Anyone on Wellbutrin?

drummondk

I've been taking Wellbutrin for over a month now, and I have had a few concerning side effects. Before I go any further, I DO have an appointment with my doctor tomorrow, but I'm curious to learn others' experiences.

My weight loss was steady up until the point that I started Wellbutrin. Now it seems to have stalled--and I mean completely. More concerning than that, I have noticed how irregular my body has become in addition to strange skin issues and unusual agitation.

I was originally put on medication after my second child was born (for PPD), and my doctor just recently switched me to Wellbutrin. I immediately started noticing side effects once I switched meds.

I'm seriously considering coming off antidepressants altogether (which is scary). I'm wondering if anyone else has experience with Wellbutrin--or anything similar.

luckynky

I am not on Wellbutrin, but my teenager is. She was on Zoloft first, and gained almost 20 pounds very quickly. Since she switched to Wellbutrin, she has lost most of it, without trying very hard. She hasn't talked about any side-effects other than it not working as well as the Zoloft did for her anxiety. If I were you, I would at least ask about other medications- there are a lot out there today to choose from. The Wellbutrin isn't doing enough for my teen's anxiety, so she is now trying a low dose of Buspar on top of the Wellbutrin. I am not a fan of meds at all and hoped my child could go without them, but in plenty of cases, the risk is worth the benefits. It just depends on the circumstances, though.

mweckler

I have taken zoloft, wellbutrin and gained weight on both of those meds, also I am a male and took it for depression. I am currently on an SSRI called Brintellix which works on 5 serotonin receptors it helps my anxiety, depression, and my slight OCD. If one antidepressant is not working for you talk to your doctor, the problem is that it can take 4-6 weeks before you can feel the full effects of the antidepressant working.

RespectTheKitty

I was on Wellbutrin for about a year. The main thing I noticed as far as side effects for me was decreased appetite, though I didn't lose any weight. Also it caused a lot of anxiety issues, which was the reason why I was taken off of it and switched to something else.

drummondk

mweckler wrote: »

I have taken zoloft, wellbutrin and gained weight on both of those meds, also I am a male and took it for depression. I am currently on an SSRI called Brintellix which works on 5 serotonin receptors it helps my anxiety, depression, and my slight OCD. If one antidepressant is not working for you talk to your doctor, the problem is that it can take 4-6 weeks before you can feel the full effects of the antidepressant working.

My first med was Sertraline, which is the generic Zoloft. I was originally put on them for PPD...my youngest is almost 2, so I'm wondering if I can just wean off everything. I never needed anything before pregnancy.

cerise_noir

Yep... highest dose, and I am losing weight since I've been staying in a calorie deficit. It can cause binges, but those binges are easily controlled with drinking water and physical activity. During the times where physical activity cannot be done (eg, midnight), keeping busy helps so much. I've been taking wellbutrin for years now. Be very diligent and accurate (and honest) in your logging. How are you tracking your calories? Do you weigh your food? I personally find that I have to be extremely accurate, so I weigh all my foods with a food scale to the gram. There's no other way. The medication doesn't actually cause weight gain, but it can encourage one to binge. The only thing that causes weight gain is eating more than your body needs to maintain, and by eating more, don't mean volume, I mean more calories. Eating in surplus causes fat gain...not pills. What would the body do with excess energy? Store it. One can still eat small volume of food and still be over calories. In my first week, WB made me want to eat eat eat, until I upped my physical activity. Sorry, I've been on many meds that cause so-called weight gain, but it was always me shoving more food into my mouth than I needed. I'm 85lbs down and on 4 medications that claim weight gain....it's not the medication, sorry.

I'm not sure why wellbutrin was described for anxiety as it is known for its stimulant effects.

Edit: I took a look at your diary...there are a lot of generic and measured entries. Definitely do start weighing your food. When I didn't weigh my food, I didn't lose weight. I found out I was eating at least 400 calories more than I thought I was.

dubird

I take it. Started at the 150 and had to up it to the 300. I didn't actually start calorie counting to lose weight until after I was on it, and I didn't have trouble losing weight. Being on it helped me balance myself and actually made me feel like I COULD lose weight, like I could do it and I was worth the effort to do so. I honestly don't like that I'm dependent on a med to function, but nothing else helped. And now, I'm able to balance myself on bad days so I don't spend days on end in the fail cycle, and I can interact with people for longer before I get antsy about it. So it is worth it.

Finding the right meds (or combination of meds) for depression and anxiety can be a trial. I got lucky with the first one I tried, though we did have to up the dosage, but there are many people that end up trying several brands to find the one(s) that work for them. If the side effects of the Wellbutrin are a problem for you, you may need a different one. Everyone's different, but you've got the right idea to talk with your doctor about and it see what else can work for you. If they're a good doctor, they prescribed the meds for you because you really do need them, so don't go off them entirely!


