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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 8 of 8. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by Leonardo on October 10, 2000, at 5:58:09
I notice that most people seem to use Wellbutrin as a booster or complement to another med. Does anyone have any expereince of using it just by itself? I have just started using it with Paxil, but wondering about getting off the Paxil eventually... I have tried just reboxetine, that didn't work.
Leonardo.
Posted by malynne on October 10, 2000, at 9:52:27
In reply to Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by Leonardo on October 10, 2000, at 5:58:09
> I notice that most people seem to use Wellbutrin as a booster or complement to another med. Does anyone have any expereince of using it just by itself? I have just started using it with Paxil, but wondering about getting off the Paxil eventually... I have tried just reboxetine, that didn't work.
>
> Leonardo.I tried Wellbutrin alone for a couple of months. It seems to work fairly well, the only problem being that it's pretty stimulating, and I had trouble concentrating, sitting still, or sleeping. Up to 3 hours after taking the pill I was like a kid with ADHD.
I take Klonopin to help me sleep now, but I can see why Wellbutrin is often taken with other meds. The stimulant qualities can be really helpful, but they often make me feel very anxious (I had never known anxiety before Wellbutrin) and irritable. Also, while the WB doesn't allow me to plummet into the depths of depression, it doesn't make me feel anything better than "ok."
but maybe that's all we can ask for, right?
Posted by MA on October 10, 2000, at 10:09:46
In reply to Re: Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by malynne on October 10, 2000, at 9:52:27
I thought I would just take Wellbutrin alone also since I didn't like to be on a combination of meds. I was on Paxil and wellbutrin.
The first month or two I felt great and then gradually,almost imperceptibly, I started to descend into the darkness. Usually when this happens I don't even recognize it until it's too late.
According to my doctor I need to be on an SSRI type of drug as well as something like Wellbutrin to give me energy. The SSRI's alone make me very apathetic, emotionally blunted, etc.
I don't think the process of fine tuning your meds is ever really finished. At least that has been my experience. I continue to change things almost everytime I see my doctor, however slightly those changes may be. Today we upped my wellbutrin from 150 to 300 mg to see if that will elevate my mood. I'm not "depressed" but don't feel 100%. Perhaps that goal is too elusive.
MA
Posted by JackD on October 10, 2000, at 14:40:09
In reply to Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by Leonardo on October 10, 2000, at 5:58:09
I'm taking just Wellbutrin 150mg SR once a day, with mixed results. My experience with it is quite unusual. It gives me energy, takes away my anxiety, takes away a lot of libido, and can make me depressed. If reboxetine alone didn't work for you, I wouldn't expect too much from Wellbutrin, as they both deal mainly with Norepinephrine reuptake.
Posted by ksvt on October 10, 2000, at 22:16:45
In reply to Re: Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by JackD on October 10, 2000, at 14:40:09
> I'm taking just Wellbutrin 150mg SR once a day, with mixed results. My experience with it is quite unusual. It gives me energy, takes away my anxiety, takes away a lot of libido, and can make me depressed. If reboxetine alone didn't work for you, I wouldn't expect too much from Wellbutrin, as they both deal mainly with Norepinephrine reuptake.
Leonardo - for the better part of the last 4 years or so I've been taking just Wellbutrin altho I have also taken klonopin at night to help me sleep. The klonopin wasn't in response to the overstimulation of WB - my klonopin use predates wellbutrin for me. While I occasionally can get very anxious, I've never associated that with WB because it's not something I suffer from all the time. Last spring I decided to start augmenting WB with Zoloft because it seemed like I was slipping. The zoloft- wb mix really did make me incredibly jumpy and no less depressed. Now I'm back to just WB and it seems to be doing ok for me at a lower dosage than I was taking before. I don't know why it should work that way. I've never thought it was a miracle drug. It doesn't make me feel great and it doesn't totally insulate me from feeling depressed. I just think I don't get as depressed as I used to and I don't get depressed as frequently. Not having to deal with intense and severe depression has allowed me to function on a much higher level. I think there's alot to be said for that. I suppose there is a combination out there that might work some miracles, but i tolerate WB well and I've found the experimentation process to be horrendous so I'm content for now. Good luck ksvt
Posted by Kemerald on October 11, 2000, at 20:50:10
In reply to Re: Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by ksvt on October 10, 2000, at 22:16:45
> > I'm taking just Wellbutrin 150mg SR once a day, with mixed results. My experience with it is quite unusual. It gives me energy, takes away my anxiety, takes away a lot of libido, and can make me depressed. If reboxetine alone didn't work for you, I wouldn't expect too much from Wellbutrin, as they both deal mainly with Norepinephrine reuptake.
