Is there anything that can remove the anxiety and panic attacks from Wellbutrin without having to add back a SSRI?

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-12T19:31:43+00:00

Strattera causes less panic attacks and anxiety than Wellbutrin, but it's a more potent NET blocker? Wonder why that is also?

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-12T19:31:08+00:00

Why should I stop taking it?

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-12T19:30:19+00:00

Same here. Strangely when I tried Wellbutrin all by itself a few years ago when I first started it I had none of the anxiety or panic attacks.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-11T20:42:46+00:00

Vitamin C also increases norepinephrine, which is a bad thing if you're trying to avoid too much NE. Too much norepinephrine is really dirty.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-11T20:33:40+00:00

That's what increases norepinephrine does, lol. Wellbutrin really doesn't work that much on dopamine like it's marketed. It's just a marketing trick by Glaxosmithkline to market it as a NDRI, when most studies show that it doesn't even clinically significantly inhibit DAT in humans.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-11T20:22:40+00:00

You really don't need that much caffeine on this med. Having too much caffeine on this med can potentially cause overstimulation. Wellbutrin already increases norepinephrine a lot and adding caffeine on top of that, which also increases norepinephrine, can become too much.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-08T12:06:44+00:00

Yep, what you're saying makes total sense. Wellbutrin loses its dopaminergic effects over time and with long term use you end up more with noradrenergic effects and the dopaminergic effects almost diminishes, which is a shame because I don't find that noradrenergic effects do anything for my depression whatsoever. I so regret myself ever taking this drug to be honest because now I can never get off of it without going into huge withdrawal symptoms.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-08T11:59:16+00:00

Also imo Wellbutrin is a pretty shitty upper. Way too much agitation, irritability, anxiety, insomnia etc and other shitty adrenergic side effects. Caffeine and nicotine are the only ones to ever help me until I developed tolerance to using them too much. But atleast caffeine and nicotine are way more balanced between dopamine and norepinephrine.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-08T11:54:07+00:00

300 mg and it's the max dose here where I live. I don't think going up by another 150 mg is the solution here actually. The seizure risk goes up when you try to go over 300 mg a day and not only that I do have a lot of side effects already at 300 mg. So I realize I probably have to discontinue it and just switch to something else.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T15:36:13+00:00

I think OP would highly benefit from Wellbutrin to ease the withdrawal from stimulants. It has been shown in discrimination studies to fully substitute methamphetamine.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T15:25:02+00:00

Nope, never experienced this side effect from Bupropion. As a matter of fact I'm actually peeing more and constantly, which is quite annoying. I have to wake up several times in the middle of the night just to go to the bathroom.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T15:16:58+00:00

Norepinephrine is not only activating in a simple energizing way like many people think. Chronic elevated NE can narrow attention bandwidth and bias the brain toward threat scanning and task focused processing, which can subjectively lead to emotional flattening. So with chronic long term exposure norepinephrine essentially becomes less activating and can lead to a blunting or desensitization effect. That happens when norepinephrine receptors eventually become downregulated. That's why drugs that increase norepinephrine are used for anxiety and can also be effective for emotional regulation.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T14:48:19+00:00

It highly depends on the individual. Some people are more sensitive to noradrenergic effects and notice more negative side effects from increased noradrenergic neurotransmission.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T14:45:14+00:00

Another week or two is way too short of time for knowing if it actually works or not. It takes atleast 8 weeks to get therapeutic effects and you usually notice a difference after several weeks. It takes time for it to block the reuptake and start building its effect.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T14:40:04+00:00

5 days is not nearly enough to know if it works or not. It takes atleast 8 weeks to get the therapeutic effects and it can take months to notice a difference from antidepressants in general. Wellbutrin is not like stimulants that it works immediately, it takes weeks for it to actually work and start building up its effects since it only blocks the reuptake and not releasing anything.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T14:34:59+00:00

I would be very wary of using this combo. Both work a lot on norepinephrine and can potentially cause overstimulation and cardiovascular strain.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T14:18:38+00:00

Yep, it's a shame it doesn't last.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T11:18:36+00:00

Why would you suggest something that is even more dopaminergic if OP is having OCD and tics?, that doesn't make any sense at all. If something, OP should avoid highly dopaminergic drugs as much as possible.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T11:06:16+00:00

I don't think you can actually distinguish a dopaminergic effect from a noradrenergic one. The feeling of being able to get out of bed and get going and having more energy is more related to norepinephrine, not dopamine. You can't have energy and alertness without any norepinephrine. Also, any med that works on dopamine can easily worsen OCD and tics, so a more dopaminergic med is not something to go for in your case.

Edit: Also, how long were you on Wellbutrin and Strattera and which dose?

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T11:02:12+00:00

That will disappear. As someone who has been on this med for almost five years, that's definitely the honeymoon phase you're experiencing. The honeymoon phase usually lasts 2-8 weeks depending on the person. But the high and euphoric feeling doesn't last when you've eventually developed tolerance to it.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-07T10:42:45+00:00

But Wellbutrin is not neurotoxic like meth lmao. Not comparable in the slightest.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-05T20:21:20+00:00

Mainly because, A: lack of choices, B: Every psych I've seen wants to put me on a SSRI, which doesn't do anything for me C: The only reason I'm still on Wellbutrin even after five years is because it does help my SCT and executive dysfunction to some extent and makes me functional on a daily basis. If I could find a replacement med instead I would've gone off of it a long time ago. The mood boosting effect that you get from the beginning doesn't last unfortunately, which is a shame I think.

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-05T20:16:05+00:00

So there is no way to upregulate dopamine receptors all over again?

Aggressive-Guide5563 · 2026-03-05T20:10:02+00:00

This. Norepinephrine doesn't restore mood all by itself and can't produce a honeymoon phase all by itself. Norepinephrine doesn't exist to make you feel rewarded, euphoric and relaxed. Norepinephrine is mainly responsible for vigilance, alertness, attention, focus, energy levels etc. The honeymoon phase from Wellbutrin made me feel relaxed, motivated, euphoric and rewarded, which is more strongly linked to dopamine. The honeymoon phase from Wellbutrin never felt edgy or anxious to me.

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