jen5276 Posted January 20, 2007 Share Posted January 20, 2007 Well, I just returned from my appointment with my doctor after not seeing him for about 6 months. I told him that I stopped taking my Lexapro due to the immense weight gain. He seemed surprised that Lexapro would cause that much weight gain, and I told him it is NOT unusual. He seemed to think that Wellbutrin might be my only option because of the low risk of weight gain. Now, he knows about my anxiety problem (he also wrote me scripts for Xanax and Ambien!) and from what I can gather, Wellbutrin can definitley aggravate this problem. My doc is a really nice guy, but I'm beginning to wonder if he is the right person I should be going to for my problems. What do you guys think? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kalifornia Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 Wellbutrin doesn't cause anxiety in everyone. In fact, I was put on Wellbutrin specifically for my anxiety. It actually made a difference. Give it a try for a few weeks and see how it affects you. Everyone is different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollywoodfreaks Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 I agree with Kalifornia. I have anxiety issues as well and Wellbutrin doesn't aggravate them. I assume you are taking it for depression as well? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jen5276 Posted January 21, 2007 Author Share Posted January 21, 2007 I agree with Kalifornia. I have anxiety issues as well and Wellbutrin doesn't aggravate them. I assume you are taking it for depression as well? Yes, I do suffer from depression as well. Maybe I will give it a try, but I am so afraid of anything aggravating my anxiety and panic disorders. It's interesting how meds all affect us different. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rabbit37 Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 What dosage? I will admit, the first few days I felt raw with anxiety, but then it lessened. I'm on a mega-low dose, 100mg, and it doesn't seem to aggrevate anything. I think it was more important to address my depression than anxiety. I have xanax prn, which I'm taking less and less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jen5276 Posted January 21, 2007 Author Share Posted January 21, 2007 I notice most of you guys are on a SSRI in addition to the Wellbutrin. Could that be why you aren't feeling many side effects? I also take Xanax but not every day, and do not want to have to start taking it every day to offset the anxiety from the Wellbutrin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
null0trooper Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 I notice most of you guys are on a SSRI in addition to the Wellbutrin. Could that be why you aren't feeling many side effects? I also take Xanax but not every day, and do not want to have to start taking it every day to offset the anxiety from the Wellbutrin. Wellbutrin is often added to an SSRI to offset weight gain and/or sexual dysfunction. The SSRI is working well enough, but ... Keep in mind also that major depression is not always accompanied by anxiety, so there are folks for whom WB is added to try to bolster the antidepressant effects of the other med. And then there are folks for whom 300mg Wellbutrin washed down with a double mocha espresso barely raises their blood pressure. Just as there is no guarantee of effectiveness, there is even less guarantee of any of the expected side effects. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LikeMinded Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 And then there are folks for whom 300mg Wellbutrin washed down with a double mocha espresso barely raises their blood pressure. I'm pleading the fifth there... except add to that another two shots of espresso, and 400mg Provigil. Two more espresso shots atop that, as well as me bitching to my pdoc that I need some serious amphetamines, if I'm having psiMS issues. Anyways, serotonin has a reputation (in most MDD individuals, anyways) for being a more "chill out", mood-moderating neurotransmitter, which is possibly why people on the SSRI+WB combo don't experience as bad of anxiety. Of course, this is just all of us guessing here, and I have no idea how it'll turn out for you, Jen. I guess it's not a bad idea then, to stick with the WB and see what happens. Often it's the opposite of what's expected... (c.f. my experience with Zyprexa) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollywoodfreaks Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 Since my SSRI was working well, including for anxiety, when I started Wellbutrin, it is possible that it could have taken the edge off. I wouldn't hestitate to try taking it solo, though. The only thing to prevent it is my brain appears to really like serotonin enhancement, which WB doesn't really provide. If you are worried about getting hooked on a benzo, discuss it with your pdoc. He should be able to find a way for you to use it without having to taper off of it. I say if you have depression you should give it a shot. I think that (for me at least) anxiety is much easier to deal with when it's not backed up by depression. It's impossible to know how you will react before you take it. Another thing you might find reassuring: In my experience, Wellbutrin will probably give you energy, but in a way that is more subtle than caffeine. Caffeine gives me crazy anxiety, but Wellbutrin does not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penny Century Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 i have anxiety up the wazoo. i can't handle SSRIs, so when my MDD rears its ugly head, it's wellbutrin time. honestly, i can't tell the difference in terms of anxiety when i take wellbutrin. i can tell it gives me more energy, which at first i can understand may feel like anxiety, but it's just some get-up-and-go. of course, yes, some people can't handle it. my husband can't. he's an effexor man. effexor makes me looney. YMMV. try to not be scared of the wellbutrin. you really don't know how it will affect you. there are a lot of us anxious types out here on wellbutrin. (and i'm on it all by itself and still ok with it.) give it a try. try to remember than the energy it *may* give you is just energy, and channel it into something positive. (it helped my concentration so i read a lot the first few weeks.) let us know how it goes. are you on SR or XL? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loon-A-TiK Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 i have all kinds of anxiety issues and take WB with no issues. while i don't think it activates me, it does feel like a "light" drug compared to the SSRIs. i weighed about 10lbs more on paxil/lex and had sexual side effects. i have no side effects from WB. my bf is THE most anxious person i've ever personally known. his anxiety and panic disorders are very intense. he takes xanax and largely refuses to take anything else, because he feels he needs his anxiety to feel driven in his profession and feels like it "isn't him" when he's on something. however, he's been on WB before, and it chilled him out, not the opposite. he had a pdoc appointment today and i haven't talked to him about it yet, but he was going to ask for more WB because of a depression issue. give it a shot for sure. it doesn't calm me down or cause anxiety, it just lifts/pervents depression for me. it has been weight neutral and i can enjoy my sex life. i admit that i love paxil/lex for their anti-anxiety properties and the general "mellow" feeling i got from them. but it wasn't worth the trade. today my pdoc and i decided that because i haven't been depressed in awhile that we're going to go lower on the WB and see if we can get rid of it. hopefully i can and get rid of one of these drugs in my pharmacy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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