What does cymbalta treat

Below are lists of medications that can interact with Cymbalta. Before taking Cymbalta, talk with your doctor and pharmacist. Tell them about all prescription, over-the-counter, and other drugs you take. Also tell them about any vitamins, herbs, and supplements you use. Sharing this information can help you avoid potential interactions. If you have questions about drug interactions that may affect you, ask your doctor or pharmacist.

Cymbalta can increase serotonin levels in your body. Using Cymbalta with other drugs that also increase serotonin may raise your risk for serotonin syndrome. Serotonin syndrome is a rare but potentially life threatening condition. Taking multiple medications that increase serotonin levels could cause serotonin to build up to dangerous levels in your blood. Before taking Cymbalta, be sure to tell your doctor if you take any of the medications listed above. They may want to monitor you for any signs of serotonin syndrome.

Or they may have you take a different drug to treat your condition. Taking Cymbalta with these drugs may increase Cymbalta levels in your body. Slowing down this process could raise your risk for side effects from Cymbalta.

Certain drugs have stronger effects on these enzymes. Examples of strong CYP1A2 inhibitors include:. Examples of CYP2D6 inhibitors include:. Before you take Cymbalta, be sure to tell your doctor if you take any of these medications. They can determine which drug is the best fit for you. This means it can affect the levels of other drugs that are also broken down by this enzyme. However, some medications can cause side effects if their levels in your body are changed slightly. Examples of these drugs include:.

Before taking Cymbalta, talk with your doctor about all the medications you take. They can determine whether Cymbalta can be taken with your other medications. Drugs that affect serotonin levels, such as Cymbalta, may increase your risk for bleeding. Before taking Cymbalta, tell your doctor if you take any of the medications listed above. This monitoring may include ordering blood tests. Or they may decide to use a different medication to treat your condition. This is an herb that can be used to treat depression.

Cymbalta can raise your serotonin levels. Because St. If you have any questions about eating certain foods with Cymbalta, talk with your doctor. Clinical studies of the drug have shown that taking it the month before delivery may increase the risk of severe bleeding immediately afterward postpartum hemorrhage.

The manufacturer of Cymbalta maintains a pregnancy registry. The registry tracks the results of pregnant people taking the drug. You can join this registry online or by calling You should also tell your doctor right away if you become pregnant while taking this drug. You can take Cymbalta at any time of the day. However, you should try to take it around the same time every day. This helps make sure you have a consistent amount of the drug in your body.

The best time for you to take Cymbalta may depend on what you use the drug for and how often you take it each day. Your doctor can help you decide the best time for you to take Cymbalta. Doing so may affect how well your body absorbs the drug. This could raise your risk for side effects or make the drug less effective.

You can also call the American Association of Poison Control Centers at or use their online tool. But if your symptoms are severe, call or your local emergency number, or go to the nearest emergency room right away.

As with all medications, the cost of Cymbalta can vary. To find current prices for Cymbalta in your area, check out GoodRx. The cost you find on GoodRx. Before approving coverage for Cymbalta, your insurance company may require you to get prior authorization.

This means that your doctor and insurance company will need to communicate about your prescription before the insurance company will cover the drug. The insurance company will review the prior authorization request and decide if the drug will be covered. If you need financial support to pay for Cymbalta, or if you need help understanding your insurance coverage, help is available. Cymbalta is available in a generic form called duloxetine. And generics tend to cost less than brand-name drugs.

To find out how the cost of duloxetine compares to the cost of Cymbalta, visit GoodRx. They may have a preference for one version or the other. If you have questions about using other drugs with Cymbalta, talk with your doctor or pharmacist. They can review your medications and discuss treatment options with you. Cymbalta may cause harm to a fetus. However, more research is needed in this area.

However, there have been a few reports of drowsiness, poor feeding , and trouble gaining weight in infants exposed to breast milk containing duloxetine. Duloxetine is the active drug in Cymbalta. If you choose to breastfeed while taking Cymbalta, you should watch for any trouble feeding or drowsiness in your child.

Together, you can weigh the risks and benefits of breastfeeding while taking the drug and discuss your other treatment and feeding options.

This drug has a boxed warning. A boxed warning alerts doctors and patients about drug effects that may be dangerous. Clinical studies have shown antidepressants such as Cymbalta increase the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors in children and young adults ages 24 years or younger.

