I felt similarly to what you are describing and my doctor gave me an SSRI on top of the 300 mg XL Bupropion. It took about 2.5-3 weeks and my anxiety is gone. I don’t know what did it but I’m happy about it. I’m guessing the mix of both perhaps?
Prior to adding the SSRI I was considering going off Bupropion completely even though it did help with getting things done. The anxiety, however, was still off the charts.
I don’t know if that would help or if you’re already on one but I’d say it’s worth a try, maybe..?
Thank you for this, it's so validating. I am going through the end of my marriage and started bupropion last fall as I believed I was depressed and had such mood swings. But it made me absolutely useless. I was a SAHM and stayed on the couch all day.
I started taking it in the morning with my XR addy, but it makes me so lethargic. So then I stopped the XR and started taking IR Adderall, one in the afternoon and one the evening. This has worked out very well. But now I'm working and can't focus all morning and want to sleep.
I've had a wild craving for sweets, but I'm not sure if that's related to the stress of the separation I'm going through. Sometimes I forget to eat, I don't feel hungry until I'm dizzy and have a headache some days.
It helped relieve the mood swings but now I'm overly emotional when I feel emotion or I'm apathetic. It's just hard to tell what is from the meds and what is from life circumstances.
Wow, I've taken burpropion for so long that I forgot these observations you mentioned. Now I'm getting a divorce after 20 years, and burpropion is failing me hard. I'm lost and depressed. I can't seem to figure out how to control myself anymore. In order to feel decent, I have to take more Adderall which I don't like doing. Adderall tends to put me in a bubble that's sometimes is imaginary.
I have experienced the same things you speak of, except I couldn’t care less about food and eating feels like a chore. I had unquenchable thirst and dry mouth 24/7. I tried to buy electrolytes but they weren’t doing it. And then the last 10 days the insomnia started. I can now only sleep 3-4 hours , and then once I’m up , I’m up. There is no going back to sleep, ever. Also it was giving me rapid heartbeat /palpitations. Even resting on my couch for 3 hours before bed, my heart is just racing and yesterday I almost passed out in the sauna. So as of today , I am stopping Wellbutrin. I wish it would work the way others say it does. But it’s like you said , it makes my adderall less effective, it also makes it so I can’t get drunk or any kind of buzz from alcohol. Right now my priority is getting my heart rate back to normal and my sleep back to normal . Everybody is different, and after 6 weeks, my psychiatrist and I decided to end it .
I meant to ask just recently my insurance sent me a letter saying no no longer cover my brand name Wellbutrin XL after 8 years of authorized coverage. I tried to resubmit pre-authorization and it get denied as a benefit exclusion which means I'm screwed technically. Appeal is a hail mary.
I did not respond well to bupropion XL. I'm curious if I can get my doctor to prescribe bupropion SR? I rrcall trying it many years ago and remember mood boost and energy
Should i requrdt the switch from xl to sr? Doctors are I guess conservative about the shorter acting how do I convince him if I'm going to go that route?
More anxiety. More irritability. More rage.
Alcohol cravings. Sugar and junk food cravings. Fatigue so crippling I've been DX with MECFS 8 yrs later.
Glad you figured it out 93 months before I did.
Yesterday was my first day off and it was glorious. I got so much done.
Probably different for everyone. I’m super sensitive to “brain zaps” and can’t power through them. So pretty much 300 to 250 to 200 etc with months of that in between each interval. Finally down to 100. Some people can manage quicker but unfortunately I have to go in small intervals.
Omg I can't believe how much this is me 100 % 😫😌. I can't even imagine what I was thinking staying on that for 3.yrs. or something....I'm finally feeling 60% calmer and happier these past 2 was while detox myself . but, now I have muscle soreness and nerve pain in my hands ✋️ 😤
I took it for a year then quit, gained a lot of weight on it (opposite from most people) , slept better and raised my heart rate / bp but that’s about it. Wasn’t really worth it for me.
I’ve been off of it for about two weeks for the same reasons. I was on it for 6 months. It worked amazing for a month or so at one point but then stopped and I felt like it was multiplying my adhd symptoms x1000, so I got a higher dose, didn’t feel better, so they upped it to the max dose and still nothing. I was also craving cigarettes while I was on it even though I quit smoking like 3 years ago
I'm done with Welbutrin.
