I've been on antidepressants for about 13 years, and about 7 of those years I've been on Wellbutrin or Bupropion. I don't read much on these forums about long-term use, and I find myself wondering if I'm unusual in the amount of time I've been on the meds.
Please vote and share your history/thoughts if you'd like.

I've been on bupropion for about 18 months. It has helped me through a very dark and challenging time, and given me the strength to make positive changes in my life.

I bet a lot more people have been taking it long-term than this and other such forums would suggests. It seems like more people who are just starting it (like myself!) come here to actively seek information about their new medicine. Most long-time users know what its like to be on Wellbutrin and probably have less questions about the medicine. But a big "thank you" goes out to the veterans who did hang around to help us newbies!

I've been taking bupropion since January 5th after about 21-22 years of untreated depression.

I feel better than I've ever felt in my life, treats the depression beautifully and I'm no longer a compulsive eater. Hope it does this for a long time, it really is exactly what I needed. Only thing that disappointed me was that it did nothing for my social anxiety and 'avoidant' tendencies. Doc added prozac and this combo feels perfect for me, feel very balanced and healthy-minded for the first time in memory.

Hi Enclear,

Glad to hear the Wellbutrin worked out so well for you. As for your disappointment I don't think there is a medicine that can help you with social anxiety and avoidance issues. If there is let me know, becuase although I am no longer as depressed I still have major avoidance issues and social awkwardness.

I've been on Wellbutrin for a little more then a year now and after awhile it really helped with my depression issues. It's really a solid medicine if you have the paitence to let it do its job.

Generic Fluoxetine (Prozac) is working great for me on the social anxiety - actually starting conversations with strangers now (spontaneously, without thinking beforehand), where I would avoid people as much as possible before. My depression and social anxiety are sort of tied together (when depressed; can't tell them apart). When I started Wellbutrin it eventually treated the depression and that's when I noticed the social anxiety as a distinct issue. I explained this observation to my doc and he prescribed 20mg/day fluoxetine. Took a month for it to start working, but then I had no problems going back to work and interacting with people. Self-consciousness and awkwardness was greatly reduced - no longer the quiet log in the corner socially. I think it also adds to or boosts Wellbutrin's side-effect of appetite suppression.

I have been on Wellbutrin XL since about November I think.

Once stabilised, it is a miracle drug for me. Along with the mood stabilisers, I am doing so well, it is a fantastic, fantastic drug...

Been taking Wellbutrin/bupropion and Prozac for 2 years.

Could you tell us how it is working for you at this time?
Kirby

I have been on Wellbutrin off and on for about 13 years, I think. It's really hard for me to comment on the long-term effects or efficacy, because I'm on a combo of 3 meds--the Wellbutrin, Cymbalta and Geodon. I also take Doxepin for an itching condition, but I recently learned it's an AD. I also supplement with Tyrosine, an amino acid which put me over the top and let me feel more like a normal person. There have been times when I thought my meds weren't working. They were working, they just couldn't get me where I needed to be. I would stop them and fall into the blackest pit of despair and suicidal thoughts. So now I stay on the meds and if I don't feel quite right, I try to figure out what to tweak. I need to take brand Wellbutrin, the generic does not work for me at all. It gets expensive, since my insurance won't cover it the same. It's worth it. I do have a 2-week honeymoon on the Wellbutrin when I first start it, I'm energetic and cheerful and it suppresses my appetite, but that wears off, and then gradually it levels off to a level that's too low for me to take Wellbutrin alone. The Tyrosine is expensive, too, but I cannot go back to the way I used to feel now that I've experienced "normal."

I learned about the Tyrosine from a book that a friend recommended called, Depression Free Naturally. One year I took my tax refund and bought 8 weeks worth of every supplement they recommended. It was very expensive, but I knew if I found a solution and money were the issue, I'd get a 2nd job if I had to. I've been suffering with depression for over 20 years and it's just in the last 2 that I feel okay. So I took the supplements exactly as recommended and in about 8 weeks I felt great. I tried to figure out which ones were essential for the depression and tried to find cheaper versions. After a lot of trial and error, I found the Tyrosine was the major factor and a cheaper version didn't work as well. I order it from BioRecovery and I don't know how I ever got along without it. So I feel that my happiness is a delicate balance of all these components and if I feel okay, I don't mess with the combo. Right now I'm not up to par and it could be several things. My pdoc used to prescribe a low dose of Xanax as needed and I hardly ever took it. Somewhere along the way, he switched it to Ativan. Lately I've had a little more anxiety than usual, job stress and a terminally ill pet, so I've taken it a couple of times. I don't like the way it affects me. It makes me foggy, it stays in my system a long time and it affects my memory. I don't know if that's why I'm more anxious and crying or if my hormones are raging. I'm supposed to be post-menopausal and hot flashes had gone away, but came back the last couple of months and that's when the anxiety and crying started.

