I want to get off wellbutrin but can't! Help!

[Sekhemet28]

So I was prescribed welbutrin last year for smoking cessation. I started taking it and in the first week I was extremely happy and had all kinds of energy. I was laughing at things I'd usually find annoying. So then as the month went on, I noticed I could go longer without having to smoke a cig. I also noticed that I didn't care about notifications on my phone as much. It seemed like any addictive behavior I wasn't interested in. (I'd say I was addicted to fb at this time lol) so anyways, I started testing my limits. I'd leave the house and run errands for a few hours and not bring any cigs. I'd just start thinking about something else when a craving hit, and it went away! I was doing Soooo good, I stopped taking the med all together. Big mistake. I found myself laying on the couch for a week. No desire, no motivation. It literally took ALL my energy just to take a shower. I'm a mom plus I take care of my dad. This is not an ideal situation for me to go through, as it affects my family. So I gave in. I started taking the pill again as advised by my doctor. Up until recently. It's not helping anymore. I still smoke the same. I don't take it 2x a day like I'm supposed to. I skip every other day. Sometimes I only take it once a week. It's like my body knows when it's running low in my system and I get the same withdrawal symptoms. Now the phone addiction is back. I have a ton of laundry to do, but don't want to. I have no desire. It's 2:16pm and I have not even started my day. I'll cook/clean for my family, but that's about it. I just took another pill. I feel like welbutrin has me captive just like cigs. When I don't take it I get sad and I don't have a history of depression. I'll feel high and have anxiety without it. F that doctor that put me on this! I feel like I'm addicted to welbutrin. I'm giving up and going to take it regular twice a day again unless someone can give me some advice. Thanks for reading.

 

[simco]

Are you in therapy? If so, is your therapist also the doc who prescribed the wellbutrin?

My strong advice is to talk to a psychiatrist (a prescribing doc) who you trust and go from there. For the most part, bupropion is a good drug with a tolerable side effect profile. But occasionally it does have some real outliers side-effect-wise.

A smart psychiatrist can hep you figure out if you might be having a bad interaction with something else your on, or if some of the feeling is due to psych issues that aren't getting addressed by the wellbutrin. sorry not to be more help. but this sounds like one for the pro's.

 

[Moreaux]

Definitely speak with your doctor about tapering off the medication. I took Wellbutrin years ago to stop smoking, and I remember there was a gradual dosage increase and then a taper to get off Wellbutrin. If you can't see the doctor then keep getting the script filled as usual and do your own taper. Query the Internet for tapering of Wellbutrin, and I'm sure you will find the dose schedule. If you don't find a valid source, try reducing your dosage by 10% every two weeks. Ie if your current dose is 100mg, then reduce it down to 90mg, in two reduce it further to 81mg, and two weeks later down to 73mg, etc. Good luck!

ETA: Antidepressants are difficult to get off of, some more so than others. Most people find that a gradual taper helps to minimize the withdrawal from them. If you're still feeling lousy with a 10% taper, then go slower and do a 5% taper. This isn't a race