Kendra Posted December 3, 2013 Share Posted December 3, 2013 (edited) Hello! I am currently on Wellbutrin which has helped my depression a lot but not my anxiety. So my doc added Buspar. I've been on 10 mg twice a day for a month now and all it does is make me nauseous and exhausted. I can't function. I spend all morning on the couch while my 22 month old and 3 year old watch cartoons. The afternoons are the worst with the nausea. My doc wants me to stop completely- no taper. I am scared of withdrawal- I had a BAD experience with effexor. I know they aren't the same class of drug but I'm still worried.. Anyone with advice or experience is appreciated! Edited December 4, 2013 by Petu Added member name to title History.... Lexapro- 2001/2002- not sure when I stopped. Prozac- started 2009 after miscarriage, continually upped dose over the years until 2013- at the max amount. Effexor- March 2013-September 2013 turned me into a lump on the couch. Withdrawal was terrible. Currently.... Wellbutrin- May 2013 to present. Buspar 5 mg twice a day for one week end of October, upped Nov. 6 to 10 mg twice a day. I want off it! Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus mammaP Posted December 3, 2013 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted December 3, 2013 Hi Kendra, thanks for starting your thread here. You can update it whenever you like and it will be like a journal for you. It would also help us if you could list the meds you have taken and when they stopped plus current meds. You can put this in your sig line. Instructions here. http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/893-please-put-your-withdrawal-history-in-your-signature/ I see you came off effexor and had a bad time with withdrawal. I am tapering effexor and it is a nasty one for withdrawal. Have you stopped buspar yet? If it were me I would taper but because you've only been taking it for a month you might be able to go faster than we usually recommend. A fellow moderator will be along soon to add their thoughts, which may be a little different to mine as I have no experience of buspar. I believe it is easier to taper than effexor so hopefully you won't get the same withdrawal and will feel better quite quickly. **I am not a medical professional, if in doubt please consult a doctor with withdrawal knowledge. Different drugs occasionally (mostly benzos) 1976 - 1981 (no problem) 1993 - 2002 in and out of hospital. every type of drug + ECT. Staring with seroxat 2002 effexor. Tapered March 2012 to March 2013, ending with 5 beads. Withdrawal April 2013 . Reinstated 5 beads reduced to 4 beads May 2013 Restarted taper Nov 2013 OFF EFFEXOR Feb 2015 Tapered atenolol and omeprazole Dec 2013 - May 2014 Tapering tramadol, Feb 2015 100mg , March 2015 50mg July 2017 30mg. May 15 2018 25mg Taking fish oil, magnesium, B12, folic acid, bilberry eyebright for eye pressure. My story http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/4199-hello-mammap-checking-in/page-33 Lesson learned, slow down taper at lower doses. Taper no more than 10% of CURRENT dose if possible Link to comment
Kendra Posted December 3, 2013 Author Share Posted December 3, 2013 I haven't stopped yet. I took the 10 mg this morning but I think I'm going to cut it in half for tonight- just 5 mg. History.... Lexapro- 2001/2002- not sure when I stopped. Prozac- started 2009 after miscarriage, continually upped dose over the years until 2013- at the max amount. Effexor- March 2013-September 2013 turned me into a lump on the couch. Withdrawal was terrible. Currently.... Wellbutrin- May 2013 to present. Buspar 5 mg twice a day for one week end of October, upped Nov. 6 to 10 mg twice a day. I want off it! Link to comment
