Wellbutrin Xl Dosage Increase (Top voted first)

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I started taking 150 mg of Wellbutrin xl for anxiety. My first two days were tough with increased symptoms, which the pharmacist had already warned me of. The horrible side effects got less and less as the days progressed. By day 8 I was feeling great, anxiety was still lingering, not as bad. On day 13, I started the 300 mg, that was 7 days ago. I take it every morning at 8am. I am feeling good in the morning and every day around 1pm I start feeling horrible. Suddenly I am feeling drugged, dizzy, nauseous and disoriented. I continued to take it hoping these side effects would taper off like they did with the 150 mg, but it doesn't seem to be getting any better. I am still feeling as horrible now as I did when I first started the dosage increase. Do I just need to give it some more time? Any advice would be appreciated.

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8

My psychiatrist has me taking 150 mg Wellbutrin upon waking, then the other 150 at noon "to give me a boost." You might float the idea by your doctor.

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18

I've been on the generic wellbutrin 150mg XL for a month now. 2 days ago my doctor and I decided I could go up a dose and start taking 2 of the 150 XLs in the morning. Day one on the 300mg my depression started sneaking back in. I was irritable and just kind of moody. Today (day 2 of the 300mg) I lost it. I had a huge rage attack and I was crying uncontrollably and then I took a xanax and felt ok for the afternoon. Then it started to wear off and I got irritable again. It seems like the smallest things are making me so annoyed and angry. I felt ok on the 150s but I kept reading how GREAT you can feel on the 300mg. I called my Dr and she says just go back to taking 150mg again but here's the thing... If the 300 really is THAT much better then I wanna sick it out for a week or whatever and feel awesome but if I'm just gonna keep feeling so angry obviously I wanna go back to the 150 an stick with that. Has anyone felt this way? Does it get better? Should I stick it out or go back to 150. I keep feeling like I need the 300 cause I'll just feel so fantastic but that could be all in my head. Plus I don't wanna quit and go back to 150s and then again in 4 weeks try the 300mgs again and have to start all over with the side effects, especially if they're gonna start getting better... Does anyone have any advice? I wanna give the 300a fair shot but I can't afford to have a melt down everyday. Bleh, please help.

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25

I have been taking Wellbutrin XL 150 for 1 month and want to know if I should increase to 300 XL i had very harsh adjustment but now I have adjusted . I have anxiety so don't want to exasperate it .

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3

I too have the same reaction to the 300...and we take at same time. With issues exactly at 1!!!

Just over a month ago I started 150 xl watson generic for a week. Then two of 150 mg xl in am for for rest of month. The last week, I noticed the euphoria lessened.

Doc said ok to fill the script for a single 300 mg.
I have been on the 300 for 3 or 4 days now. I take at 8 am and by 1, I started feeling dizzy. Today, two times, while sitting. Felt panic setting in. Chest by stomach tight. Anxiety issues. Yawning to catch breath. Then, sadness and depressed for rest of day. Tired, no energy, irritable, angry...

I've been reading online about 300 mg generic not releasing steadily, like the 150 mg. I understand FDA pulled one generic and asked the other companies to do there own study.

I do plan on calling doc Monday am!

After feeling so well on the 2 pills of 150 (total 300), I am really concerned.
I had alot of energy. My aches and pains 90% gone. Was happy! No worrisome thoughts. Focused alot better. Slept way better all night. Less angry and irritable. I finally realized I was truly depressed for quite sometime and thrilled to be feeling so good again.

Its dissapointing to me that a single dose pill can release way too much, way too early in a 24 hr time released pill. This must be why I'm having side effects after 5 hours.

Will be much more costly if I have to go back to taking the two of 150 ....but worth it. Just hope the pharmacist will take my next two months worth back! I already paid the $60 copay for three months worth.

Hoping that this switch back will be a solution.

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4

@Lisa (post #2),

My apologizes for not getting back to you sooner!

Regarding your last question, I was referring to "1pm" being the weakest point of the medication's half life; when the drug begins to leave your system at a more noticeable rate.

It sounds like Kristin (post #3) can also confirm that this is the case. The "time-release pill" releases its contents way too early within a 24hr period to have any lasting effect.

