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  • Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners

    Should I change my antidepressant to help with my fatigue?

    Related Topics
    Anxiety Depression Mental Health
    I am currently on 120mg of cymbalta daily my psychiatrist upped my dose today to 150mg and will probably go up to 180 mg in another week.
    I thought the maximum dose for cymbalta was 120mg/day?

    I suffer from major depression with mixed anxiety and although the cymbalta seems to be helping with my depression I am still suffering from extreme fatigue I sleep at least 10 hrs a night during the week and then 15 hrs + on the weekends and I am still exhausted no energy no motivation I have to push myself for every minute I am awake. Im so sick of it… is there a better medication I should talk to my psych about that is going to help with my extreme fatigue?

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    Thanks

    Dr Melanie Strang

    Counsellor

    Cymbalta can cause fatigue however it would be important to rule out any other causes. If you have not had a check up/blood tests recently by your local GP it would be a good idea to make an appointment so that other causes of fatigue can be ruled out..

    There are many different antidepressants available and it would be a good idea to talk with your psychiatrist if you are unhappy on the current one. Often when we are increasing a dose side effects such as fatigue can be at their peak- when you body gets used to being on the new dose perhaps the fatigue will settle down and not be as intense. Perhaps stick with your current medication for a few weeks to see if the exhaustion disappears as your body aclimatises.

    The safety of doses above 120 mg/day has not been adequately evaluated as of yet- speak to your doctor about why he has decided to put you on a higher dose.

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