... greatly and honestly given me my life back. However, these recent weeks, I've felt the same anxiety patterns from before surfacing again. I've talked to my doctor and she has increased me to 90mg a day. I've been taking it for around five days now. I feel some of the same side effects that I experienced when starting on the drug now (a bit increased anxiety, headaches, tiredness, a little spaced out). Is it common to feel the initial side effects again when increasing your dosis?
I feel a little better today and yesterday than I did the first few days. Should I just stick it out and hope for it to work soon?
Upping my Cymbalta dose from 60mg to 90mg for anxiety - side effects showing...
Question posted by RasmusHax on 12 July 2019
Last updated on 25 March 2023 by pgmd4
4 Answers
pgmd4
25 March 2023
I was on Cymbalta 60mgs for 9 years without any problems. Last month I started getting anxiety again and he went up to 90mgs. I took it for 8 weeks it helped with my anxiety but the fatigue and lack of appetite never went away, so he lowered it to 60mg again and prescribed Aripiprazole 1mg to start since I'm very sensitive to these types of medications. I started today taking it. Psychiatry is not a precise science I hope this works without too many side effects.
Gramx3
13 July 2019
Hello RasmusHax, To answer your question, I believe it is normal to experience the same side effects as you initially did when your dosage is increased. It seems like Cymbalta is helping you and you seemed to have tolerated 60 mg. So perhaps you could see how it goes.
I do want to say, however that Cindy-59 is not crazy and side effects can be disastrous! I hope you have thoroughly researched this drug and the withdrawal syndrome it causes. I have been on Cymbalta for 3 years and it has been the worst 3 years of my life. If I tried to describe all the horrifying side effects I have suffered, I would be here all night. Look them up and I have had most all of them if not more.
I was on 60 mg when my primary care physician prescribed for me to go up to 120 mg. Never made it that far. At 90 mg, my side effects worsened to the extent that I could not function day to day. I tried waiting it out in the belief that the side effects would go away, but they did not lessen. I went back down to 60 mg and am now on 30 mg. I still have side effects and pray that some day I will be off this drug entirely. I also see a cardiologist because it has effected my heart with PVC's (heart palpitations). Just one of many effects on my quality of life.
There are many groups in the Internet with far too many people suffering from the drug Cymbalta. Take care of yourself and advocate for yourself. Best wishes for your health and your anxiety issues. I am also on the anxiety spectrum (PTSD among other dx) and I can empathize with you. If Cymbalta helps and you can tolerate it at the higher dose, then maybe it is for you. Take care.
cindy-59
13 July 2019
Hi RasmusHax. I want to answer your questions by telling you about some of things that happened to me while taking Cymbalta. I was prescribed Cymbalta for chronic nerve pain. It wasn’t long and I was starting to experience anxiety, depression and suicidal thoughts. I never had any of these problems before and I never connected them with taking Cymbalta. Then I was experiencing exhaustion, confusion and what many call ‘brain fog’. Then I started having problems with my memory. I ended up having to quit reading because I couldn’t remember what I had just read. I couldn’t remember words and I was having a hard time finishing my sentences. I started having blurry vision and hearing loss. I started gaining weight and I was bloated in my face, hands and feet. I was sweating a lot; even in the cold weather. I had blood work done and it showed that I had high cholesterol and high liver enzymes. I also had high blood pressure.
I couldn’t believe how fast my health was deteriorating. I had perfect teeth when I started taking Cymbalta but it’s going to cost thousands of dollars to fix the ones I actually still have. I was having muscle pain and cramps and then muscle loss. My joints were swollen and stiff and in a lot of pain also. My tummy was swollen and sore and I looked and felt like I was pregnant. I had to start using a cane and I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. I was also afraid that I was in the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s because of my memory loss. After years of taking Cymbalta I ended up gaining over 80 pounds. I wouldn’t get on the scales after that and I hated looking in the mirror because I didn’t recognize myself. I ended up being bedridden for 3 years and during this time I started researching all my problems and Cymbalta’s side effects came up. I kept researching and it took me to a Cymbalta group where there were thousands of people who were having the same problems that I was having. Every single one of them. I was in shock! So right then I decided I didn’t want to take Cymbalta anymore; but I realized I had to slowly taper off. So this was in 2017 and I started tapering off Cymbalta (60 mg) and I’m down to 1 mg (6 beads) now and every side effect is gone. I just had blood work done again and my cholesterol levels are back to normal and so are my liver enzymes. I no longer have high blood pressure either. I didn’t have Alzheimer’s and I was misdiagnosed with Fibromyalgia. I’ve started getting out again and I’m getting my life back. I’ve been losing the weight and I’m enjoying life again. I’ve even started doing a short exercise routine. I no longer look or feel like I’m pregnant! I am able to go to every one of my children’s and grandchildren’s birthday parties. There are over 20,000 people in the Cymbalta Hurts Worse group now who are trying to safely taper off this medication. Now all of this may not happen to you; but it would be wise for you to be on the lookout for these side effects. I understand that some people say that the side effects should or will go away in a short period of time but they only got worse for me. I lost over 10 years of my life because nobody warned me about the side effects of Cymbalta. Please take care of yourself and I wish you all the best. Cindy
WildcatVet
12 July 2019
Hi, Ras! Yes, it is very common to experience some of the same side effects as you may have initially felt. But because you've been on the recommended dose for awhile they shouldn't last as long or be quite as intense. Also, you should start feeling the good effects much faster... usually within the first two weeks.