If you have long-term or treatment-resistant depression like I do, you have to become a bit of a detective. You have to track things and be alert to how things affect you, like lack of sleep, different foods, caffeine. For example, I can be fine and firing on all cylinders, but if I eat a lot of sugar (like around Christmas, when everyone is bringing in goodies to share), I can have a meltdown, complete with tantrums and crying. So you learn everything you can about your body. And NEVER EVER GIVE UP. I never gave up looking for something to help me and talked to everyone about it, because I felt that sooner or later, someone is going to have had an experience or tried something that helped and I would try anything. That's my biggest lesson. Never give up.

(((((((((laffter58)))))))))

Thank you for sharing your biggest lesson--"never give up!" We can't hear that too much.
It's hard to have hope (sometimes) when we suffer from depression......and.....
taking meds, like Wellbutrin, can be part of encouraging a hopeful attitude. I've been taking WellbutrinXL (300mg) for over five years and it has helped me overcome depression in a big way!

Hugs to all of you on the path to healing!

This post has been edited by Aerial: Aug 3 2009, 10:15 PM

I wonder if that is what I need to do. I have had prozac work beautifully a few times in the past, but due to a horrific depression that I couldn't get out of last time while still on prozac, I decided to try something new. I have had extreme nausea and lightheadedness so far on Wellbutrin, so hopefully that goes away soon.

I got a bunch of that bio recovery stuff too after reading that book. Not sure how much it all helped, because I ended up going on prozac that time to lift my depression, but I know some of the essential amino acids are good to take, particularly if your body is deficient in them.

I was just wondering for anyone taking wellbutrin. Has anybody taken it for some time felt good and then got off slowly, Never to take an AD again? After all they are suppose to help until you are feeling great for some time, then you can get off. I see many people here who have tried many AD but not one story that states I took an AD or wellbutrin it worked and now I am back to normal and no longer need any drugs.
Please reply Ineed to have some posotiv assuranc these AD work and that I will not need to take them forever.
Just started Wellbutrin.

Hi, doesitend! Welcome to Wellbutrin world.....

Starting a new medication always makes me nervous because I worry about all the "what ifs."
If I'm feeling really down, the "what ifs" can really grow like weeds. So, for me, it helps to come back to the now, this day (and maybe the next day) and not worry about far in the future. I tend to panic when I'm deeply depressed.

For me, Wellbutrin and Paxil have worked well for over five years. I have three more years of working in a very stressful job and then, I look forward to tapering off of my meds (if I'm ready). It seems like we might have a few threads about tapering off of meds here at the DF. (I don't have the exact link at the moment.) Browse around a bit and see.

My best advice is to take it, as they say, one day at a time and trust the process of healing. Of course, the road to healing is never a straight line--there's going to be hills and valleys.

You'll be in my thoughts--cyber hugs to you!

Keep posting and letting us know how you're doing.

This post has been edited by Aerial: Aug 6 2009, 11:47 AM

I started off with Wellbutrin 150mg the first month and I have been on 300mg for the last two months.

Although my experience hasn't been perfect I do feel positive about taking Wellbutrin. I think the biggest difference Wellbutrin had on me was to give me the power to quit smoking. I was up to a pack of cigarettes every 2-3 days. Since I quit, my energy level has shot up, I'm exercising more, I sleep better, and I've actually lost about 8 pounds. Most of the time when people quit smoking they'll gain weight.

Not everyday is good for me though. I go through periods where I feel just as depressed as I did before starting Wellbutrin. Some days the smallest things will make me so emotional. Sometimes I get so angry and it takes me a long time to calm down, other days I just feel like crying, and others where I feel like I'm at the top of the world. Some things I'm still sturggling with are: social anxiety and difficutly in concentration. I still freeze up or stutter when I have to talk with people and I'm so nervous that I can't come up with anything worthwhile to say other than "yeah" and "Oh Really!".

I also have trouble concentrating or doing task that aren't fun. Like studying, finding a job, organizing my room, etc. The hardest part is starting the task. The first hour I'm doing something, my mind is running all over the place. I'll be thinking of anything and everything and the smallest things will distract me, which makes it very difficult to continue what I'm doing. If i can make it past the first hour, I usually get in the zone and my mind clears up but most days I can't make it past the first hour.

I don't want to sound too negative because I do feel I am changing for the better. I'm definitely more active now and most days I do feel more confident and happier than I have in a very long time. I notice that I carry myself much better now. Before, I would slouch and look at my feet whenever I went out. Now i'm standing tall and looking people in the eye, most of the time at least.

3 months down and I'm looking forward to the next 3 months and beyond.