Health Organization for Pudendal Education

I was starting to think about getting on Cymbalta in conjunction with the Lyrica that I take (75 mg BID), but now I'm just a bit scared. The pain doctor did not prescribe this for me; the psychiatrist did. After a ten minute first consult. Yeah. Great medical world we have here.

I now have the Rx sitting in my wallet, not knowing what to do w/ it.

Any suggestions?

Already on:

75 mg Lyrica BID
5 mg Valium BID
10 mg Elavil
20 mg Prozac

Thanks,

A's M

My suggestion is no but I had a bad experience with it and you may not. Would you stay on the Prozac? Your lyrica dose isnt huge but you are also on elavil and Valium so you have a lot if central nervous system manipulation going on already. You may just have to try it to see if it works for you but it was definitely the worst reaction I have ever had on a med.

If you try it, AM, start on a very small dose. Some of the people I know who used cymbalta successfully started with a small dose and worked up slowly. Does the psychiatrist who ordered cymbalta know you are on the other antidepressants?

The smallest dose of Cymbalta is 20mg, but most doctors start people on 30mg daily then try to increase it to 60mg in a couple weeks.

Cymbalta made my life hell for 6 months till I figured out what was causing it. I know someone else who takes it and loves it.

If you start losing your appetite and having aches in your abdomen or mid back, get off it immediately. I didn't realize it, but I lost 20 pounds in 6 months (which was nice) but felt like I had a knife in my back CONSTANTLY which was worse than my PNE pain!!! because I couldn't make it stop unless I took high high doses of Vicoden and Neurontin... but every breakthrough pain was miserable.... getting off the Cymbalta, all the stabbing pains stopped, but I was left with food allergies. No longer can I have gluten or dairy.

pianogal wrote:getting off the Cymbalta, all the stabbing pains stopped, but I was left with food allergies. No longer can I have gluten or dairy.

Wow! This drug changed your body chemistry that much??? No food allergies prior to taking it? Is that listed as one of the side effects?

Hi fellow drugies

As noted in my earlier post I was supposed to start with Cymbalta and Lyrica . . . They were prescribed by my pain consultant who faxed the script to my local GP last week. I went to pick the prescription up today as instructed only to find that nothing had been done about it ! !
Had to wait for a different Dr to look into it as my own GP wasn't there, he wouldn't prescribe the lyrica ! ! ! He said that gabapentin (neurontin) and lyrica were very similar and would never prescribe lyrica for anyone.
I tried to explain that my withdrawl for gabapentin had been long and arduous (2 months of flu symptoms) and I didn't want a repeat of that for the small amount of good effect the drug had on my pain.He wouldn't relent so I only have the cymbalta on it's own.
To be honest it's no bad thing because these things need to be properly monitored and I will be able to see how good, bad or indifferent cymbalta is for me.
I wonder if it is a cost issue actually, is lyrica more expensive than gabapentin I wonder, think I have heard that it is. Anyone know for sure?
Take care all

Helen

Helen,

In the US lyrica. is definitely a more expensive drug and does not come as a generic, which means that you must pay for the brand name and advertising costs which are passed on to the consumer. In the UK though, you can get the generic for lyrica, which is called pregabalin. The drugs are similar, but it does seem from reading this forum that lyrica works better for many people.

Do you pay the same price for any prescription in the UK? I have seen others from there stating that doctors usually prescribe the cheapest drug first, and then if it doesn't help, then they will prescribe the more expensive one. This does seem sensible as you have to consider ways to hold down expenses on the NHS

Hi Jeanie,
Yes, as patients, we pay the same whatever the prescription (£7.20) So of course the knock on expense to individual GP practices and therefore the NHS has to be considered when trying to balance the books so to speak.
Actually it was pregabalin anyway not lyrica so maybe the Dr just doesn't like the drug in general ? ?
Thanks for your reply
Helen

Hi Helen - How surprising! Pregabalin does cost more than gabapentin, I gather. So maybe their budget is a bit pushed!

By the way, lyrica and pregabalin is exactly the same thing, lyrica is just a trade name. The drug is the same thing.

And if you haven't yet got a prescription prepayment card, it is very much worth getting one if you pay for more than 4 prescriptions in 3 months, or more than 14 items over 12 months. I have saved so much money this way!

I hope you get on well with the duloxetine/cymbalta.