What is the Reality of Cymbalta Withdrawal Symptoms?

ByPrimary Researcher

Executive Summary

  • Cymbalta is an addictive drug.
  • Cymbalta addiction and Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms are deliberately minimized by pharmaceutical companies and the overall medical establishment.

Introduction

A primary method used by pharmaceutical companies, MDs, and the overall medical establishment is to minimize addiction. This article covers the gaslighting of patients, the public, and patients on Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms.

What the Medical Establishment Says About Cymbalta Withdrawal Symptoms

Let us review the following quotation from the Recovery Village recovery center on Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms.

Withdrawal symptoms from duloxetine are so common and severe that Cymbalta Discontinuation Syndrome is a well-documented issue. A 2005 study on generic duloxetine found that 44% of people experienced withdrawal symptoms. In 2016 Eli Lilly settled lawsuits from people who claim that the severity of the withdrawal effects had been misrepresented to them.

Dizziness
Headache
Nausea
Diarrhea
Paresthesia, a burning or prickling sensation, particularly in the limbs
Irritability
Vomiting
Insomnia
Anxiety
Hyperhidrosis, or excessive sweating
Fatigue

This is one of the few antidepressants for which Recovery Village actually admits the major addictive qualities of antidepressants.

..those who take duloxetine and similar antidepressants may develop what is known as “discontinuation syndrome.” Discontinuation syndrome likely occurs because the cell receptors in the brain must adjust to lower levels of serotonin and other chemicals

As I cover in the article How Antidepressants Create Dependency Called Discontinuation Syndrome, the pharmaceutical companies created the term “Discontinuation Syndrome” to hide the addictive nature of antidepressants like Cymbalta.

And Recovery Village contradicts this quote from this article in another article. This quote is from the Recovery Village article on Cymbalta addiction.

Like any SSRI or SSNRI, Cymbalta is not classified as “addictive.” Big pharmacy companies are very clear about this fact and use careful language in brochures, advertisements and commercials to clarify the non-addictive nature of duloxetine. It is not like addictive drugs, such as LSD and cocaine, in that one cannot get “high” from taking it. People who misuse Cymbalta also don’t keep using it to get the same effects the way they might if they were addicted to alcohol or heroin.

Just because pharmaceutical companies say something is true does not mean it is true. They are trying to maximize the sales of Cymbalta, and this means getting prospective patients to think that it is not addictive. However, Recover Village seems to be making this claim — that whatever a pharmaceutical company says must be true, and the evidence they provide is that the companies say it isn’t.

Comparing addictive drugs such as LSD and cocaine is problematic and inaccurate because, like LSD and cocaine, Cymbalta alters the neurotransmitter process – and taking it long-term can alter it permanently. Recall that pharmaceutical companies and MDs prescribe both opioids (opium) and benzodiazepines.

The reality is that the medical establishment is constantly prescribing addictive drugs.

Addiction treatment may be necessary for those struggling with discontinuation syndrome. Oftentimes, someone who has been misusing antidepressants is also grappling with an additional physical or mental illness, which is known in addiction treatment as dual diagnosis.

This is incorrect. Patients coming off of Cymbalta are suffering from Cymbalta withdrawal because it causes the brain to function abnormally and this forms an addiction.

Furthermore, Recovery Village is tap dancing around how Cymbalta works. Cymbalta is an SNRI, and it manipulates serotonin and norepinephrine levels. Anytime you manipulate a neurotransmitter, you are creating an addictive scenario. Increasing serotonin, norepinephrine, or dopamine creates major changes. The danger in most addictive drugs is “in the way it makes the patient feel.”

Recovery Village’s claim about Cymbalta not being addictive is false. Cymbalta, like other depressants, is addictive, even when used as prescribed. This is explained in detail in the article How Antidepressants Produce Addiction Through Altering the Neurotransmition Process. (Subscription required)