Kendra Posted December 4, 2013 Author Share Posted December 4, 2013 Even the half a dose last night made me feel sick. I'm going to try and go without it today. History.... Lexapro- 2001/2002- not sure when I stopped. Prozac- started 2009 after miscarriage, continually upped dose over the years until 2013- at the max amount. Effexor- March 2013-September 2013 turned me into a lump on the couch. Withdrawal was terrible. Currently.... Wellbutrin- May 2013 to present. Buspar 5 mg twice a day for one week end of October, upped Nov. 6 to 10 mg twice a day. I want off it! Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus mammaP Posted December 4, 2013 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted December 4, 2013 Thank you for putting details in your signature. You've been on prozac than effexor and stopped in September, was that cold turkey? It must have been horrendous for you and can imagine how hard it was. I'm sorry but I don't feel experienced enough to advise now I've seen your history, you are most likey still having some withdrawal symptoms from the effexor, which is a terrible drug for withdrawal. Alto or one of the other mods will be along soon and will be able to offer more advice. Whatever you do I sincerely hope you can feel better very soon, I know what it is like to have little ones to look after, you need to be able to function. **I am not a medical professional, if in doubt please consult a doctor with withdrawal knowledge. Different drugs occasionally (mostly benzos) 1976 - 1981 (no problem) 1993 - 2002 in and out of hospital. every type of drug + ECT. Staring with seroxat 2002 effexor. Tapered March 2012 to March 2013, ending with 5 beads. Withdrawal April 2013 . Reinstated 5 beads reduced to 4 beads May 2013 Restarted taper Nov 2013 OFF EFFEXOR Feb 2015 Tapered atenolol and omeprazole Dec 2013 - May 2014 Tapering tramadol, Feb 2015 100mg , March 2015 50mg July 2017 30mg. May 15 2018 25mg Taking fish oil, magnesium, B12, folic acid, bilberry eyebright for eye pressure. My story http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/4199-hello-mammap-checking-in/page-33 Lesson learned, slow down taper at lower doses. Taper no more than 10% of CURRENT dose if possible Link to comment
Kendra Posted December 4, 2013 Author Share Posted December 4, 2013 I actually started reducing my dose of effexor in the end of may and it took me until september to get off of it completely and I still had the brain zaps and all the other awful withdrawal symptoms. It took about a month after I stopped completely for me to feel better. History.... Lexapro- 2001/2002- not sure when I stopped. Prozac- started 2009 after miscarriage, continually upped dose over the years until 2013- at the max amount. Effexor- March 2013-September 2013 turned me into a lump on the couch. Withdrawal was terrible. Currently.... Wellbutrin- May 2013 to present. Buspar 5 mg twice a day for one week end of October, upped Nov. 6 to 10 mg twice a day. I want off it! Link to comment
Administrator Altostrata Posted December 4, 2013 Administrator Share Posted December 4, 2013 Welcome, Kendra. If Buspar is making you sick, I would definitely go off it. The way you're doing it makes sense. Are you now taking 5mg twice a day? How did this affect you? This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner. "It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein All postings © copyrighted. Link to comment
Kendra Posted December 5, 2013 Author Share Posted December 5, 2013 I haven't taken any at all today and I feel pretty good! History.... Lexapro- 2001/2002- not sure when I stopped. Prozac- started 2009 after miscarriage, continually upped dose over the years until 2013- at the max amount. Effexor- March 2013-September 2013 turned me into a lump on the couch. Withdrawal was terrible. Currently.... Wellbutrin- May 2013 to present. Buspar 5 mg twice a day for one week end of October, upped Nov. 6 to 10 mg twice a day. I want off it! Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Petunia Posted December 5, 2013 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted December 5, 2013 You might want to continue with your plans to taper Buspar, rather than stop now. Its always a good idea to safely taper psychotropic medication because a significant minority of people do suffer from withdrawal effects, sometimes they don't become apparent until some time later. Perhaps you would be able to take 2.5mg 3 - 4 times a day, without getting sick. I have taken Buspar and found that when I took 5mg, I would get slightly dizzy for 1 - 2 hours after, if I