In people ages 65 and older, antidepressants can actually reduce this risk. Before taking Cymbalta, talk with your doctor about your health history. Cymbalta may not be right for you if you have certain medical conditions or other factors affecting your health. These include:. When you get Cymbalta from the pharmacy, the pharmacist will add an expiration date to the label on the bottle. This date is typically 1 year from the date they dispensed the medication.

The expiration date helps guarantee that the medication is effective during this time. If you have unused medication that has gone past the expiration date, talk to your pharmacist about whether you might still be able to use it. How long a medication remains good can depend on many factors, including how and where you store the medication. Avoid storing this medication in areas where it could get damp or wet, such as bathrooms. This helps prevent others, including children and pets, from taking the drug by accident.

It also helps keep the drug from harming the environment. This article provides several useful tips on medication disposal. You can also ask your pharmacist for information on how to dispose of your medication. Cymbalta capsules are available in three strengths: 20 milligrams mg , 30 mg, and 60 mg. It can be taken with or without food. The exact mechanism by which Cymbalta treats MDD, GAD, diabetic neuropathy, fibromyalgia, and chronic musculoskeletal pain is not known.

Cymbalta is classified as a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor SNRI. The active drug ingredient in Cymbalta, duloxetine, inhibits neuronal serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake. To a lesser extent, duloxetine also inhibits dopamine reuptake.

The effect of this on drug interactions is unknown. Food delays the time it takes for duloxetine to reach peak concentration, from 6 hours to 10 hours. However, this has no overall effect on maximum concentrations. The dose usually ranges from 20 mg to mg. Only your health care provider can determine the correct dose for you.

It should not be chewed, crushed, or broken. Consider using a calendar, pillbox, alarm clock, or cell phone alert to help you remember to take your medication. You may also ask a family member or a friend to remind you or check in with you to be sure you are taking your medication.

If you miss a dose of duloxetine take it as soon as you remember, unless it is closer to the time of your next dose. Discuss this with your health care provider. Do not double your next dose or take more than what is prescribed. Avoid drinking alcohol or using illegal drugs while you are taking antidepressant medications. They may decrease the benefits e. Alcohol increases the risk of liver problems with duloxetine.

If an overdose occurs, call your doctor or You may need urgent medical care. You may also contact the poison control center at Headache, nausea, diarrhea, dry mouth, decreased appetite, increased sweating, feeling nervous, restless, fatigued, sleepy or having trouble sleeping insomnia. These will often improve over the first week or two as you continue to take the medication. Sexual side effects, such as problems with orgasm or ejaculatory delay, and blood pressure increases often do not improve over time.

There have been rare reports of liver failure sometimes fatal with duloxetine. This risk is increased in those with substantial alcohol use or chronic liver disease. Orthostatic hypotension, or a drop in blood pressure when standing or getting up from sleeping, has been reported in patients taking duloxetine.

The risk may be greater in patients also taking medications for high blood pressure. Increased heart rate, irregular menstrual cycle, increased frequency of urination or difficulty urinating, increased liver enzymes, teeth grinding, low sodium symptoms of low sodium levels may include headache, weakness, difficulty concentrating and remembering , angle closure glaucoma symptoms of angle closure glaucoma may include eye pain, changes in vision, swelling or redness in or around eye , serotonin syndrome symptoms may include shivering, diarrhea, confusion, severe muscle tightness, fever, seizures, and death , hypertensive crisis severely elevated blood pressure , myocardial infarction heart attack , Stevens-Johnson Syndrome rash , pancreatitis SNRI antidepressants, including duloxetine, may increase the risk of bleeding events.

Combined use of aspirin, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs e. This may include gums that bleed more easily, nose bleed, or gastrointestinal bleeding. Some cases have been life threatening. Take duloxetine exactly as directed. Do not take more or less of it, take it more often, or take it for a longer time than prescribed by your doctor. Swallow the delayed-release capsules whole; do not split, chew, or crush them. Do not open the delayed-release capsules and mix the contents with liquids or sprinkle the contents on food.

Duloxetine may help control your symptoms but will not cure your condition. It may take 1 to 4 weeks or longer before you feel the full benefit of duloxetine. Continue to take duloxetine even if you feel well. Do not stop taking duloxetine without talking to your doctor.

Your doctor will probably decrease your dose gradually. If you suddenly stop taking duloxetine, you may experience withdrawal symptoms such as nausea; vomiting; diarrhea; anxiety; dizziness; tiredness; headache; pain, burning, numbness, or tingling in the hands or feet; irritability; difficulty falling asleep or staying asleep; sweating; and nightmares.

