Is anyone using Cymbalta for Fibromyalgia? Marinol for appetite?

[auntAgonist]

My rheumatologist just prescribed Cymbalta for Fibromyalgia. It's actually working pretty well. It's alleviating some of the pain and I dare say I have a bit more energy. I still have issues around Lupus and malnutrition due to malabsorption. I have Marinol and it's supposed to boost my appetite. It did at first but now not so much.

Is anyone else taking any of these two?

* I have Lupus, Fibro, Chronic Fatigue, Trousseaus Syndrome, Reynaud's, and ITP. My blood levels aren't stable and I often need Iron infusions and whole blood (packed red blood cells) transfusions.

[marybourg]

1. Have you tried a gluten- and dairy-free

diet for the malabsorption?

[Warpy]

4. Not a good idea for someone with malnutrition

who has presumably been worked up for everything under the sun, including celiac.

Malabsorption can have many causes.

[auntAgonist]

6. Thanks Warpy! Yes, I've had every test under the sun and then some :)

Malabsorption - short bowel syndrome. I'm currently on tpn again for the 3rd time this year. I usually have to have it at least once a year to the tune of about 2100 calories. Lipids and all sorts of good nutrition over 12 hours.

I eat a fair bit of food usually. I can tell as soon as need the tpn. I start to swell, pitting edema in both ankles. Bloating. My pre-albumin, albumin and total proteins all go haywire.

I think my to many it seems that my Hematologist is too quick to transfuse but if she doesn't jump on it I end up very ill. So, when that magic number (hemaglobin) hits 10 I get a unit of packed red blood cells. Prior to that they often have already tried 5 iron infusions over 5 days. (they used to do it over 2 weeks but I have no problem tolerating it over 5 days)
IF the iron doesn't boost the hemaglobin I get the unit of blood. It usually takes about 3-4 weeks for the iron to affect the hemaglobin so we play the waiting game there.

I get excellent care from my hematologist and rheumatologist, my pcp not so much but I'm thankful for the specialists.

aA
kesha

[Warpy]

9. 12 hours is tolerable

I took care of people who were on it for weeks at a time for various reasons and it can be horrible. None of my patients ever mentioned how much peripheral edema can hurt, but it does. Now that my kidneys are conking out again, I get it.

However, congratulations, I think you might be a bigger mess than I am.

[auntAgonist]

10. Edema is awful. I'm sorry you're having to suffer that, more than that I am sorry your kidneys are

conking out

I have a plethora of diuretics to take when it gets really bad. I actually gained 15 pounds last time on TPN, this time I've gained 12. I'll lose most of that when they take me off of it again.

They usually start the drip at 18 hours with no taper up or down, then after about a month or when they tire of me bugging them they reduce it to 12 hours with an hour on each end taper. So, like you said it is tolerable. I usually go from 10pm to 10am. I'm not usually doing anything at that time but relaxing and getting ready to get to bed when hubby gets home from work.

kesha

[mopinko]

2. not exactly, but i love my cymbalta.

i have fibro and recurrent depression. i have been very steady and upbeat since i started taking it. just not going to that totally dark place these days. i credit it w getting me through a drawn out divorce.

do toke as well, and also credit large amounts of that to getting me through the worst of the divorce.

my pain level has been really good, especially if i act my age. also take lyrica, and like the combo.

[auntAgonist]

12. I am hoping the cymbalta will help with the depression too!

I was taking Wellbutrin and it didn't do anything for me at all. Maybe the Cymbalta is the answer

My pain is reduced a bit, that's a good thing.


I'm glad you're doing so much better!!

kesha

[Warpy]

3. These aren't drugs that just stop working

so talk to your rheumy. It might be time for some emergency bloodwork to find out just what's going on.

Your list looks as awful as mine. Alphabet soup diagnosis sucks.

[marybourg]

5. And mine. And I was malabsorbing

until I cut out gluten. Soy and dairy also do it to me, but to a lesser extent. Once the celiac tests have been done, if in fact they have, a gluten free trial is sometimes revealing.

[auntAgonist]

8. I suspected Celiac, actually my husband suspected it and so we requested a work up.

No celiac disease. Everything came back fine as far as that's concerned.

aA
kesha

[marybourg]

11. It's good to have the workup,

and you need to be actually consuming gluten until you get it, but a gluten-free trial afterwards may sometimes reveal that you're reacting to gluten. Has happened to several people in my family and out. Not all chose to actually go gluten free, but each did learn they do react to some extent.

[auntAgonist]

7. I get my blood drawn every Monday as I'm currently on TPN

I just had a total iron study done on Friday including thyroidall sorts of good stuff hehe.
The only drug that seems to have lost it's affect is the Marinol. I just started the Cymbalta and I really like what it's doing.
I did have a chat with my Rheumatogist on the phone after my appointment on Friday. I was taking Wellbutrin and when I came home and looked up drug interactions I discovered that wellbutrin and cymbalta can cause some bad issues. So I was able to stop the wellbutrin, it never seemed to help anyway. I think the cymbalta has give me a wee bit of a lift. Hoping for more energy and less pain then I can cut back on the pain meds I take (fingers crossed)

I stump the Drs all the time. They don't seem to know what to do with me a lot of the time. They pretty much are really good about me directing my own health care to a degree. I read a lot and make it a point to know what's going on in my body.

kesha