I have been on a 150 mg of Wellbutrin for over a month now and was just increased to 300mg. I know I have depression and have finally resolved to the medication but with my teaching school year starting again soon- July, I can really feel the anxiety increasing. I want to give the Wellbutrin a chance but I am afraid of having meltdowns again. I am in counseling. Has this helped you with anxiety? If you are taking Wellbutrin, are you also dealing with anxiety? Thanks
Does Wellbutrin help with anxiety?
Question posted by outsidesue on 1 June 2011
Last updated on 5 August 2018 by leanne_11
10 Answers
leanne_11
5 Aug 2018
I will tell you Wellbutrin is an excellent anti-depressant but can often cause more anxiety, especially if you are new to the medication. If you have depression with moderate to severe anxiety, Zoloft (sertraline) is a better option. If you have panic disorder, Wellbutrin will not help. Behavioral therapy along with Klonopin (clonazepam) will help you more. The main thing is to give your doctor feedback on how your medication therapy is helping or making your symptoms worse.
Inactive
21 June 2017
Wellbutrin SR helps me with anxiety, energy, motivation, focus, and calms me. I don't know if I have a little ADD along with chronic fatigue and achy myalgia, but it gives me relief immediately. It gives me the energy and motivation to move forward .
Inactive
21 June 2017
But (yes, there is a "but" here) - Due to my personality, although I get so much relief with Wellbutrin, when I am taking it (or any other antidepressant in the past), I start to worry if I am allowing some kind of permanent damage from side effects, these medications to affect me in the future. Some of the antidepressants give me many adverse side effects, others - not so much. If things are going well, I am looking ahead to see what might be about to happen on the negative side. I handle all this better when I stay on Wellbutrin. I just wish I could get over doing this to myself when taking medications!
Lauren88
24 Oct 2012
Wellbutrin is primarily given for depression (and recently, also to help smokers quit). It often CAN increase the energy level of patients, & it does NOT have the same complaints about loss of libido, that many patients on other forms of Anti Depressants make. Some patients say it helps with their depression and they found that they worried less.
BUT Wellbutrin is also known to increase anxiety in certain patients. It's not an SSRI medication like most anti-depressants prescribed today ("SSRIs" are serotonin related) such as Paxil, Prozac, Zoloft and other popular SSRIs. Wellbutrin deals with dopamine receptors in our brain. It is associated with somewhat frequent, but small amounts of weight LOSS, (not gain.)
Here's how I explain it:
If your depression is the type that makes you feel sluggish and exhausted ALL the time, as if you could hibernate all winter, OR feeling melancholy, overwhelmed by the morose "drag of it all", yet you are not very weepy,
(which is the way I felt in the dark winters of Alaska), then Wellbutrin may be the right thing for you. When I took it while living there, I noticed an immediate increase in my energy. In a matter of weeks, I felt more alert to others, more happy about social events, and I exercised more. That has its own upsides. I felt much less like hybernating. (Also I felt my libido returning to what it once was.)
But when one feels deeply wounded or sad, paralyzed with grief, AND has anxiety or worries about a situation, such as when my father was facing cancer AND an uncertain future,(asking "will he live or die?") the Wellbutrin DID aggravate the worry/anxiety. I had a very hard time sleeping at that point, or concentrating on my new job. That increased my anxieties.
When worry or anxiety is also an issue w/depression, (especially an acute issue), I either switched to an SSRI type of anti depressant AND OR, prescribed or took xanax to help with it. I did not notice improvement as fast with the SSRIs as w/Wellbutrin, but I DID notice it in time.
I got a lot of benefit from the SSRIs. and some benefit from wellbutrin, but side effects from wellbutrin were mostly upsides, unless you are worried about things.
Bottom line is there are different types of depressions AND different types of patients. Some bouts of depression come with anxiety, some come w/gut wrenching paralyzing grief, some forms of grief or depression make you ask endless unaswerable questions that STOP us in our tracks.
Fortunately, we have an array of tools and weapons in our arsenal to choose from. Keep trying, (but long enough to really know), until you find the right one or combination.
outsidesue
24 Oct 2012
Wow, that was a great answer. It's an old question but still very relevant to me today. I am working to ween off all medications and will see how I do.
nyra417
20 Sep 2011
Hi there fellow anxiety stricken friend...
I can tell you that they worked for me a few years back until I was in a car accident and became both physically/legally disabled with severe back problems. I was (still am) on pain meds because of this and found that there is definitely some type of drug interaction if you take them with pain meds. One week in I began experiencing the only thing I can describe as needle itches (like someone stuck an "itchy pin" into me all over the place every few minutes). The anxiety subsided just a bit but it wasn't worth the side effects. I was going NUTS. Anyone looking at me would have thought I had fleas or something.
My solution was to talk to my Dr. who then put me on mild Xanax and low dosage Valium (only take Xanax at night as it knocks me out). Seems to do the trick.
Hope this helped... best of luck to you.
Regards,
-Anna :)
RESPIGHI
2 June 2011
Hi. I just started taking wellbutrin(generic). I find it helps my overall mood so in that respect helps my anxiety to a certain degree. On specific issues that cause the anxiety I don't feel it makes much impact. Tell me are you taking the bupropion or the actual wellbutrin. I've heard thast the generic does not work nearly as well but I hope I'm wrong. Good luck
outsidesue
3 June 2011
Yeah, I hear the samt thing that the generic is not as good. My overall mood is better too but not the anxiety. I've been on 300 mg for just 3 days though. Should know by next week.
lindalu1
8 Sep 2011
After taking brand Wellbutrin for a few years, my insurance company switched me to generic and within a few weeks all hell broke loose. I don't think the generic works, at all, if you start with the brand and then switch. I have heard some good results about people who START on the generic, never having taken the brand, but for me at least, the generic is not effective in the least. Thankfully my Dr is willing to prescribe "brand only" now. It costs more, but it's worth it !
