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Wellbutrin For Anxiety- Should You Use It For Anxiety?
What is the purpose of Wellbutrin for anxiety? Well, Wellbutrin is an antidepressant having certain on- and off-label uses. Sometimes you might also see Wellbutrin referred to as bupropion as its generic name.
Medications might affect people in many possible ways. As of now, Wellbutrin is linked to anxiety in several cases. While some people have seen it causing anxiety in people, some people also consider it as an effective and beneficial treatment against anxiety disorders.
Wellbutrin for anxiety depends on person to person. Let’s discuss more Wellbutrin and how it is linked to anxiety along with the risks and benefits of Wellbutrin for anxiety.
Does Wellbutrin Cause Anxiety?
Shortly after people began using Wellbutrin, some people noticed symptoms such as anxiety, feeling of restlessness, excitement, agitation, shaking, insomnia or not able to sleep, etc.
According to FDA, sometimes all these symptoms were very serious and required treatments immediately like anti-anxiety medications or sedatives during their clinical trials.
Often, such side effects might be due to the amount or dosage of Wellbutrin for anxiety that people consume. If someone increases the dosage too quickly, that also results in side effects or risks. If you have experienced or are experiencing any such symptoms or jitters after taking Wellbutrin, you have to seek your healthcare provider’s help and report them about the issues.
In some while, it has helped a lot in fighting against anxiety, in other people it has contributed to anxiety.
Wellbutrin For Anxiety, It Is Helpful?
It may appear counterintuitive as anxiety is one of the most potential side effects of taking this anti-depressant. Still, there is some data that states otherwise. It shows that Wellbutrin for anxiety treatment has worked well for some people.
One older study found that Wellbutrin XL was comparable to another depressant called escitalopram in treating people having GAD or generalized anxiety disorder.
While these researches hows that Wellbutrin could possibly make second or third-line treatment measure for anxiety, we still need a lot of large trials to confirm this and get everything crystal clear. There are also several pieces of evidence that state that Wellbutrin can possibly help with panic disorders as well. A case study found that Wellbutrin at a dosage of nearly 150 grams daily can be helpful in improving anxiety and panic symptoms in individuals suffering from panic disorders.
Anecdotal pieces of evidence have also supported the usage of Wellbutrin along with other medications to treat a panic disorder. However, like the anxiety disorder pilot study which we discussed above, further research and studies are required to determine whether this can be helpful enough or not.
Prescription of Wellbutrin For Anxiety
There are several reasons FDA has approved Wellbutrin for anxiety, these reasons are :
- Quitting smoking
- Seasonal affective disorder
- Major depressive disorder
However, the exact reason for which Wellbutrin is used to treat conditions like these is not determined. It is not known how it works against such diseases. It is believed to affect levels of mood influencing chemicals such as dopamine or norepinephrine.
This is slightly different from other types of antidepressants which affect the levels of serotonin in the body. Sometimes doctors also prescribe Wellbutrin for some other conditions that are off-label. Off-label here means that they are not approved by FDA. These off-label conditions include:
- Neuropathic pain.
- Bipolar disorder
- Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD.
Possible Side Effects Of Wellbutrin For Anxiety
When you start taking Wellbutrin regularly, during the first few weeks or initial weeks you may face certain side effects. These side effects will often reduce after time. They include:
- Constipation
- Nausea
- dry mouth
- tremors
- headaches
- dizziness
- agitation or nervousness
- trouble while sleeping
- quick heartbeat
Along with these minor side effects of Wellbutrin for anxiety, sometimes the side effects can be severe, one of these severe side effects is seizures. The risk of having seizures is often greater in individuals who:
- Have a previous history of seizures
- Are consuming higher doses of Wellbutrin
- Having an injury or tumor in their brain
- Have liver disorder like cirrhosis
- Having eating disorders like bulimia or anorexia
- are dependant too much on alcohol or drugs
- on other medications that could escalate the risk of acquiring seizures
Some additional serious side effects of Wellbutrin may include all of these:
- Increase in suicidal thoughts in case of adults and children.
- Manic episodes mostly in people already having bipolar dsorder
- Halluciations, delusions, and paranoia.
- Hypertension or high blood pressure.
- Eye problems such as swelling, redness, and eye pain.
- Severe allergic reactions.
Benefits Of Wellbutrin For Anxiety
Despite all the side effects mentioned in this article, wellbutrin can also provide a lot of benefits for all those who consume it. These benefits include:
- Treatment of seasonal affective disorder and major depressive disorder
- Helping a lot of people in quitting smoking
- Less sexual side effects like lowered sex drive as compared to other antidepressants
- No known problems that develops after using it for long term
The Bottom Line
Wellbutrin for anxiety works great for some people but has not worked quite well for others. It is an anti depressants that is approved by FDA to treat seasonal affective disorders, major depressive disorder and other issues like quitting smoking. It is also prescribed by doctors to treat conditions like bipolar disorder and ADHD.
Some people face anxiety related symptoms like such aa agitation and restlessness shortly after they begin their daily dose of wellbutrin. These symptoms might also be related to the amount of wellbutrin dosage you take. You can always speak with your healthcare provider if you feel a bit anxious after taking wellbutrin, they might decrease of stop the dosage.
In addition to anxiety, there are few other side effects too that are associated with wellbutrin among which some can be fatal like seizures. If you are prescribed Wellbutrin, make sure you consume it as mentioned by your doctor to avoid risks or side effects associated with this dose.
This was everything you needed to know about wellbutrin for anxiety and what are the possible benefits or risks associated with it. You possibly know by now how to take wellbutrin and that you should always seek advise from specialised and experienced doctors.
