so i am on adderall, and it has been working for me. but i am still having a lot of problems with motivation. i have definately noticed some improvement with the adderall but i feel like i need more. and i dont think i necessarily need more of a stim, but maybe an added bonus of wellbutrin? the results some people reported from wellbutrin is anger, and its almost what i need. i want anger to push me into doing something better with my life. i am wondering if the reason i have such a problem with this is because of depression perhaps and not necessarily add? i am so ok with just sitting here doing nothing with my life that it drives me crazy. has anyone consistantly had an improvement with this sort of problem on wellbutrin?

thanks,

laura

Wellbutrin doesn't make me or my daughter angry. I can't say that Wellbutrin motivates us either.

Wellbutrin generally gives some people a moderate energy boost and some mood elevation. It can help to reduce anxiety. It doesn't often create motivation, but for some people the mood elevation and energy help in that direction. Still, I would say it is mild.

I did find it reduced anxiety and it even gave me periodic mild euphoria (some-what beyond "mood elevation"). It still does, and I've been taking it for over four months.

Stimulants gave me some additional energy and focus, but not really motivation. I also wasn't able to better plan or prioritize, also shifting tasks was difficult. I've recently started on Strattera and that actually seems the best for me so far in terms of motivation.

It isn't motivation in terms of drive so much as it feels as though picking a task and starting it and following through are all easier. And I think I felt as you do - somewhat frustrated and "held in place". So in a way the motivation (and the ideas) are there...its just hard to sort through them and act on the. With stimulants I could be busy but in a sense I was still procrastinating (busy doing one thing when I should be doing something that's more important). Strattera seems to make breaking away from that much easier. Plus it seems easier to go from a general idea to picking first steps. But its only been a short trial so far - I don't want to sing its praises too highly just yet.

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Wellbutrin can cause some emotional volatility. That is generally an initial response (within the first two weeks) and it is generally infrequent and passing, if the dosage isn't too high. The type of anger people experience isn't quite like conviction or "force of will" - it is more like a flare up that is beyond what is reasonable, given the situation. The same characteristics apply in cases where it prompts sadness or a sense of distress. Over time the general attribute of Wellbutrin is promoting an evenness - just the opposite of these initial flare ups.

Strattera impacts some of the same nuero-transmitters and I have even felt those kinds of feelings (but much less pronounced) with Strattera. But I believe they are just occuring because I am still becoming accustomed to the drug.

These are my personal experiences and what I have gathered from other peoples' accounts...but responses can vary (as do dosage levels and increases in dosage levels). Some people can take Wellbutrin (or Strattera) and not experience anything at all.

I take both Adderall and Wellbutrin, but I time it so the Adderall is in the AM to Mid-afternoon, then at 2:00PM I take WBXL300. This combo provides me the best focus and motivation to do things. On Adderall alone I would be complacent and hyperfocus on surfing the web, et al. The WB provides a PM energy boost, when the Adderall is crashing, and balances me out - so I don't snap at people like I did when without WB. It is worth noting that Bupoiron (WB) is a Stimulant, chemically classified as an Amphetamine because it meets the following criterian: Phenethylamines carrying an alpha-methyl (α-CH<SUB>3</SUB>) group at the sidechain carbon atom next to the amino group (3-chioro-N-tert-butyl-β-keto amphetamine).

For the first 3-4 weeks... but it was more like I had a combination of mental clarity and energy, so that made it easier to be motivated and able to complete tasks.

For me, my motivation gets zapped when it takes me an hour to complete a task that should only take 10 minutes because I'm scatter-brained. I eventually just give up sometimes.

Now that I've been on it for a few months, I don't notice it being too much of a help ADD-wise.