>
> Leonardo - for the better part of the last 4 years or so I've been taking just Wellbutrin altho I have also taken klonopin at night to help me sleep. The klonopin wasn't in response to the overstimulation of WB - my klonopin use predates wellbutrin for me. While I occasionally can get very anxious, I've never associated that with WB because it's not something I suffer from all the time. Last spring I decided to start augmenting WB with Zoloft because it seemed like I was slipping. The zoloft- wb mix really did make me incredibly jumpy and no less depressed. Now I'm back to just WB and it seems to be doing ok for me at a lower dosage than I was taking before. I don't know why it should work that way. I've never thought it was a miracle drug. It doesn't make me feel great and it doesn't totally insulate me from feeling depressed. I just think I don't get as depressed as I used to and I don't get depressed as frequently. Not having to deal with intense and severe depression has allowed me to function on a much higher level. I think there's alot to be said for that. I suppose there is a combination out there that might work some miracles, but i tolerate WB well and I've found the experimentation process to be horrendous so I'm content for now. Good luck ksvtTO everyone reponding to Leonardo re taking WB alone(as in "the cheese stands alone"?...sorry)-I have not much experience with ADs as I only in last 5yrs agreed to try - starting on my own with StJ that gave me such relief, which after so many yrs muscling through my depression to appear "normal, I thought I had it licked (all is relative I have found..)- so of course not - so after finally stumbling by luck onto a real person PsychMD who not only believes her pts should be partners in their care, but expects it - whining is not needed - anyway..here I am on WB solo(150mg SR with 100mg IR qam)for the last 4mos - as per ksvt I do not take well to the round robin of med change often needed to find our own individual elixirs to a new life, but found it was necssary to not settle for something I felt was not right- so I did it, but hope not to have to do again soon???
What it has done for me: more energy and feeling of time and space in my life, able to move more easily by the ingrained roadblocks of my life..the long baroque habits developed to cope and carry the depression on my back and in my heart - these are part of me and will take effort on my part to transform them - medications cannot do all of it - developing our will is a useful exercise, and I find very energizing in itself..I know it is new - a sort of honeymoon at this point but I am making use of it - the circumstances of my life lived in depression are still all around me --- sometimes now it is daunting to clean up the accumulated mess - this some days feels hopelessly slow as being stuck in molasses - this could be a time to indulge in "it will never change" - and some days I allow myself to curl up with a book and forget the world - later it is easier to continue - where I think I am going with this is that before chemicals I was living but now for the 1st time since 9yrs old I feel it may be possilbe to be really alive in my life - I am long winded here as the relief of having found this site to sound off in is absolutely powerful! Good luck with your search - there are no quarantees - My son who has a dx of schizoaffective had to endure 5 changes of meds before we seem to have found the magic bullet - support is everything.
Posted by Leonardo on October 12, 2000, at 7:14:01
In reply to Re: Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by malynne on October 10, 2000, at 9:52:27
> > I notice that most people seem to use Wellbutrin as a booster or complement to another med. Does anyone have any expereince of using it just by itself? I have just started using it with Paxil, but wondering about getting off the Paxil eventually... I have tried just reboxetine, that didn't work.
> >
> > Leonardo.
>
> I tried Wellbutrin alone for a couple of months. It seems to work fairly well, the only problem being that it's pretty stimulating, and I had trouble concentrating, sitting still, or sleeping. Up to 3 hours after taking the pill I was like a kid with ADHD.
>
> I take Klonopin to help me sleep now, but I can see why Wellbutrin is often taken with other meds. The stimulant qualities can be really helpful, but they often make me feel very anxious (I had never known anxiety before Wellbutrin) and irritable. Also, while the WB doesn't allow me to plummet into the depths of depression, it doesn't make me feel anything better than "ok."
> but maybe that's all we can ask for, right?Hi Malynne
I have sometimes felt like that, being almost normal is a lot better than very depressed for sure. But I have had spells of feeling completely well, and it feels good! So I do keep hoping to find something that will make me feel happy most of the time. Wellbutrin looks promising so far, but its early days.
Leonardo
Posted by Leonardo on October 12, 2000, at 7:20:21
In reply to Any experience with Wellbutrin alone?, posted by Leonardo on October 10, 2000, at 5:58:09
Thanks everyone, I'm finding 150mg wellbutrin plus 5mg Paxil at night looks promising so far (6 days since I changed from reboxetine).
So I don't think I'll try wellbutrin alone just yet.
If anything I need more stimulation, so may need to up the WB.
I got headaches the first few days coming off the reboxetine, I think it was a reaction between reboxetine and WB.
Leonardo
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