That said, taking two of the 150mg appears to be the only reliable way to go until the manufacturer does some maintenance on their time-release capsules.

Hope this helps! :)

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15

Turns out I had an inner ear infection, so much of the nausea can be attributed to that. Finally went away. I am doing well on the brand Wellbutrin XL 150 mg. Can't say now whether it is better than the generic I was taking, but psychologically I feel that the time release on the brand is more consistent.

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22

I was started (after slowly tapering up from a single 150mg dose to get me started) on 300mg - but a 150 pill in the morning and 150 again in the afternoon, early enough to not interfere with sleep. It was stressed to me that timing did in fact make a HUGE difference, and since it is more expensive to use the smaller pills, I wonder if there would be absorption side effects to just using a pill cutter and splitting your 300mg dose through the day? Or sometimes dr's can write the prescription a bit differently so that you're getting the same amount of meds, but the insurance companies will see that your supply has to be twice as many of the smaller pills...though you've probably already looked into all of that! I have to set a daily timer on my phone for the 2x daily dose - because I was told it really is important to take it at the same time every day (as a mom of six, stopping everything you're doing at 4:00 every day to find your pill is no picnic, lol, but better than the depression and anxiety!).

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7

Do you know you can get brand name Wellbutrin through Direct Success Pharmacy for $50/ month. Another thread on this site talking about it and I looked into it. It is the real deal. You can google Wellbutrin and it will go to their site. It is the exact same pill and packaging that I got with the brand Wellbutrin from the pharmacy. NOT from Canada, made in the US. If you are having trouble with generics as a lot of people seem to, you can try the brand a lot cheaper now.

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9

My pharmacy has decided not to special order Watson 150XL for me after many years which I prefer size and coating and due to allergies to ingredients like yellow dye, etc. Also have Dysphasia from time to time taking 9-10 pills (servings :-D) first thing an hour after LEVOTHYROXIN, which is a separate issue altogether. I found Walmart can't promise same manufacturer from month to month. I have two relatively small pharmacies to choose from in town where I get ten prescriptions and often pick up mothers at the same time... So Walgreen's, Walmart, and other mail order companies are not much help in this either...

Just venting that pharmacy cares more about bottom line after almost 15 years of patronage from Mom and Dad and myself. Then AFTER I called in for refill they waited and I only had a few days to find them! Can't find the other drug manufacturer on label to give you comparisons.

Feeling powerless under the whim of this one stupid pharmacy. I hope you don't have this issue. Evidently Doctor cannot write script for brand specificity anymore.

I'd like to stop everything sometimes see if I'm their lab rat.

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20

I've been on Wellbutrin XL 150 for a few months now. I noticed my anxiety was not getting better and was very uncomfortable. My doctor put me on Buspar (generic version) a week ago but it takes about a month to start working. I'm using Klonopin just to get through until the Buspar starts working. Anyone have any experience using Buspar with Wellbutrin XL? I know it's all physical and can't wait for this feeling to subside.

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23

I have taken Buproprion 150 for over 10 years. Last week started having panic attacks, my doctor increased my dosage to 300 mg. Have only been on new dosage for 1 week. Started having anxiety, nausea, the funny feeling in the pit of my stomach, and what really scares me is the feeling of almost forcing myself to breathe. Has anyone else experienced these effects and will they go away with time?

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27

I took 150 mg generic wellbutrin for 2 weeks and then they put me on 300 1x day for 5 or 6 days. I do not feel dizzy or lightheaded, but I have the sensation that I'm falling to my left and today it was so bad I could hardly walk. I'm sure I looked like I was drunk! Also, my ears are ringing and buzzing very loudly. I have tinnitus any way, it's so much worse. But I'm worried about the falling sensation. Any one else had this side effect? Thanks.

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1

Hi Lisa,

From my perspective on what you mentioned about your dosing schedule, I think the side effects are reoccurring around 1pm because that's when the half life of the drug begins to take effect and your body may just be in shock from the "come-down".

Do you feel like 300mg might've been too much of a jump from the 150mg?

