I have a long history of anxiety and depression....my diagnosis is from Gad to depression, to Cyclothymic to BP....never a clear answer..I can not tollerate SSRI meds at all..My last PS DOc said that is because I have BP...I was given Wellbutrin...it was IR form...for one week I felt a ton of energy and sleep hard at night, but I notced I became more critical with my family...so I stopped it and she gave me the XL form that would make mood more even...again I had a tad more energy..not as much as Ir and I felt like going places but I feel "overwhelmed" on this med.....does that go away or get worse the longer your on it....I also did not get dizzy from the med until 2 weeks into it....anyone with advice or experience with welbutrin.
I have been on wellbutrin in the past, but I was also on a mood stabilizer too. To even out your moods, you would need to be on a mood stabilizer. I would bring it up with your pdoc at your next appointment. When I was on wellbutrin I was also taking depakote, which was the mood stabilizer. I had a very good experience with that combo. It seemed to work well.
Thanks for your reply....I have not taken it for a few days and am dealing with drop in mood and some dizziness..BUT the "overwhelmed feelings" are gone...cant they all go away.
We you on the mood stablizer before WB or at the same time started on both.
If not how long would it take to adjust to the med and not be crying all the time?
It depends on how your body will react to these meds. It's different for everyone since we all have different chemistries. I was on the wellbutrin and the mood stabilizer at the same time. If you decide to go that route, it probably won't be too long to feel better. I would say probably about 2 weeks or so. I'm sorry how your feeling. I know how frustrating this can be. And coming off a med is never fun. Dealing with the side effects of coming off a med can sometimes be unbearable. Hang in there and definitely talk to your pdoc about a new med regimen. It can make a world of a difference.
If you have BP and I'm pretty sure you said that is what your end DX was, then you should never be on an Anti-Depressant without a Mood Stabilizer. The reason being is that it can and most likely will cause you to become manic. Your pdoc knows this, or should know it if he has a medical license. This is why you're not feeling right on just the Wellbutrin.
It can take 6-8 weeks for a med to be absorbed in the bloodstream.
Furthermore, when someone has BP, it's important that they take a mood stabilizer in addition to an anti-depressant. If they don't, they run the risk of having a manic episode.
I'm on 3 mood stabilizers (Depakote, Risperdal, Topamax) as well as an anti-depressant (Fluoxetine) and I have yet to experience a manic episode because of the latter.
__________________
Atypical Bipolar I Disorder with Rapid Cycling
Meds:
Depakote 1500mg
Prozac 40mg
Risperdal 1mg titrating to 6mg/day
Klonopin .5mg (2x/day)
Trazodone 100mg or 200mg PRN
I have a long history of anxiety and depression....my diagnosis is from Gad to depression, to Cyclothymic to BP....never a clear answer..I can not tollerate SSRI meds at all..My last PS DOc said that is because I have BP...I was given Wellbutrin...it was IR form...for one week I felt a ton of energy and sleep hard at night, but I notced I became more critical with my family...so I stopped it and she gave me the XL form that would make mood more even...again I had a tad more energy..not as much as Ir and I felt like going places but I feel "overwhelmed" on this med.....does that go away or get worse the longer your on it....I also did not get dizzy from the med until 2 weeks into it....anyone with advice or experience with welbutrin.
fusionqueen,
i don't have any experience of wellbutrin but i also know like the others have said that an antid alone can cause irritablility etc.. leading to manic behaviour so can you talk to pdoc about maybe adding in a mood stabiliser?
i hope he/she is open to discussing meds with you as it makes a more equal relationship which can only be good.
i forgot to mention that I am also taking Welbutrin SR, and it's working well for me, but i also am on 3 diff. mood stabilizers, and that's got a lot to do with it.
I strongly encourage you to talk with your pdoc about this.
kat
In reading through posts, one thing I've noticed are people whose pdocs prescribe an anti-depressant without a mood stabilizer or a mood stabilizer without an anti-depressant.
When I was IP in December, I asked the attending pdoc if he could give me an anti-depressant, but he said he'd rather not due to my history of rapid cycling and the possibility of inducing mania.
I asked my new pdoc if I could give an anti-depressant a try and he agreed.
He also explained that as long as I was taking one or more mood stabilizers with an anti-depressant, I shouldn't have any problem with mania. (Note: Everyone is different. Some people can't take ADs even if they are also on a mood stabilizer.)
I'm so glad he decided to put me on an AD because thanks to Fluoxetine, I haven't felt severely depressed since December.
__________________
Atypical Bipolar I Disorder with Rapid Cycling
Meds:
Depakote 1500mg
Prozac 40mg
Risperdal 1mg titrating to 6mg/day
Klonopin .5mg (2x/day)
Trazodone 100mg or 200mg PRN
Last edited by dreams in neon; 04-29-2009 at 08:14 AM.
