1636 replies to this topic

[ForLyla]

Captains log... whatever. I feel like I'm finally recovering from my setback in October. It took a little under 2 months which isn't as bad as I thought. The last 3 days have been pretty good overall - Friday was the best I had felt since September. A lot of my symptoms seem to be exasperated by my quality of sleep. My lingering symptoms are fatigue, night vision problems, acid reflux and some anxiety/shakiness. The heart pounding is barely noticeable anymore. Food sensitivity isn't bad - had a good portion of lasagna last night and it didnt set me off. Sugar still affects me though. Havent had any crazy mind fog in over a week. Barring any major setbacks, I'm hoping I'll be close to normal in the next few months.

[fishinghat]

That sounds great Lyla. It sure is a game of patience. Hopefully in a month or two you may be ready to drop one bead.

[ForLyla]

Thanks FH. Gotta remember to keep my expectations in check. My night vision is terrible tonight. For the first time in 2 years, I found out I had white wine tonight by eating a couple of cannolis my friend made. I asked her if there was alcohol in them and she forgot she used white wine to make the shells. I calculated I had about 2 teaspoons of white wine - maybe a little less because they were cooked a bit (although it's a myth that alcohol cooks out of food easily). It's interesting I'm still this sensitive to alcohol. I'm hoping to god this isn't going to be another months long setback. To comment on your previous post, calcium carbonate is what they use in antacids isnt it? I'm assuming having it in foods probably isnt good either, even in smaller amounts.

[fishinghat]

"calcium carbonate is what they use in antacids isnt it?"

Yes, Tums is almost pure calcium carbonate. I make my own using food grade calcium carbonate and gel capsules. No sugar, no coloring and no artificial flavoring.

I am not aware of any problems with calcium carbonate interfering with the absorption of meds but will check on that later.

[fishinghat]

Well Lyla you were right to be concerned. I found nearly 150 drugs whose absorption is effected by calcium carbonate including Cymbalta. You just can't get lucky can you Lyla?  lol

[ForLyla]

Ya maybe that's why I've been setback a bit. Gotta be very careful about what I eat from now on, not just which drugs I take. I'm gonna stick to a natural diet. Do you think calcium carbonate in food will set me back hard?

[fishinghat]

Most food with calcium carbonate has very little, just enough to buffer the pH (acidity).

[ForLyla]

So I guess I cant complain because I've had a pretty good week overall. Even the night vision problem has gotten a little better. However, my old friend fatigue has come back and it's hit me hard this time. A couple days ago, I was showing someone some core exercises. I barely did anything at all but it was enough that my abs have been sore. I know strength training sends us in waves but wondering if such a small amount could have brought such intense fatigue. The fatigue is one of the worst symptoms imo.

[fishinghat]

Unluckily it can. Others have experienced this as well.

[ForLyla]

Sigh definitely having a scary bad day ... I guess I have to keep my expectations in check.

[ForLyla]

Is it possible that Cymbalta will give me tolerance withdrawal? I'm worried I'll never fully get better if I'm on the drug but I can't taper either. Feeling very frustrated and lost.

[ForLyla]

Sorry yet another message... so it's no wonder why I felt so weird last night. It appears I have stomach flu. Been throwing up non stop since midnight. Will this affect my cymbalta though? If I take it and don't throw up for a few hours after, would that be alright?

[fishinghat]

As long as you don't through up within an hour of taking it then you will be alright.

There should not be any tolerance withdrawal.

[ForLyla]

K thanks FH. I'm trying to be extra careful to not take anything except Tylenol. I feel terrible though.

[fishinghat]

I have to ask Lyla, in the avatar picture are you smiling or in pain. I can't tell. I figured that was your Cymbalta face. lol

[ForLyla]

It's Claire Danes and shes smiling lol. It's from a Soul Asylum video called Just Like Anyone which I thought was a good symbolic match for our predicament. Fun little game for ya - see if you can spot the part in thr video that matches with my avatar. On Feb 25th it will be 3 years of this torture. This year has been the hardest of my life.