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10

I know it sounds like I am a spam ad for Wellbutrin, but I'm really not! You can go to another thread on this board that discusses generics (and the lack of reliability thereof) and that is where someone posted about Direct Success.

You don't have to put up with the roller coaster of generics when you can get either brand name Wellbutrin 150XL and 300XL for $50 per month.

I see so many people getting their generics switched without warning, or having unreliable batches. Why suffer! They are NOT equivalent to brand. Name brand is the only one that went through all the tests. It doesn't work for everyone of course but it is certainly worth a try if you are having problems with your generics.

I bought the brand name at CVS for $300+ after the generic my insurance covered made me sicker. I was really in distress because I can't afford that every month. I was searching the internet to find out about the generic I was taking (Global) and saw a post about Direct Sucess pharmacy doing a program with Valeant, who is now the manufacturer of the name brand Wellbutrin, which is manufactured here in the U.S., not in Turkey like the Canadian pharmacy. You just have your doctor fill out the form and fax it to them. What I received from Direct Success in the mail was exactly like the brand I had paid for at CVS. It is the real deal.

If you are having problems with terrible side effects or getting jerked around with the generics changing, it is certainly worth your while to try the brand.

I am honestly not connected with Direct Success in any way, I'm just so glad I found it and if someone hadn't posted on these boards about it, I wouldn't have found it myself. Good luck!

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11

I have been on Pristiq for about 6 years. Before that, I was on Paxil. These drugs had moderate side effects that I could live with and then the side effects went away. Bad news is that I gained 20 lbs. Asked Doctor to put me on Wellbutrin because I heard about the weight loss on it. I am very sensitive to drugs and react within a couple of days. Also, this was generic because I am a senior on a fixed income. The first day I felt great but had dizziness and excessive sweating to the point where I had to change my clothes a couple times a day. The second day the dizziness become worse, I work with children and could not bend down to pick up a baby, was afraid to drive. Later that same day, I became very nauseous and started vomiting. Lost 1 day of work and if I don't go, I don't get paid. Tried filing pill down to 75 mg. xl, I felt a little better, the dizziness was manageable and no being sick. The third day, there was no reduction in the side effects and I hate being sick like that. I stopped before the 4th day and went back on Pristiq. I got immediate relief. Has anyone found a way to beat the side effects? I did lose 6 pounds in a matter of a couple of days. Thinking of switching to generic Cymbalta. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thank you for your time.

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13

I have been on Wellbutrin XL 150 mg generic (Par) for about 2 months now. After a week of feeling great, I was supposed to increase to 300mg. I did that for about 4 days and thought I was going to die. I was so nauseous, felt like I was going to pass out, got extremely hot, etc. Went to the doctor and he said to go back to the 150mg. I'm still nauseous all the time. I just called Direct Success to get the brand name to see if that makes a difference. Is anyone on the brand who can tell me if they were nauseous on the brand? I read that this will go away, but so far it hasn't and I find it quite debilitating. Thanks in advance.

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14

Not helpful because I don't have extra $50 bucks a month to spend (Medicaid) !

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17

I know how you feel since my pharmacy stopped special ordering the Watson brand for me I've have difficulties. Because I am sensitive to dyes I take 3- 150mg when I get up so I haven't tried the 300mg pill. I think it was over a year ago they pulled them for which I was glad as I'm sure that contributed to some if my issues.

Wish manufacturers would all take responsibility on these issues to help keep side effects to a minimum.

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19

I have increased my dose twice now. Once from 100mg to 200mg, and most recently 200mg in the am and 100mg at noon. Each time I have increased my dose I have been irritable and depressed for at least a few days after while my body adjusted to the change, its like you have to go through the side effects phase all over again. :/ If I wasn't also taking Buspar for my anxiety things may have been worse than the occasional outbursts. I recommend sticking it out for at least the first 2 weeks, give your body a little bit of time to adjust to the new dose. Unless of course things get extremely bad... but I am doing great now that I have adjusted.

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21

Dr upped my well but rin from 300 xl to 450 I feel terrible physically mentally ifeel great b heaviness in head and body stomach pains and weird headache

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