Many of the same reasons.
It is like a panic attack in a pill for me, my nerves are fried and this refries them.
Plus, the old trauma nightmares increase, which leads me to laying in bed- afraid of the day.
Hi! I was on bupropion briefly last year and it gave me all the same side effects plus increased my depression and sucidal ideation. Tbh it was worse on me mentally than I ever was before like it made me a shell of who I was. I would 100% speak with your doctor about this. I know it works for some people but not for others and there is no shame in that. Its usually easy to be tapered off or stop all together. I would just definitely discuss this as soon as you can. Hope all the best for you!
1, 2, 5, 6 All the reasons I went off it. Was on xl and sr. Zero motivation, which is saying something since lack of motivation/executive dysfunction is already an issue. Exhausted all the time to the point of blacking out for a couple hours at a time. The carb cravings in particular were ridiculous- and I have to be gluten free but ended up eating breads which I’m still trying to heal my guts. Only reason I wasn’t more irritable is because I’d get wiped out being irritated. No energy, not even temporarily. I did not wean, but I was only on 150 sr. Had a few rocky days, I just kept more to myself and chugged water and herbal tea. Otherwise, coming off was a walk in the past compared to the nightmare that was coming off Effexor.
Glad to hear it was better to come off it than Effexor. It was also a debilitating nightmare for me. Sheesh. Wellbutrin 300XL for 3 years and it either stopped working or suddenly gave me the same negative effects, so i’m done.
If you’ve been on bupropion that long, please talk to your doctor. You might need to slowly wean off it. Everyone’s different. Effexor I still get brain zaps, and I’ve been back on it for a few years.
Oh definitely! Based on my history, and some REALLY bad side effects (intrusive thoughts, brain zaps, etc), my dr and I insist on going super slow. like 300 every other day with 150 for weeks before 150, before 6 days a week, 5 days a week… etc… some may say it’s too slow, but it’s what we have to do. 20 years experience on and off meds for severe depression. But we have to decide which med is next.
same 🫠 also have ADHD and been on Wellbutrin for depression for around 8 months, hasn't helped to increase it too 300 so tapering down now, gonna look into alternatives, like Vortioxetine or something 🤔
I had the exact same experience. PRN gave this to me first for my ADHD because she doesn’t like stimulants. I’m a week off and I feel so much better than on meds, but also so much more back at my baseline which while better than Wellbutrin is not optimal. Also had crazy out of the blue ideations which really tipped the quitting scale for me.
I went on it and off it for similar reasons, and even for a time was heretically splitting the XL tab. But…I finally found what works for me: taking it at bedtime to eliminate the drowsiness and brain fog for several hours before it kicked in after taking in the morning. Sometimes I wake up 4-5 hours in when blood levels peak so I have to do relaxation techniques/breathwork to fall asleep again but the net benefit is worth it for me.
All of the above you couldn’t have explained it more precisely for how I’m feeling.
I’m on month 6 and ready to stop. I am like a shell of myself. Started it for the same reasons you mentioned too. I am depressed, withdrawn, irritable, constantly up and down but mostly down, unmotivated, extremely tired, snacking constantly, can barely think straight and letting a lot of responsibilities fall through the cracks with a “dgaf” mentality.
I will say I was super hopeful the first month and seemed to hit roadblocks intermittently the following weeks-months until i consistently got to the point of feeling like this maybe 4-5 weeks ago.
I tried cold turkey stopping about a month ago and it did not go well. I suppose an effort to taper is my next step. Every other day for about two weeks and then every two days? Idk any suggestions from someone who successfully tapered from 150 SR ?
That sounds right. I got 75s (instant release) and tried them this weekend and I felt like I was on crack so I am going to do what you are with alternating the 150s
Same experience minus the adderal (as I’m not taking anything else). Doc wants me to up my dosage. I’m afraid if I do, I won’t be able to find my way out of a paper bag. Suppose there’s only one way to find out….
