What Causes Anger,crying And Sweating In Condition Like Cymbalta Withdrawal?

Posted on Thu, 5 Mar 2015

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Thu, 5 Mar 2015 Answered on

Mon, 23 Mar 2015 Last reviewed on

Question : I'm going through severe Cymbalta withdrawal. The brain zaps are about to drive me insane along with the alternating anger,crying,freezing and sweating. I haven't slept in 3 days now and am so nauseous I can't even bear to smell food. What do I tell my doctor I need to be prescribed to make this stop or else at least be tolerable?

Answered by Dr. Shubham Mehta (6 hours later)

Brief Answer:
restart cymbalta or substitute with prozac.

Detailed Answer:
Hello
Welcome to HCM.
I can understand your concerns.

You are facing sever withdrawal reactions to cymbalta.

There are two recommended methods to manage these withdrawals:
1. Start with a long acting antidepressant (most long acting is prozac). Even though you have stopped responding to prozac in past, restarting this drug will largely lessen your withdrawal symptoms.

2. Restart with last dose of cymbalta and attempt a very slow downward dose tapering. The best would be to reduce 20 mg after every two weeks or may be more slow depending upon how you tolerate this.

I personally prefer the second method.

Simultaneously, symptomatic treatment for insomnia with klonopin (prescription drug and for nausea with anti-emetic can be instituted.

Kindly discuss this with your doctor and work further according to his advice.

Hope this helps.

Feel free to discuss further.

Kindly close the discussion if you have no more queries and give your valuable feedback.

Thanks.

Dr. Shubham Mehta, MD (Psychiatry)

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Pradeep Vitta