My dentist suggested Cymbalta. Anyone have experience with it?
I hadn’t been to the dentist in years but a crown came out and I had to go. I told him I’d been on MTX but off for a couple of months as it made me very ill. After he fixed my crown, he told me he had been on MTX for a couple of years and it didn’t help so he went to a new rheumatologist who told him she didn’t think it was RA he had. She put him on Cymbalta four years ago and he’s doing great. I’m thinking of asking about it for myself as most of what I complain about are listed in what it’s prescribed for including my peripheral neuropathy.
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BonnieG123
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Sorry, don’t know anything about Cymbalta...but I would urge you to start having regular dental check ups.I’m 70+ & still have all my own teeth......but as I’m a devout coward about fillings etc I have never missed regular check ups.
I pay about £26 for a check up every 6 months......I used to go to a Private dentist but when I retired he suggested I try to find an NHS Dentist & I was fortunate enough to find one.
No. I’m in the US. I’m retired with a pension that pays the mortgage and my other check pays for everything else. I had to take a part time job at my church so that I have a bit to buy things for my grands. But getting to the job gives me reason to get up and dressed each day. Otherwise I think I’d just fade away in front of the tv. So I’m happy to be able to still work.
I definitely think if you can still manage a job it does help, physically as well as financially. I’m lucky in that my mortgage is paid off.....& sometimes I am a bit lazy......but I get up & out most days.
Hope you find a drug to help......that your insurance covers.
Well look on the bright side...maybe your rheumy can suggest something affordable.
We in the UK may have long waits to see a Consultant....but once we get to see somebody we thankfully don’t have the worry of affording the drugs prescribed.
Let us know how you get on.....hope you can get what you need.
I’m the same my back teeth r terrible but unless I won the lottery I couldn’t afford it .If I win the lottery give me a shout and I will pay for yr dental treatment .
God bless you for that last note. But it has to be a truly large lottery because by the time you get all that you need, help your family, and your charities, there may not be much left. It does go quickly. But, likewise on my end. 😃
Hiya Bonnie. Cymbalta is a brand name of the generic duloxetine, an antidepressant sometimes used as a pain relief in RD & OA, Fybromyalgia as well I think. You may have heard of gabapentin or pregabalin? They're in the same class, used successfully as neuropathic pain relievers. It was one of the meds discussed when I needed extra pain relief but I decided on gabapentin because my h had problems when coming off duloxetine. Gabapentin didn’t help so I tried pregabalin which I remain on with good results. To be honest all 3 can cause issues if not titred down for a reasonably long period if there's need to stop them just so you’re aware.
Are you thinking of it as an add on? If so it may help but your Rheumy or Primary will put you right. x
Hi, nomoreheels! Thank you for the info. I do not want to go back on MTX. I see my rheumy again in two weeks and I may try to get in to see my primary care doctor this week re my continuing stomach issues. I will check with both of them on the Cymbalta. Thanks for the info on stopping the meds. I’ll keep that in mind. Appreciate knowing as sometimes docs don’t tell you.
You're welcome. I hope either are able to help you. I don't remember, did you try MTX injections? I know some people can't even tolerate those but it's worth thinking about if it was tablets you had side effects from. There are other DMARDs you can ask your Rheumy about, but you'll know that!
I did get the prescription but the druggist was aghast at such a drug being dispensed. She said she had never had a request for the drug before and the warnings were formidable. Usually the warnings say things like can cause this or that and in some cases may be fatal. But this one said right up front that it could cause death. So I decided not to take the injections. On the tabs, I got sicker and sicker and felt like I was dying. I took myself off them and started feeling better right away.
Yes, I’ve read up on it and it helps depression, Fibromaylgia pain, peripheral neuropathy pain (which I’ve had in both legs for many years), and bone and muscle pain. Thank you for your post, Beviejon.
Cymbalta does nothing to slow down the progression of RA, so it wouldn't be an alternative to methotrexate. Are you saying you feel you don't have RA? There are many other medications besides methotrexate, I would talk with your rheumatologist about what to do to slow RA.
I have taken Cymbalta. It helped for awhile, then stopped, so I weaned off. I don't get many med side effects so it wasn't hard for me to wean down. After I took my last pill I was a little teary for about two weeks but that's it.
Right now I'm taking a combination of Luflonomide and Enbrel for my RA. I also take gabapentin twice a day and a prescription anti-inflammatory.
First trip to rheumy I was in dreadful pain could barely walk. Bloodwork was not positive for RA but she began treatment. Prednisone worked and then we went to MTX. Year and a half on MTX and I was getting sicker and sicker until I stopped taking it three months ago. I go to rheumy in two weeks. Bloodwork next week. I’ll see what she’s thinking then. Except for peripheral neuropathy in legs the rest of me is not bad but I’m still having stomach issues. Thank you for your response.
I tried Cymbalta once and it did me no good at all. But I wasn't using it for RA I was using it for a bad back. I did not have any adverse reactions to it but I'm not very sensitive to medication generally. There are two other drugs that they use for nerve pain. One is called Gabapentin (AKA Neurontin) the other one is called pregabalin (AKA Lyrica). I've tried all three of them with no success whatsoever. Not even my RA pain is being controlled with any of it.
I've heard a lot of complaints about neurological problems. Mostly memory issues. I am currently taking it with no success but I've also had no side effects. I have agreed to increase my dose higher than I've ever been on. I doubt it's going to help but I want to try. I'm a bit nervous about side effects at this high dose.
Hello there, I see that your post was 4 months ago. Did you go on Cymbalta? If not, and your still considering it, I would recommend reading about the difficulty getting off of it before taking it. I was on it for 3 years and it took me 2 years to get off of it and it still was hell. Almost killed me. Some people cannot get off. I know everyone is different, but its been proven that 65% of the people that go on have severe trouble getting off of it. It was more trouble than it was worth. It gave me restless leg. Something I never had prior to taking it. I wish you well.
Hi, Penny! Yes. I did go on Cymbalta so generic duloxitine for the nerve pain issue. Three hours after I took the first dose ALL of my pain was gone. It lasted two glorious weeks before the pain came back it’s still less than it was but even with a higher dose it never took the pain away like it did at first. I am aware of the difficulties of weaning off of it. My primary doctor doesn’t think I’ll come off of it as long as it’s helping a bit. I do believe I have arthritis but the all over body pain I had when I could hardly walk is gone. Years back two different doctors thought my problems could be from fibromyalgia but back then it was not recognized as a true disease there were no tests except a list of 19 pressure points of pain. One doc said I only had 17 and you needed all 19 to be considered as having it ??? Seems like I was right up there. I’ve had a lot of stressfulness in my life and it just seems I’ll never get off that track. I do believe stress has caused all of my physical anomalies. So I’ll deal with it as I can. God bless.
Hello Bonnie, I'm sorry to hear about your situation. I have trouble handling stress as well. I did get a DNA test that revealed that I metabolize folic acid super rapidly which doesn't allow my body to store it. Theres a supplement to take for that, but I'm having some side effects from that. I've tried three different types. still working to find the one that works for me at the right dose. It's something new, so not a lot of drs know how to really advise me.
Its not easy, for sure. Hang in there, and God Bless
Penny, hopefully some genius researcher will one day make it right for so many. I don't think it’s coming soon in my lifetime but I do believe it’s coming. I hope you find your right dose quickly.
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