Really, it's probably just a matter of time. Since you sound as if you've been doing better overall I'd think trying to stick it out a little longer would be the way to go.
Best regards and good luck!
WildcatVet
13 July 2019
Weigh the quality of the life you're living now against the fear of what the future may... and most likely will not... be.
RasmusHax
13 July 2019
Thank you! Is it likely I'll respond well to the dosage increase since the drug initially helped me or is that completely unrelated?
WildcatVet
13 July 2019
Maybe you were feeling a bit of the "roller coaster" on the lower dosage... symptoms seem to recur when that dosage isn't completely therapeutic. Everyone responds somewhat differently to medications and some may require a higher dose than others for the drug to become fully effective.
I've always been a little resistant to my medications and have always required the maximum recommended dosage.
Since your initial response was positive you'll probably find that this will give you the extra oomph you need. Good luck and best wishes!
RasmusHax
13 July 2019
Thank you. Your replies eases my mind a Lot. If 90mg turns out to not do the trick entirely, I'll have to reach out to my doctor and see if we should go the maximum 120mg or try a different AD. Again, thanks!
cindy-59
13 July 2019
Actually there is no evidence that doses higher than 60 mg/day confer any additional benefits. Also; many people have taken Cymbalta for years before they started to slowly suffer from side effects. Please believe me when I say that I am just trying to be sure that you are aware of the side effects that can take your quality of life away from you. I’m certainly not telling you this to hurt you but to help you to be aware. If Cymbalta works for you then that’s great and I’m happy for you. Best wishes to you. Cindy
RasmusHax
13 July 2019
Not for depression, no, though there seems to be some evidence for Up to 120 mg for anxiety. It gave me my life back (suffered chronic nausea and almost daily vomiting for a full year) and Cymbalta fixed me in a matter of weeks. However, after a few years, now this nausea anxiety thing is creeping back on me.
cindy-59
13 July 2019
Yes that’s how it works for many people. They say it’s a ‘miracle drug’ when they first started taking it then they begin to have the initial problems return along with many other problems. The people having the stomach problems; like vomiting are usually the ones who lose weight and keep losing and most of the others gain weight. I remember having nausea and vomiting when I first started taking Cymbalta and never clued in that it was caused by the medication. With me the nausea went away but then I started having many other problems. Like horrible pain in my right side and I ended up having my gallbladder removed but continued having the pain. I found out that this happened to many others and it was an unnecessary surgery. I no longer have this problem since I’ve tapered to a lower dosage and I will soon take my last bead.
I have done an extensive research on Cymbalta and I’ve never read anything about proof that a higher dosage than 60 mg works for anxiety. Have you read this or did your doctor tell you this? I’ve talked to many people who started getting their initial problems returning and their doctors upped their dosage until they reached the maximum 120 mg dose and then they decided to stop taking it because it wasn’t helping them anymore. The worst part of that is that many have to taper off slowly and it can take a long time to do it. Obviously the higher the dosage the longer it will take. I don’t understand why these types of medications stop working but they do. Many doctors don’t realize that it takes longer than a few weeks to taper off them. Then people suffer from withdrawal symptoms (The Discontinuation Syndrome). Have you ever missed a pill and it bothered you? If so that’s why we have to taper off slowly. I think you realize now I much I disapprove of Cymbalta and doctors upping the dosage but I have a personal experience with this and it took over 10 years of my life. I just turned 60 years old and I’m now getting my life back. I just hate to see anyone go through what I have gone through. Life is short enough without having these medications take part of it away from us. I don’t know if you have read up on Natural Remedies’ but there is a lot of good information about this on Google. I’ve been researching it for awhile now and I think it may interest you. Can’t hurt. Check it out and see what you think. Take care x Cindy
WildcatVet
13 July 2019
Actually, as I mentioned previously, some people require higher than the "recommended" dosages. Perhaps current studies do not confirm the benefits of off-label dosing but anecdotal evidence certainly does and that covers a much larger patient base.
Related topics
cymbalta, anxiety, generalized anxiety disorder, side effect, doctor, antidepressant
Further information
- Cymbalta uses and safety info
- Cymbalta prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Cymbalta (detailed)
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