Hi there!
I am going to ask you all to share your experiences and opinions about a different antidepressant each Tuesday. When we have all of your reviews we will create a special page dedicated to presenting this information for those of you who wonder what it may be like to take a specific antidepressant. Do remember that one person's experience is just that, their experience. Everyone will react differently to the various medications.
The medication I would love for people to comment upon this week is Wellbutrin (bupropion). The research I have seen on this drug looks promising as in it is supposed to have few side effects with regard to either weight gain or loss of sexual libido. But does the literature match human experiences?
If you have taken Wellbutrin or are currently taking this medication can you tell us a few things about your experience?
1. What is/was your experience like taking Wellbutrin?
2. How long did it take until it "worked" for you?
3. What improvements did you notice?
4. What were the side effects if any?
5. If you quit taking this drug what was the reason? And did you suffer from withdrawals?
Thank you all who contribute to these medication discussions. You are helping other members when you discuss your own experiences.



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Hi, Merely Me - I am an old hand at Wellbutrin. I'll try to answer your questions in order:
1. What is/was your experience like taking Wellbutrin?
I've been on Wellbutrin for many years, probably at least 20. I've tried a few others, but this one worked the best.
2. How long did it take until it "worked" for you?
I'd say, if I can remember correctly, that it was probably a couple of weeks.
3. What improvements did you notice?
Mostly, the lifting of the feeling of "heaviness" I would get, that horrible oppressive feeling like trying to walk through quicksand. I think it also helped my irritability.
4. What were the side effects if any?
The only side effects I've noticed are if I increase the dosage at all, I feel kind of "wired" like I've had too much caffeine or something. I do have anxiety, which Wellbutrin does not really help, but I also take Klonopin when I have trouble sleeping. It has not seemed to affect my weight or libido. I'd be very reluctant to switch to anything else unless it was a side-effect-free as this is.
Dear Merelly Me, as you know Im titrating off Efexor after 6 years approx. Before that I was on Seroxat [Paxil] So say if you are doing the question about Paxil i will just come in and say how I found it? I was on it for years and years. Also are you going to cover the m a o is and older trycilics like Prothiaden? and of course the salt Lithium, which I dont personally take. Its a great idea and I will give the good points about Efexor too.
Hi Rose!
Yes absolutely...I do want to cover as many meds as I can...even some that are slightly out of the depression realm like xanax. I am trying that medication for the first time ever. We need a big list of all these meds...and I also want to try to cover the supplements too. It is am ambitious project but one which needs done in my opinion.
Thank you so much for any and all information you give to us!
Thanks so much Judy for this great information! I have heard so many good things about Wellbutrin that if I were to try another antidepressant...I would try this one first. So I did want to hear the straight scoop about it. It seems that Prozac also has that capacity to amp you up...it seems hard to find a balance between a med which will lift the mood, but not cause bad side effects, and not make one either sleepless or too sleepy. The body is a complex thing and we are all different so...it must be so hard to find a medication which has a nice balance.
Anyways...I appreciate your contribution to our member medication review. Stay tuned for more meds!
Thanks Merely Me, I would be very interested in the alternative Meds as well, ive only used the Sedation and once for a few weeks St. Johns Worth. Its been banned here unfortunately. It seems to work for some. Id like to hear more about youre supplement too. Unfortunately with me, the Health shop didnt know [I told them] that I was using Sedation as well that ive been on for years and I got dreadful side effects but in Germany and other countries Johns worth is a v effective herb. thats only one. This is a great idea, like you say, it ll be long and drawn out. But since Ive been on Meds for Heads most of my life, I ll tell it like it is, and try to be balanced
Dear Merely Me,
I have never written before, however, if this info will help others I would be happy to share my med pros cons. I have suffered from depression along with post traumatic stress and anxiety for my whole life - partially due to being sexually abused beginning at age 4 or 5 by a brother. I found that all though drugs like Cymbalta helped lift my mood, I had serious problems with apathy. About one year ago I read an article indicating that the SSNRI and SSRI's can cause apathy syndrome. Over the past 20 years, I have had Zoloft, Celexa, Effexor along with Buspar, Valium. I even had that tricyclic antidepressants (horrible).
Finally, with Cymbalta I was able to lift my mood - so here I was laying on the couch happy - absolutely no energy, no motivation, but by golly I was happy. So I researched and found that Wellbutrin major effect is dopamine which provides us with a natural reward system. Upon combining Cymbalta and Wellbutrin, I was able to get my energy back. I agree that too much of the Wellbutrin (Bupropion SR) makes me absolutely hyper so normally I take 150 mg daily. I had to reduce my Cymbalta from 60 mg to 30 mg in order to get the necessary motivation without being overly stressed.
This combination has changed my life over the past year. My couch potato days are gone and I've lost weight, too. Yeah!
Good luck to my fellow survivors!