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JOURNEY THROUGH WELLBUTRIN
By Nikki and Anne Heart ♥ March 27, 2025
(Originally published: April 3, 2023)
*Although we wrote this post together, we have chosen to present the following through Nikki’s eyes.
Nikki's Story: Journey through Wellbutrin
In my freshman year of college, I was prescribed medication for depression. For seven long years, I trudged through an endless cycle of pain, until one day, I finally recognized that something was seriously wrong.
This is the story of one of the many paths I took in search of help.
Learning Through My Journey
During my summer college break, at nineteen, I was prescribed Wellbutrin, adding it to the three other medications I was already on for depression.
Planning my return back to college, I longed for any relief from the ongoing pain I experienced. So, without hesitation or questioning, I took the prescribed Wellbutrin.
From the beginning, I didn’t feel well on Wellbutrin. I constantly encountered extreme depression, nauseousness and irritability.
At the time, my healthcare provider was a nurse practitioner who treated me from the beginning of my journey. She assured me that I would eventually adjust to the Wellbutrin and that the symptoms I was experiencing would subside. Naturally, I trusted her.
After five weeks, my physical and mental health began to decline. Convinced that the symptoms I was experiencing were side effects of the Wellbutrin, I decided to reach out to her once more.
During this conversation, she firmly told me that what I was experiencing wasn’t side effects from the Wellbutrin, but rather the result of my “mood disorder.”
With no further explanation given to me regarding this unclassified diagnosis, I sadly accepted this information without question.
Deep down, both myself and my mom, knew something was off, but we trusted her professional expertise.
And again, my medication was once again altered with no other evaluation nor treatment plan discussed.
A beginning of a new world for me started at the time Wellbutrin was prescribed - a world I recognized now as "medication management."
Concerned about returning to college, the healthcare provider assured me she could provide medication management over the phone.
So being confident in her advice, I returned to college.
Speaking with her via phone calls, my Wellbutrin dosage was increased. My symptoms became intolerable. I now experienced body shakes and increased depression irritability and anger.
After nine days on the increased dosage, I could no longer physically nor mentally handle the increase.
Naturally, I was told to decrease the Wellbutrin dosage.
The first day, I lowered my dosage, I did feel some relief. But unfortunately, something else came into play soon after.
Every time I moved, the whole room would follow. I became confused and disoriented. I wasn't sure what was happening.
I was alone and scared. I immediately called my mom and luckily was able to reach her. Together we were able to talk through the episode.
Fortunately, my routine scheduled call with my healthcare provider was the same day. Alarmingly, I informed her what was going on.
She nonchalantly stated, “It is just withdrawal.”
She explained with the decrease to the Wellbutrin dosage, withdrawal can occur and reassured me it should pass in a day or two.
After several days, I still continued to struggle. I had very few days in which I felt well. In fact, the majority of the time I felt awful.
I was prescribed Wellbutrin for almost two years from June 2011 to April 2013.
During this two year period on Wellbutrin, my dosage was altered several times along with constant adjustments to my other drug prescriptions.
My overall wellness persistently declined.
During the period I was on Wellbutrin I experienced:
- Anxiety
- Increased depression
- Body shakes
- A rash
- Nauseousness
- Stomach pain
- Hallucinations
- Irritability
I also experienced what I referred to as crazy thoughts.
It was hard to distinguish which side effects came solely from Wellbutrin or were caused by the combination of medications I was currently on.
But I do know, it was the overall drugs prescribed to me.
In 2013, I changed my mental healthcare provider. Immediately I was taken off of Wellbutrin and prescribed a different antidepressant in the SSRI group,
Awareness from My Journey
I, like most people, was taught to trust the medical professional and not question the true reality of the situation.
I questioned the obvious things and so did my mom.
But at that time, my mom nor I had the knowledge we needed to prevent inadequate treatment from happening.
What You Need to Know
- All the facts regarding a prescription drug
- Different pill formulation such as immediate-release (Wellbutrin), extended-release (Wellbutrin ER), sustained-release (Wellbutrin SR), and sustained-release (Wellbutrin XL), each have its own dosage guidelines.
- Prescription drugs can have different manufacturers which can cause slight alterations in the drug
- Inactive ingredients can change
- Some people have allergic reactions to ingredients in medications such as preservatives
- Side effects from medications and chemicals can mimic mood disorders
- Combination of drugs may not have been tested even though there are no known reactions to taking together
- Be aware of withdrawal symptoms
- Recognize your symptoms
- Always question
- And always trust how you react to a certain medication
Final Notes:
The details of my withdrawal episodes over the years aren’t always as clearcut as the original episode I experienced with Wellbutrin.
I contribute this to the difficulty in distinguishing withdrawal from side effects.
All too often it was simply because of the overlapping occurrence of both with multiple prescription drugs involved.
After This Journey:
It has been years since I was prescribed Wellbutrin or any other mental health prescription drug.
Since then, the following has happened:
- Following withdrawal from my last drug prescription, I was diagnosed and treated for hyperthyroidism, noting my dad also was treated for hyperthyroidism years prior.
- I have also been diagnosed with a glutamate disorder which requires me to eliminate preservatives from my diet.
- Recently, I have officially been tested and diagnosed with major allergies to Nickel, Colbalt and balsam of peru which are in medications, pharmaceutical products, cleaning products, etc.
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” The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence.”
-Albert Einstein-
Note: All information in “Nikki’s Story and Mom’s Story” are based on detail journals covering seven years of Nikki’s life on prescription drugs.
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