Menopause Matters Forum
Menopause Discussion => All things menopause => Topic started by: Vicky81 on November 30, 2024, 02:11:08 PM
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Hi all hope you are all well?
So I'm desperate for help
I was on 60mg duloxetine for 10 weeks but decided it wasn't fir me ....all I did was cry and sleep. As most of you know I work in Broadmoor so I'm lucky to ask advice where needed.
I tapered down from 40 for 2 weeks, 30 for 2 weeks, 20 and 10 for 2 weeks then stop.
The only time I coukdbt stop crying was on the 60mg, psychiatrist at work said of you're still crying at 10 weeks this isn't for you.
When I came down to 40, 30 and 20 didn't cry so the 60 was too high .
Anyway I'm on day 15 of no antidepressant in my system and all I've had is bad withdrawal.....anxiety, heavy crying, depression being the worst, agitation....they had to sign me off work.
So I guess I'm here to ask has anyone been through this? And does it get better? May sound silly I know?
Just ive never had withdrawal before and its scary.
In relation to my patch, I've been on 90mg since 14th September......I thought if it were my patch causing all this crying I woukd have had it on the 40mg duloxetine, the 30s and 20s but i didn't.
Only time all this started was 3 days after my last duloxetine. Now 2 weeks later .
Any help or experiences with this woukd be gratefully received 🙏
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You may ask why I came off the AD ....the fatigue was unreal on every mg.
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Oh and please.....just to give me reassurance this is definitely withdrawal symptoms (,sorry) I. Just in a bad way with it....can't stop crying xxx
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OK - who is overseeing your withdrawal, sounds like you are trying to go it alone?
10mg could be dropped to alternate days for 1 week followed by 5mg on alternate days for 3 weeks, then 5mg alternate days for 2 weeks then 5mg every 3rd day. Your GP should have smaller amounts ...... what's the worst, 4 me it was my brain saying 'What if you can't stop?' until I realised that the bounce back symptoms of high anxiety lasted no longer than 12 hours.
The brain gets used to being supported. Bounce back of symptoms is to be expected.
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Hi thsnks 4 replying.
My GP has followed me all the way through.
I just stopped at 10s as he requested.
So when yiu say bounce back....what exactly do you mean (sorry)
And do these withdrawals go? Im just so teary
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But I've been off mine 2 weeks now and still feeling depression crying xxx
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Bounce back: 4 me it was similar to the symptoms for which I took the medication. High levels of anxiety and nausea. All went after considered withdrawal with GP support. 10mg is large amount to stop suddenly.
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Ok CLKD .....thanm you so much for replying to me, it means alot x
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What do U propose to do, if symptoms are bothersome I would ask my GP for a smaller amount for another couple of weeks. Especially at This Time of Year!
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The thing is they only go up to20mg....I has to make the 10s up myself by guessing the beads ....it was too difficult to count them all. They were rolling all over the place.
I bought clear capsules off amazon and just tipped half in each from a 20mg capsule to make 10....held them up to the light and if they looked even I just went with it
Alot of people on the duloxetine forum said they'd done the same.
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Im just going to ride the withdrawals out ....
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Hi Vicky, Big hug to you as I know how horrendous antidepressant withdrawal can be after coming off venlafaxine several years ago. It took a good few months for my brain to feel normal again. Getting as much exercise as I possibly could kept me going during this time. If I'd known about magnesium glycinate back then I'd have taken that too. It's absolutely horrible but it will get better and you've got to be as kind to yourself as you can while your brain adjusts.
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I came off 12 years of seroxat ( paroxatine) over a few months of tapering, far too quickly. I was clueless as to how bad it could be. I just thought I could ride it out, which I did eventually but I should have tapered for at least a year as I had been on it so long. I did it without gp help. I had nerve/ electric feelings through my body. Crying for England, libido went very high. I couldn't settle in my body for months on end. Lost weight. Tried 5htp for a while, St John's worth. It helped a bit. I think it took at least a could of years to feel myself again. There's a forum called "Surviving Antidepressants " that I found helpful. Yes have to take things really slow and find out as much as you can .
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It took me 9 weeks under supervision.
Vicky81 - R U able to describe your 'withdrawal' feelings? Whilst 10mg might be seen as a starter dose it isn't low enough to be a weaning off dose. Hence my suggestion of alternate nights then every 3rd then every 5th ........
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OMG I tapered off duloxetine recently, I was on 30mg for a couple of years. 60 mg made me sleep all day. Withdrawal is TOUGH I still have days where I cry but overall I am glad I am off it. GP supported me as after a couple of weeks the pain was unbearable but he said to keep at it and it would ease. He was right. Keep going! It's not easy.
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Not easy at all. R U able to describe 'pain' Sunriser?
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the duloxetine helped me through a challenging time in my life and helped massively with depression and anxiety but it also acts as a pain killer. I had generalised chronic muscle pain that the duloxetine helped to ease.
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Interesting :thankyou:
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Hi Vicky81
I also wanted to give my support as I know how tough coming off anti depressants can be xxx
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So sorry to hear how hard it is- but it is very tough and so many GPs and even psychiatrists are naive to how hard this is. I recently came off only 10mg of citaloparam after 11 weeks - could not tolerate the insomnia - i did it way too quickly as GPs just shrugged it off as it was ‘such a low dose’. Does not make a difference! Please follow the guide below- i wish i had and just do it v v slowly and do not alternate- it is not advisable. I wish you all the best. I had to start on Mitazapine 3 nights ago as the insomnia got so bad off Citalopram - I honestly had 6 hours sleep over 5 days and i was all over the place still unable to work- been off for 6 months. I am not sure about MZ but had to do something to allivate the insomnia and mess I was in.