Tell your doctor if you experience any of these symptoms when your dose of duloxetine is decreased. Duloxetine is also sometimes used to treat stress urinary incontinence leakage of urine during physical activity such as coughing, sneezing, laughing, and exercise in women.

Talk to your doctor about using this medication to treat your condition. This medication may be prescribed for other uses; ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. Take the missed dose as soon as you remember it. However, if it is almost time for the next dose, skip the missed dose and continue your regular dosing schedule. Do not take a double dose to make up for a missed one.

Duloxetine may cause other side effects. Call your doctor if you have any unusual problems while taking this medication. Keep this medication in the container it came in, tightly closed, and out of reach of children. Store it at room temperature and away from excess heat and moisture not in the bathroom. Unneeded medications should be disposed of in special ways to ensure that pets, children, and other people cannot consume them.

However, you should not flush this medication down the toilet. Instead, the best way to dispose of your medication is through a medicine take-back program. If you have been feeling better for 6 months or more, your doctor may suggest coming off duloxetine. Your doctor will probably recommend reducing your dose gradually over several weeks, or longer if you have been taking duloxetine for a long time.

This is to help prevent any extra side effects you might get as a reaction to coming off the medicine. Do not stop taking duloxetine suddenly or without talking to your doctor first. Taking antidepressants, including duloxetine, is just one of many ways to treat depression and anxiety.

If duloxetine is not working for you, speak to your doctor - there may be other treatments you can try. If you start to have problems with your weight while taking duloxetine, talk to your doctor or pharmacist. During the first few days of taking duloxetine, it might be best to stop drinking alcohol until you see how the medicine affects you. There's no firm evidence to suggest that taking duloxetine will reduce fertility in either men or women.

But speak to a pharmacist or your doctor before taking it if you're trying to get pregnant. Speak to your doctor if you're planning to get pregnant while taking duloxetine. Duloxetine will not affect any type of contraception, including the combined pill or emergency contraception. Some people cannot concentrate properly while they're taking duloxetine. When you first start taking duloxetine, it's a good idea to stop driving and cycling, and avoid using machines or tools, for the first few days until you know how this medicine makes you feel.

Cannabis can affect the levels of duloxetine and make you more likely to get side effects. Talk to your doctor if you think you might use recreational drugs while taking duloxetine.

Page last reviewed: 31 January Next review due: 31 January Duloxetine On this page About duloxetine Key facts Who can and can't take it How and when to take it Side effects How to cope with side effects Pregnancy and breastfeeding Cautions with other medicines Common questions. About duloxetine Duloxetine is an antidepressant medicine. Duloxetine comes as capsules and is only available on prescription. Help us improve our website Can you answer a quick question about your visit today? Duloxetine normally takes 2 to 4 weeks to work.

It may take longer if you're taking it for nerve pain. Common side effects include feeling sick, a dry mouth, headache, constipation and feeling sleepy. These side effects are usually mild and go away after a couple of weeks. If you and your doctor decide to take you off duloxetine, your doctor may recommend reducing your dose gradually to help prevent extra side effects.

Duloxetine is also called by the brand names Cymbalta and Yentreve. Duloxetine can be taken by adults aged 18 years and over. For stress urinary incontenince, duloxetine can only be used by women.

To make sure it's safe for you, tell your doctor if you: have had an allergic reaction to duloxetine or any other medicines in the past have kidney or liver problems have a heart problem are taking or have taken other medicines for depression within the last 14 days have an eye condition called glaucoma - duloxetine can increase the pressure in your eye have or have had fits, manic episodes or bipolar disorder bruise easily are trying to become pregnant, are already pregnant, or you're breastfeeding.

How much will I take? How much you take will depend on what you're taking it for: depression - the starting dose is 60mg a day and can be increased to mg a day anxiety - the starting dose is 30mg a day and can be increased to 60mg a day nerve pain - the starting dose is 60mg a day and can be increased to 60mg twice a day stress urinary incontinence - the starting dose is 20mg twice a day and can be increased to 40mg twice a day after 2 weeks What if I forget to take it?

If you usually take duloxetine: once a day - take the missed dose as soon as you remember, unless it's less than 12 hours until your next dose, in which case skip the missed dose twice a day - take the missed dose as soon as you remember, unless it's less than 4 hours until your next dose, in which case skip the missed dose Never take 2 doses at the same time to make up for a forgotten one.

If you forget doses often, it may help to set an alarm to remind you. What if I take too much?