1. < Chronic Pain
Profile picture for Always Hopeful

Has anyone had experience using cymbalta for pain relief?

Posted by Always Hopeful @AlwaysHopeful, Mar 26, 2017

Has anyone had experience using cymbala for pain relief?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Chronic Pain Support Group.

Profile picture for allisonsnow
allisonsnow | @allisonsnow | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @zinniagal "I am taking cymbalta & not sure if it helps with fibromyalgia or not- had a..." + (show)
Profile picture for zinniagal @zinniagal

I am taking cymbalta & not sure if it helps with fibromyalgia or not- had a major flare up yesterday with the cold damp weather & wondering if weather change flares are common for fibro folks-

Jump to this post

@zinniagal
I always get flare-ups tied to the weather. The cold and damp generally is not good but any time there is a drastic change in tempature I get flare-ups, like now, it was mid 60s yesterday snow flurries today. Not a part of my body that doesn't hurt !!
I have taken Cymbalta for many years, started out I was taking it for my depression and it really seemed to help. This was before my DX of Fibro but lucky me it was already masking some of the pain maybe that is one of the reasons it took so long to get diagnosed.
I am sure most here can relate to how long it takes to get a DX of FIBRO.
You will learn a lot on this site a lot of people ready to help.

REPLY
Profile picture for allisonsnow
allisonsnow | @allisonsnow | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @alyric "I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain." + (show)
Profile picture for alyric @alyric

I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain.

Jump to this post

@alyric
you feel it has helped the neuropathy? I was already taking Cymbalta when I developed some neuropathy as a result of chemo.
never knew Cymbalta could be helping that also.

REPLY
Profile picture for Jim, Volunteer Mentor
Mentor
Jim, Volunteer Mentor | @jimhd | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @alyric "I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain." + (show)
Profile picture for alyric @alyric

I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain.

Jump to this post

@allisonsnow

I've been through the list and beyond of meds for peripheral neuropathy, and am taking Cymbalta now, albeit not very effectively, along with morphine sulfate contin. Tomorrow, I'm having a trial implant of a spinal cord stimulator. Fingers crossed, on my knees praying that it helps.

Jim

REPLY
Profile picture for allisonsnow
allisonsnow | @allisonsnow | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @alyric "I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain." + (show)
Profile picture for alyric @alyric

I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain.

Jump to this post

I truly do hope it helps. I just sent up my prayer for you I know !!!! the power of prayer works.

REPLY
Profile picture for alyric
alyric | @alyric | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @alyric "I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain." + (show)
Profile picture for alyric @alyric

I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain.

Jump to this post

I think it helps. I take 50 mg in the am & 30 mg at HS. I also take 4.5 mg of Naltrexone. The two help the most of anything i have taken in the past. I have taken gabapentin, lyrica, depakote.....can't remember them all.

I don't take the max dose of 120 mg Cymbalta because I didn't notice any benefit at the higher dose.

REPLY
Profile picture for Always Hopeful
Always Hopeful | @AlwaysHopeful | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @alyric "I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain." + (show)
Profile picture for alyric @alyric

I use it for Fibromyalgia pain & post surgical neuropathy pain.

Jump to this post

Alyric, you have been through so much. I admire your strength. Thank you for your reply. I am dealing with chronic pain issues and Cymbalta has been recommended by a pain management doctor. I see my primary care doctor tomorrow and will ask her for a prescription. Take care - what does HS mean?

REPLY
Profile picture for Always Hopeful
Always Hopeful | @AlwaysHopeful | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @colleenyoung "Always Hopeful, I'm glad you started a new topic dedicated to Cymbalta (generic name: duloxetine). It..." + (show)
Profile picture for Colleen Young, Connect Director @colleenyoung

Always Hopeful,
I'm glad you started a new topic dedicated to Cymbalta (generic name: duloxetine). It has been discussed in various discussions throughout Connect by a number of members, like @sandytoes14 @kdubois @jimhd @oldnana @kathyv @lauriedr @jenapower @janie56 to name a few.

Always Hopeful, while we wait for others to join the conversation, can you tell us a bit more about why you are asking about Cymbalta? What type of pain are you managing? Do you already take Cymbalta or has it been recently suggested to you?

