hi all,
i have been diagnosed with ADD one week ago, my dr. gave me wellbutrin SR but this medication made me irratable and nervous. does it work if i take depakote with? any suggestions, anyone tried wellbutrin for ADD b4. please help
and another question. does ADD has any relationship with mood swings? please hepl

Wellbutrin is not the treatment of choice for ADD, since it is mostly an antidepressant. I took it for a while before I realized I was ADD, and it didn't help either the ADD or the depression that much. However, if you are depressed, the MD might be trying to get that under control first before moving on to the ADD.

AFAIK mood swings are not a part of ADD per se, but ADDers frequently have co-occuring problems like depression, bipolar, etc. that can produce them.

Needless to say, IANAD, so keep in touch with a real one.

hey there, and welcome ...

here is the link to the Wellbutrin section of this forum

there is a lot of info there, i've found it quite useful ...

http://www.addforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=34

Stranger,

Not being a doctor, you should not give out medical advice on this forum. Especially not incorrect medical advice like what you posted. Taking it for ‘a while’ is not enough to judge Welbutrin. You need to take it for several months before giving up on it. Maybe you just gave up too soon. My doctor tells me that Welbutrin does help ADD and from my experience over five plus years, I think he is correct. Of course I also take stimulants.

Arcim,

You need to go back to the doctor immediately and have him prescribe the regular, NOT XR or SR Welbutrin. You have to build up to the XR or SR. I took Welbutrin for 3 years and it took me at least a year to build up to where I could take the SR, never mind XR.

I took over a year off of meds. When I went back my doctor gave me the XR and I could not tolerate it. I couldn’t sleep and I also had some of the same problems you describe. I had to go back to the SR and even then it took a few weeks before I was used to it.

By the way, it takes a while for your body to get used to Welbutrin. You won’t see a great deal of change for at least a month. But stick with it. It works.

When somebody asks a question, I try to answer it. If I am wrong to do so, then I won't answer any more questions.

I did not suggest I was a doctor, in fact I specifically stated I wasn't, so naturally any info I give is not intended to be the last word on modern medicine. But I can speak from personal experience, which suggests that wellbutrin did not produce any profound changes in either my ADD or my depression. Some drugs work for some people and not others--that's why they keep making new ones. Besides, how do you know how long I took it?

Stranger,

You said “...I took it for a while...” That's how I assumed I knew how long you took it. [I know, assume= A-S-S out of U & Me...] I read ‘a while’ to mean ‘not very long,’ which would not be long enough to judge the effects of any med. But I suppose some might interpret ‘a while’ as a longer period of time, even years. I guess reasonable minds can disagree on this one.

I do agree though that every person has a different experience with meds. They might work for some people and not others. There is nothing wrong with describing your experience but your first paragraph came off like medical advice in my opinion. Mostly because you were so sure of yourself. Especially this, “Wellbutrin is not the treatment of choice for ADD...” Who but a doctor can say that for certain in every case?

It might have been better to avoid the general statements about the nature of the drug and how it is used and just describe what happened to you. Those general statements are what got me going because my experience has been different and my doctor has told me otherwise.


FYI:

It [Wellbutrin] is used primarily as an antidepressant. However, it affects the same chemicals in the brain (dopamine and norepinephrine) that other drugs for ADHD effect. As a result, it has been tried in ADHD in children and adults. There are only a few studies of this drug in children. However, all of them have found it to be effective. In the one study which compared it to Ritalin, it was found to be almost, but not quite, as effective as Ritalin. (3) It has been used in children who have Conduct Disorder, Substance abuse problems and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder and it has been found to be helpful.



Link (http://www.klis.com/chandler/pamphlet/adhd/medtx.htm)

Hi
Don't worry if you have to try several different medications before you find the one that is right for you - that's happened to lots of people here too. But remember that you are the customer here & if you are not happy with the performance of the product it is your right to go back to the doctor & question it & maybe try something else. Hang in there!