cymbalta or situation?

[mzteris]

I started on cymbalta about 6 weeks or so ago, went from 30 to 60 mg about 3.5 weeks ago.

I dunno. I don't think it's really doing anything. I'm feeling even more depressed than usual - although everything in my personal life really and truly sucks. Rollercoaster city with incredibly low lows, ya know?

So I go to see the doc on Thursday - should I tell him this stuff ain't workin' or should I give it more time?

I feel like I'm barely hanging on people. Wanna heare something funny? When DU went down a little while ago, I almost panicked. I was trying to figure out who I could call to talk to. I realized there was NO ONE. Not one soul I can really talk to about this crap IRL. Pathetic, huh?

[mopinko]

1. pathetic? no

human? yes. i have had times like that, too. i get myself into them, because i am a fighter by nature. my world is divided into the people i have fought with, and the people i have fought for. there are a few that have been both, like my kids, and my hubby. but sometimes, i find myself staring at a planet full of the vanquished and pissed off. sigh.
tell your doc what has been happening, and decide together what the next step is. keep putting one foot in front of the other. eventually you will be in a different place.
take care, sweetie. we are here.

[TZ]

2. Well I have people I COULD call but mostly I would rather talk

to people here at DU mostly. Much less stressful (for the most part). Seems like all I do is argue when I am face to face with family and friends and talk about my mental health/depression.
I would talk to your doctor. 6 weeks is usually the outer limit of if its going to work for you. Sounds like its time to switch and try something new.

[mzteris]

3. oh no.....

switching meds sucks.

I JUST got over the insomnia at night and overwhelming sleepiness during the day!!

aaaaaaaaaaaggggggggghhhhhhhhhh......... :banghead:


I was feeling "flat" on the fluoxetine - though it did get me out of the depths of despair.

But now, I'm starting to feel emotional, and hopeless, and useless again. Though again - that *could* be just what's going on in my life at present, I suppose. Lord knows it's enough to make a person just wanna quit.

[TZ]

4. life situation no doubt aggravates it...

but it *does* sound like your meds aren't working...maybe it might be worth also seeing a sleep specialist. Sleep apnea (which I have) goes hand in hand with depression. A sleep study might be able to help you. A CPAP and meds works great for me with both the apnea and the depression.

[no name no slogan]

5. IIRC the max for Cymbalta is 90mg

I started on it at 60 and eventually went up to 90 when that didn't do much. I'm now back to 60mg, and also take lithium and Lamictal for bipolar II.

You may want to try going up to 90, because people metabolize drugs at different rates. Three and a half weeks is a fair amount of time, though, but you may want to ramp up a bit more, depending on your past experience with SSRIs/SNRIs.

Good luck

[mzteris]

8. I see the doc tomorrow -

he may ramp it up.

Though as I was just telling another poster, the past two days I'm starting to feel a bit more chipper. Let's keep our fingers crossed!

[no name no slogan]

9. best of luck

psych meds are an inexact science at best.

I went through four different SSRIs/SNRIs before I finally got what I think is the correct diagnosis. They kept on losing their effectiveness on me, even when I was on the highest doses.

Finally, I read an article about bipolar disorder II, and noticed the strong correlation between the symptoms and what I was feeling. Last December, I rearranged my meds yet again (third time in two years, after I was hospitalized for a major depressive episode) and finally things seem to be working.

Good luck with the doc tomorrow. :thumbsup:

[mzteris]

10. interesting -

I've never had a "manic" issue - so I didn't think it relevant - but after reading about the symptoms - maybe.

[no name no slogan]

12. EXACTLY!!! :-)

I've never had full-blown mania, but I have had hypomanic and/or "mixed" states (with both depressive and hypomanic symptoms present). I've had several major depressive episodes over the last twenty years, and in retrospect can put my finger on at least two hypomanic episodes I've had in the same time frame. My depression has been very resistant to treatment too, which is also one of the signs of bipolar II. Of course, many of these were before Bipolar II was added to the DSM, which complicates matters.

It's definitely some strange stuff.

[mzteris]

15. well the doc overseeing my meds

wants me to see a psychiatrist - in addition to my therapist. Jeez - I don't really want to have to go through this crap again! I hate talking about it all.

But - he wants someone to see if there's anything else going on besides the depression, anxiety, a little bit of OCD, and PTSD. ?BPII? Maybe. Who knows.

Thanks for the heads up.

[yy4me]

6. I'm sure your doctor has told you that not all medications for

depression work for all people. You situation is not unique. The stresses we are all under cause us to react in different ways. Depression should be treated like any other sickness and if one medication doesn't work, you try another. Ask your MD about Citalopram(generic Celexa). It has done me a world of good and I've only been on it for 3 weeks. My mood has lifted, I do not feel the since of despair, anger and incredible sadness that I was having for about 6 months.

I take it (40MG) in the morning and can feel myself lifted as the day goes by. It does nothing for the restless leg syndrome and lack of sleep but I have other medications for that.

I am the type of person that never takes pills. I have been fortunate to be healthy enough to get to be my age (senior) in good health but the depression was the thing that finally did me in.

I have since found that it is a very large club we are in.


Edited to add: Generic=$4.00 at Wal-mart Pharmacy

[mzteris]

7. thanks for the info.

I tried Celexa several years back for a while. I don't remember how it did only that I didn't take it long.

I hate the med roulette thing, though. Try this, try that - and all the adjusting you have to do. Cycle off, cycle on. Sleep disturbances and moodiness increase, etc.......

I'm seeing my doc tomorrow though and we'll talk about it.

Amazingly in the last couple of days, I'm feeling a bit more like my "old self" - a little more feisty (Not ANGRY), a little more articulate, a little more motivated. Still having some sleep issues, but I think that's the hot flashes. :P

[hedgehog]

11. If you don't report to your doctor about how the medicine is effecting you,

he or she has no way of knowing.

I think one of the oddest things that has happened in recent years is the realization that there are different types of depression. This came about when doctors realized that different people responded to meds differently depending on whether the meds worked on serotonin, dopamine or other neurotransmitters. The unfortunate aspect of this is that the type of depression can be diagnosed only by checking the response to different medications!

[mzteris]

13. I try to be very vigilant about

keeping track of how I'm feeling, etc.

Unfortunately, I have a tendency to side-effects - usually the more weird or less frequent ones. Go figure. :eyes:

It makes things even MORE difficult in the whole finding the right med thing.

I wish they had a blood test to figure it out though. Much as I hate needles, I hate playing med roulette more!

[hedgehog]

14. Word is that in a few years, a PET scan could diagnose your

condition and help determine what medication/therapy combo would work the best. Then all we'll have to worry about is paying for the test!