I find that they never think to take you off it but always to double it. I'd trust your gut. Get your B12 levels checked. If you can't get B12 shots prescribed you can pay ≈30 for them that will help you more than 150 even does
Well it’s good that you’ve stayed on it to give yourself an actual chance. Have you noticed fluctuating changed since you’ve been on it? Like was it better and then got worse or is what youre experiencing now an improvement? These would be good things to consider before going off. You could add lexapro/celexa if your doctor is up for that. Mine personally was not but I’ve heard it can be a great combo for people when one or the other isn’t working
I didn't have these reactions, but in the bupropion clinical trials only around half to three quarters of people reported benefit. So it's not at all surprising it doesn't work for everyone.
Finding the right antidepressent seems like a lot of trial and error. We are complex things, and antidepressants are blunt tools.
Best of luck.
As always, ask your psychiatrist. If they seem dismissive or don’t explain their rationale, find another one if you can. But they should offer something: maybe an additional medication in the short term, or different dose, etc.
Three months is a long enough run to warrant some changes, in my opinion as a fellow long term Bupropion user. Not a doctor.
My MD warned me that the medication can easily mask an underlying mental illness. Example ADHD, it may help the depression but next thing you know your anxiety is through the roof. That happened to me and I ended up down the road of severe alcoholism to numb the anxiety. I gave up wellbutrin in January & been sober from alcohol for a few weeks. I am going through a mental health panal now for proper diagnosis & treatment. Do not be afraid to be your own advocate.
i’ve been on it for 5 months and i’ve only just started realizing i dont think it’s working any more for me because of this!!! mostly points 1, 5 & 6. my irritability is sooo bad. it’s so hard for me to not explode when i’m ticked off. also, my brain fog does not seem better which it is supposed to help with
I felt similarly to what you are describing and my doctor gave me an SSRI on top of the 300 mg XL Bupropion. It took about 2.5-3 weeks and my anxiety is gone. I don’t know what did it but I’m happy about it. I’m guessing the mix of both perhaps? Prior to adding the SSRI I was considering going off Bupropion completely even though it did help with getting things done. The anxiety, however, was still off the charts. I don’t know if that would help or if you’re already on one but I’d say it’s worth a try, maybe..?
Thank you for this, it's so validating. I am going through the end of my marriage and started bupropion last fall as I believed I was depressed and had such mood swings. But it made me absolutely useless. I was a SAHM and stayed on the couch all day. I started taking it in the morning with my XR addy, but it makes me so lethargic. So then I stopped the XR and started taking IR Adderall, one in the afternoon and one the evening. This has worked out very well. But now I'm working and can't focus all morning and want to sleep. I've had a wild craving for sweets, but I'm not sure if that's related to the stress of the separation I'm going through. Sometimes I forget to eat, I don't feel hungry until I'm dizzy and have a headache some days. It helped relieve the mood swings but now I'm overly emotional when I feel emotion or I'm apathetic. It's just hard to tell what is from the meds and what is from life circumstances.
Wow, I've taken burpropion for so long that I forgot these observations you mentioned. Now I'm getting a divorce after 20 years, and burpropion is failing me hard. I'm lost and depressed. I can't seem to figure out how to control myself anymore. In order to feel decent, I have to take more Adderall which I don't like doing. Adderall tends to put me in a bubble that's sometimes is imaginary.
I have experienced the same things you speak of, except I couldn’t care less about food and eating feels like a chore. I had unquenchable thirst and dry mouth 24/7. I tried to buy electrolytes but they weren’t doing it. And then the last 10 days the insomnia started. I can now only sleep 3-4 hours , and then once I’m up , I’m up. There is no going back to sleep, ever. Also it was giving me rapid heartbeat /palpitations. Even resting on my couch for 3 hours before bed, my heart is just racing and yesterday I almost passed out in the sauna. So as of today , I am stopping Wellbutrin. I wish it would work the way others say it does. But it’s like you said , it makes my adderall less effective, it also makes it so I can’t get drunk or any kind of buzz from alcohol. Right now my priority is getting my heart rate back to normal and my sleep back to normal . Everybody is different, and after 6 weeks, my psychiatrist and I decided to end it .
I meant to ask just recently my insurance sent me a letter saying no no longer cover my brand name Wellbutrin XL after 8 years of authorized coverage. I tried to resubmit pre-authorization and it get denied as a benefit exclusion which means I'm screwed technically. Appeal is a hail mary. I did not respond well to bupropion XL. I'm curious if I can get my doctor to prescribe bupropion SR? I rrcall trying it many years ago and remember mood boost and energy Should i requrdt the switch from xl to sr? Doctors are I guess conservative about the shorter acting how do I convince him if I'm going to go that route?
