My experience with Cymbalta has been good. I plan to stay with it unless it stops being effective so I don't know what a taper would be like. The Effexor taper was so god-awful I wouldn't ever go on it again unless there was no other option. I should say, too, that I also take metoprolol, a beta blocker which an emergency room physician prescribed when I was there for a really bad panic attack. I was already on it when I started the Cymbalta and my doc said there was no conflict so I've stayed on it.