Cymbalta for Fibromyalgia User Reviews (Page 5)

• courtd
• July 1, 2013

"This medecine delivers as promised as far as pain relief. I noticed a reduction in pain 3 days into taking it. The only pain it doesnt eliminate is my lower back pain. It even helps with my migraines! Negatives are the side effects when getting used to the med (nausea, fatigue) and the fact that your body gets used to it so you have to keep upping the dosage. Recommend starting out on the lowest dosage possible."

• CNA
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• July 28, 2013

"I have been on Cymbalta, 60 mg, for over 5 years. It did work for the Fibro pain, even though at stressful times I still felt a minimum of pain. I began to notice after about 3 years that I was very tired all the time and foggy in the brain. It was hard for me to concentrate when someone was talking and words were hard to find when answering them. I finally told my doctor that I wanted to wean off of Cymbalta but I haven't found this to be very easy. Been working on it since June and if I try to lower the dose too fast I become sick like a very bad flu. I am now more clear headed and can talk with clarity since my dose was lowered to around 20 mg."

• Anonymous
• January 26, 2009

"Helped greatly with pain, confusion and saying words I was thinking. Went from about 4-5 hours of sleep a night to 12-14 hours solid sleep for first month. (It felt GREAT to sleep without waking from pain. First time in 8-9 years!) Now only have an occasional late night here and there and sleep as much or little as I want. I do have muscle tightness and twitching when I lay down at night. Stretching and heated muscle rubs help. "

• Dana...
• July 23, 2015

"I have Fibromyalgia as well and I stopped taking Cymbalta because my pains improved a great deal, but, I had extreme nausea and exhaustion (esp. in the am). Now my pains have come back to kick my behind. Day 2 of Cymbalta. Seems as if it makes me light sensitive, which gives me a headache and dizzy. Like my eyes are heavy and my skin was clammy. I will continue. I'll get back to you n a few weeks."

• Anne
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• October 23, 2018

"I've been on Cymbalta for over a year for fibro. There has only been a slight (10%) difference in pain, yet now I have to worry about the horrible Cymbalta Discontinuation Syndrome....which is a thing, when I try to get off of it. My doctors, of course, didn't mention that when they put me on it."

• Simply...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 13, 2017

"My confirmed diagnosis is Fibroidmyalgia, Sjogrens, and severe arthritis which I have suffered for many years. The Fibroidmyalgia tested the worse out of all other disorders. My PCP gave me 60 mg/day of Cymbalta which was reduced quickly for I slept all the time & couldn't control my eyes. My husband said i walked around w/my eyes wide open & I'd forget to blink, said I resembled a zombie. My RA Doctor advised me to combine Cymbalta with Lyrica to increase effectiveness which I'm hesitant to try. My pain, tiredness, and sensitivity has increased severely w/Cymbalta, and I honestly feel it's not worth the risk."

• Ash-p...
• January 26, 2018

"Started this medicine on 1/17/2018 - It has worked wonders for me. I haven't known what pain-free was for 10+ years. The first day or two I was a bit nauseous and had on and off headaches, but felt a decrease in pain immediately. After the 2nd day, nausea passed and I've felt great other than being tired all the time, but I'm used to that. I hope everyone else can feel a relief with this medicine like I have."

• smoore
• December 17, 2008

"I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia about 3 years ago. I have tried many types of medications from narcotics to anti-seizure medications to control the pain. I have been on Cymbalta for the last 4 months. Cymbalta works wonderful and I am able to live a pain free life."

• Patti
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 2, 2019

"When Cymbalta first came out, my rheumatologist prescribed 120mg per day. At that point I couldn’t sit up for more than 30 minutes. He also prescribed a “cocktail” of cyclobenzaprine 10mg, alprazolam 4mg, and Gabapentin 1200mg, twice a day. I read a lot of reviews and most were awful until I read the reviews of people over 50. They said it changed their lives! I was around 60 and am now 72. It truly changed my life! Now I find myself forgetting words. A neighbor told me she got off her Cymbalta and that went away so I’m waiting to see my doctor about this. Cutting the Cymbalta in half for a week and my knees and wrists are very painful. Again, waiting to see my doctor!"

