Sounds awful, Cyclecrash! Hope youare feeling better. It is a catch 22 - some meds help some symptoms but cause problems elsewhere! Sounds like you had a bad reaction. Like you needed that!

Hang in there and good luck with the detox.

Cyclecrash,

I couldn't take SNRI's either. Too many bad reactions for me. Cymbalta was the worst! I ended up finding my happy combo with Remeron and Paxil. Paxil is a strong anxiety and depression reliever. I use Remeron to counteract the side effects of nausea. But also remember there are alternatives to AD's. CBT is an option if you don't like meds, and also there are natural alternatives, I can recall Mark being on L-Tryptophan, which works also. Good luck with the withdrawal, and best wishes!

Thank you all for being so candid about your symptoms with SSRI's. Because of your experiences, I decided to go the L-tryptophan route which has worked so far.

Hang in there- you are listening to your body's responses which with PCS / mtbi can be so hard to parse out. This too shall pass!

Cyclecrash,

I have got off lightly compared to yourself, I am sorry to hear what happened you. Get well soon and take it even easier than ever for the next few weeks.

I am now missing the Cymbalta a little because headaches and fatigue have really increased since I stopped it. I also have a whirring noise in my ears which I am told is tinnitus.

I was fine until my stomach upset - now I have come off all medication and supplements until a doctor can get to the bottom of it.

I really need to get my stomach fixed, I hope it is medication withdrawal and not something physical. It has obviously made my work life much more difficult.

Brainpatch - I think imodium is the best medication around for this problem, unfortunately I am allergic to it. All the other treatments prescribed have made no difference.

I know that everyone reacts to medication differently, but I do find the amantadine has helped a lot with fatigue and with my tolerance to noise. Specifically multiple sources of noise. It has relatively few side effects for most people and has been around for almost 50 years. It is even prescribed for children. It is more used in the US for brain injury fan in Canada and the UK but it may be worth a try for those of you who are really struggling with fatigue.

Thank you everyone for the kind words and tips! I'm starting to think now that some of this "withdrawal" is actually my PCS symptoms, that were helped by the anti-depressants, coming back. Yesterday I was very sick in the car and the light and noise were bothering me again. These were all things that I had kind of forgotten about since started Effexor 6 weeks ago or so. The fatigue is pretty bad too but that could be a combination of things right now.

Amantadine and l-tryptophan will be things I will look into once everything has settled down and I know what I am left with. I started medication because of anxiety and over-stimulation issues, not depression, so if that becomes a problem again I will look at my options. I feel like I've gone back a couple months in my recovery and hope that that is not the case. Next week will be better and I will get more of an understanding what's going on.

I hope everyone has a great day!

CC

Cyclecrash,

You are right to think this perhaps. Since stopping Cymbalta I have more fatigue, headaches, a new form of tinnitus, and sure enough when I was really tired last night the lights bothered
me.

However, the Cymbalta had pushed me forwards I think, as I am working four days a week and my job involves a lot of driving as well. I am functioning a lot better now.

I also got my bloods back and they are all clear, which makes me wonder that the Cymbalta has caused the diarrhea perhaps.