side effects of Wellbutrin - Page 2 - 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet Weight Loss Community

buddly · 11-17-2010, 05:40 PM

Hi,
I have depression/anxiety, minor panic and ocd. I take wellbutrin 300XL and I have to take celexa for the anxiety.
I didn't get the gradual intake as I was switching from paxil to wellbutrin and my doc just had me stop one and start the other at a full dose. Not a pretty summer I can tell you, withdrawl from paxil as well as the beginning side effects of wellbutrin, not fun.
Anyway I've had some hair loss, but thankfully nothing overly significant. Beyond that I can't think of any other side effects I've had to deal with, so if there are any, I'm not noticing them.

Take care and good luck,
K

huntress · 11-22-2010, 06:42 PM

I took my first dose of the generic form today, Bupropion I believe. Can anybody tell me if they felt nervous and had mild nausea and if it went away in time? I can handle the little bit of nausea but if I feel this nervous and jittery once I'm on it for a while I don't know if I can handle it.

aliquot · 11-22-2010, 08:56 PM

Yeah, I felt a little jittery at first. It went away for me though.

AKim · 11-24-2010, 09:24 AM

I'm in the medical field and I'm very familiar with wellbutrin/bupropion as a patient and as a provider. This medicine is good as an antidepressant because it works on the Serotonin and Norepinephrine levels.

It's a very common side effect to get jittery-- this medication is also used to help people who want to quit smoking, to QUIT smoking. It helps to replace that "rush" feeling they get with tobacco. Also, if you are taking it 2 times a day, you aren't supposed to take the 2nd dose after 4/5 because you will have a hard time going to sleep.

The bad thing about this drug, like others have noticed, is that it can increase anxiety. From my training, I've been taught not to give this medicine to people with a history of anxiety. Also, def not for people with bulimia or anorexia issues. This is due to the lowering of threshold for having a seizure... that being said, if you have a history of seizures, this is not a medicine for you.

My personal experience-- I have taken wellbutrin for depression. I'm technically still on it, but I've forgotten to take it for the past month-- OOPS. I can definitely feel a difference if I do take it-- for the better. There is a new study out that reported that antidepressants work for their placebo effect... but, I do feel that "energizing" effect and I don't think it's from a placebo effect. I too felt nauseous-- but that did go away with time. Since I am trying to lose weight, I am going to start taking my medications again, which will be good to help 1) make me feel better and more likely to work out and 2) perhaps the side effect of weight loss will help to lose this extra weight!

I've never heard of a side effect on losing hair. But, I will be on the look out for that as I re-start the medication.

fitkristi · 11-24-2010, 09:34 AM

I have been on Wellbutrin for years with no hair loss.

Ija · 12-03-2010, 02:09 PM

No hair loss here either, although I've been on it less than 6 months.

akedwards · 01-05-2011, 12:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by huntress

I took my first dose of the generic form today, Bupropion I believe. Can anybody tell me if they felt nervous and had mild nausea and if it went away in time? I can handle the little bit of nausea but if I feel this nervous and jittery once I'm on it for a while I don't know if I can handle it.

I just started the generic for wellbutrin about 10 days ago. I had been on sertraline for about 3 and a half years, but had gained about 45 lbs and decided to finally switch to something else. I noticed you said you felt jittery and a bit of nausea once you started taking it, but I was wondering now that you have taken it for looks like a couple months if those side effects have subsided? I called my doctor about what side effects are normal and thought maybe I had the flu and he then recommended that I stop taking it for a week, which I really hate to do.

If anyone else can offer any insight on how long it took for their side effects to go away it would be greatly appreciated!

I love the lack of appetite and not needing very much sleep, but feeling jittery, nauseated, slightly lightheaded, and getting hot very easily is not something I am going to be able to bear for a long time, especially with going back to college after my winter break this upcoming week.

juliawm · 01-05-2011, 12:58 AM

Hi -

I have been on Wellbutrin 300 for about 7 months for depression and to help in quitting smoking ( I am 9 months smoke free). I have however gained weight ( about 10 - 15 lbs and on a 5'0" frame that is a lot) AND have noticed increased hair loss. In fact due to these unacceptable side affects I just started this week to cut back on the Wellbutrin and have an appt with my Dr. this Friday to discuss.

I know wellbutrin more commonly is known for weight loss, but I have a history of eating disorder issues and any weight gain make me psycho-er.

Nice to know I am not alone in this...

Julia

Laneebm · 01-05-2011, 11:57 AM

I have taken Wellbutrin for 15 yrs.. It can make you nervous and irritable.. Especially if the dose is too strong.. I take 200 mg. a day. One in the am. one in the afternoon.. Works wonderful for me.. Is a godsend.. Helped me stop smoking almost 15 yrs. ago.. 100 mg. 2x a day..
Can give you hives at a strong dose..
Wellbutrin didn't make me gain any weight though..

Dreamchild · 01-05-2011, 06:59 PM

I've been on wellbutrin for about three months now and I haven't experienced any side effects so far. I'm also on lamictal, which is supposed to treat bipolar depression. I gained weight at first, but that could have been a result of quitting smoking at the same time. But I'm back to about the weight I was before. Studies have shown that Wellbutrin causes weight gain in fewer people than other anti-depressants. And no hair loss here!

kaebaka · 01-05-2011, 07:09 PM

I will chime in as another happy Wellbutrin patient. I've been taking it for about 3 - 4 months now and have been doing a lot better emotionally... It also really helped me feel more energetic pretty much all the time, so I have a much easier time being active. I don't have insomnia, but my sleep schedule has also regulated quite a bit in the last couple months; I now sleep 8ish hours and wake up feeling great, instead of 9 - 10 and waking up tired and not wanting to get out of bed. Plus as others have mentioned it is also known for some positive effects in your.... personal relations, which was a huge surprise to me but has also been really really fun.

I haven't had any hair loss, and only one or two episodes of mild nausea. I have had some TOM changes since starting it, but whether it's due to the drug, interactions between Wellbutrin and my BC, or my body reacting to losing weight, I have no idea. They're more of a mild annoyance than anything that I would be seriously concerned about.

The only other negative effect I can think of is that with the jitteryness and hyper-alert state that I was in the first few days I started the drug, if I drank anything with caffeine I felt terrible. My pulse would go up to around 120 (although I have a high resting pulse anyway) and my blood pressure was higher too. It was really noticable, and distracting. I cut out caffeine completely (So hard to do!) for the first couple weeks I was taking it, and gradually started drinking diet coke and coffee again. I should probably still be drinking less caffeine than I do, but the combined effect of the two types of stimulants is much lower now that my body has had a while to get used to it.