• Dgreen
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• September 14, 2019

"I have been taking Cymbalta for one month. I am at 30 mg and have not had a lot of bad side effects as others have noted. I do feel more tired and I have had some minor nose bleeding that seems to have subsided now. I would say this medication has decreased my muscle pain by about 50 to 75% depending on the day. It has also helped with arthritis pain in my hips and back. I would say the joint pain relief is about 25%. I hope I don’t have severe withdrawal symptoms if I have to change medications or stop temporarily for a surgery. I have read that it is much easier to taper off if you start taking a small dose of an SSRI like Prozac during the taper."

• Anonymous
• February 17, 2009

"I have tried increasingly higher doses of Lyrica to suppress fibromyalgia flare ups with okay results for two years. Cymbalta became available and it has drastically reduced the constant pain, weakness and fatigue I suffer. Finally, something that works for my fibromyalgia."

• Steve
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• April 20, 2019

"Hi have had pain for 20 years process of being electrocuted 3 times. I had developed arthritis all over the body, suffered from irritable bowl syndrome and orofacial granulomatosis and delevoped fibromyalgia pain with fatigue, depression and with constant head pain. This was all unbearable but after trying Cymbalta pain was minimised by 30 to 40 percent. I take 30 my a day"

• angzi...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 12, 2013

"I am on Lyrica 150 mg a day, but it started to lose it's effectiveness after about 5 months. I can't afford to see the doctor or get more Lyrica. I tried Cymbalta for my PMDD and hoped that it might help my pain too. My pain was almost completely gone after about 2 days of use! However, I started getting sores on my tongue, emotional numbness, and had zero libido. I stopped using it after about 7 days, and the pain came back worse than ever (I believe I had been overdoing it those few days). I seriously considered putting up with the side effects just to get some pain relief, but I'm trying bupropion XL first."

• Anonymous
• May 12, 2009

"I have Fibromyalgia and ME/CFS, as well as depression and anxiety resulting from PTSD. I have been on Zoloft for over 10 years, trying to taper from it for the last 5. I couldn't get down past 50mg of Zoloft without dreadful side effects, until my doctor suggested I cross taper with Cymbalta. It has made all of the difference in the world. I am now down to 20mg of Zoloft (without any withdrawal symptoms), and up to 30mg of Cymbalta. I noticed within the first few days that my depression and anxiety had subsided almost completely, and my Fibromyalgia pain has measurably decreased. I haven't had to use as much oxycontin, or klonopin. I look forward to seeing if combining Lyrica will allow me to get off the oxycodone altogether."

• Samby
• April 16, 2017

"Severe constipation, horrible horrible time it gave me,I don't care what anyone says,I was on it for 6 weeks and had to take laxatives every other night just to get relief before it finally hit me what was happening, I went off it right away, terrible drug,I'd rather live with any kind of pain then to ever go through that again!!!!"

• Lilly
• February 3, 2021

"I was on this drug Cymbalta for 2 weeks I was taking 30mg a day. I was getting tired during the day and felt my eyes close at my desk. I called the Dr office about a week after taking it to ask if I could adjust the dosage because of the sleepiness, The Dr never returned my call and three days later I was driving home in the afternoon and fell asleep at the wheel. The tiredness come out of nowhere I crashed into the divider I was okay the car was not. Thank goodness I was in a truck. There needs to be a stronger warning on Cymbalta. I will never take this drug again I am lucky that I survived the car accident."

