Duloxetine & withdrawal ..

[RachelD1972]

Duloxetine ~ has anyone come off this med and not had any issues? I was on it for 4 months @ 30mg for pain. GP told me to wean off by taking every other day for a week. Last dose was last Tuesday. Currently experiencing brain zaps, tinnitus and sensitivity if move my head or eyes too quickly. Had a quick google have seen lots of horror stories about withdrawal..

[AimeeA]

Yes, I came off it and did have brain zaps which feel really strange but they don't harm your brain, just a side effect of coming off anti-depressant medication.

But it could mean you are tapering off it too quickly and need to come up with a plan such as going from every other day, to every third day, to every 4th day etc. over a longer period of time.

But you should look at it like you've got a case of the flu that you need to get over... it will usually stop after a week or two, as it did for me. It was annoying, but I knew the reasons why it was happening and knew it would go away eventually which it did, so you don't need to panic over it or think it will never stop, because it does.

Here's more info on stopping safely:

medicalnewstoday.com/articl...

If you feel your symptoms are too intense, talk to your doctor about the possibility of withdrawing from it more slowly to minimize the withdrawal symptoms.

[RachelD1972 in reply to AimeeA]

Thanks for replying, it’s been a lot better today so I’m hoping that’s the worst of it over. Thankfully due to lockdown & shielding I’m not exactly rushing around so can take it easy if I need to. Thanks again x

[miccika1]

You have to be suuuuper slow in tapering off. I tried to get off of it and didn't succeed. I managed to go from 60 to 40 by opening pills and taking out 5mg and closing them. They come in tiny pills inside 5mg each.

[RachelD1972 in reply to miccika1]

Thanks, I’ve now been off it a week. The head zaps are a lot less frequent, probably worse in the evening when I’m getting tired. But, pretty much back to normal. I checked for side effects before I started it but did not think to check for coming off the damn stuff. Lesson learned! Thanks for replying x