Cymbalta for Major Depressive Disorder User Reviews (Page 3)

• Lover...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 29, 2015

"Positive experience! I have SAD, GAD, Social Anxiety and Depression. I have been taking 90 mg for 10 years now. I had tried Effexor, Paxil, Wellbutrin and Celexa. These had each worked for about a year and then didn't work anymore. I have one side effect that I deal with. I have hot flashes. But this has been ok to deal with because my head finally felt right. I was able to go off of my anti-anxiety medication some years ago. After all this time on Cymbalta I have gone through some major life changes in the last year and my anxiety has come back. My depression has been sneaking back as well. I am trying CBT with a little success. I think I may need an increased dose or may have to try something new, which I dread."

• Survi...
• December 25, 2018

"I am a 35 year old female taking 60mg of Cymbalta for Major Depressive Disorder, PTSD, and General Anxiety Disorder. I have been on this drug for 2 years. I went from a daily emotional pain level of 7-8 to about a 2-3 with a 1 on very good days. Most of the side effects were transient. The remaining side effects are occasional night sweats with vivid dreams, constipation, and lowered libido. Note that my sex drive has always been on the low side (hormonal birth control may be a factor) so this was not a dramatic change from my personal baseline. A year ago I was on 80mg. I was taken down to 60mg due to elevated liver enzymes. The decrease in dosage resolved the issue in under 6 months. The decrease did not comprise efficacy since 60mg appears to be the most therapeutic dose for me. I recently discovered I have slightly low thyroid levels at my last annual physical. I was instructed to recheck this in 6 months to make sure I do not have hypothyroidism."

• danny...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 23, 2016

"PTSD has been horrific. I starting this new treatment has without question saved my life all medication needs a little bit of will to get better so I started yoga classes and read a lot of self help books and with the medication as a crutch I'm getting the help I need."

• Janey...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• May 29, 2016

"I took this medication for a year and a half,it worked great for my anger issues but did very little for my depression...It also worked well for my fibromyalgia...The down fall for me was feeling like a zombie 24/7,to the point of not even having energy to clean my house,have a shower daily or even brush my teeth...I just didn't care about anything at all...Not a good way to live "

• Littl...
• September 23, 2015

"This medicine helped, at first. Than the dose had to be increased often. I didn't realize the brain fog, the chronic tiredness and the inability to sleep at night were from this medicine. My agitation level also increased. I am tapering off of it now and I am in hell."

• purple...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 13, 2017

"I started this drug back in the summer-ish of 2016. I was given 30 mg, which, let me say, was [at the time] The Holy Grail. I lost a bunch of weight, because it had helped me feel good enough to stop emotionally eating. Started on 60 mg, and it felt like a placebo. I accidentally stopped taking it for about 5 days and experienced physical withdrawals which I wasn't warned about until I googled. I'm currently weening myself off of it, because I refuse to be a slave to this or any other drug."

• GBano
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 12, 2020

"I understand we all react differently to medications. Effexor was working well but due to severe scoliosis my psych switched me to Cymbalta. It had the opposite effect in every way. I became angry, irritable, suicidal, anxious, had insomnia, sleep paralysis, nightmares, and my pain worsened. After 6 weeks I switched back to Effexor on my own until I got in to see my psych to do the same. These side effects are hit or miss and I always recommend giving all new meds at least 3 weeks, so take this review with discernment, but if you encounter these effects, they will likely stay. Effexor may be harder on the liver, but the difference is night and day, and adding Rexulti finally broke through a decade long wall."

• Sondra
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• June 17, 2023

"I have been on 30 mg of Cymbalta for 3 years now, so since the beginning of Covid lockdown. In spite of being at home alone all the time I am almost always in a good mood. Maybe I am just a person who prefers being alone and Covid was the break I needed. But 3 years in and I do feel that its the Cymbalta doing the work. It seems like I've been on every drug on the market in the last 20 years. Some have worked really well but never longer than 2 years, like lexapro. I feel more content and have no side effects. I don't feel like I'm on anything at all. It also acts as an appetite suppressant which is a good thing. I'm surprised that this isn't a more popular drug considering how well it works and how easy it is to handle. I have also been taking clonazepam for 20 years as well as T3 for thyroid and off-label for depression."

