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[squall444]

Hello. I am new to the forums here and I wanted to see if anyone could give me some advice or information. I'll start by describing the details.

TL;DR (short version) at the bottom.

About 4-5 weeks ago I started taking anti-depressants. First Prozac but it didn't work well with me and I had to switch. Then I switched to Celexa and it worked much better and with less side effects. My depression was receeding and I was starting to be able to function better again. However, I suffered some side effects from Celexa that were not good. I was constantly yawning and tired. And I would wake up in the morning feeling absolutely miserable (physically and mentally). As the day went on I felt better but the next morning it was the same. It also made it a little hard to stay asleep but I could manage.

Enter Wellbutrin XL. My therapist recommended Wellbutrin because it would give me energy to offset the drowsiness and it would improve the terrible feeling I had waking up each morning. So the first day I took the recommended 300mg. And I did not notice a difference. The 2nd day I felt some energy in me and a little shakiness in my body. It took me 2 hours laying in bed before I slept for 4 hours only to lay in bed another 2 hours trying to go back to sleep. By the 3rd day I was trembling uncontrollably and I felt so wired. My mind would not stop racing with thoughts and I was super impatient and irritable. It felt like I was exhausted from the lack of sleep and I just wanted to knock out but something was keeping me up and refusing to let me become calm. It was like torture where they would keep a POW awake from days or weeks by force. So that night I realy wanted to try and get some sleep. I just wanted to sleep for 10 or 12 hours. I decided maybe self-medicating would calm me down and let me get some sleep. Boy was I wrong. I had all the effects of being high and the pain and irritability of being sleep deprived but I was wide away. So that night I went to bed at 5 but could not sleep as my mind would not stop racing from one thought to another. Finally around 7 or so I feel asleep only to take 2 or 3 hours later.

So day 4 i decided I needed to get this out of my system. I have to have some sleep. I stopped cold-turkey after just 3 days. I still felt the effects but similar to day 2 where it was there but more managable. I got similar sleep to day 2 as well with about 4 hours of sleep. So now here I am on day 5, 2nd day off Wellbutrin cold-turkey. I'm going to try and stay awake all day together and not take rests or naps. Maybe I can tire myself out enough and the Wellbutrin will be less enough that I can finally get a decent nights rest again.

Short Version:
And the topic question... After 3 days of Wellbutrin XL 300mg and three nights of inability to sleep more than 3-4 hours, how much longer would you presume it to take before the effects of Wellbutrin leaves my system enough to allow me to get a decent nights rest?

note: I am also taking Celexa 20mg and I am on my 2nd day off Wellbutrin cold-turkey. So it is now day 5.

Edited by Sheepwoman, 26 June 2011 - 07:55 PM.
TOS/Triggering

[BetterOff]

Hello, like me, you may be ultra-sensitive to wellbutrin, its good you stopped when you did, I too have a horror story about taking it, but I just wanted you to know that it leaves your system pretty fast so hang in there and in a matter of days you should be over any bad side effects....
good luck and best wishes.

[squall444]

Also, I was planning to stop the Wellbutrin until I could get a decent nights rest. But I liked what the drug did for me. It did what it said and what I needed but it did it TOO much. My plan was once I was back to normal to start the Wellbutrin again but on a much lower dosage. Maybe 75mg. What do you think?

[Sheepwoman]

You really weren't on WB long enough to have it build up in your system. However, it should be gone by now. You need to talk to your pdoc about what happened starting at 300mg. Especially the insomnia, trembling and racing thoughts. The normal start up dose is much lower to avoid most of the side-effects.

WB can cause sleep problems if taken too late in the day-or in general, it can cause insomnia. It does have a tendency to increase anxiety in many people. Irritability is common and sometimes does not go away.

Again, I would advise you to consult with your pdoc before starting taking this med again for his/her advice and feedback.
Sheepwoman

[squall444]

You really weren't on WB long enough to have it build up in your system. However, it should be gone by now. You need to talk to your pdoc about what happened starting at 300mg. Especially the insomnia, trembling and racing thoughts. The normal start up dose is much lower to avoid most of the side-effects.

