r/bupropion

I’m on a low dose Currently on week 4 of Wellbutrin. To clarify I’m not using this to treat anxiety

How long did it take for your anxiety to subside?

Hi guys, I just started this medication for a major deppression. The first week I take it once a day, in the morning. Next week ill be taking another dose around 4pm so 150mg twice a day. I am starting to worry a bit about my sleeping. I have a young child so I go to bed pretty early around 8:30-9pm...

I am also wondering why my doc gave me this dose, what im reading here people are getting one dose in the morning XL.

Do some people take it twice a day and can share with me how its going.

(I am french canadian, sorry if my english isnt great)

Today is the start of week 5 of being on Bupropion, 150mg XR. I was prescribed it for depression and ADHD. Prior to starting this, I had not been on any psychiatric meds for over a decade and a half, and I had been going through a REALLY rough period in my life for the past couple of years due to some traumatic losses in my life in 2022 and 2023. My biggest struggle by far was emotional regulation, closely followed by crippling executive dysfunction.

The first few weeks were ROUGH for me. Honestly, most of the side effects were very manageable (headaches, dry mouth, constipation) but the bodily anxiety and irritability were NOT manageable in the slightest. It was weird, because even if in my head I was feeling completely rational, sometimes my body anxiety would just take over and send me into a panic attack. I was also much more likely to cry for the first several weeks (though that was both a positive and a negative, because crying replaced the utter RAGE that I went into anytime anything was overwhelming for me). I did end up scheduling a visit with my psychiatrist and was put on Propranolol 10mg daily, which has helped tremendously.

However, I realized yesterday that for about the past week and a half, I’ve felt kind of… normal? For the first time in years. Now, I can get angry or irritated without a big explosion, without getting so overwhelmed that I spiral out of control, and without letting it have a lasting effect on my day.

But the biggest difference has been in my focus. I was explaining it to my partner yesterday, and it genuinely brought me to tears realizing how hard it has been to live inside of my head for my WHOLE life, and here I was thinking this was normal. I always thought to myself, “Why can everyone else handle this, but I can’t?” The way I described it was that it felt like for my whole life, there was this LOUD noise, like a big waterfall, going on in the background at ALL times. Anytime something unexpected happened, or my focus got “pulled” when I wasn’t expecting, it felt like all I could hear was running water. It was so overwhelming, and now I’m realizing that that’s where so much of my emotional dysregulation was coming from. When I started to cry, even my partner teared up and got up to comfort me. He said that that made so much sense, and in hindsight he could see how certain situations escalated and why.

Now, though, the waterfall is gone. Concentration and focus still take some effort. But the waterfall has turned into a sink faucet that’s running. And that, I can handle, after having everything drowned out by a waterfall for so long.

Additionally, when I get into a “negative headspace”, it’s MUCH easier for me to pull myself out of that. To stop the negative feedback loop, accept what has happened and what can’t be changed, and just to move through it. Task initiation became much easier without my realizing it.

For only being a month in, I’m pleasantly surprised with the positive impact. I hope it stays this way!

Hello, just wondering if there's anyone who's taken the Wellbutrin + propanolol combo and experienced unpleasant side effects... but then stopped (tapered off) the Wellb and the side effects were no longer an issue.

I've read that Wellbutrin slows down the liver enzyme that clears propranolol. This interaction can lead to a very slow heart rate, low blood pressure, or heavy fatigue (my experience).

I want to see if I can take propranolol without the Wellbutrin and hoping to hear a few positive stories from others who have done this. I have a doctor's appointment later today to ask about this, FYI.

Edit: Bupropion manufacturer ScieGen 100mg SR - 2x day

I just started Buropion and have seen a lot of people saying that it made their anxiety worse. Does anyone have any positive experience regarding this? I have been on SSRIs previously but it honestly didn’t help much, so i’m really hoping Bupropion will help me, but i’m a bit nervous about the anxiety part.

I really bummed out because this medication was helping my ADHD. I’m thinking of getting off it because I always stink. I’m just sitting and I can smell my armpits.

I used to never sweat much and I have Raynaud’s. Yet now I sweat all the time. I use antiperspirant and it’s not helping.

This medication helped my depression briefly but then just over a month after my increase in dosage, it stopped helping that.

I was taking 300mg XL.

Edit: I’m pretty sensitive to a lot of scented products.

(Just to be clear, this is just my personal experience!) After about 6 weeks, I finally gave up on Wellbutrin. (Buproprion)

I started it because of weight gain on Prozac (fluoxetine), which has honestly done WONDERS for my anxiety … fluoxetine has been the thing that truly helped me feel stable mentally and not cry all the time …. but it has not done so much good for my body 😅 It (the wellbutrin) was also supposed to potentially help with my sex drive and ADHD (Still am also taking elvanse).

Instead, I became an absolute anxiety monster. I felt horrible, constantly on edge, and eventually spiraled into full-blown anxiety attacks and depression. Even after skipping both caffeine (🥲) and all alcohol.

The one positive? My appetite basically disappeared and I did lose a few kg. But honestly, it was NOT worth it.

I stopped few days ago and OMG — I feel like a new person already. The difference is actually insane.

Now I just need to figure out how to stay on Prozac without gaining all the weight back 🥲

I just wanted to contribute because this group has helped me a lot.

Ps. Spelling edit

Idk it makes me instantly awake in the morning. And also no sleep probs just vivid dreams

My psychiatrist just prescribed me Wellbutrin for my ADHD symptoms.

I was previously on Vyvanse but it was giving me GI issues.

My main ADHD struggles are focus, motivation, and energy.

Has anyone tried Wellbutrin for ADHD, and does it help with focus, motivation, and energy?

The vyvanse did a great job at making me feel motivated, focused, and gave me a boost of energy, but I just hated the GI issues.

