Alcohol is a depressant, Ativan is a depressant, wouldn't ativan or xanax cause seizures too?

That's a good question. I'd say no, because alcohol and Xanax/Ativan are absorbed into the body differently.

But I really have no idea lol.

I drank an assload for New Years and nothing bad came out of it. When I drank a few weeks ago, I remember feeling down that night and the night after. On New Years Eve, however, I just got really wasted and I was good. After the first beer, I was paranoid about having a seizure. After the first two shots, I was thinking that I was going to die. After the third beer and second glass of champagne, I was only thinking about more booze and dancing! Happy New Year everyone!

I just wanted to comment on ur question. I am also on wellbutrin and also cymbalta i just got out of rehab for alcoholism i drank bout 5 to 6 days a week i'm only 28 married with 4 kids my life was falling apart n i didnt even realize it, i was not the wife and mother i used to be so my hubby gave me an ultimatum rehab or he was leavin. I didnt think i had a prob but i wanted my marriage to work so i went. The first day i was there i had asked the nurse why i was having major body twiches at night my whole body would be off the bed i just thought i was twiching but she had told me that i was having seizures due to drinking and taking my meds. Now that was a wake up call it was then i knew i had a prob and that i was in the right place i never even knew u could have seizures due to drinkin and my meds. It scared the hell out of me and it still does, i have been sober for 2 months & my meds are working but i am still having seizures at night i just had one a couple nights ago and that is my reason to not drink while on meds. It could happen to u i am still very young and a mother i just hope my story will help u to at least think to not drink while on ur meds its not worth it

That makes me wonder if you might actually have epilepsy. You should not be having seizures with any sort of regularity. Did you talk to your doctor about this?

i actually go in on mon i had a really bad night a few nights ago that n im being very serious scared the hell out of me i didnt want to go back to sleep so im anxious to find out whats going on w me

i started taking wellbutrin when i was severly affected by depression. i was having suicidal thoughts, had very low energy, just generally unhappy, and had no drive to do anything.

apperently my reaction to the drug is slightly abnormal. at first bupropion worked perfectly, it curbed my drug behavior, i was content for the first time in my life. i could sit in a chair and not fidget, i could stare at an object and not have my eyes dance around aimlessly.

the reaction i had that disturbed me was the reason i quit. and that is bupropion made me angry. i was pi**ed off at the world. pi**ed at my life and my firends. i was slightly more aggressive and had violent thoughts and tendencies. and then i started blacking out when i would drink. three drinks in i might black out.

there was one night i was drinking with friends, i drove to a new location. my driving was terrible (even drunk i can drive). i was all over the road, an indication i wasnt myself. pretty soon i blackout. i wake up later with part of my tooth in my hand. i was confused how this was possible and started laughing. blacked out again. wake up i dropped a full handle of vodka, and then imedietly cut open my hand on the broken shard. i blacked out. woke up again in the bathroom, blood everywhere, my friend was taping my cut, i thought the whole incident was hilarious. blackedout. woke up with two "friends" drawing on me, i pushed them away and tried to get up, then i noticed my legs were taped together. i got up and lunged at the closest dark figure. and blacked out again. i woke up standing in the bedroom. everyone is yelling. "you just ****ed up!!!" someone shouts in my face. there is blood on me and the bed, i am not wearing anything except my boxers.

everyone leaves except my friend taking care of me (thankyou lyndsy). she fills me in. early i picked a fight with a 6'3 265 pound gangbanger mexican we were with. (first and only night ive seen him). im 6'1 145 by the way. so this guy named "monster" and i end up slap boxing but apparently it was just me getting my *** kicked. and i lose part of my tooth. then later when i woke up and lunged i ended up hitting everyone in that room which is apparently everybody there. so my friends have to jump me in this blackout rage. i lost my pants at some point in all this which was a blessing as i was getting ****ed up with my legs taped. she tells me at one point i was screaming "im a tweaker". ... ive never seen, done, or contemplated using crystal meth.

when i woke up from all the screaming and yelling i had no recollection of me being angry, fighting or anything negative. its like i blacked out everything bad and only remember the fun parts. ex laughing at a tooth fragment.

no one else mentioned this at all. so i feel kind of obligated to tell this story. when i was drinking and on wellbutrin i turned into a suicidal self destructive completly insane version of myself.

