Posted by Patient on October 14, 2003, at 13:49:03
In reply to i can't get out of bed!, posted by onegirlrhumba on October 10, 2003, at 21:51:34
I understand the sleepy feeling.
I've never taken Adderall, but I've taken 20mg Celexa daily-it made me sleep too good-slept in real late and would end up taking a nap during the day. I forgot to mention to another poster concerning augmenting Wellbutrin with Lexapro, that I did have Wellbutrin SR 150mg added to the daily Celexa to counteract the loss of libido side effect. It didn't help in that respect, but there's more to my loss of libido than just medications. Anyway, it did help bring me back to life in that I no longer napped and felt very relaxed while on the combo. Don't ask me why I stopped this combo-I tend to fiddle with medicine changes too much, thinking some other drug will work better-I have borderline personality disorder, that includes depression, anxiety, and anger control problems.
Right now I'm taking Lexapro 5mg daily. I take it in mid-afternoon. It too made me sleepy, especially at the start, but didn't seem as severe as on Celexa. I think what adds to the sleepiness is what I've eaten that day-if I load up on a simple carbohydrate breakfast-it's guaranteed I'll be a walking zombie in an hour or two. I try to eat more protein than carbohydrates to make sure I don't get a food coma. I've also taken carbamazepine (Tegretol), which off-label use is a mood stabiliser. This was added to help with my high irritability/anger problem and was started when I first started Lex. back in Feb. This combination was helpful a bit, for my irritability, but I was even more tired during the day and would end up needing a nap. I haven't been taking Tegretol for this reason. In the past week, having some leftover Wellbutrin SR, I started to take one 150mg tablet first thing in the morning, and Lex. in mid-afternoon. I was so glad I did for I no longer experience daytime sleepiness, and I feel more relaxed from the Wellbutrin. It also removed the ulcer-like false hunger pangs I was experiencing in different degrees on the Lexapro. Wellbutrin can act as an appetite suppressant, and I think this is why it has helped with my stomach problem. It also acts, in general, as a stimulant (hey-no wonder I felt better!). I really thought that the Wellbutrin would make me anxious, but it didn't-the relaxed feeling was very welcome. It can cause insomnia at bedtime, so I suggest to anyone adding it to an SSRI is start with the slowest dose and take it as early in the morning as you can, and to avoid caffeine. There is regular form of Wellbutrin in 75mg and 100mg, and if you start on this, then I'd suggest the 75mg. (Maybe it only comes in 100mgs.) I take Wellbutrin SR (sustained-release) in it's lowest dosage of 150mg. It is usually taken twice a day as mono-therapy. The latest form of Wellb. is Wellbutrin XL (extra-long, I guess?) and this is a once daily version, which I wouldn't recommend since it would be the most likely form to cause insomnia.
And, must add that a few people that add Wellbutrin to an SSRI end up feeling even more tired-depends on the person and what SSRI they are taking.
I have had one night of mild insomnia so far with this mix. I took the older antidepressant trazodone (Desyrel) 12.5mg at bedtime and it helped me sleep fine-trazodone is commonly used as a sleep aid for insomnia caused by certain antidepressants.
Hope this helps. I like the sun on the face idea-first thing in the morning helps get your sleep cycle back to normal by telling your brain, via the retina, when to halt the release of melatonin in the morning, and to release it at the proper time at night to help you sleep.
poster:Patient
thread:268105
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20031010/msgs/269337.html