Hi Kate,

I wasn't going to post, but when I saw the following that you said, I knew I had too...
The strangest thing is that from time to time some muscles (mostly in my leg) are moving- without my consent! A bit funny to watch....

I was on Cymbalta for a year, for fibromyalgia. Started at 30 mg for 2 weeks, then 60 mg for almost 9 months, then 90 mg for awhile before I decided to quit taking it and tapered off (A MUST) before quitting it in Jan. of this year.

First, the legs moving thing - I had that too. It is called Restless Leg Syndrome. The doctor had to put me on requip to counter act it, as the Cymbalta made it worse! You may need to look into that. Ask your doc.

I had many, many side effects with Cymbalta. Mostly the sick stomach feeling almost all the time, especially in the a.m. I was taking mine at night.

I had almost every side effect listed on the pharmacy paper. They never really went away.

The biggest thing I noticed was weight gain. I gained over 30 lbs the first couple of months on Cymbalta. It was awful. It also made me want to sleep, all the time, except at night, then I had horrible insomnia. I couldn't sleep at night, no matter what I did. So, then during the day, I slept alot. (Thankfully, I don't work). I really messed me up. I had no appetite, didn't overeat, but still gained way too much weight.

Now that I have been off Cymbalta since January, I have lost almost 20 lbs.I have much more energy, I am clear headed, no longer sick in my stomach. I feel like I am "with it"again, rather than a zombie. I sleep pretty good at night. I went off the requip and no longer have restless leg symdrome. Life is much better. The Cymbalta never did stop my fibromyalgia pain. The doc finally put me on Tramadol, a type of pain med and I take them daily and it seems to help a good bit. I still have lots of pain, but at least it takes the edge off.

I don't want to discourage you from taking Cymbalta. For some people, it works and is worth the side effects. I wasn't one of them, unfortunately. Just beware, make sure you stay in tune with and listen to your body. I probably should have quit taking it before the year was up, but wanted to give it a good shot, you know? I really regret the weight gain. I was already overweight and didn't need anymore added to it. Now I am fighting to get it off and get back to where I was before, even though that was overweight as well. Once there, I can start towards my goal again. I just feel like I lost a lot of ground during that year.

Good luck!
Kathy Bahr
Merritt Island, FL

been there.
 

So sorry you are going through the chronic pain and the meds and the weight..
I don't have much to offer this conversation except to say that I have had chronic pain for 17 years (I'm 32 now) and I have depression and I've always been really obese. I've tried al th emeds and surgeries and I can honestly say that even though it seems like there is no hope because you feel you've tried everything...you're wrong, you and your doctors haven't tried evrything, b/c there IS some THING some combination of things that can and will help you.

Don't give up.
Give all possible healthy solutions a chance.

I say this b/c I had given up hope of ever being pain free. i figured I'd be disabled for the rest of my life. In January 2006 I tried yet another back surgery and it was rough...and then I survived and then...I was better. I was finally almost pain free! I still have pain, I still take opoids and ADs and anti-inflammatories every day, but I am well! I almost gave up on it all, but I realize now that giving up isn't an option.

A self-indulgent aside: That's why St. Jude means so much to me. I'm not christian, but my grandmother is and she always prayed to St. Jude (the patron saint of hopeless causes) for me, and I feel that symbol of miracles happening when all hope seems lost is very powerful. Now I have a tattoo of St jude to remind me that ANYTHING is possible.

Remember that. You can feel better. You WILL feel better.

Best wishes.

Hi everybody!

I am back, I am still on Cymbalta and I am still trying to figur out what that "short amount of time" in which all those side effects dissapear.....
Ok, I don´t have that dry mouth problem anymore. But I am sweating a lot. My blood pressure is low. I am tired...Uh, and my legs and some of my back muscles are moving all the time...

But the main problem is constipation. I tried A LOT of stuff in the last weeks that should help me to go to the toilet, but not with much success. I guess that´s why I don´t lost that much weight in the last weeks. I lost around 3lb since i take it.
But my appetite and hunger really decreased in the last weeks, at the moment food and eating behaviour isn´t a problem for me :bunny2: And that´s HUGE!

I am now on 60mg daily.

I slowly notice that Cymbalta is working for me. My mood is a bit better, I feel better. On some days, it reduces my pain. But it generally helps me to cope with my situation.

Montgomery: Thanks a lot for your encouragment! So good to hear that there is hope- even for the hopeless cases! :^:

Thanks for all of your answers! I learn so much here!

I hope everybody is having a nice day!!

Kate