wellbutrin and adderall question - ADD / ADHD Message Board

sweetnsour · 09-17-2003, 11:38 AM

HI I was just wondering if you need to take wellbutrin or prozac.....when taking adderall or any of the others.
I am on 10mg 3x daily + 150mg wellbutrin 2x daily + 20mg prozac once daily.
The Prozac was for PMS (severe pms,pmdd) so severe that the doc was running out of suggestions so he added Wellbutrin it worked wonderful for my energy and low libido but caused more irritability. So then I talked about my whole life to another doc and he said he didn't even have to test me that I was full blown ADD. He started me on Ritalin which was ok just didn't last very long and made me yawn so bad that I hurt my jaw and neck. So then tried concerta which i know is a form of Ritalin. That made me feel awful. So now I am on Adderall and it is working great for everything but focusing and I am very forgetful, so that leads me back to my original question, Is it normal to be on all of that? Do you have to be on a combo or can you just be on one? I feel like I am taking pills every 10 minutes + I take synthroid. I am almost broke from all these scripts. Any help would be so appreciated.
Thanks......Stacy

09-17-2003, 12:39 PM

Hey I have a great link for you but I'm not sure if I can post it here??? Its a link for medication programs. Some of them are based on income but other ones are just based on how much you have to spend for meds each month. Email me and I will send you the link.

As to your question. If you just had ADD you would NOT have to be on a combo. But what I am wondering is that if you have ADD why is the adderall making your focus worse?? Or is it just not helping it?? The whole point of that med is to help you focus so I dont understand what you mean when you say its working wonderfully except for focus??? Could you maybe explain a little more. Thanx

One thing is SSRIs like prozac can make you more unfocused than normal. As you already said you're not taking this med for ADD but for other issues. You could try going off of it but adderall is for ADD and ggenerally doesnt help PMS. Infact for women who have severe PMS sometimes their ADD meds become ineffective during that time of the month. Wellbutrin is commonly used for ADD or depression. It is an anti depressant but effects the chemicals that are involved with ADD and can be very helpful in ADD adults.

A common med combo is adderall and wellbutrin. This is usually done if the person is ADD and depressed, or ADD and not able to tolerate or doesnt want to take as high a dose of stimulants. The wellbutrin allows the adderall dosage to be lowered. It also stays in your system (talking about the wellbutrin here) all the time so it can help eliminate the crash associated with stimulant medications.

I want to make some more comments and give you more info but like I said, I'm confused about your adderall comment.

What subtype of ADD do you have? Have you done research on it? Are you positive you have ADD?? (it is one of the most misdiagnosed disorders out there)
What are your main symptoms and how exactly does the adderall help?

If you dont wanna answer then thats fine. Sorry for being so nosey lol. I just am confused and if I knew the answers to those questions I think I could offer you better information and advice.

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~*~ Kristy ~*~

sweetnsour · 09-17-2003, 04:00 PM

Born2bewild, yes the focusing thing is "confusing"lol
Ok let me say some more ummmmm lets see I don't know where to start.
In 1st and 2nd grade I did so good at everything, but the 3rd grade came and it was just awful. My grades dropped, I never could get up for school. My mom and dad weren't much help or you can say they were too much help. They thought I was just being lazy and they would get mad and then just end up doing my homework. My parents, my teachers, never put two and two together. I was smart but I just couldn't comprehend anything that I read. I would read the chapter over and over and the next day take the test and fail.
I dropped out in 9th grade, I felt it was a waste of time. After you fail so many times and you know you studied and tried to pay attention as much as you could dropping out seemed to be the best thing. I kept trying every year until the 11th then just gave up. One of my biggest problems are noises, If someone is chewing gum or food I can't get passed it. The noise will drive me insane and I can't focus on anything but that specific noise. When someone is talking to me it seems like I am listening but really I am all over the place. Thinking about stuff from the past, wondering what perfume they have on, or just Nothing at all. I can't sit through a movie, all I do is sit there and wonder when it will be over (even if I love the movie).
My boss would give me jobs to do and by the time I got to my desk they were gone, I would not remember one thing. Well the list goes on and on.
Maybe the Adderall is working and I just am not paying any attention lol......I do have two boys 3 and 1. They keep me pretty crazy. But atleast now on the meds I will get up and play with them.
About the Prozac, I have been on and off of it since my dad killed himself when I was 17, I am now 29. I am not depressed anymore (not that I know of).
So the last couple years I have been on the prozac for so called PMS. Then my pcp had me wean off the prozac and start the wellbutrin. I felt like I was going to rip things apart I was so irritable so I started to take the prozac again. Then went to another doctor.
I will write more soon.........Stacy

[This message has been edited by sweetnsour (edited 09-18-2003).]