I've been on wellbutrin for 8 years as of this March, and in those 8 years, it has changed me for the better in more ways than a few..

After reading over this subreddit and answering a lot of questions, I decided I'd make this post to answer some common questions about it, given my personal experience with taking it...

Some common questions I see here are::

1: Does it make you irritable / why am I so irritable? A: The irritability side effect in my personal opinion is dependent on your daily dosage.. For instance, in my case, I was put on 300MG a day to start out, then I went to 450MG, and 450MG made me SO irritable, I couldn't stand my own self at times.. I dropped back to 300MG a day, then down to 200MG, where I am now, and I have zero irritability, plus I get angry a lot less easy now.

2A: Does it help or hurt your sex drive? It will definitely help / increase your sex drive, instead of detract from your sex drive like SSRI's (Zoloft, Lexapro, etc..) do when taken by themselves. HOWEVER, if you're a man who's just starting out on it, you may find within the first ten days that you have a hard time maintaining an erection. I had this happen to me, and I can say with absolute certainty that this IS temporary and will go away within the first ten to 12 days..

2B: Will wellbutrin restore my sex drive if I'm on Zoloft or other SSRI's? Yes, particularly if the SSRI dose is low enough, it will restore your sex drive / sexual function. I personally am on 12.5MG of Zoloft and 200MG of wellbutrin a day and have normal sexual function / sex drive.. However, after adding zoloft to my wellbutrin, it DOES take longer for me to orgasm / finish during sex or sexual activity.

3: Why am I so anxious on wellbutrin, and what can I do about it? Wellbutrin increases dopamine production somewhat, and increased dopamine production can cause anxiety. If you're more anxious on wellbutrin, please consider a lower dose and / or a different generic brand of it to alleviate the anxiety.

4: Will I gain or lose weight on wellbutrin? You'll likely lose weight....even without actively putting in any effort to do so. I personally within the first few weeks of being on it went from 165 to 150 pounds without actually trying.. The wellbutrin melted the weight right off of me effortlessly.

5: What about different generic brands? Well, in my personal opinion, after 8 years on it, NOT ALL generic brands are created equal.. Some produce different effects -or side effects- than others.. Therefore it takes some "trial and error" to find what's best for you. I know that for myself, it took a bit of experimenting to figure out that the "ScieGen" brand was best for me when I was on 300MG/day..

6: What is the key to being on wellbutrin long term? In my personal opinion, it's all about finding the exact right dose for you.. Me, personally, I've experimented with doses up to 450MG a day before figuring out that I'm better off at 200MG a day.. Also, another key to being on it is figuring out exactly what generic brand is right for you as well. For me, my ideal dose turned out to be 200MG/day and my ideal generic brand turned out to be Solco (the little blue pill).

7: Can I drink caffeine / coffee / energy drinks on wellbutrin? Yes, but know your limits, ESPECIALLY if you have any kind of underlying heart conditions.. Drinks with caffeine in them will have a bigger effect on you even at lesser caffeine doses, so you'll be able to drink less caffeine and get the same result as you would with drinking the entire drink before you got on wellbutrin. The "catch 22" to drinking caffeine on wellbutrin, especially if you're taking 300 to 450MG a day is that it CAN make you irritable after the fact....so watch out about that when drinking caffeine drinks.

8: Can I drink alcohol on wellbutrin? Personally, I don't drink and never have, but I would say that in the interests of your health, and the fact that wellbutrin lowers your alcohol tolerance a bit, I would have to say NO.

9: What are some generic brands of wellbutrin you've tried, and what's your opinion of them?

Sun Pharmaceuticals: Good at first, but started making me feel dizzy and like I was going to faint at random times.. Ended up stopping it and switching to ScieGen.

ScieGen: Good overall brand, no real complaints other than it causing irritability if I took 450MG of it in a day.

Slate Run: Run far away from this stuff.. HATED it. Made my depression worse, ended up switching down to 100MG Solco brand twice a day just to get away from it.

Solco: Good overall brand, found out thru some experimentation that it's my ideal brand. No real complaints about it at all.

Mylan: Similar reaction to slate run.. Didn't make my mind as quiet as the Solco or ScieGen brands.. Not really a fan of it just in general.

Watson: Made me really irritable ALL the time.. Switched pharmacies just to change brands in short order after noticing how irritable I became while on it.

10: What can I do about the anxiety side effect of wellbutrin, aside from adjusting my dose or switching to a different generic brand? You can add low-dose Zoloft (sertraline) to wellbutrin to counteract the anxiety side effect. I've been doing this for quite a while myself, and so far so good. Not only has it shut down my anxiety, but it has seemingly helped the wellbutrin keep my mind quiet as well, which is rather nice.

10B: What would you consider "low dose" Zoloft? half of a 25MG pill, or 12.5MG taken once a day. That's what I've been doing for quite a while in addition to my wellbutrin and as mentioned above, it has really helped things along quite a lot.

11: The age old question: What's better, SR or XL? In my personal opinion, after doing some research and taking SR exclusively, I'd have to say that SR is better, as XL tends to produce more side effects, particularly irritability.

12: Can Wellbutrin help with adult ADD / ADHD? It's a good possibility, and some doctors prescribe it first when treating ADD / ADHD.

13: How did it change your personality for the better? Lots of ways. It made inside my head quieter, I could focus on things better and perform better at my job, and it made me into a much better version of myself overall. Not long after I got on wellbutrin, my parents and friends couldn't stop commenting on how much better my personality was after I got on wellbutrin versus before I got on it. Personally, I agree, they're right, and I would never want to give up this better personality I've gained from starting on wellbutrin 8 years ago. It's been well worth it to be this much of a better version of myself.

DISCLAIMER:: I'm NOT a doctor, psychologist, pharmacist, or other medical professional, and this is basically just some advice I'm giving out of personal experience with wellbutrin over the last 8 years I've been on it. Your mileage may vary, and as mentioned above, everybody's brain chemistry IS DIFFERENT, therefore what works for one person may not work for everybody....and in terms of wellbutrin, sometimes it does take trial and error to find out what's best for you.

I hope this helps! :-)