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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 12 of 12. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 17:23:25
I'm sooooo sleepy during the day! I also don't have the initiative to get up and do anything, but I don't really care about it (like I normally would). I've basically been sitting around the house all day eating, napping, and playing on the internet. Nothing productive whatsoever. Is this typical, and if so, will it dissapate over time? Thanks!
Posted by Racer on March 5, 2006, at 17:39:06
In reply to day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and..., posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 17:23:25
You know, I really hate to tell you this. I really, really hate to do it, because I don't want you to think that what I experienced, you'll experience.
For me, that never went away, and it's why I stopped the Cymbalta.
I also took Wellbutrin, and between the two it might have worked for me -- except for what you've just described. I could -- and often did -- do nothing besides sit in the same chair or lie on the sofa all day. It did bother me, but nothing I tried changed anything. I'd try to force myself to do something, and then feel much worse when it didn't work and I gave up halfway through.
I hope it is different for you. Give it some time, I'd suggest 8 weeks, and see if it's better.
Good luck.
Posted by ShellyM on March 5, 2006, at 18:06:08
In reply to day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and..., posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 17:23:25
I've been on Cymbalta for 4 months and I am experiencing the same thing- though the lethargy and sleepiness didn't hit until about 3 months after I started.
Racer, I always find your posts very helpful. You mentioned you have taken Wellbutrin with Cymbalta. No change in the tiredness? What dose of Wellbutrin did you take? Did you notice any increased anxiety with the Wellbutrin?
Thanks for your insights.
Shelly
Posted by Racer on March 5, 2006, at 19:01:41
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and...(Racer), posted by ShellyM on March 5, 2006, at 18:06:08
>
>
> Racer, I always find your posts very helpful. You mentioned you have taken Wellbutrin with Cymbalta. No change in the tiredness? What dose of Wellbutrin did you take? Did you notice any increased anxiety with the Wellbutrin?
>Thank you.
I stopped taking the Cymbalta in November or December, because I couldn't take the lethargy anymore. Even at 20mg per day, it was still leaving me lying around and berating myself for not being productive. The Wellbutrin helped a lot with the depression itself, the depressed mood, etc, but it didn't give me access to the energy I had. See, it was never that I didn't have energy -- I just couldn't use that energy, and it ended up turning inward as self-loathing, etc. It was not a lot of fun.
The Wellbutrin on its own has not been enough to address my depression -- and I still didn't feel as though I had access to that energy. I was still dragging on it. But yes, that increased energy with no where to go did feed into anxiety, although not nearly as badly as you might expect. It wasn't nearly as bad as it can get without medication. And I just started a stimulant, which finally seems to help with both sides of it. Now to find the right stimulant...
Anyway, the Wellbutrin did help a lot, although it wasn't enough to overcome the overwhelming lethargy of the Cymbalta.
Hope that helps. I'm a little stressed today and not necessarily making sense...
Posted by ShellyM on March 5, 2006, at 20:23:20
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and...(Racer) » ShellyM, posted by Racer on March 5, 2006, at 19:01:41
> I stopped taking the Cymbalta in November or December, because I couldn't take the lethargy anymore. Even at 20mg per day, it was still leaving me lying around and berating myself for not being productive.Shelly: I do the same thing (though I am on 60mg). I get up, feel good for about 2 hours and then crawl back into bed; which starts the destructive self-talk - "you are just lazy, you are not trying", etc. etc.
> The Wellbutrin on its own has not been enough to address my depression -- and I still didn't feel as though I had access to that energy. I was still dragging on it. But yes, that increased energy with no where to go did feed into anxiety, although not nearly as badly as you might expect. It wasn't nearly as bad as it can get without medication.
Shelly - This helps. I think I will try supplementing the Cymbalta with 150mg of Wellbutrin and see if I get increased energy and if I can use that so it doesn't manifest into anxiety and panic.
And I just started a stimulant, which finally seems to help with both sides of it. Now to find the right stimulant...
>
Shelly - Ugh, the search...I will say a prayer that you find the right one quickly.> Hope that helps. I'm a little stressed today and not necessarily making sense...
Shelly- that's the thing about you, even when stressed, you make a ton of sense and are helping a lot of people. I hope the stress leaves soon.
Thank you,
Shelly
Posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 20:53:16
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and...(Racer), posted by ShellyM on March 5, 2006, at 20:23:20
Thanks for the responses! So I guess it's not looking good for me at 60 mg. then ... I was on 30 mg. for close to 6 months with only minimal lethargy. The problem was that my anxiety had gotten worse, and I was always craving sugar like mad (I still crave sugar, actually). My p-doc thought that increasing the serotonin would help.
Racer and Shelly: do you find that the lethargy is accompanied by a feeling of physical weakness, or lack of energy? I've had a bit of that. But then again, I get this with all AD's, and Cymbalta seems to have been the lest troublesome out of the ones I've tried.
Is there anyone out there who has NOT had the lethargy/sleepiness problems with Cymbalta?
Posted by Phillipa on March 5, 2006, at 21:51:44
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and...(Racer), posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 20:53:16
Me of course it definitely wired me. At even 30mg twitching of my legs, and sweating at night and a head that felt like it would explode from wanting to cry but not able to. So I stopped. See it affects different people differently. Fondly, Phillipa
Posted by Berberis on March 6, 2006, at 8:43:35
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and...(Racer), posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 20:53:16
> Is there anyone out there who has NOT had the lethargy/sleepiness problems with Cymbalta?
Me. But I've only been on 60mg for one week so far. On 30mg I had no lethargy either and I was on that dosage about 8 weeks. 150mg Wellbutrin may be helping me with counteracting lethargy. I'm a little hypomanic though (will take that over lethargy any day).
Posted by deniseuk on March 6, 2006, at 11:39:51
In reply to day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and..., posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 17:23:25
Hi,
I get this on Seroxat, not at first but since it stopped working. Was like that at 40mg and I feel like that at 60mg. I've found that sometimes when I skip a dose I actually feel better the next day so am thinking of trying this now and again.
I'm not having much joy with my psychiatrist, in that he won't do what I want him to do :-) so I'm just sort of making it up as I go along.
I have a drawer of pills in my bedroom so it's like "what shall I try tonight?"
Zyprexa 10mg once a week without any other medication helped me a lot with motivation.
Denise
Posted by Phillipa on March 6, 2006, at 11:45:48
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and..., posted by deniseuk on March 6, 2006, at 11:39:51
Someone else with a drawer of pills? Sounds like me but I'm chicken to mess around with them. Love Phillipa
Posted by flmm on March 6, 2006, at 20:42:31
In reply to Re: day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and..., posted by deniseuk on March 6, 2006, at 11:39:51
Made me freakin nuts! Bailed!
Posted by utopizen on March 8, 2006, at 10:53:57
In reply to day 4 on 60 mg. Cymbalta and..., posted by jessers11581 on March 5, 2006, at 17:23:25
Call your doc.
Most docs will prescribe you Provigil while your body adjusts to the medicine.
Remember, these things take several weeks before they work, and the side effects, like any psychotropic, generally only last while your body adjusts to it.
It's worth the wait. =)
This is the end of the thread.
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