# wellbutrin making anxiety worse?



## Equisgurl (Nov 22, 2004)

I switched from prozac to wellbutrin due to sexual side effects. I'm taking it in combination with klonopin. Felt fine for the first few weeks, but I can feel my anxiety coming back, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, hands sweating. 

Is there another combination I can try that doesent have too many sideeffects? (especially weight gain and loss of libido). 

Thanks


----------



## Vini Vidi Vici (Jul 4, 2009)

Wellbutrin increases my anxiety by a huge amount, regardless of what other meds im also taking at the same time. I took Wellbutrin with Klonopin for a couple weeks once, and I had increased anxiety and got panic attacks, the Klonopin did not seem to counteract the increased anxiety enough to make the combination effective for Social Anxiety, for me. 

You asked whether there are other meds you could take ---= specifically what symptoms do you desire to treat?


----------



## metamorphosis (Dec 18, 2008)

How much Lexapro were you on and was that for depression also? There are new reports that Lexapro is much stronger than initially thought. Which was 10mg= 20 of Celexa. Therapeutic doses are now often prescribed at 2.5-5mg, which also lessens the side effects. SSRI's are the safest, first line of treatment most pdocs. Its efficacy for SAD is questionable at best for the simple reason that they strictly work on inhibiting serotonin reuptake. Therefore leaving some key neurotransmitters DA and GABAa unchanged.

Bupropion (Wellbutrin) is a Norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor. which is known to cause agitation with people that have SAD.It has a modest effect on dopamine. The upside is that it is often used concurrently with SRI's because it can help with sexual side effects along with increasing energy and lowering appetite. Which the Prozacs of the world are notorious for.

Best advice I can give is:
1.) Gather as much information as you can from not only websites like this (which is excellent). Wikipedia, pubmed, ancedotal evidence from others(ask a patient.com has a lot of reviews). But pay attention to how long the person has been on the meds. If they gave it a fair trial which can take a few months. Sometimes you'll see definite patterns.

2.) There is a whole world of psychotropic meds.. Many of them can be addictive. You can build a tolerance to (benzodiazepines)=the Valiums,Klonopins,and Xanaxs of the world (GABAa). Which can be the most effective.Especially if you don't have an addictive personality and follow the pdocs instructions w/o taking extra. Again treading into deeper, more dangerous waters (sharks). The other class highly touted class are amphetamines! We're not talking the dirty methamphetamine found in our wonderful garbage laden streets and syringe littered back alleys! But pure pharmaceutical grade amphetamine. I take Dexedrine mainly for ADD and it certainly helps my concentration. i take a pretty modest dose(5-7.5mgs prn). It helps immensely with SAD as it releases SE,DA,NE, but like I said I can take a dose and actually fall asleep in a few hrs when tired,as I am now. Others in this category Adderall, and Vyvanse. .Ritalin is not in this class. again you are treading in deep waters with the two classes mentioned above. and you don't want to be caught out in the middle of the ocean with only a life preserver. One of the last resorts are the MAOI's (Parnate,Nardil,Selegeline-Emsam patch). You might recognize these from noticing its warning on every over the counter med known to man,( exaggeration,kind of) in addition to dietary restrictions. there is a list of foods that are no,nos. along with most opiates, and many,many supplements Basically MAOI,s greatly reduce the enzyme monoamine oxidase which inhibits tyramine a substance (derived from L-tyrosine). That breaks down tyramine rich foods. Hence the strict dietary restrictions in high tyramine foods. Tyramine lso controls blood pressure so if you slip up you can potentially have a hypertensive crises, whiach can be Fatal A blood pressure cuff is very important and the side effects can include bloating, weight gain, loss of libido, no sleep and general inasnity (joking,kind of) Know the fact there are people who have been on one of these for years,like 20 yrs, speak volumes for their life saving attributes to people who are on the last line and are willing to sacrifice a great deal! also if your into the whole recreational drug thing than forget it. There are many MAOI users here and on psychobabble that can give you much more info. Getting very tired so the last two are gonna be succinct or at least inaccurate.
SNRI:increase Serotonin- Norepineprine in the brain. Helpful with ADD,ADHD,Anxiety and depression diorders along with misspellings throughout a post. and their a ***** to come of off more tah ssri's
Talk to Drew(moderator) who takes Effexor, Others are provigil,cymbalta.
Tricyclics: Used mainly before Prozac came along Not used as much now because they can cause overdose and death. In other words not to be given with someone in a major depressive state/suicidal ideations.They were the first generation antihistamines.Common ones- nortrypyline,doxepine,amitryptaline. Yhey potentiate the action of monomaines,nortryptaline and serotonin by inhibiting reuptake into the nerve terminals. They are often used as sleeping aids.They can cause sexual problems,daytime sedation, and drowsiness but they'll sure help with those allergies and skin conditions!!!!!