As a side note, how long have you been stalled in your weight loss? If it's only a week or so, keep doing what you're doing. Weight loss fluctuates daily, and there are many factors that can cause an apparent stall, including changing your diet or exercise and ending up with extra water weight. If it's been more than three weeks, try recalculating your calories. If you don't do that about every 10 pounds or so, you will eventually hit your maintenance calories without knowing it since as you lose weight, you need less calories to function. The side effect of weight gain in medicine isn't normally that the med itself makes you hold on to weight, it usually means your appetite gets stronger and you end up eating more without realizing it. If you're counting calories, you can head that off.

cerise_noir wrote: »

I'm not sure why wellbutrin was described for anxiety as it is known for its stimulant effects.

It helps with my social anxiety. I honestly don't know how it actually works, but maybe it only works with anxiety related to depression?

drummondk

It was prescribed to me for depression. My appetite actually decrease after I started WB, but no weight loss. I literally weight my food to the gram as well on my kitchen scale. I stay under 1500 calories...often closer to 1200.

I'm having other troubling side effects as well.

mweckler

drummondk wrote: »

mweckler wrote: »

I have taken zoloft, wellbutrin and gained weight on both of those meds, also I am a male and took it for depression. I am currently on an SSRI called Brintellix which works on 5 serotonin receptors it helps my anxiety, depression, and my slight OCD. If one antidepressant is not working for you talk to your doctor, the problem is that it can take 4-6 weeks before you can feel the full effects of the antidepressant working.

My first med was Sertraline, which is the generic Zoloft. I was originally put on them for PPD...my youngest is almost 2, so I'm wondering if I can just wean off everything. I never needed anything before pregnancy.

If you feel you are through the PPD and did not need antidepressants before the pregnancy then I would talk to your doctor about weaning you off of them. If you notice that you are still suffering from depression then ask to try a different one.

cerise_noir

drummondk wrote: »

It was prescribed to me for depression. My appetite actually decrease after I started WB, but no weight loss. I literally weight my food to the gram as well on my kitchen scale. I stay under 1500 calories...often closer to 1200.

I'm having other troubling side effects as well.

Your diary entries don't show this, eg...1 tender or 1TBS dressing, or one container, and quick add entries...and a few days here and there of not logging. Definitely tighten up your logging..I've been there, too, and all I had to do was improve my logging.

Do you weigh your shakeology? '1 scoop' can vary day by day.

PlantBasedRnr

I was on Wellbutrin and blew up like a balloon! HATED IT! I had NO energy and it certainly didn't help my mood any. I switched to Fluoxatine and it seems to be the right med for me.

Regarding one of your statements about " weaning " off - I wouldn't suggest you do it unless you are following doctors orders... I tried getting off Wellbutrin on my own at one point and it was a disaster. Good luck.

ChristinaOrr65

My experience with anything like this is that I always lose weight the first few weeks and then gain it back - and then some after that. Lexapro was the worst for me, I finally had to stop because the weight gain. I would see what your Dr says, maybe there is a medication that will be a better fit.

cerise_noir

dubird wrote: »

I take it. Started at the 150 and had to up it to the 300. I didn't actually start calorie counting to lose weight until after I was on it, and I didn't have trouble losing weight. Being on it helped me balance myself and actually made me feel like I COULD lose weight, like I could do it and I was worth the effort to do so. I honestly don't like that I'm dependent on a med to function, but nothing else helped. And now, I'm able to balance myself on bad days so I don't spend days on end in the fail cycle, and I can interact with people for longer before I get antsy about it. So it is worth it.

Finding the right meds (or combination of meds) for depression and anxiety can be a trial. I got lucky with the first one I tried, though we did have to up the dosage, but there are many people that end up trying several brands to find the one(s) that work for them. If the side effects of the Wellbutrin are a problem for you, you may need a different one. Everyone's different, but you've got the right idea to talk with your doctor about and it see what else can work for you. If they're a good doctor, they prescribed the meds for you because you really do need them, so don't go off them entirely!


As a side note, how long have you been stalled in your weight loss? If it's only a week or so, keep doing what you're doing. Weight loss fluctuates daily, and there are many factors that can cause an apparent stall, including changing your diet or exercise and ending up with extra water weight. If it's been more than three weeks, try recalculating your calories. If you don't do that about every 10 pounds or so, you will eventually hit your maintenance calories without knowing it since as you lose weight, you need less calories to function. The side effect of weight gain in medicine isn't normally that the med itself makes you hold on to weight, it usually means your appetite gets stronger and you end up eating more without realizing it. If you're counting calories, you can head that off.

cerise_noir wrote: »

I'm not sure why wellbutrin was described for anxiety as it is known for its stimulant effects.

It helps with my social anxiety. I honestly don't know how it actually works, but maybe it only works with anxiety related to depression?

dubird wrote: »

I take it. Started at the 150 and had to up it to the 300. I didn't actually start calorie counting to lose weight until after I was on it, and I didn't have trouble losing weight. Being on it helped me balance myself and actually made me feel like I COULD lose weight, like I could do it and I was worth the effort to do so. I honestly don't like that I'm dependent on a med to function, but nothing else helped. And now, I'm able to balance myself on bad days so I don't spend days on end in the fail cycle, and I can interact with people for longer before I get antsy about it. So it is worth it.