took 10mg at a time, it was much worse. Here is a link to our Buspar tapering topic: http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/3210-tips-for-tapering-off-busipirone-buspar/?hl=buspar I'm not a doctor. My comments are not medical advise. These are my opinions based on my own experience and what I've learned. Please discuss your situation with a medical practitioner who has knowledge of tapering and withdrawal...if you are lucky enough to find one. My Introduction Thread Full Drug and Withdrawal History Brief Summary Several SSRIs for 13 years starting 1997 (for mild to moderate partly situational anxiety) Xanax PRN ~ Various other drugs over the years for side effects 2 month 'taper' off Lexapro 2010 Short acute withdrawal, followed by 2 -3 months of improvement then delayed protracted withdrawal DX ADHD followed by several years of stimulants and other drugs trying to manage increasing symptoms Failed reinstatement of Lexapro and trial of Prozac (became suicidal) May 2013 Found SA, learned about withdrawal, stopped taking drugs...healing begins. Protracted withdrawal, with a very sensitized nervous system, slowly recovering as time passes Supplements which have helped: Vitamin C, Magnesium, Taurine Bad reactions: Many supplements but mostly fish oil and Vitamin D June 2016 - Started daily juicing, mostly vegetables and lots of greens. Aug 2016 - Oct 2016 Best window ever, felt almost completely recovered Oct 2016 -Symptoms returned - bad days and less bad days. April 2018 - No windows, but significant improvement, it feels like permanent full recovery is close. VIDEO: Where did the chemical imbalance theory come from? VIDEO: How are psychiatric diagnoses made? VIDEO: Why do psychiatric drugs have withdrawal syndromes? VIDEO: Can psychiatric drugs cause long-lasting negative effects? VIDEO: Dr. Claire Weekes Link to comment
Moderator Emeritus Rhiannon Posted December 5, 2013 Moderator Emeritus Share Posted December 5, 2013 I add my voice to the "taper" people. I think you can probably taper pretty fast, though. It's common when people quit taking a drug that's causing side effects, they feel better at first because it's gone so they don't have the side effects, but then the withdrawal kicks in after a few days or weeks and it's not so great after all. If you can negotiate a path somewhere between not taking so much Buspar it makes your life impossible due to side effects, but not absolutely cold turkeying it overnight, I would recommend it. Maybe try staying on just a few mg, 3 or so, for 5-7 days, then 2, then 1, then off. CT might be fine for you but so often it's not, especially when people are in withdrawal from another drug, and I hate to see you risk it. Started on Prozac and Xanax in 1992 for PTSD after an assault. One drug led to more, the usual story. Got sicker and sicker, but believed I needed the drugs for my "underlying disease". Long story...lost everything. Life savings, home, physical and mental health, relationships, friendships, ability to work, everything. Amitryptiline, Prozac, bupropion, buspirone, flurazepam, diazepam, alprazolam, Paxil, citalopram, lamotrigine, gabapentin...probably more I've forgotten. Started multidrug taper in Feb 2010. Doing a very slow microtaper, down to low doses now and feeling SO much better, getting my old personality and my brain back! Able to work full time, have a full social life, and cope with stress better than ever. Not perfect, but much better. After 23 lost years. Big Pharma has a lot to answer for. And "medicine for profit" is just not a great idea. Feb 15 2010: 300 mg Neurontin 200 Lamictal 10 Celexa 0.65 Xanax and 5 mg Ambien Feb 10 2014: 62 Lamictal 1.1 Celexa 0.135 Xanax 1.8 Valium Feb 10 2015: 50 Lamictal 0.875 Celexa 0.11 Xanax 1.5 Valium Feb 15 2016: 47.5 Lamictal 0.75 Celexa 0.0875 Xanax 1.42 Valium 2/12/20 12 0.045 0.007 1 May 2021 7 0.01 0.0037 1 Feb 2022 6 0!!! 0.00167 0.98 2.5 mg Ambien Oct 2022 4.5 mg Lamictal (off Celexa, off Xanax) 0.95 Valium Ambien, 1/4 to 1/2 of a 5 mg tablet I'm not a doctor. Any advice I give is just my civilian opinion. Link to comment
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