Hi Everyone,

I am new to this message board . I just read everyone's replys in this topic and appreciate everyone's experiences, comments, and concerns. My gynocologist prescribed me with Wellbutrin today, but I have not taken it yet. He prescribed WB to me because I have loss of libido. I am not depressed in any way. When he told me it was an anti-depressant, I was kinda turned off at first because you can't just stop taking most anti-depressants, but he said you can stop taking WB cold turkey.

I started researching the drug online today to find out more information. Once I saw all the warnings about not drinking alcohol while taking WB, this really concerned me. About 3 months ago, I was drinking wine every night. I would have about half a big bottle each night and then even more on the weekends. Now within the past 3 months, I am exercising 3 times a week and have stopped drinking during the week. I am not drinking as heavily on the weekends either, but once in awhile, I may have a lot.

I feel better now after reading everyone's responses to learn that there are many people who do drink while on WB. But what I like even better is the fact that it has made some people lose the desire to want to drink. I know everyone's body is different so obviously I will be cautious and probably just have 1 glass of wine to see how it affects me before having another glass.

I like to drink socially on the weekends to have fun and laugh with friends, but I do not drink because I am depressed. But it sounds like from some people's responses that drinking while on WB makes them depressed. I guess the only way to find any of this out is to start taking the drug and maybe after a week or so, try to have a drink. I already have a problem trying to fall asleep at night and my doctor said this may be a side effect for me. He said I will have to decide whether I want to have sex every day or want to sleep at night lol. But I guess now it's between sex, drinking, and sleeping!

I always have a desire to drink, but I took Wellbutrin for the first time yesterday, and I had ZERO desire to drink. This has never occurred with any other anti depressants.

Ok, this is not just a reply to this post, but for others: I have been on Wellbutin for about a year now with very positive effects. I have never felt better.
I highly recommend this drug. Now, I like to drink too (moderately, but once or twice a month - I drop the hammer -mostly just beer, but sometimes add liquor and marajuana. For the first month or two or when increasing the amount of this drug, you are going to have side effects if you drink more than a few drinks (ie 8-15). After a while, it seems as if the drug and brain find a happy working relationship and any noticable differences in drinking (no Wellbutin / with Wellbuin) become minimal ir any at all. So, don't drink much during the initial couple of months or about 3 weeks after an increase, ok?
On a weekend that I know I am going to tie one on, I don't take the medication that day and make sure to eat somewhat before and a bit while drinking.
The next day, I will not have any more of a hnagover than I normally would - if anything less of one because of the positive effects of this drug. Personally, I find that I want to drink more quantity now - so I watch for this and eat more and watch adding the liquor if I am not feeling the greatest that day. It is all about finding a medium. This is my personal way of having my cake and eating it too. Wellbutin has allowed me to do this. Anyone drinking allot more than once (maybe twice) a month is never going to get rid of their depression. Take it from me - I have spent years trying to drink on the weekends and feel good - it does not work - stop banging your head against the wall and don't waste 20 years or more figuring this out for yourself.
Once the drug is settled into your system, look ahead, find a weekend that you are going to party once a month - and plan to do it up. Up the calories for
a day before this (if your dieting at all), don't take your meds that day, eat well and drink - you won't need as much because you do not drink often (now) and the buzz will be fresh - just make sure to snack throughout the night. Once you get to that empty stomach / too much to drink place - Wellbutin will rear its ugly face and you will feel 10x worse than you normally would. Good luck out there.

hi i am not sure how to start a new blog so i hope you dont mind me posting a question re wellbutrin here. I have been using wellbutrin but had to change to zyban when i was in the uk where they do not prescribe wellbutrin. online i am told they are one and the same product but wellbutrin seems to make me far more anxious. could this be because i am using XL?
thanks in advance!




