Duloxetine generics - are any better than others? (depressed, medication, insurance)

[NYC refugee]

I take duloxetine dr 60 mg twice daily and every time I go to the pharmacy, I get a different generic. I find one helpful, one very unhelpful, and the other 4 I've encountered I'm not sure. Can I name the manufacturers here? I'd like to compare with other people since Walgreens is telling me the one I find effective is no longer available. Frankly, they were hostile and nasty about it since every single month I go and get the same one I don't want, tell them it's in the computer not to give me that one, please give me the other one, and they have to order it, blah blah blah - the usual runaround.

I'd also like to know if anyone finds one of the major drugstore chains any better than the others since I drive 60 miles a month, 3 trips 10 miles each way, waiting for Walgreens to get it right. We do this EVERY SINGLE MONTH.

[SanyBelle]

I'm sorry you are having this issue, are you required to purchase from Walgreens? Maybe a smaller independent pharmacy will order the brand that works better for you?

I was on 60mg for many years, I do believe the generics are pretty terrible. After this drug went generic, I weaned off of it, it took me almost 2 years to do that. I don't remember the generic manufacturers' drugs that I received after it went generic but because I had awful side effects from them, I took myself off this drug with my doctor's guidance. (I know this wasn't in your post, I just added it because you need to work with your doctor when changing / stopping drugs).

What do you find does not work well with some brands?

[NYC refugee]

I find the other brands either work ok or not at all, not even a little bit. And I know that that on and off again thing is bad in the long run. I never had the non-generic that I know of, those days were over when I got it. The dr does keep asking if I think it's helping me, but I'm tempted to ask Which one? And will I have to go through this same thing with a new med? How would you know if it worked or not?

No, I'm not required to purchase from Walgreens, but when I moved here 3 yrs ago I originally had an independent pharmacy and they were just as bad, which is what made me leave them. In each case, they hand out the cheapest brand they have in house and when I asked not to get it, they gave it to me anyway. Walgreens showed me 4 different bottles, each claiming to be the same thing and asked me which one I wanted. This doesn't feel anything like the "care" I'm paying for.

[MaryleeII]

I take duloxetine generic, 60 mg 2x/day, and have taken it for many years. I was always given the Breckenridge brand, which are yellow and green capsules.

Awhile back I was given another manufacturer's brand, Teva, which are blue and yellow. I noticed a difference in about a week. I felt depressed, moody, and in general very down. I use Express Scripts. I called and spoke with a pharmacist, who readily agreed to send just the Breckenridge brand, and sent me another 3-month supply. Its noted on my file-only to use Breckenridge.

OP, what insurance do you use? You might want to try calling your insurance direct, or call Walgreen's main corporate headquarters, to express your dissatisfaction with the brand you're receiving. Speaking with the local pharmacist won't get you anywhere.

Really stress that the brand you're getting is NOT helping and really stress the DEPRESSION is increasing. Make sure to emphasize Depression. They don't want to have us having a breakdown, at least that's been my experience. They even gave me a suicide hotline number, and sent a new bottle same day air! Look, I'm not that bad off, but they weren't taking any chances!

[NYC refugee]

MaryLee - I had Medicaid for a while and that was always the handy excuse: you have no choice because you're on Medicaid. Now I'm no longer on Medicaid, I pay for my insurance, and rather than improve the situation, it's another stumbling block as they either claim I have no insurance and try to charge me or try to collect a co-pay or deductible.

Then when we straighten that out, they hand me two bottles of the one generic I refuse to take, Medicaid or no. Then they have to "order" the one I want because in spite of my getting it there every month for 3 years, they never have it in. Trust me, I have emphasized the depression, I have spoken to the corporate office (which only makes the store employees hate me more) and I have come to the conclusion that Walgreens doesn't give a damn about either their employees or their customers.

Hence this post, hoping to find out if another chain that I can get to is any better. They've also threatened me with having only 9 bottles of the kind I like left in the warehouse and asked me flat out what I'm going to do when they're gone.

Thanks for Breckenridge. I didn't even see it among the choices. They were Solco, Rising, Ajanta, and something I can't remember. I know someone who had trouble with a completely different Teva generic, so I try to avoid them and Ajanta is the one that didn't work for me at all.

[finklink2016]

I have been taking cymbalta for 10 yrs plus and it has restored the quality of my life; allowed me to get "unblocked."
I was completely dehabilitated before starting on this medication in my late 30s.
I recently received new medical coverage and my refill was of a new generic brand; white and blue capsules for the 60mg dose. I could tell right away I needed to take more to get the same effect (90mg vs 60mg). I switched from Walgreens to an online pharmacy which sent me a blue and green generic, 60mg. I could feel the difference within a day or 2; back to good.
Eli Lilly offers a patient assistance program where if your annual income is less than 70k, they will send you 3 months at a time of the brand name medication. This is the best option. You can apply on their website.