3.) Finally, talk to your pdoc as you travel down this path and learn more about medications and other therapies (cognitive and otherwise). If you lack good communication or feel uncomfortable with your pdoc and find one that fits you.
Don't skydive w/o a parachute. Allright enough analogies! i hope this helped and you didn't know all this s***. If so pass it on to others. If not absorb and pass it on to others.

One last thing before I pass out from physical and mental exhaustion(I dont type). So I apologize for spelling and grammar. Alot of people use "clandestine,underground meds".,meds. that are still in experimental stages, and ones that have simply been banned by the FDA. Some of these meds. show alot of promise, like memantine and aMT while others are controversial even on liberal sites. Alot of people on this website use these medications with substantial scientific backing. And many are approved in other countries but due to the polatics of the FDA and the Big Pharma Giants often using backdoor deals many meds that have been proven as safe if not safer than SSRI's and more effective in many studies, like Stablon and other SSRE's along with neuroprotective ans tolerant protective drugs like memantine may never be wrote on a pdocs prescription pad in the U.S. doesn't mean it isn't an important component to the SAD puzzle but at the same time drugs are tested for a reason. And we are dealing with chemicals that alter our brain

So do some research and be proactive and listen to the people on this site and other sites listed above. Take what you want and discard the rest because you will read knowledgeable posts and threads from alot of intelligent and knowledgeable people and you will hear alot of s888 and stuff in between. Than google away and as always at least talk to your pdoc.
If you got through all of this,Congagulations
You can PM me anytime and I'm also on MSN. Now I need a nap ,Goodnight!


----------



## orbit55 (Apr 23, 2008)

Equisgurl said:


> I switched from prozac to wellbutrin due to sexual side effects. I'm taking it in combination with klonopin. Felt fine for the first few weeks, but I can feel my anxiety coming back, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, hands sweating.
> 
> Is there another combination I can try that doesent have too many sideeffects? (especially weight gain and loss of libido).
> 
> Thanks


You were on Lexapro before Prozac?

I'm a first time AD user so I don't have much experience but I've only seen Wellbutrin used in combo with another SSRI or SNRI. I really haven't seen it used alone. I'd say try another AD.


----------



## alex999 (Oct 21, 2008)

metamorphosis said:


> How much Lexapro were you on and was that for depression also? There are new reports that Lexapro is much stronger than initially thought. Which was 10mg= 20 of Celexa. Therapeutic doses are now often prescribed at 2.5-5mg,


2.5 Mg of Lexapro killed my libido. Just 2.5mg. It is definitely very potent.

Anyways yes Wellbutrin is notorious for anxiety. The release of noradrenaline stimulates your CNS. I do find that avoiding caffeine helps for avoiding too much anxiety on Wellbutrin.


----------



## Glacial (Jun 16, 2010)

When I first started wellbutrin 6 months ago, I slowly began to feel the effects and thought it was the greatest med I have ever taken--my mood was good and energy levels were high. However, just within the past couple months, my anxiety/OCD level has gone through the roof and I am beginning to attribute it to the Wellbutrin. From what I have heard this is not a good med for people with anxiety issues.


----------



## papercat (Nov 14, 2010)

Both Wellbutrin and Lexapro made my anxiety worse.


----------



## peaceandlove09 (Aug 10, 2010)

Lower the dose. Stick to the lowest dose possible. Avoid caffiene. 


Cheers


----------



## Canadian4Life (Sep 27, 2010)

Equisgurl said:


> I switched from prozac to wellbutrin due to sexual side effects. I'm taking it in combination with klonopin. Felt fine for the first few weeks, but I can feel my anxiety coming back, heart palpitations, shortness of breath, hands sweating.
> 
> Is there another combination I can try that doesent have too many sideeffects? (especially weight gain and loss of libido).
> 
> Thanks


You could try something like mirtazapine..no sexual side effects (for me anyways). also you could cut your dose in half and try that. Start low and when you're comfortable you can increase. The "starting" or lowest reccomended dose is usually too much for alot of people. Try lowering it even if it's a small one.


----------