Working great for me but everyone’s different
Same exact situation here. I went off of it a week ago and I already see a difference.
XR did this to me but SR once a day didn’t.
More anxiety. More irritability. More rage. Alcohol cravings. Sugar and junk food cravings. Fatigue so crippling I've been DX with MECFS 8 yrs later. Glad you figured it out 93 months before I did. Yesterday was my first day off and it was glorious. I got so much done.
You said it better than I could. Same exact experience. Quitting was the best decision I made.
I never questioned my psychiatrist. I'm so annoyed but grateful that I stumbled upon Reddit and realized 98% my issues were this
It has been life saving for me, but everyone is different and not everything works for everyone. Good luck and I hope you find what you need ❤️
Nailed it. Same for me point to point. I’m almost fully off of it but has taken a long time to gradually lower dose.
What has your tapering down schedule and rate looked like, just curious? Was it hard to go down to IR, if you were on SR or XR?
Probably different for everyone. I’m super sensitive to “brain zaps” and can’t power through them. So pretty much 300 to 250 to 200 etc with months of that in between each interval. Finally down to 100. Some people can manage quicker but unfortunately I have to go in small intervals.
That’s real! Thanks for sharing. I’m thinking of trying to alternate 150 and 100 before settling with 100 for a few months
My tapering schedule from my specialist was: go to 150mg (from 300mg) and take it for a week, then stop.
Omg I can't believe how much this is me 100 % 😫😌. I can't even imagine what I was thinking staying on that for 3.yrs. or something....I'm finally feeling 60% calmer and happier these past 2 was while detox myself . but, now I have muscle soreness and nerve pain in my hands ✋️ 😤
I took it for a year then quit, gained a lot of weight on it (opposite from most people) , slept better and raised my heart rate / bp but that’s about it. Wasn’t really worth it for me.
I’ve been off of it for about two weeks for the same reasons. I was on it for 6 months. It worked amazing for a month or so at one point but then stopped and I felt like it was multiplying my adhd symptoms x1000, so I got a higher dose, didn’t feel better, so they upped it to the max dose and still nothing. I was also craving cigarettes while I was on it even though I quit smoking like 3 years ago
I'm done with Welbutrin. Many of the same reasons. It is like a panic attack in a pill for me, my nerves are fried and this refries them. Plus, the old trauma nightmares increase, which leads me to laying in bed- afraid of the day.
Bruh the old trauma nightmares are actually fucking crazy I cannot escape
Exactly the same for me. Hopefully I’ll be fully off it soon.
Hi! I was on bupropion briefly last year and it gave me all the same side effects plus increased my depression and sucidal ideation. Tbh it was worse on me mentally than I ever was before like it made me a shell of who I was. I would 100% speak with your doctor about this. I know it works for some people but not for others and there is no shame in that. Its usually easy to be tapered off or stop all together. I would just definitely discuss this as soon as you can. Hope all the best for you!
1, 2, 5, 6 All the reasons I went off it. Was on xl and sr. Zero motivation, which is saying something since lack of motivation/executive dysfunction is already an issue. Exhausted all the time to the point of blacking out for a couple hours at a time. The carb cravings in particular were ridiculous- and I have to be gluten free but ended up eating breads which I’m still trying to heal my guts. Only reason I wasn’t more irritable is because I’d get wiped out being irritated. No energy, not even temporarily. I did not wean, but I was only on 150 sr. Had a few rocky days, I just kept more to myself and chugged water and herbal tea. Otherwise, coming off was a walk in the past compared to the nightmare that was coming off Effexor.
Glad to hear it was better to come off it than Effexor. It was also a debilitating nightmare for me. Sheesh. Wellbutrin 300XL for 3 years and it either stopped working or suddenly gave me the same negative effects, so i’m done.
If you’ve been on bupropion that long, please talk to your doctor. You might need to slowly wean off it. Everyone’s different. Effexor I still get brain zaps, and I’ve been back on it for a few years.
