Is it safe to start taking Cymbalta while slowly stop taking Zoloft?

[Datrebor]

I've been taking Zoloft for a couple of years and I'm taking 200 mg daily. It is not working that good so I was recommended to try Cymbalta. I've read that it is dangerous to just stop taking Zoloft and my doctor said to take 1 for 3 days then 1/2 for 3 days. I was wonder when I can start taking they Cymbalta or should I start taking that while decreasing the Zoloft. Thanks.

[Paxiled]

I'm not as confident in what pharmacists know -- they only know what pharmaceutical companies teach them.  Here's my opinion, but there are other opinions out there obviously:  I would taper off the Zoloft as slowly as necessary until you stop and have no significant withdrawal symptoms.  None of these drugs work the same, and you're switching to a wholly different class of drugs.  Now, many people have no trouble at all stopping and starting meds, but if you stop a drug while starting another, how will you know if you're suffering withdrawal from the old drug or side effects of the new one?  To be safe, I'd stop the old drug until it's successfully done before starting the new drug.  I'd also ask if your doctor is a psychiatrist or a regular doc, because that's an extremely short tapering schedule.  All my psychiatrists have used at least a 6 week taper.

[AnxiousNoMore]

Pharmacists see people every day who take these meds so they know more than what they are told by pharma companies. My pharmacist was helpful explaining lots of things about what the trial results said and what other things can be concluded.
Some may not be as willing to help but I can't agree that they have limited information since this is all they do.

[Paxiled]

That's the problem -- this is all they do.  Pharmacists are trained by reading the material put out by pharmaceutical companies.  They aren't researchers unless they decide to go that route, which means they aren't in the stores.  The ones in the stores are just middlemen in the distribution system.  They do not see patients, and are trained not to act like they do.  Psychiatrists see patients; that's what they do.  Pharmacists are great at certain things, such as contraindications and when to take drugs and can be very very helpful for that information, but for things like quitting a drug or which drug to take or the like, they are not only not trained to do that, they're not supposed to do that.  For that, they're supposed to tell you to talk to your doctor, which is what they do.  As for trial results, again, those trials are all done by pharmaceutical companies.  They don't tell you what independent researchers think or how the drug has fared since getting FDA approval.  It takes about a decade after approval for review committees to determine whether a drug actually works and how much harm it causes in actual humans, so the initial trials are just the beginning of study, not the endpoint.  Peace.

[AnxiousNoMore]

Your pharmacist will know and the manufacturer has a site for each drug and they will know.