Miracle med loses edge amid side effects After over a year of severe CFS and Fibromyalgia, my first dose of Cymbalta--10 mg (1/2 of a 20 mg capsule)--took the horrific pain and fatigue, as well as depression and anxiety, away--within one hour. It was a miracle. Paradoxically, while it gave me some energy, it also made me sleepy. But the pain and stiffness were completely gone. I moved up to 20 mg and then 40 mg, where I was supposed to stay. Then, during a bad week in February (around the time when hormones take a dive), my symptoms worsened. I panicked, called the doctor, and he told me to go up to 80 mg. Although the maximum effective dose is supposed to be 60 mg, people are taking 80, 90, and up to 120 mg. I was skeptical but tried it, taking 80 mg for about three days. I then went down to 60 mg and seemed to tolerate this dose. HOWEVER, the sleepiness became so severe I was unable to function. It was pathological! In addition, I gained weight at an alarming rate---only 5 lbs during the first couple of months when I was taking 40 mg, but then 10 lbs in 1.5 weeks when I went up to 60 mg---and in an odd pattern, that is, in parts of my body (back, arms, torso, belly) where I had never accumulated extra pounds. I'm a vegan who doesn't eat bread (problem with wheat), junk food, soda, etc. If I ate like the average person, I think I would've gained twice the weight. By the way, according to the trials performed for the drug's approval, weight gain is not supposed to be a significant side effect of Cymbalta. Neither is sexual dysfunction in females, but this, too, turned out to be untrue in my case. I experienced a weird disconnect between my thoughts, feelings and physical sensations and was unable to reach orgasm; if I persisted and achieved one (an hour later), it was very short and nearly undetectable. So I decided to go down--gradually, of course--from 60 mg to 40 mg, then to 30 mg, and now I'm at 20 mg/day and gradually adding Wellbutrin (lesser wei