Does anyone have any experience of an SSRI called Duloxetine?

[ruby7]

My therapist says it's amazing. I'm on citalopram (30mg) and still feeling really low and she says that perhaps it's not working.

Anyone taken it?

Duloxetine How long have you been on the citalopram?

oh ages. was on it for a year in 2003. on 20mg and was fab and totally sorted me out.

then i went on it again, much to my dismay, after the birth of my DS. i went up to 30mg which seemed to sort me out after about six months. and i came down to 20mg and then lost it again so went up to 30mg again last summer.

i started coming off it at the beginning of this year and weaned myself off slowly until the end of May. then I moved house and am now back on 30mg which i've gradually gone up to, as i seem to have totally lost it again. i was mostly fine until the house move really. i've been on 30mg for about 3 weeks now.

god it's so boring.

If citalopram works for you there's probably no real point in changing. I think 6-8 weeks on the higher dose would be indicated before a change. But if it ain't working after that consult your GP and mention duloxetine by all means.

Hi Scummy

Do you have experience of this? Citalopram did work for me before, but maybe it won't this time?

Duloxetine looks pretty scary.

In my various attempt at depresion control before I got well again I had 2 doses of this.

I slept for 16 hours after the first dose and 20 hours after the second. I didnt take a 3rd.

Yes, I've been seeing a new therapist, and she swears by it. Says it's great for sleeping. Obviously! I shall not take her advice...

Not personally, ruby. Work with quite a few people taking ADs so I have a (very non-expert) working knowledge. Basically duloxetine and venlafaxine seem to be widely prescribed for people whose depression hasn't responded to SSRIs like citalopram. The doctors I work with always seem to advise 6-8 weeks on a new drug or raised dose before changing though (unless there are horrible side effects or something like that). Really hope you feel better soon, btw.

My dh has recently been switched over to venlafaxine and it has been fab for him. Prozac had stopped working. He is now back to how he was before he was depressed - the prozac never worked this well for him.

Thanks ladies.

Harrisey, did he have to taper off his prozac before switching over?

I'm not depressed really, I'm depressed because of my terrible anxiety. I love my life, but I just can't live it. Really don't want to be on drugs anymore, but need to find something that works in the short term.