• AEJ
• August 28, 2015

"After trying Zoloft, Effexor and Lexapro, we tried Cymbalta. The worst experience I have ever had with a drug to treat my MDD. I was on it for ONE NIGHT. Literally, just one night. I took it that night and woke up about 6am the next morning or thoughts of cutting off my hand. I heard a voice in my head telling me my hand was bad. Telling me that I needed to cut it off. I stuck my hand under my pillow, and laid there staring at the wall. I hoped the voices would go away. I eventually fell back asleep. Later that day I took the medicine to my psychiatrist and left it on her desk. I told her, "here you take this crazy making drug". I'm depressed, but not crazy."

• Time...
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• June 21, 2016

"I had been on Zoloft for 8 years before it just stopped working. Doctor switched me to Cymbalta and I was very fortunate that it worked, really well for 6 years. Unfortunately, my insurance company switched approval for this to the generic version, which absolutely is not the same. It slowly started losing efficacy. So my doctor had to increase my daily dosage (on the generic version) from 60 mg to 90 mg. At 60 mg, I had didn't have sexual side effects, but I did at 90 mg, which was not acceptable to me. So back down to 60 mg I went. Now I'm having "break through" symptoms again: anger, irritability, lack of interest in things. I'm not sure what I'll do, but I'm pretty sure I have to switch meds completely again."

• Alucard
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 30, 2019

"Tried this back in 2006, it was the only time I've ever had suicidal thoughts. After two weeks I was not myself, being temperamental , bad attitude, waking up mad. I quit taking it and felt myself at least return to how I was before. An old girlfriend said her ex husband tried to kill himself on cymbalta and after some research. Cymalta has a black box warning which is about the increase in suicidal thoughts. This stuff needs to be taken with caution and whoever takes this needs people around them who know about the increased risks."

• In My...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 7, 2016

"I was put on this med due to degenerative arthritis in my neck and depression, (I was taken off the other mood meds and swapped to just this) For two weeks I took 30 mg, which didn't seem to help much, I also suffer from headaches/migraines. I was upped to 60mg which after the 3rd day was the first time in over 40 years I didn't wake up with a headache. It's been 4 days now with no headache, I have a bit of a humming in my ear, like when an amp is left on, but I'll take that over headaches any day, occasionally I've had the runs, but not sure if this is med related. I have noticed an improvement in my mood, also, I should mention also started seeing a Chiropractor for the first time and she's also done some miracle work on the neck."

• Conce...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 1, 2016

"This drug is the devil. It destroyed my life. It took everything that made me who I am away from me & locked it in a little box. I didn't notice my personality changing, I didn't notice how heavily I'd started to drink because it was creating more symptoms than it was treating. My partner, also on Cymbalta for slightly longer than I (probably still on it) also changed... He went from kind & considerate to selfish & cold. He avoided conflict at all costs when I met him, when we parted ways he would happily start arguments. Yes, Cymbalta helped me for about 2 months, but from there it was all side effects (apart from the aforementioned) of uncontrollable sweating & mood swings on top of the depression & anxiety it was supposed to be treating"

• Nanny
• May 11, 2021

"I was put in Cymbalta about 2 years ago for severe depression. I also suffer from chronic pain, osteoarthritis, severe hypertension, anxiety, & insomnia. The only thing my 60 mg have done for me is stop me from crying at the drop of a dime. My Dr. has now diagnosed me with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), my depression has become debilitating. No energy, no drive, no strength to leave my bedroom. I was on Vyvanse for almost 2 years. I really needed a stimulants to animate me, I had energy and had function. I changed doctors and she took me off of it and I've been like this ever since. She put me on 30 more mg. In the afternoon and also prescribed Wellbutrin XL 150 mg. Cymbalta has not touched my Chronic pain or anxiety. We shall see what happens in a month."

• Nicolas
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• April 9, 2019

"It did okay for my depression, reduced my headaches, improved my concentration and my sleep and reduced my anxiety, but it did almost nothing for social anxiety. I switched from Cymbalta to Effexor and I immediately found that Effexor was far superior in almost everything.I would recommend Cymbalta as your second choice SNRI, if Effexor won’t work for you."

• Zack...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• September 9, 2017

"Was prescribed Cymbalta 1.5 years ago to treat Major Depressive Disorder. Helped lessen the sadness caused by depression, but also made me numb emotionally. Decided to taper off of Cymbalta, while being advised by my physician, and the withdrawal symptoms were terrible. Currently still on 30mg (down from 120mg) and going to look for easier ways to withdraw. Would not recommend Cymbalta to anyone, as I feel I was doing better before I started the medication, and the withdrawal symptoms aren't worth it."