Description: Drinking ALCOHOL (or taking any product containing alcohol) while being treated with BUPROPION, or any other ANTIDEPRESSANT, may result in an increased risk of seizures. Drinking alcohol while being treated with bupropion is not recommended. Call your doctor right away for any of the following problems.

1. You are confused.

2. You have changes in mental awareness.

3. You have sudden muscle spasms.

4. You have seizures.

Alcohol is a depressant. Why would you want to become depressed?
[/quote]

I have had depression and anxiety for about 30 years. I'm on Wellbutrin and have been for several years. Before that, it was Elavil (NO one drinks on that one; you'd pass out!) and the SSR's. I have a glass of wine in early evening to relax me as Wellbutrin is a hyper drug for me and I have sleep issues. Sometimes I have more than one drink. I have been on antidepressants since my maybe 4th major depressive episode (heredity, environment, etc.) to stave off serious episodes. My pdoc says I may not come out of the next one, so my last 3 pdocs have recommended I stay on a low dose of antidepressants.

Throughout my life I have been a no drinker and a moderate drinker, depending on the circumstances. Years of never having a drink because of responsibilities, companions, pregnancy and just not even thinking of having a drink. But now I find that since I'm not on a regular sleep aid, it does help to relax me to have a drink in the afternoon or evening, maybe 2 drinks.

I never get drunk and rarely slightly high from alcohol. I would never in a million years drive after drinking. I either have a drink when my husband (also a very moderate drinker) drives or at home.

My point is, I do know that for many people, drinking adds or causes depression. For me, it relaxes me at home or in a social situation, increases my enjoyment of friends (though I don't have to drink.) I never get mean when I drink, always mellow or happy.

On every single medication, antibiotics, hormones, cold meds, cholesterol meds, antidepressants, Tylenol, aspirin, you name it, the warnings say not to drink. I can't think of a single OTC or prescribed drug that says it's ok to have a drink. To not say this would be libel bc some people will assume they can drink and will drink way too much and there will be a reaction to the drug or they will get really sick or could die!

So, I get a feeling from some postings that only a fool or someone out of control would even dream of having one drink while on an antidepressant. it's almost lecturing and extreme warning. I realize that some benzos and other meds are vastly affected by even one drink and a person should know what meds they are taking and the effects of any drinking while on that drug. I know drinking with some meds can damage the liver and can even be fatal.

I never have taken any illegal drug (MJ) or coke or anything remotely like that; only OTC's and prescribed meds. The amount of alcohol that I consume is very controlled. I just get weary hearing all the warnings never to touch any alcohol whatsoever while on meds or there will be dire consequences. Some meds I have taken make everything I eat and drink taste terrible, and of course, I wouldn't have alcohol at all; it would taste terrible. And if Wellbutrin makes some people dislike or refrain or cut down on alcohol, that's probably fine because they might drink too much ordinarily or have bad reactions.

I just think since I have taken Wellbutrin for several years and know the drug I can say that people have to learn about the drug, talk to the doc, and decide if they can have a drink or not without being severally lectured. if they already have a problem with alcohol, refraining from drinking is of course the thing to do!

Sorry for the rant! It's not just this board; this country seems to have a Puritanical attitude toward lots of things like drinking and sometimes the people (not you!) are the very ones doing what they say is a sin or harmful to do.

Depression Forums does want to hear how well and good members feel self medicating on alcohol. This is in our Terms Of Service. (TOS). We do not not advocate drinking while on any type of medication, especially AD's as alcohol is a depressant which counteracts your medication, can be dangerous, especially on WB, (do a search here in DF), Wellbutrin has been noted to cause seizures when under the influence of alcohol. Everyone has different reactions to alcohol and AD's, mostly it is bad news.
~Lindsay, Forum Super Administrator