Any input would be much appreciated

Hey! Has anyone had success with libido while on Wellbutrin and another antidepressant?
I was on Fluoxetine but it killed my libido. Then I started Sertraline, and same thing. Can’t taper off of Sertraline just yet because I go into withdrawal if I don’t take it same time consistently every day. (i.e. it stabilizes my irritability). I am still on Sertraline.
Do I still have a chance to benefit from the Wellbutrin regardless? Any experience/advice appreciated!

I’ve been on the ceiling dose of Wellbutrin XL (450mg) for a couple of years, and as of last January added Adderall XR 20mg into the mix again (was on stimulants off and on during adolescence), and an optional low IR mid day dose to counteract any crashing, especially during my luteal phase/period since I feel like it just doesn’t work at all during those 2 weeks. I love(d) this combination and even more-so once I added Adderall. But, just in the last 10 months I feel like I’ve fallen flat.

I told my psych that in the last 10 months, I’ve felt like I have all of this wonderful energy/focus that I don’t possess when unmedicated, but it’s like I’m just not happy enough to do anything with said energy/focus. I also have felt like more recently with my adderall that during the ‘peak’ or when it first kicks in that if I’m in the middle of doing something/anything and just so happen to become suuuuper engrossed and locked in on whatever it is (productive/unproductive) during this window of focus, I become extremely agitated if anyone/anything tries to essentially bypass that bubble of focus I’m in. Also have found myself chasing quick dopamine fixes (food, cigs, alcohol, shopping online) when it’s at its peak too which I think I may be doing to prolong the half life of the adderall because I know I’m gonna crash at some point? Idk.

I say all that to say - My psychiatrist added Zoloft 50mg to add on and I’m specifically wondering if anyone that takes that high of a dose of Wellbutrin has any say on their experience with it and Zoloft, stimulants. Also am curious if anyone else who’s been on Wellbutrin for many years has flat lined on it after a certain point. Thank you!!!!!

i’ve only been taking wellbutrin for 10 days but so far so great. it’s helped tremendously with my motivation and a lot of hindsight clarity which i wasn’t expecting! i’ve worked at my job for 6 years and have been a huge part of insane growth- skyrocketed revenue year after year and opened two new locations this year for a total of three. these two places opened within mere months of each other, an absolutely insane feat to pull off. the rapid growth this year has caused such a toxic and untrusting work environment within the ‘executive team’ which i am apart of. i thought about quitting in april but decided not to because i’ve put so much into this job. in the last week i have really started to come to terms with the fact that my time there might be done. today after the owner yelled at me over the phone, i decided it was time to quit. him yelling over the phone isn’t exactly out of the norm but i just had like an ah-ha moment of ‘wow i really don’t need to deal with this bullshit anymore.’ i went home and redid my resume and applied to a job that i’ve had my eye on without a second thought. fingers crossed i hear back! (i haven’t put a notice in yet and won’t without accepting a job offer first)

so ya basically im just wondering if anyone else has experienced something like this and if yes, how did it go?

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I'm curious about people's personal experiences rather than looking for medical advice.

I was on Wellbutrin XL 150 mg and tolerated it pretty well, but honestly didn't notice a huge benefit. After increasing to 300 mg, I started noticing much more meaningful changes:

* Much less doomscrolling/stimulation-seeking

* More ability to enjoy long-form content

* I'm enjoying doing things alone more instead of needing other people around for things to feel rewarding

* More motivation/productivity

* I feel more genuine satisfaction from helping other people

* Food/taste/sensory experiences have seemed somewhat more vivid

So in that sense, 300 mg feels like it's doing something that 150 mg didn't.

**BUT** the difference in activation is huge.

I've been experiencing significant insomnia, dry mouth, physical restlessness/"electrical" activation, increased irritability/impatience, some anxiety/OCD symptoms creeping back in, and concentration/word-recall issues, coordination issues, seldom shortness of breath. I also feel much more physically "activated" than I did on 150 mg.

The best way I can describe it is:

**150 mg = tolerable but not much benefit**

**300 mg = noticeably beneficial but feels like my nervous system is being pushed too hard**

I also take Prozac for OCD, which has been extremely important for keeping my OCD under control.

I'm curious:

1. Did anyone else experience a HUGE difference between 150 and 300 mg?

2. If 300 mg was too activating, did going back to 150 mg preserve any of the benefits?

3. Did the anxiety/irritability/insomnia eventually settle down?

4. Has anyone found another antidepressant/augmentation strategy that gave them the **reward/motivation benefits without the "wired" feeling**?

5. Has anyone gone from Wellbutrin to **Auvelity or Trintellix**, and how did the experience compare?

6. If you were taking Prozac for OCD, were you able to find an alternative that didn't sacrifice your OCD control?

I'm especially interested in people who felt something like **"300 mg finally made me feel motivated/alive again, but I couldn't tolerate how activated I became."**

So recently my psychiatrist put me on this drug to hopefully end up lifting my depression but recently I've been dealing with a lot of anxiety and it's been getting bad so I asked my psychiatrist she said just to come off or don't it was totally my choice. Should I stick on it and fight through it or just get off of it completely.

I am on it the meds for two years now and my hair is getting thinner and thinner. I love the med but I don't want to be bald. Thinking about stopping it to get my hair back. Anyone experienced the same? Any fix? My doc says it is a really uncommon side effect and it would go away soon but it is really not.

I was prescribed this med (150mg) like 3 months ago, for dep - anxiety and to treat bing eating as well as smoke cessation.
I have seen some improvements, mentally, but weight wise, although i am putting a huge effort to loose weight, i am not!!!
And regarding smoking, it is the same, and i want to quit.
Any advice?
Shall i discuss uping the dose? Do i need to put more work in?