Inactive
2 June 2011
no I'm sorry
Inactive
2 June 2011
I've been taking wellbutrin (generic) for almost 3 weeks now and today my dosage was increased to 300mg. It seems to be helping with my depression and anxiety. I find I'm not dwelling on things as much as I used to. I've been in law enforcement for 10 years and before the wellbutrin, the anxiety was becoming debilitating. I didn't want to leave the house for anything. Now, I'm starting to find myself a little more outgoing and actually looking forward to my days off.
Inactive
2 June 2011
Hi castaway,
That is great news, glad tis working for you!!
Inactive
1 June 2011
Hi outsidesue,
I hate to disagree with my friends here, but I was told by one of the best shrinks in my state that Wellbutrin is one of the worst meds one can take for anxiety! I tried it for a short time, and panic attacks were outrageous.
Hope you are feeling better soon, and give that doc a call to let him/her know tis not working for you.
There are other antidepressants that have calming effects which may work better for you.
Best wishes (and no offense to pledge and Delila!!)
outsidesue
1 June 2011
Thanks so much for your comments. I feel that the wellbuttin is helping with my depression which is why I don't want to stop. Now my anxiety is knocking at my door and needs to be addressed. Switching meds can be so challenging. I return to the dr at the end of the month. Your experiences are helpful!
Inactive
1 June 2011
Hi there sweetlemon. None taken. (meaning offense) ha! Heard from Mary that you went through some pretty severe storms. No fun to say the least. Still time if you like, pull up a chair, for a cup of some of the finest coffee you've ever tasted, simply because its made by yours truly... ( bragging rights!)... :-0) oh, theres fresh apple strudel.
Inactive
1 June 2011
Hi pledge!
Yes the storms were quite bad. We have downed trees, what a mess!
No electricity since Sunday. Had to stay at a tres creepy motel.
Just had to toss hundreds of dollars (american dollars, not yen, not peso's) worth of food in the trash, what a mess!
Coming right over, need the coffee my friend, pass on the pastrie though, I will bring soy nuts over though!!! hahahahah
Ooops sorry to post this info on this question guys!
Lara
Inactive
1 June 2011
Welcome back Miss Sweetlemon!, & I am sorry I have not tried Wellbutrin for depression. Our Dr. prescribed it for my husband & myself when it first came out on the market as a anti smoking aid. It was suppose to make your desire for nicotine less. Well, that didn't happen, & neither of us felt any better either. At the time my husband was very depressed we did not know at the time he was bipolar manic depressed. I should say he hadn't been dianosed yet, but has been depressed all his life & Wellbutrin did not help this at all being it for not smoking or whatever. Just my thoughts...
Delila
1 June 2011
Hey no worries, we agree with you. That it is primarily an anti-depressant and not recommended for anxiety : )
Inactive
1 June 2011
Hello outsidesue. I agree with Delila. As far as working as an anti-anxiety medication, wellbutrin is limited. Its an antidepressant. I was on wellbutrin, and as far as helping my anxiety, it did little, if anything. I also suggest that you contact your prescribing physician, and ask for an anti-anxiety medication. As you are already feeling anxious, it tells me that the wellbutrin is not helping you in this area. Hope that you get some relief from both, your anxiety along with your depression.best wishes.
Delila
1 June 2011
Hello again! Sorry to hear you are still suffering. Wellbutrin was originally manufactured as an anti-depressant but through trial and error over the years it has also been recognised for its anti-anxiety benefits. Some people have reported great success with it for this reason, where as others have only had limited relief from their anxiety. There are better meds to be used if you are just treating anxiety, but considering your depression i would think it would be worth considering adding another medication to work along side the wellbutrin rather than stop it. Unless of course you don't think it has really worked that well for your depression either? Definitely speak to you doctor or psychiatrist about how you are feeling. As you say, with your new school year getting closer you need to address this asap. I hope you manage to get something sorted out
lindalu1
8 Sep 2011
Hello... I have been on Wellbutrin for 5 years and it has worked well for me on my depression symptoms. About 2 years ago I felt my anxiety was not well managed, and my Dr added Celexa to the Wellbutrin. For me, this combo has worked very well. I know Wellbutrin is supposed to be OK for anxiety, but in my case I don't think it worked well for that purpose at all. The addition of the Celexa has been the ticket for me.
hope31
14 Sep 2011
I just started taking celexa 40mg with the Wellbutrin sr 100mg x2 daily. To the person who is taking celexa & wellbutrin, how many mgs of the celexa are you taking & with the wellbutrin & how long have you been taking it? Just curious, cuz I also started taking deplin 15mg with them & I want 2 hear others who take the same combinations that I take of the ADs.
lindalu1
20 Sep 2011
Hope 31, I have been taking 300mgs. of brand Wellbutrin 1x day for at least 5 years, and 30 mgs. of generic Celexa 1x day for a couple years, I'd say. The combination does work well for me. My Dr started me on samples of Lexapro (very similar to Celexa), and I LOVED it... but my insurance wouldn't cover it, so I went with Celexa instead. Good luck to you, I hope your combination is helpful !
Related topics
wellbutrin, depression, anxiety, generalized anxiety disorder, medication
Further information
- Wellbutrin uses and safety info
- Wellbutrin prescribing info & package insert (for Health Professionals)
- Side effects of Wellbutrin (detailed)
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