# Has anyone tried Buspar with a SSRI?



## tednugent2007 (Oct 28, 2007)

My therapist said sometimes the Buspar actually makes the SSRI more effective. Has anyone tried this combination before? What did you think? Right now I'm just on Paxil and it really hasn't improved my anxiety or depression.


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## Rocco (May 25, 2008)

I've tried Buspar with Lexapro. It did make me less anxious in social situations, but after a while it also made me depressed so I had to quit. Buspar is commonly used as an augmenting agent with SSRIs.


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## Foh_Teej (May 5, 2004)

no but it is on my list of crap i told them i wont try


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

Buspar sucks


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## tednugent2007 (Oct 28, 2007)

It sounds like Buspar is very hit or miss with no middle ground. For some people it works great, for some it doesn't do a thing.


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## Foh_Teej (May 5, 2004)

hmm dont think ive ever seen or heard it helping many or doing much of anything for that matter. I do know by personal accounts of it making some flip out or...better stated, go nuts though. I dont want to seem like a pessimist as ive never tried it but I absolutely hate the idea of wasting money (and time) on something that a majority of users would say is completely useless. My doc not long ago asked me to consider it and I declined for that reason alone.


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## tednugent2007 (Oct 28, 2007)

Foh_Teej , check out the website http://www.askapatient.com/ and type in Buspar. There's plnety of people who thought Buspar worked very well, so it's not everyone.


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## Foh_Teej (May 5, 2004)

Im sure every med works for some people to varying degrees of success. Having said that, buspar scored the lowest of every med I entered. 

Heres the list of some of the most commonly mentioned drugs here on SAS that I looked up: 

Parnate 4.2
Nardil 4.1
Valium 4
Xanax 4
Klonopin 3.7
Ativan 3.6 
Zoloft 3.4
Prozac 3.4
Lexapro 3.3
Effexor 3.1
Neurontin 3.1
Cymbalta 3
Paxil 2.9
Buspar 2.8 

Of course this is very subjective but that score isnt exactly spectacular at any rate. Definitely nothing to make me consider taking it compared to the experience with crap Ive already tried. Dont get me wrong; I do not want to discourage anyone from trying a med as it may be the magic remedy for a person. Its just my experience reading these forums for a long time that drugs like buspar and neurontin are "sugar pills" for use in SA treatment.


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## thor_no (Mar 23, 2008)

Tried Buspar with Paxil and did not do anything for me


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## Edwin (Jun 19, 2008)

I'm on 60 mg of Citalopram and 15 mg of Buspirone a day. It does seem to do something extra for my anxiety, but it also makes me more depressed. Sexual side-effects got out of hand as well on this combination. I went down 10 mg on my usual dose of Citalopram today. I think I'll experiment a bit more with the doses of Cit and Buspar, and hope I can hit my sweet spot.

However, I'm starting to get the feeling this combination is not nearly sufficient. I've been diagnosed with AvPD, OCD (mostly compulsive worrying) and I got quite a bit of atypical depression (with suicidal ideation).

I'm starting to do research again and already made commitment with myself to get the "holy grail", Nardil.


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## KurtG85 (Sep 19, 2008)

Helps with sexual side effects a bit and helps with anxiety but it also made my depression a little bit worse as well. 

I have talked to a few people who swear by it. Obviously it is ridiculous to make a decision to never try a med based solely on the fact it didnt work for a majority of the people who have tried it.


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## Foh_Teej (May 5, 2004)

KurtG85 said:


> Obviously it is ridiculous to make a decision to never try a med based solely on the fact it * didnt work for a majority of the people who have tried it*.


obviously huh? Im not in to wasting money....ive been on the medi-go-round long enough.


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## KurtG85 (Sep 19, 2008)

Foh_Teej said:


> obviously huh? Im not in to wasting money....ive been on the medi-go-round long enough.


Absolutely your perogative to not give it or any other meds a shot. I was just stating that *if* you are open to trying meds it is quite potentially self defeating to decide a med absolutely will not work for you just because it didn't work for a majority of others. The meds which have brought me out of the pits of unimaginable despair were discovered in the face of exactly such negative odds of the meds working for my individual issues.

The very limited knowledge of the science of brain chemistry unfortunately often requires a med-go-round in order to find a med which helps. I have always been more than happy to endure the med go round and burn the extensive amount of cash in order to find the med/s which allows me to live a existence free from meaningless intense everyday suffering. I would be dead if it were not for this help. I consider myself to be unbelievably lucky to live in an age where the technology for such a hope even exists, even though it is flawed and limited.

I wasn't insinuating you shouldn't have given up on the process, just pointing out some flawed logic which can be self defeating for those who choose to continue to endure the often exhausting, frustrating and tedious process of the med go round with the goal of a healthier state of mind.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

There are clearly other better meds to try before wasting time with Buspar.


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## Edwin (Jun 19, 2008)

It's now been more than a week for me on Buspirone. I adjusted my dosages a bit, Citalopram I titrated down to 40 mg / day, and I titrated Buspirone up to 30 mg / day.

I notice small changes in my mood / anxiety every day. Buspirone is definitely doing something for me. It's supposed to be at least 8 weeks before this medication is in full effect, so I'm just going to sit this Busp. trial out.

I feel more and more connected to people every day, and anxiety doesn't cause as much self-consciousness anymore. Looking people in the eye is getting much easier as well (also with pretty women ;-) ). This experience is definitely a whole lot better than 60 mg / day Citalopram. Obsessive worrying is also getting less.

Edit:

Also, sexual difficulties (libido, inorgasmia) due to the SSRI are basically gone now that I've added Buspirone (in contrast to the first few days after augmenting; see previous post). I would suggest anyone already on an SSRI to try this out as well.


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## KurtG85 (Sep 19, 2008)

Yes, I noticed its positive sexual ability/interest benefits as well if I didn't mention it.


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