Jump to this post

Colleen, I am dealing with chronic pain issues and Cymbalta was recommended by a pain management doctor. I will be seeing my primary care physician tomorrow and will be asking her for a prescription. For residents of Rochester, Mayo offers a 12 week cognitive behavior therapy class for chronic pain. It's in a small group format and meets once a week for an hour and a half. This is so much better schedule wise than the three week class for five days a week.

REPLY
Profile picture for Always Hopeful
Always Hopeful | @AlwaysHopeful | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @sandytoes14 "@AlwaysHopeful I take 60 mg of Cymbalta daily for pain relief of fibromyalgia. Most of the..." + (show)
Profile picture for Jen, Alumna Mentor @sandytoes14

@AlwaysHopeful
I take 60 mg of Cymbalta daily for pain relief of fibromyalgia. Most of the time I find it reduces the pain to a manageable amount.
Along with fibro, I have Chronic Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) arthritis and degenerative disc disease (DDD) to name a few aliments. A plus for me is that Cymbalta also reduces anxiety. I'm looking forward to your response to Colleen Young's questions and getting to know more about you.

Jump to this post

Jan,
I just sent a response to Colleen!

REPLY
Profile picture for Always Hopeful
Always Hopeful | @AlwaysHopeful | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @zinniagal "I am taking cymbalta & not sure if it helps with fibromyalgia or not- had a..." + (show)
Profile picture for zinniagal @zinniagal

I am taking cymbalta & not sure if it helps with fibromyalgia or not- had a major flare up yesterday with the cold damp weather & wondering if weather change flares are common for fibro folks-

Jump to this post

Thank you for your reply - please see my response to Colleen. Tomorrow I start the 12 week course offered by Mayo and I hope I find some answers. Pain is not a good thing. I admire you for having the knee surgery - that took a great deal of courage.

REPLY
Profile picture for Always Hopeful
Always Hopeful | @AlwaysHopeful | Apr 11, 2017
In reply to @kdubois "Hi @AlwaysHopeful, the following info should be useful and might help others on this thread, too...." + (show)
Profile picture for Kelly, Alumna Mentor @kdubois

Hi @AlwaysHopeful, the following info should be useful and might help others on this thread, too.

Whether or not Cymbalta (duloxetine) helps a person depends on several factors, including how the person's body metabolizes the medication.

Most medications are metabolized by the body's cytochrome P450 liver enzyme system. This system contains a ton of different enzymes that are basically genes. Whether or not your body metabolizes a medication properly can depend on three things...

1. Whether or not you are taking a medication that inhibits/induces an enzyme that your body uses to metabolize another medication (or even the same medication). (For example, duloxetine is a substrate of the enzymes CYP1A2 and CYP2D6, which means that these two enzymes metabolize duloxetine in your body. But if you take a medication that inhibits (i.e., slows down) those two enzymes, it will cause you to too-slowly metabolize duloxetine, which means that you will not receive the intended effects. Interestingly, duloxetine actually inhibits CYP2D6. Many medications inhibit P450 enzymes; fewer medications induce them.)

2. Whether or not you have P450 liver enzyme polymorphisms, which means that you posses an enzyme or enzymes that are mutated and make you, organically, metabolize some medications too slowly or too quickly. These polymorphisms are not rare. After years of taking duloxetine, Mayo performed pharmacogenomic testing on me and figured out that I was born with CYP1A2 and CYP2D6 polymorphisms, which explained why I never received the pain relief effects from taking it. (The official diagnosis for this is called CYP450 Deficiency.)

3. A combination of numbers 1 and 2 above. Because I was also taking other medications that inhibited my CYP2D6 enzyme, it made the above situation even worse.

Unfortunately, most doctors only have very rudimentary knowledge of the P450 system, and they don't know enough about drug-drug interactions via these enzymes to recognize of suspect these issues. If you suspect this may be an issue for you, you may be best off talking to your pharmacist first.

Here's where you can look at substrate, inhibitor, and inducer medication info: http://www.mayomedicallaboratories.com/it-mmfiles/Pharmacogenomic_Associations_Tables.pdf

Jump to this post

Thank you for your reply - it was helpful and I admire your courage. I'll be seeing my primary care physician tomorrow and will be asking her for a prescription for Cymbalta. isn't it amazing how we connect. i have just finished watching a series of movies (the Emigrants, The New Land, Here is Your Life, and Everlasting Moments) directed by Jan Troell and so I appreciate the beauty of Sweden. Take care and thank you again for your response. And yes, we don't have a very easy medical system in America!

REPLY
Please sign in or register to post a reply.