• Knight
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 13, 2022

"I’ve been on cymbalta for a little over 2 months now and I feel it works well for me, I take it alongside buspirone. I take 60mg at night. Does a good job at keeping my depression at bay, if I do feel sadness, it’s very minor compared to how it used to be. Also does well at controlling my anxiety, which is a nice bonus! You see people giving this drug a bad review but don’t let them scare you away, the truth of the matter is, everyone reacts to medication differently, works well for some and terrible for others, the only way you will know that is if you try it for yourself."

• Howmil
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• April 27, 2015

"After 7.5 years, this past Jan. I thought I would try viibryd. Went up on it, down on cymbalta. Had a moderate adjustment with ups and downs. It was not as effacacious so titrated down viibryd and up on cymbalta. Got deeply depressed in between and on one moderate day; tried wellbutrin. I titrated slowly up and this was death warmed over! Titrated back from hell to 60 cymbalta. I am just back to normal. Long story short: if it's not broken don't fix it. Cymbalta still is the best. Some weight gain but some exercise can help it a bit.."

• drew...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 13, 2014

"This medication for me was ok, it gave me less side effects than other antidepressants. I was prescribed it for Major Depressive Disorder along with BPD and anxiety. It seemed to make me a bit null at first then it helped me think more clearly, less invaded by suicidal thoughts, etc. I do take it along with quetiapine (an antipsyscotic) and it seems to meld well with it ."

• stevie
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 21, 2022

"Sadly, this one did nothing for me. I was by this time seen as treatment resistant, and was just trying something else. At first, they felt similar to Zoloft or Lexapro in that there weren't any real side effects, except after 6 weeks or so, as it "settled in" and then I began to feel VERY dark and desolate. More depressed than ever, and nothing seemed to give me any relief or comfort. I had urges to self harm from feeling so bad and had to stop taking them."

• roger...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• November 7, 2016

"This was the most helpful antidepressant for me (previous were Prozac, Wellbutrin, Lexapro, and Effexor). I was getting along with people, working out regularly, and had no side effects except for a bit of drowsiness depending on when I took it. Eventually I was diagnosed with having a bipolar component and so now I'm taking Lamictal with it. Overall a pretty potent and good medication."

• wlr
• January 27, 2022

"I suffer from clinical depression and this is without a doubt the best antidepressant with the least side effects I also have arthritis and it helps with the pain cycle . Only antidepressant I've never had a problem with ."

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• February 12, 2015

"My celexa stopped working around Thanksgiving. I have been slowly going into a tail spin since. My Dr changed me to Zoloft which I took for 5 weeks and only got worse. I took my first cymbalta yesterday and woke up this morning with so much less pain and could actually walk without my joints hurting. Not to mention that My mind seems to be coming around too. I cannot believe how fast this medicine has begun working for me. Between the severe depression and back pain I had been having thoughts of suicide for over 2 weeks now. I actually slept good last night and feel so much better already today!"

• cymba...
• June 8, 2016

"So I gave it an ok review score because it did make feel less depressed. However, as a whole I think cymbalta is bad for you and can lead to terrible health consequences. The side effects I experienced while taking the drug (30 mgs for 6 months) were horrible and I gained a ton of weight which didn't help the initial cause of me wanting to take the drug - depression (when you don't feel confident your less happy, what can I say). A few lbs to become a happier person is ok, but it really made me gain weight and also made me tired, nausea, sweaty, and experience muscle spasms. Along with this, withdrawing was horrible. I wish big pharma would be less money hungry and focus on creating effective medications with reduced side effects."

• still...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 5, 2021

"I started this medication to try to treat both my depression and fibromyalgia in one go, and it did not go well. My first dose was taken at around 10am, and by 7pm that day I was not feeling well. I was disoriented, dizzy, nauseous. An hour later my heart rate shot up to 145 (resting is 62), I was vomiting violently, shaking, and felt like I was drunk. I was admitted to the hospital, started on ondansetron. I was intermittently nauseous and dizzy, followed by extremely tired, weak, and cold. Symptoms stopped rather abruptly by 8pm the next day (lasted approx 24 hours)."