They’ll likely monitor your blood pressure throughout treatment with the drug. Clinical trials showed that high blood pressure was serious enough in some people to where they had to stop taking Wellbutrin. This side effect was common in clinical trials of Wellbutrin SR and Wellbutrin XL. Clinical trials of Wellbutrin XL recommend a maximum daily dose of 450 mg. Clinical trials for Wellbutrin SR recommend a maximum daily dose of 400 milligrams (mg). If you need to increase your dose, it will be done slowly and over a longer period of time.

Overdose Information for Wellbutrin

Effects that may continue after you stop taking this drug include hallucinations, paranoia, and confusion. Other long-term side effects of Wellbutrin include new or worsening mental health problems. If you have suicidal thoughts or behaviors with Wellbutrin, your doctor will have you stop taking it. The drug has a boxed warning for this side effect, which is the most serious drug warning the FDA issues.

Pregnancy

Finally, taking Wellbutrin during a different time of the day can help adjust when nausea is felt the most. Some people also benefit from taking chews or drinks that contain ginger. Finally, changing the time of day you take Wellbutrin can cause headaches to happen at night when you are asleep, allowing for less headaches during the day. Options to manage headaches can be treatment as needed with Tylenol or Ibuprofen.

Ask your pharmacist or other healthcare provider if you are not sure how to take the bupropion product you are prescribed. Do not share bupropion with other people, even if they have the same condition as you. Do not stop taking bupropion without talking to your healthcare provider. Do not take bupropion unless it has been prescribed to you by a healthcare provider.

There shouldn’t be any major difference in the type of side effects between the two forms when used to treat depression. The main difference between these drug forms is that Wellbutrin XL is released slower in your body. This is because they have the same active ingredient, bupropion hydrochloride. Here are some frequently asked questions about the drug’s side effects and their answers. Before you start treatment with Wellbutrin, your doctor will check your blood pressure.

International Patients

• If you use this medicine to prevent depression with seasonal affective disorder, take it during the autumn season before your symptoms start.
• Your doctor may recommend an eye exam before starting treatment.
• However, their elimination half-lives are longer, 33 (±10) and 37 (±13) hours, respectively, and steady-state AUCs are 1.5 and 7 times that of bupropion, respectively.
• Other serious reactions reported with overdoses of bupropion alone included hallucinations, loss of consciousness, mental status changes, sinus tachycardia, ECG changes such as conduction disturbances (including QRS prolongation) or arrhythmias, clonus, myoclonus, and hyperreflexia.
• In vitro findings suggest that CYP2B6 is the principal isoenzyme involved in the formation of hydroxybupropion, while cytochrome P450 enzymes are not involved in the formation of threohydrobupropion.

Talk with your doctor about your health history before starting Wellbutrin. Your doctor will help you decide whether it’s the right treatment for your condition. Wellbutrin may not be safe for everyone with depression. They can then use this information to adjust your treatment plan if needed.

Seizures and suicidal thoughts are two of the most serious potential side effects of Wellbutrin. If you stop suddenly, your symptoms may worsen or you may experience Wellbutrin withdrawal. The drug can be taken on an empty stomach or with food and should be stored at room temperature, protected from light and moisture.

• Stopping this drug suddenly could cause your depression to return or worsen.
• Consider the risks to the mother of untreated depression and potential effects on the fetus when discontinuing or changing treatment with antidepressant medications during pregnancy and postpartum.
• In postmarketing experience, there have been rare reports of adverse neuropsychiatric events or reduced alcohol tolerance in patients who were drinking alcohol during treatment with WELLBUTRIN.
• Do not take any other medicines while you are taking WELLBUTRIN unless your healthcare provider has said it is okay to take them.
• While less common, the most serious side effects of bupropion are described below, along with what to do if they happen.

If your doctor decides you should stop taking this drug, they’ll likely lower your dose slowly. Withdrawal symptoms weren’t reported in the drug’s studies. Withdrawal symptoms are side effects that can happen when you stop taking a drug that your body is used to having. These side effects may resolve after your doctor lowers your dose or stops your treatment. But your risk may continue after you stop taking the drug.