Finding the right meds (or combination of meds) for depression and anxiety can be a trial. I got lucky with the first one I tried, though we did have to up the dosage, but there are many people that end up trying several brands to find the one(s) that work for them. If the side effects of the Wellbutrin are a problem for you, you may need a different one. Everyone's different, but you've got the right idea to talk with your doctor about and it see what else can work for you. If they're a good doctor, they prescribed the meds for you because you really do need them, so don't go off them entirely!


As a side note, how long have you been stalled in your weight loss? If it's only a week or so, keep doing what you're doing. Weight loss fluctuates daily, and there are many factors that can cause an apparent stall, including changing your diet or exercise and ending up with extra water weight. If it's been more than three weeks, try recalculating your calories. If you don't do that about every 10 pounds or so, you will eventually hit your maintenance calories without knowing it since as you lose weight, you need less calories to function. The side effect of weight gain in medicine isn't normally that the med itself makes you hold on to weight, it usually means your appetite gets stronger and you end up eating more without realizing it. If you're counting calories, you can head that off.

cerise_noir wrote: »

I'm not sure why wellbutrin was described for anxiety as it is known for its stimulant effects.

It helps with my social anxiety. I honestly don't know how it actually works, but maybe it only works with anxiety related to depression?

WB caused my anxiety to soar to all great heights...ended up going on lyrica and propranolol just so I could breathe again and be ale to leave the house. I am so glad that it has helped you! It can be hard to find the med or med combination that works. some of these meds cause false hunger..it is up to us to control that.

LC107

I think it's going to be different with everyone. Welbutrin totally killed my appetite and upped my energy (and mood-thank god) so I've actually lost quite a bit of weight. But as you said already definitely going to your doc is going to be your best bet. I tried a couple other antidepressants (Paxil and Lexepro) that had total opposite effect on me. So your doctor will probably just prescribe you something different. I am sorry you are going through PPD. I imagine that being very hard to deal with. I hope you find something that works for you soon.

MommyL2015

I remember taking a welbutrin pill to try and quit smoking once. My boyfriend had some at the time, but he was gone for three months, so I took one one night before I went to bed. That thing gave me so much freaking energy that I ended up stripping the wallpaper off the walls and repainting the entire master bedroom and bath area. By myself.

I can very positively say I didn't gain a single ounce that weekend. lol I had to actually remind myself that I probably needed some food at some point.

ObsidianMist

I had a bad time on Wellbutrin too. I shook an insane amount, like even if I rested my head against a wall I could feel it vibrating, and you should've seen my hands shake. it also gave me really bad tinnitus. stayed on it for 11 weeks with so sign of either side effect waning, and went off it. just couldn't tolerate the side effects.

ahoy_m8

I tried it briefly over a decade ago. It was uber effective for my depression (I ripped through tasks I had been avoiding for 6 mo), but I couldn't tolerate the side effects. It made me horribly dizzy, to the point I felt I needed reach for a wall to steady myself while walking down the hall. I thought I probably shouldn't be driving. I really could not do my job in that state, even though I was super productive as long as I was sitting at my desk. In fairness, it could have been a dosing problem or poor coordination of transitioning off one med onto another. I don't remember anything about appetite or weight, but I did lose weight over the course of my depression. I gave up trying to find an antidepressant I could tolerate after that. Sleeping pills really helped me, though. Depression leads some people to eat and sleep much more than normal and others much less. I was in the latter group. Getting regular sleep helped me cope, whereas sleeplessness led to a downward spiral. New moms are short on sleep, but if you can find a way to get enough, you may find you need the antidepressant less. Best of luck to you!

mommazach

I took it years ago and started having major anxiety attacks. Currently the only thing I'm on is St. John's wart. Do not wean yourself off of it until your dr. approves.

SWellz

I didn't have any issues with weight gain. It helped improve my mood and I stopped binging simply because I didn't need that coping mechanism anymore. I was devastated when I had to come off it. It turns out I have a low seizure threshold, so taking Wellbutrin caused me to have seizures. Pretty frustrating.

drummondk

SWellz wrote: »

I didn't have any issues with weight gain. It helped improve my mood and I stopped binging simply because I didn't need that coping mechanism anymore. I was devastated when I had to come off it. It turns out I have a low seizure threshold, so taking Wellbutrin caused me to have seizures. Pretty frustrating.

I've read about the seizures. I'm having the weight issue along with a severe skin irritation, severe agitation, etc. I think I'm just ready to come off of it. I'm going to my doctor today to discuss it. I'm nervous to come off of AD's altogether, but I'm also nervous to try something new.

lml852014

It had the opposite effect on me, I was on zoloft first and gained about 15 lbs which was the biggest I've ever been. I was about 145 at 5"3 which isnt obviously obese but it doesnt look good. So I switched to wellbutrin and immediately lost. I guess it works diff for diff people.