If i were you i would go back up to a dose that is tolerable and then stay on that for a while to stabilise and then reduce when you are ready in line with this guidance. That is what i wish i had done, im in such a mess for stopping the way i did. Good luck xx
https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mental-health/treatments-and-wellbeing/stopping-antidepressants
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:thankyou: GalwayGirl - it was in the back of my mind to suggest re-starting a dose and stay with that for a couple of weeks, even until the New Year. 10mg isn't a 'small' dose at all regardless of what GPs think.
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You are so right CLKD!
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Dear Vicky81!
I feel so sorry for you because I too went through hellish withdrawal 2 years ago.
First of all, I apologize for the grammar mistakes, as English is not my first language.
Withdrawal is a very hard and real thing indeed.
Many GPs don't acknowledge it or they just say that the withdrawal is unpleasant, but short-lived.
How wrong they are!
2 years ago I took AD mirtazapine 30 mg for insomnia after recovering from covid and after being diagnosed with long covid. I suffered from severe insomnia, imbalance, vomiting and brain fog.
Ad helped me with insomnia and after 4 months and 3 weeks I slowly started to taper it. The tapering lasted exactly 53 days using the linear tapering method.
When I stopped completely, I was perfectly fine for 1 week, but then hell began: severe insomnia, restlessness, nervousness, anxiety.
These symptoms came and went, I was constantly spinning in a vicious circle and thought I was going crazy and that this hell would never end....
The GP was useless, he even tried to convince me that I was mentally ill and that I would probably need AD for the rest of my life!
During this time, all my friends slowly left me, only my husband and my children stood by me.
The website surviving antidepressants.com and CEPUK.ORG helped me a lot.
In particular, at CEPUK.ORG you can listen to video advice from doctors and those who have survived withdrawal.
Unfortunately, the withdrawal can take several months. For me, it lasted exactly 5 months, so that the symptom gradually faded.
During this time, I exercised a lot, took quality supplements and avoided stress.
Almost 2 years later, however, perimenopausal hell began for me: severe insomnia, night sweats, weight loss, anxiety and depression.
I tried 2 HRT therapies which only made the situation worse.
I suffered for almost 3 months and was very reluctant to try AD again. I really wanted to end my life, it was so bad.
It took 3 and a half months for me to come to feel better and now I'm really ok.
This time, before taking AD, I obtained the opinion of a female psychiatrist who knows about hormones and tapering AD and whom I trust very much.
She assured me that she would supervise me in safely coming off the AD.
My advice to you is to go back to the dosage that suits you best and then taper very, very slowly.
NICE guidelines say taper 10% a month: https://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/mental-health/treatments-and-wellbeing/stopping-antidepressants
You can also consult your doctor to use the hyperbolic method of tapering by using tapering strips. This method has been proven to be the most effective.
You have no withdrawal or it is very mild.
You can find everything about the hyperbolic method of tapering AD on the website https://www.taperingstrip.com.
I hope I helped you at least a little with my experience, because I know how bad it is for you now.
The only thing I can guarantee you is that it WILL pass.
However, know that such a difficult experience changes you and that you will look at the world significantly differently later on.
My thoughts and prayers are with you!
Emma
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So did you just power through it Sunriser? Because that's what I e been told to do. I've been off it 3 weeks.
I was only on it for 10 weeks at 60 then tapered down every 2 weeks but I fe awful....can't stop crying, anxiety depression.
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The problem I have everyone is that duloxetine stps at 2omg.
I had to make the 10s up myself but I couldn't count the beads I just guessed! So how do i come down slowly??? Please help.
I've been told to ride this out by my psychiatric colleagues
....plus it eoukdvt have anything to do with my HRT patch would it? I've been very good on 90mg all the wat through since September.....
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What would you do? Please advise as I. Struggling.
I didn't really want to go back on....but its a pain going lower than 20 cos I can't count the beads. .I've just rang gp line and they've placed me ina queue for call back.
I wonder if they'd help with count ting the beads??? And I'm not doing alternate days, my psychiatrist friend said it wasn't good for me as I'm so sensitive to these meds.
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If U have been off this drug for 3+ weeks then there mayB another reason why you feel ill. Your symptoms may well be due to other life issues.
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No hun don't agree....everything's bee so fine in my life. These symptoms only came on from day 3 of me stopping
I've got gp ringing this morning.....I'm very much thinking to re start the 20mgs. This is the lowest the manufacturer makes and while I was tapering I was ok on this apart from 2 days teary. But I think that was due to me coming down
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OK - how would restarting after 3 weeks be of any benefit? Perhaps your Doctor will give advice for you to move forwards.
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Because I was too quick reducing last time .
I want to restart then taper longer
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Do ask about smaller doses which GPs often have access to but they aren't listed on the manufactorers' websites.
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Hi CLKD.....gp just called he has agreed to put me back on 20mg ....partner just gone to collect
20 is the smallest they make and I was okay on this when I took it fir 2 weeks on my taper
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Do ask about smaller doses which GPs often have access to but they aren't listed on the manufactorers' websites.
As CLKD says ....if not GP do your psychiatric friends/collegues know of another form to wean off of more gradually eg a liquid form. It can sometimes need a psychiatrist in order to be prescribed another form.
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Maybe they do liquid doses for really small amounts?