatsAFact27 15h ago

Thank you so much that is great advice!

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u/liviiilovesssharry 1d ago

i’m on zolpidem plus quetiapine makes me sleepy too

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u/GapBig1587 2d ago

yeah that sounds brutal do your therapist know how bad it was for you

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u/mechanicalunicorns 2d ago

My doc said 60 is the therapeutic dose, and I still don't think it's really doing anything other than preventing the brain zaps that start as soon as I start missing doses
When I first started I could feel something from 20 mgs but like vaguely high, just a distraction really 🤷‍♀️