how to transition from cymbalta to zoloft

[barrygirl]

is it ok to gradually taper off of cymbalta and slowly add in small amount of zoloft.....i am currently on 30 mg of cymbalta, down from original 60 mg for quite a few years.....my neurologist wants me to compl etely stop the cymbalta and start on 50 mg of zoloft, which i do not want to do because of the horrible cymbalta withdrawal, which i am already experiencing at 30mg.....

[barrygirl]

i agree with you that many doctors DO NOT understand how awful these medications are and can be when withdrawaling from them.......honestly i have lost faith in doctors.....they hear and do what they want and they seem to no longer listen to the patient :(

[Paxiled]

All the recommended protocols I've found suggest completely tapering off the old drug before starting the new one so you can tell if you're suffering withdrawal side effects or side effects of the new drug.  It's very hard to tell if the new drug will work or not if you're feeling strong side effects which might be the old drug and have nothing to do with the new one.  Any neurologist who suggests stopping Cymbalta cold turkey should be replaced with a different doctor, in my opinion, but I have strong opinions about this.  If your doctor doesn't understand that all these meds are very different and very hard to stop taking, the doctor doesn't understand medicine enough to be trusted.  Again, just my strong opinion that many will disagree with.