Do doctors know how to titrate off Lyrica and Cymbalta?

If you need information about tapering off Cymbalta, there is a Facebook support group that can help. It's called "Cymbalta Hurts Worse". As said in this post, there are also articles on-line about it.

It's really unacceptable to patients that doctors don't inform them of the addiction properties of these drugs before prescribing them. Many lawsuits have been filed against the manufacturer of Cymbalta, Eli Lilly, for failing to adequately warn patients about severe withdrawal symptoms associated with discontinuing the medication. Many individuals have reported experiencing significant side effects when stopping Cymbalta, leading to ongoing legal actions

Pay attention, Mayo Clinic! You of all people ought to know.

I’m about upset that I only now saw you post. I went off Cymbalta March 2025. Doctor (GP) took me off in 2-3 weeks. Withdrawals were horrendous for about 6 weeks, high anxiety, nightmares (I’m not a nightmare person), scared of minor objects, etc but worse of all, crying: unrelenting, unreasonable, deeply emotional, embarrassing, exhausting, isolating bawling. For example the sight of a dead bug threw me into a crying episode. I’m crying right now just cause I’m writing this. Almost 1 1/2 year later I’m still dealing with this. It has made more depressed and isolated. Good effects of getting off Cymbalta: I wake up by 8am, 9am. I used to stay in bed anywhere from 1-5pm! No more hot flashes. Didn’t affect my pain level, meaning pain didn’t get worse. Taking LDN now and my pain is as low as it has ever been! I wish I could get some kind of help for this long lasting side effect from Cymbalta withdrawal. Now have much less pain however this crying thing has disabled me in a different unexpected way.

@jeannesf1 what a terrible and avoidable tragedy! I’m not shocked at your horrendous ordeal, but I do feel very sorry for all the pain and lingering trauma from Cymbalta. BTW, Lyrica does the same thing— I was on Lyrica and it took me a YEAR to wean off.
These psychotropic drugs literally RE-WIRE your brain. They are being used “off-label” for fibromyalgia, meaning their primary purpose is something different, because idiot doctors don’t know what the heck causes Fibromyalgia, so they treat symptoms in a careless, haphazard way without proper research. Time will help you. Also yoga and Tai Chi are excellent for mental health as well. Aquatic pool therapy is good and relieving as much stress as possible in your life. You may benefit from Prozac antidepressant. It’s MUCH safer and a well known/studied med that has very little side effects (and you can quit it easily.) You definitely need some counseling therapy if you haven’t had it. Your mind has a huge effect on your body. Jesus also helps me. Prayers you find peace and some relief.

@fmcfs I am so grateful for this message. I started using duloxetine 60 mg two months ago. Its been really bad and my blood pressure dropped. Definitely is not for me. Blessings and thank you for sharing your story!

I’ve heard about MDs ripping ppl off of some meds that MUST be titrated on and off, in a single potentially fatal night of hell. Especially if you’re a woman, bring fact sheets from the pharmacy about your meds to your Dr. visits in case it’s necessary to point that out. If your Dr. bristles at that, get a new one.

My doctor said a week for me to titrate. I had also before my appointment done the old Internet search to see that they recommend anywhere from one week to six weeks depending on the person. I said I’m 71 so I can’t do it that fast. I said I want to do it in 6 weeks. She said okay. I know not everybody has a Doctor Who will go along with what they say. But if you look confident in taking care of your own body and say, I know that this is how I need to do it because I have too much of a reaction on things very quickly due to my fibromyalgia. Anyway, this is what I’ve learned in dealing with doctors and my fibro for 25 years. Our bodies are so different and react to any kind of drugs or different additive therapies. We have to tell them what it’s like.

@fmcfs
I don't think any of these newer drugs that rewire your brain are safe. When Prozac first came out, my doctor (a psychiatrist) put me on it because trials found it to be safe with few side effects. Within ten days I was having severe panic attacks that required me to leave work. These continued for a year although they diminished in intensity. In 2017 I was put on cymbalta for fibromyalgia. I was hospitalized in 2018 for serotonnin syndrome. I couldn't get off of it because every time I skipped a dose I got nauseous. In 2019 I was hospitalized for low blood sodium, also a side effect of cymbalta My doctor finally got me off of it with nausea pills. Recently, I was put on a new med for my lung condition and had to stop that after 3 months because it was making my hair fall out. I am apparently sensitive to many meds. every person reacts to drugs in a unique way.

@leoandbear DANGER! Do NOT do it in 6 weeks! That is not nearly long enough. It took me a YEAR! I had empty each capsule, and count each bead! then it was only a maximum 5% drop every couple weeks.Your doctor and AI internet do NOT understand this and know how to do it safely. The only way is to get instructions from Facebook like “Cymbalta Duloxetine Hurts Worse.” Or “Cymbalta Duloxetine Survivors Support Group.” They will teach you how! It’s complicated to explain here. I did it 10 years ago. You are NOT alone. Many people can help you. If you get off too fast you risk permanent BRAIN DAMAGE. I am not kidding. Brain “zaps” and memory loss.