• Sanda...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 25, 2017

"I broke my hip the day before July 4th. I has surgery and was in the hospital for a week, then in a nursing rehab home for a month. I can't take opioid so took Ibuprofen for the pain. I am 67 year's old and also have afib. I was getting around fine when I came home. Then in September I had pain all over my body. It would jump around. I had extremely bad insomnia and restless leg syndrome. My legs felt heavy like they were filled with cement. I went to my PHD and she ran blood tests, especially looking for Rheumatoid Arthritis. The diagnosis is Fibromyalgia. She had me take steroids, one tablet a day for four days and Cymbalta 30th twice a day. I had no bad side effects. I slept better and the pain is very bearable, just mild hip pain."

• Musta...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 9, 2013

"I recently starting taking Cymbalta for my chronic back (several herniated discs), Costocondritis (chest inflamation), and other related pains classified as Fibromyalgia and Chronic lower back pain. The medication works. It has nearly removed my chest pain and lower back pains by 90% and only a few lingering pains still exist and only in spurts. I've only been on the 60mg dosage for a few weeks, so it may get better. As a side effect, my PE is gone. I never told a doc about it and it has been killing me for a decade. I've tried everything else, none helped. I looked online with a search of Cymbalta and PE and there are sources to confirm it works. "

• catlady
• April 27, 2013

"I have been taking Cymbalta for over two years, it worked great in the beginning. I currently take 90mg a day, 60 in the morning and 30 at bedtime. The last few months it does not seem to be working. I have tried several other medications before this one and none of them worked. There are days (most) that I hurt so bad I can't stand to move."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• August 19, 2012

"I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia about 1 yr ago, Dr. prescribed Cymbalta, got discouraged at first because it didn't seem to help in the first couple weeks, but then after staying on for about a month, pain was greatly decreased. Not a fan of being on medicines, but without it my quality of life is not the same."

• Anonymous
• September 14, 2016

"The first few days I took the 30mg it worked great my pain was pretty much gone and I felt like myself again, other then the bad side effects. But after the first few days my pain started coming back more everyday. I did start taken 60mg about a month later but it did not help with the pain and I could not deal with the side effects. I am still on the 30mg because it does help with my depression."

• Tiff...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 23, 2017

"I suffered for about 2 yrs with fibromyagia. With in the first 2 days at 20mg I felt a significant decrease in the electrifying buzzing throughout my body. I finally got comfortable enough to get a good night of sleep. The first day I had eye pain but it went away later in the day. Currently I wake up in the morning with a little nausea and my fingers swell but this too subsides throughout the day. Overall I have been more active and alert than I could ever remember. :)"

• Anonymous
• February 16, 2010

"My husband has borderline rheumatoid arthritis, is diabetic, has bouts of atrial fib, and is overweight. He is working on losing weight, so he can have surgical oblation on his heart, to minimize the afib. He kept having extreme muscle/tendon pain. Rheumatologist dx: fibromyalgia. put on Cymbalta, 30 mg x 1wk, then 60mg. been on 60 mg x 5 days, MAJOR difference in the pain. Hasn't complained at all. Whole new world. Has even helped his depression and anxiety attacks. (not clinically diagnosed, but still there). Unfortunately, it has made him severely tired, and his libido is not what it used to be. Beginning to be on the verge of erectile disfunction. Great drug, but at what cost? Something to think about"

• aln
• August 30, 2009

"I had been taking another antidepressant when I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia. After one year of suffering I asked my doctor to switch me to Cymbalta so that I could see if it would help my muscle pain. After about 6 weeks, I realized that I was doing everyday things without crying out loud. Cymbalta has reduced my muscle pain from a 10 (worst) to about a 5. It worked for me."

• dfr
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• January 25, 2018

"When starting this medicine I was assured it was very safe and easy to stop. Initially it did help with pain, with what seemed like minimal side effects. So I continued for about 6 yrs. My pain was slowing getting worse each year and I got to a point of wanting to detox from everything (medicine & food with toxins). I started with stopping cymbalta after being assured it would be a safe easy withdrawal. It was the worst nightmare ever! It truly came so close to costing me my life. I would recommend not ever taking this for any reason. If you are already on it, take the weaning off very slow and extremely delicately. B12 shots and lots of Vitamin D with K together, will help some."