I have been taking BuSpar for about a month now and I really feel that my anxiety is worse. I hadn't had a panic attack in a year and a half and now I get one practically every day. Also, I feel really weird and my anxiety symptoms haven't gone away. I know you need to give meds time to work, but I don't think this is working for me. I also have a prescription for xanax that my doctor gave me to use until the BuSpar starts to work and I have to take it every day because it's the only way to stop my panic attacks. I I feel worse than before I started the BuSpar. My doctor thinks that it will work for me, but I'm ready to quit taking it. Can I just stop "cold turkey?" Has anyone else had a bad experience with BuSpar? I really dont' know what else to try - I've used alot of the antidepressants and had to quit either because they didn't work or because of the side effects. I'd really appreaciate any help from anyone.
Pam

Hi Pam,
Call your doctor and go back for a med check. There is no way that a panic attack per day is acceptable!!! http://www.healthboards.com/ubb/eek.gif I'm amazed that you can get anything done during the day at that rate.
After 4 weeks the Buspar should have leveled off if it was going to. Please don't take yourself off the med though as it could have even worse side effects, and then you won't have anyone monitoring the changes. Your doctor may want you to wean off it to avoid a crash.
Good luck and please re-post so we know how you are doing.


[This message has been edited by kynurse (edited 02-23-2003).]

Buspar is for having too much serotonin. It decreases your serotonin level. Things like zoloft and lexapro allow levels of serotonin to build back up if you have too little.

If you are having panic attacks... i doubt Buspar is right for you.

buspar isnt effective against panic attacks, its a tranquilliser, an antidepressant such as paxil may be more helpful

I was on Buspar for about 2 months for GAD. I felt horrible. I felt too drugged up and it gave me severe tremors at night. I also had panic attacks with the Buspar. I stopped it cold turkey and it was no problem. I then went onto Xanax. I noticed without the Buspar, I feel much more alert and have my senses back. I now only take Xanax if I feel a panic attack coming on, which has only been about 4 times in the last month. My advice: stay away from Buspar.

I've been taking Buspar for probably 12 years at 30-60 mg per day. At first the results were astounding, truly miraculous. Within 2-3 weeks I felt great and noticed things that used to make me anxious or near panic just didn't bother me. It was incredible. Well, now after those 12 years my worrying is back and is pretty intense. It still does control my panic attacks but not my constant, nearly obsessive worrying. I supplement the Buspar with Xanax but am careful with how many I take because I know there can be a dependence to Xanax. For those starting on Buspar I can only ask that they give it 3-4 weeks at least to start. Maybe it's just not the right drug for you and you should have that med check as suggested by kynurse. Please let us know what you decide to do and if a change in meds helps you (if that's the case). We're all looking for help and your update might be of assistance to me and other people. Good luck.