Everyone is different that is about the only thing I've learned.

what they've had me try & the results

Nuerotin/ Gabepetin - slow gives relief, notice when you miss or late for a dose, big time foggy feeling

Hyrdocodone - reliefs pain makes it too hard to think or concentrate, I take only as a last resort

Gralise - time released Gabepetin - take once a day before bed so you sleep through the foggy feeling. The good thing here is on a bad day take a Gabepetin in the afternoon to take the edge off. Getting insurance to approve it was a huge pain so we tried Cymbalta

Cymbalta - made me an angry old man - did not like. I went from laid back to angry over little things.

back to Gralise - this time got insurance to approve it

Then we talked spinal cord stimulator and the pain Dr wanted me to try Lyrica.

Lyrica - too much hassle with insurance, get the low dose approved had to do the same dance with the insurance for an increased dose, finally gave up because of the bad/flare days & insrance crap

Tramadol - Pain Dr gave me this to help on bad/flare days with the Lyrica. This drug & I don't get along at all. It causes shallow breathing and it makes me feel really really high, I mean spooky high.

back to Gralise and the rare occasions a Gapepetin & really bad days a hydrocodone.

Hope this helps & good luck

Also any of these except for the real pain pills you don't get immediate relief, it build up slowly over time, like weeks or months before you get the full benefit - just my 2cents worth

I don't know if you'll want to further persue Tramadol, but it also gave me a "high" for the first 4-6 times that I took it, and each day I did take it, the high was less. Now no more noticeable high, but it just puts me in a bit better mood, and no high feeling. Works for me, as I also take Nortriptyline, which I think makes me a little cranky, so it sort of balances me out towards normal. I think I have some increased jittery-ness from the Tramadol, but I am also drinking more coffee than I used to. LOL.

I didn't get much relief from pain from Cymbalta - took it for five months at quite a low dose. My GP and neurologist both wanted me to stay on it and raise doses but I was getting lots of miscellaneous symptoms such as worsening of GORD, dryness in mouth and throat with tickly cough, dizziness and worsening nose bleeds.

I have to tell you that trying to come off it was a kind of hell I never wish to repeat. Awful nausea and panics and terrible headaches so I had to empty out a little more of capsule each day over a period of a month. It turned out that most of the supposed side effects were part of my rheumatic condition but I would never go back on a drug again that was such a nightmare to get off.

Tried Amitriptyline for three years and loved it but finally it gave me severe heart palpitations so had to stop. Tried Gaberpentin for 3 weeks and it made me punch drunk and angry. Now I just take the odd Tramadol and am on imuran in the hope that by suppressing my immune system I will eventually calm the neuropathic pain.

Dear Groucho:

I've taken 60 mg of Cymbalta daily since 2010. It works very very well for me.
It is on label for the pain of arthritis and PN among other pains...and of course helps stabilize mood.

One note: My husband tried it, and it took away his pain completely, but it also gave him explosive diarrhea. So it wasn't for him.

We must all use trial and error to find the right treatments, I have found.

Best wishes, ElaineD

I tried Cymbalta in September of 2014. I seemed to be ok with it coming off of Lyrica which is the only medication that ever worked but expensive. I started getting flu like symptoms the first of October and thought I had the flu as I was throwing up and loose bowels. This went on for 3 weeks and I was in bed until I began to wonder if they were just side effects. Told the doctor I could not stand this any longer and please put me back on Lyrica. Within 2 days all the other symptoms were gone. Needless to say I will never try Cymbalta again. I think if you have something that is working for you, why try an unknown. Good luck.

Some people have higher serotonin in the body than others.
These folks typically get the increased GI motility that the SSRIs and SNRIs cause as side effects. This is due to increased serotonin the gut.