WB can cause sleep problems if taken too late in the day-or in general, it can cause insomnia. It does have a tendency to increase anxiety in many people. Irritability is common and sometimes does not go away.

Again, I would advise you to consult with your pdoc before starting taking this med again for his/her advice and feedback.
Sheepwoman

Thank you for your response.

I am about 100% sure that my insomia was caused by Wellbutrin. My pdoc said that I could start seeing its effect in even a few days. He said it is unlike the SSRI Celexa I am also taking which can take weeks to kick in. This happened with me before with Prozac. I started on 20mg and it gave me gastritis.

I really believe I just started out on too high of a dose. I really am not sure why I was started off on 300mg as I've learned on these forums that is a very high dosage to start with. I believe I am receiving the intended effects but just on an overwhelming scale. I liked what Wellbutrin does for me. Giving me energy and motivation and drive. I think I just went overboard with the starting dosage. I will consult my pdoc for his advice, but he is the one that gave me 300mg to begin with. LoL

[teagal]

I am new here and I am starting wellbutrin sr 150mg a day and after the first week I will take 2 a day or 300 mg per day.
Can anyone offer me any insight as what to expect?

I was on serzone for a while a long time ago and a few years ago I tried zoloft.

The wellbutrin sr is all new to me.
Any info will be greatly appreciated.

I also have severe emphysema and I get short of breath quickly.
I'm afraid the energy I might get will cause me to try and do things I won't be able to do.
Is it possible I might also breathe easier with wellbutrin?

I look forward to meeting and chatting with each and everyone of you.

Thanks

[justBia]

I tried Prozac too and I won't get on the topic of how much it suxed cuz some ppl here get along well with that.
I'm in Cymbalta and Cipram and doc added Zyban cuz I always over sleep (I sleep like 12h a day), after a few doses (I was into 1x daily) I went back to a normal sleep patter of 8h/night but after 2 months or so it doesn't have any effect anymore. I'm into 2x daily and still falling asleep all the time, it doesn't give me any energy anymore. Doc wants to change it for Ritalin but it's prohibited in the lovely place I live.

[squall444]

UPDATE: So day 5 came and I'm happy to report that the Wellbutrin seemed to be almost gone completely. That night I slept 4 hours, then back to sleep almost right away for another 2 hours, then again for 1 hour. Felt so good being able to relax. I'm going to wait another night and will start the next day on Wellbutrin again but at 75mg.

[squall444]

I am new here and I am starting wellbutrin sr 150mg a day and after the first week I will take 2 a day or 300 mg per day.
Can anyone offer me any insight as what to expect?

I was on serzone for a while a long time ago and a few years ago I tried zoloft.

The wellbutrin sr is all new to me.
Any info will be greatly appreciated.

I also have severe emphysema and I get short of breath quickly.
I'm afraid the energy I might get will cause me to try and do things I won't be able to do.
Is it possible I might also breathe easier with wellbutrin?

I look forward to meeting and chatting with each and everyone of you.

Thanks

I think i can help you out a bit. My advice is if the 150mg is working for you well enough DO NOT increase the dosage just because. 150mg to 300mg is a huge increase and I had heard a few horror stories about people moving up to 300mg too soon. So if you're able to cope with 150mg then stay there.

Wellbutrin will give you more adrenaline so that means everything that comes with it. You will be very aware, thinking very actively, and your heartbeat with rise (so you will breath faster), you may also shake a little. If you take too much like I did you will have the same effects but on a uncontrollable scale. You will be very aware but it will last FOREVER so much that it will effect ur sleeping pattern. You will think so active that your mind racing will feel exhausting. Your heartbeat will rise to insane levels that you feel like ur heart might pop out ur chest. You will be become uncontrollably shakey with tremors. Once you go overboard it's difficult to recover. So if you can live with 150mg. Stay there.

Edited by squall444, 27 June 2011 - 06:02 PM.

[squall444]

sorry for triple post

UPDATE 2: I called my therapist and he said I did the right thing stopping it right away. When I suggested taking only 75mg a day he also agreed that would be best.