Allergic reaction

Stopping abruptly can also lead to discontinuation syndrome, an array of flu-like symptoms such as stomach upset, headache, strange sensations, and muscle aches. Going «cold-turkey» with any antidepressant can cause your symptoms to come back or get worse. In either case, don’t stop taking Wellbutrin until you’ve checked with your health provider first. The most common Wellbutrin side effects tend to be the least serious and are likely to be temporary. Using Wellbutrin with alcohol may also influence the frequency and severity of side effects, including seizures and suicidal thoughts. If you are having suicidal thoughts, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 for support and assistance from a trained counselor.

Bupropion

For example, exercising regularly and increasing your fiber and water intake during the day can help. To help prevent nausea, some people take Wellbutrin with food. Nausea is more likely if you’re taking a higher dose of Wellbutrin. In studies, constipation and nausea were common side effects that occurred when starting this drug.

Do not chew, cut, or crush bupropion. Tell your healthcare provider if you drink a lot of alcohol and have suddenly stopped. Your pharmacist can tell you all of the ingredients in the specific bupropion products they stock. People who are allergic to any of the following should not take bupropion. Not everyone is at risk for this problem. Bupropion may increase pressure inside the eye and cause or worsen a certain type of eye problem called narrow-angle glaucoma, which can lead to blindness.

Wellbutrin (Bupropion) Side Effects

Take this medicine only as directed by your doctor. The presence of other medical problems may affect the use of this medicine. Using this medicine with any of the following is usually not recommended, but may be unavoidable in some cases. In these cases, your doctor may want to change the dose, or other precautions may be necessary. Appropriate studies performed to date have not demonstrated geriatric-specific problems that would limit the usefulness of bupropion in the elderly. Appropriate studies have not been performed on the relationship of age to the effects of bupropion in the pediatric population.

This medication may be prescribed for other uses; ask your doctor or pharmacist for more information. Your doctor may decrease your dose gradually. Do not stop taking bupropion without talking to your doctor. Continue to take bupropion even if you feel well. It may take 4 weeks or longer before you feel the full benefit of bupropion.

Because clinical trials are conducted under widely varying conditions, adverse reaction rates observed in the clinical trials of a drug cannot be directly compared with rates in the clinical trials of another drug and may not reflect the rates observed in clinical practice. It is generally agreed that acute episodes of depression require several months or longer of antidepressant drug treatment beyond the response in the acute episode. After 3 days of dosing, the dose may be increased to 300 mg/day, given as 100 mg 3 times daily, with at least 6 hours between successive doses. To minimize the risk of seizure, increase the dose gradually see WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS.

If my dose of Wellbutrin is increased from 150 mg to 300 mg, will I experience more side effects?

You may require a different dosing schedule if you have certain health conditions. Talk to your healthcare provider about which is right for you. Your healthcare provider may prescribe a modified dosage of Wellbutrin due to possible side effects or another health concern. For example, bupropion may also be prescribed for weight loss. How quickly your medication works may depend on what it has been prescribed to treat.

General Health

Yes, certain side effects of Wellbutrin are dose dependent. This drug may cause mild side effects other than those listed above. But if you have symptoms that are ongoing or bothersome, talk with your doctor or pharmacist.

The chance of having seizures increases with higher doses of WELLBUTRIN. Before taking WELLBUTRIN, tell your healthcare provider if you have ever had depression or other mental health problems. It is important for you to follow-up with your healthcare Wellbutrin side effects provider until your symptoms go away. In many people, these symptoms went away after stopping WELLBUTRIN, but in some people symptoms continued after stopping WELLBUTRIN.

Your doctor will assess your symptoms and help you figure out what the possible cause could be. There are many factors that can contribute to hair loss, such as other medications, genetics, and hormone changes in your body. They can determine the safest way for you to stop treatment with Wellbutrin. You should never stop a medication without discussing it with your doctor first. If you have questions about side effects with your dose of Wellbutrin, talk with your doctor or pharmacist. However, side effects at the 150 mg dose may indicate that you might not be able to tolerate Wellbutrin long-term.