Fibromyalgia Support Group

I'v been on this medication, Cymbalta, now for 3 days. It makes me yawn almost constantly. My doctor says that should pass within a few weeks, and if not he'll take me off of it. I'm just wondering if this medication works for people who try it. This is really my first medication besides muscle relaxers, and I am just curious other peoples results with this. I am starting to feel better as far as pain. So that is a good sign I think, but my doctor was a bit surprised at my yawning, he said "well that is odd". So that was kinda strange, but anyway I'd love to hear all the pro's and cons from those of you who may have tried it!

Thanks everyone!

Hope you are all having a good day, and a great weekend!

-Bonnie

I love Cymbalta...I was on Zoloft & then Wellbutrin for 12 years and was really sunk into depression, so bad that I figured why take antidepressants, if this is how I feel on them? My doctor switched me to Effexor and I wasn't depressed any longer even though I was going through some really troubling family stuff. I couldn't tolerate Lyrica for pain so my doctor suggested we switch Effexor to Cymbalta, since Cymbalta is supposed to work for pain. It definitely works for me for pain...I was in a lot of pain, both muscular and nerve, and it's really helped with both. Much better than Lyrica and Effexor. Did your doctor warn you about the withdrawal though? Its a killer and you don't want to EVER miss a dose. Cymbalta is better than Effexor I hear, but I don't plan on finding out. Actually, I haven't noticed any side effects from Cymbalta and I usually have a hard time adjusting to new medicine. Have you been getting good sleep since you started? Could you be tired? I have a real bad case of insomnia but that started before I switched to NSRIs.

Thanks for your input, sounds like its a good one for you!!! Thats wonderful!

As far as insomnia for me, I do fairly well there, I usually hurt when I sleep, but through that, I think I sleep fairly well, and with this medicine, I'm sleeping better. So that is great!!! My doctor didnt warn me about withdrawls. He said most anti depression medication you dont really need to take "forever" like he said most doctors will tell you. Infact he said that after I've been on it a while I can just stop for a while if I feel I'm doing good, and see if I'm ok, and if not, start it up again.

Please enlighten me on the with drawl effects!

I'd love all the input I can get!!

Thanks a million for your reply!

I have been on Cymbalta for about a year now. I did not have the yawnign effect. It was given to me for the muscle cramps I was getting and it has helped tremendously. I still get a charlie horse once in awhile not several of them a day and they aren't as severe.

Im so glad you said that about the yawning,ahhh..I was raised up on mine and could not stop yawning for the longest time didn't have a clue why.

how many of you reading this a yawning now,why is that if someone yawns you have to to

I am definitely yawning along with all of you, but mine is more from insomnia than anything else.

I will tell you that the withdrawl of Cymbalta was horrible for me! I cried at everything for days and my pain was at an intolerable level. It lasted for about a week and a half then I leveled off. My doctor then put me on Effexor and I am doing much better on that.

Remember, everyone reacts differently to medications so what happens to one person may not happen to the next. Stay in touch with your doc...if something doesn't seem quite right, make sure to contact them and keep them in the loop.

Best of luck to you! I hope you find the right combo of meds to give you the relief you deserve.

{{{{{HUGS}}}}}

So, did your yawning stop then? You said it didnt stop for the longest time. How long was that? Just wondering about how long this will last me. hehe

Thanks for your msg!

Good to know I'm not yawning alone! hehe

Good to know that this medicine seems to help!!!! I havent had a negative comment yet, so that is a good sign I guess!

Have a Great day!

I've been on Cymbalta for about a year now, for depression/anxiety and nerve pain. It has helped with both, and so far no intolerable side effects at this dose. I am currently taking 30 mg in the morning.

I switched from Paxil, which was making me lethargic and drowsy -- also "yawny" all day long, and the Cymbalta does not cause as much drowsiness for me. When I first started taking it, I was taking 60 mg at bedtime, and it was keeping me awake -- bad problem since I have such insomnia anyway and take forever to fall asleep -- so my doctor suggested cutting the dose to 30 mg and taking it just in the morning.

Since then I have had no problems with Cymbalta.

As others have said, the daytime yawns could be from not having enough hours of deep, restful sleep the night before -- something that seems to go hand-in-hand with fibro -- and everyone experiences the effects of medications differently. I would give it a few weeks, see how you feel, and go from there.

The NSRI's and SSRI's need to be tapered off slowly under a doctor's guidance if you are going off the medication or switching to another one. This is especially true if you have been taking them for a long period of time, and in the higher dosage ranges. If weaning off the drug is done slowly and carefully, the withdrawal effects are not so intolerable. I had no trouble at all switching from Paxil to Cymbalta. Always keep your doctor informed, especially if you are receiving meds from more than one doctor. It is important that every doctor you see has a complete list of your current medications, as well as your pharmacy -- when possible, get all Rx filled in one place so they will all be in the same database and can be monitored for drug interactions. Many of us take a lot of meds, and our meds and dosages are adjusted often, so all of our health care providers need to be kept up to date.

Post edited by: hipmama42, at: 08/29/2008 06:45

Wow, that sounds like it wasnt much fun to get off of!

Glad you found something that helps though!

Thanks for all your input.