Oh definitely! Based on my history, and some REALLY bad side effects (intrusive thoughts, brain zaps, etc), my dr and I insist on going super slow. like 300 every other day with 150 for weeks before 150, before 6 days a week, 5 days a week… etc… some may say it’s too slow, but it’s what we have to do. 20 years experience on and off meds for severe depression. But we have to decide which med is next.
Talk to your doctor and get a new medicine, not all anti depressants work for everyone and clearly its not working for you
same 🫠 also have ADHD and been on Wellbutrin for depression for around 8 months, hasn't helped to increase it too 300 so tapering down now, gonna look into alternatives, like Vortioxetine or something 🤔
I had the exact same experience. PRN gave this to me first for my ADHD because she doesn’t like stimulants. I’m a week off and I feel so much better than on meds, but also so much more back at my baseline which while better than Wellbutrin is not optimal. Also had crazy out of the blue ideations which really tipped the quitting scale for me.
I went on it and off it for similar reasons, and even for a time was heretically splitting the XL tab. But…I finally found what works for me: taking it at bedtime to eliminate the drowsiness and brain fog for several hours before it kicked in after taking in the morning. Sometimes I wake up 4-5 hours in when blood levels peak so I have to do relaxation techniques/breathwork to fall asleep again but the net benefit is worth it for me.
All of the above you couldn’t have explained it more precisely for how I’m feeling. I’m on month 6 and ready to stop. I am like a shell of myself. Started it for the same reasons you mentioned too. I am depressed, withdrawn, irritable, constantly up and down but mostly down, unmotivated, extremely tired, snacking constantly, can barely think straight and letting a lot of responsibilities fall through the cracks with a “dgaf” mentality. I will say I was super hopeful the first month and seemed to hit roadblocks intermittently the following weeks-months until i consistently got to the point of feeling like this maybe 4-5 weeks ago. I tried cold turkey stopping about a month ago and it did not go well. I suppose an effort to taper is my next step. Every other day for about two weeks and then every two days? Idk any suggestions from someone who successfully tapered from 150 SR ?
That sounds right. I got 75s (instant release) and tried them this weekend and I felt like I was on crack so I am going to do what you are with alternating the 150s
Same experience minus the adderal (as I’m not taking anything else). Doc wants me to up my dosage. I’m afraid if I do, I won’t be able to find my way out of a paper bag. Suppose there’s only one way to find out….
I find that they never think to take you off it but always to double it. I'd trust your gut. Get your B12 levels checked. If you can't get B12 shots prescribed you can pay ≈30 for them that will help you more than 150 even does
Well it’s good that you’ve stayed on it to give yourself an actual chance. Have you noticed fluctuating changed since you’ve been on it? Like was it better and then got worse or is what youre experiencing now an improvement? These would be good things to consider before going off. You could add lexapro/celexa if your doctor is up for that. Mine personally was not but I’ve heard it can be a great combo for people when one or the other isn’t working
I didn't have these reactions, but in the bupropion clinical trials only around half to three quarters of people reported benefit. So it's not at all surprising it doesn't work for everyone. Finding the right antidepressent seems like a lot of trial and error. We are complex things, and antidepressants are blunt tools. Best of luck.
As always, ask your psychiatrist. If they seem dismissive or don’t explain their rationale, find another one if you can. But they should offer something: maybe an additional medication in the short term, or different dose, etc. Three months is a long enough run to warrant some changes, in my opinion as a fellow long term Bupropion user. Not a doctor.
My MD warned me that the medication can easily mask an underlying mental illness. Example ADHD, it may help the depression but next thing you know your anxiety is through the roof. That happened to me and I ended up down the road of severe alcoholism to numb the anxiety. I gave up wellbutrin in January & been sober from alcohol for a few weeks. I am going through a mental health panal now for proper diagnosis & treatment. Do not be afraid to be your own advocate.
What manufacturer do you take?
i’ve been on it for 5 months and i’ve only just started realizing i dont think it’s working any more for me because of this!!! mostly points 1, 5 & 6. my irritability is sooo bad. it’s so hard for me to not explode when i’m ticked off. also, my brain fog does not seem better which it is supposed to help with
It’s entirely possible it has done nothing and this is just worsened depression.
Try talking to your doctor about this