[ForLyla]

I'm growing increasingly worried that we cant recover from too many setbacks. Like I'll never go back go normal. The antacid setback threw me into a whole new kind of wave. It's not the worst one but it's strange. I wonder if the usual good old 3 month withdrawal mark will hit me. It's always worst 3 months after my never ending string of setbacks. It's never going to end.

[gail]

(it's never going to end) yes it will. You need patience. Three months in, a bit of more time is needed.

Lyla, have you seen improvement, if so what are they? Don't worry, so easy to say, but it will get better. Love

[ForLyla]

Thanks Gail. I've seen some improvements since my last setback. The heart pounding and shakiness isn't as bad. Every time I feel good though I have some big setback, no matter what I do it seems.

[gail]

Hi Lyla,

Improvement is a good sign and the fact that you have good days, marvelous!

Be careful not to go in overdrive, because the days following will be hard on you. Love.

[ForLyla]

Merry Christmas to you guys. Thanks again Gail. It's strange. I felt alright for a couple days when I was recovering from the flu when I wasnt eating anything. I'm not sure if it was from eating or what but I woke up in the middle of the night with my heart thumping out of my chest and it hasn't stopped since. FH are you certain that the flu couldn't have affected the effectiveness of my Cymbalta doses? My throwing up was about 12 hours after I took the pill. Or could it just be because my body cant tolerate food right now? I was so happy to be rid of the heart pounding and shakiness sensations.

[invalidusername]

The digestion of food will influence the processing of the meds to a certain degree, but not to any great point - but then again, given your sensitivity, this may be augmented in its effects. If you are not eating and your stomach is over-producing bile which will raise the pH balance in the stomach, it is plausible that the capsules can release the product sooner than anticipated, thus meaning, less concentration will reach the liver. A possibility, but not for sure.

[fishinghat]

"FH are you certain that the flu couldn't have affected the effectiveness of my Cymbalta doses? My throwing up was about 12 hours after I took the pill."

Mot likely. It was probably from the food. If the throwing up was from some reaction with Cymbalta it would have occurred about 2 hours after taking the Cymbalta when blood levels were at their highest. Nothing like going through the flu during withdrawal. You are soooo lucky Lyla. lol

[ForLyla]

If I didnt have any bad luck, I wouldnt have any at all. I'm so frustrated and angry and feel so broken. I'm a tough girl but I feel like I wont live much longer given the length and severity of going through this.

[fishinghat]

As you already know, time and patience. My prayers continue to be with you.

[gail]

Hello Lyla,

Can you remind me where you are with the withdrawal please?

[ForLyla]

Feb 25 2017- benzo cold turkey
June 2018- Felt mostly recovered after many setbacks with alcohol in food, antibiotics etc.
July 2018- Cymbalta taper started from 30mg
Oct 2018- Cymbalta withdrawal syndrome started at 22.5mg
Feb 2019- Moved back up to 25mg
September 2019- Symptoms greatly improved for about 3 weeks although I suffered terribly from acid reflux.
October 2019- suffered intense acute symptoms after taking Pantoloc (acid reflux med) for 3 days.
Dec 2019- Overall was feeling better for about a week until I got the stomach flu on the 21st. Acid reflux has come back. Heart pounding, shaking came back 2 days ago. Depression, anxiety, anger. Can barely eat still.

[fishinghat]

Those set backs, as you know can take a while to fade away. Just hang in there Lyla and things should start to improve soon.

[ForLyla]

Still trying to decipher why stomach flu would bring about a hard setback. Changing of stomach acidity or food sensitivity?

[fishinghat]

Stomach flu is very stressful to the stomach and intestines. what serotonin that is present is used up rapidly by the body to combat diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, etc. The body then starts using serotonin in the blood to compensate and that makes even less available to handle the withdrawal issues. In addition, meats like chicken and turkey are often avoided during the flu and the tryptophan in these meats are used by the body to produce more serotonin. It usually takes serotonin levels 7 to 10 days to return to normal for a person NOT in withdrawal. No idea how long from someone going through the issues you are having Lyla.