Wellbutrin for PTSD nightmares

Weed

I've been on Wellbutrin for 16 years for depression, and while it definitely helps depression, it also makes my anxiety worse sometimes. And Wellbutrin gives me energy, so I would never take this before going to bed. My dreams have always been vivid, but this medication never caused me to have nightmares.

If you're wanting something for sleep and to stop nightmares, I don't think this would be a good choice.

Yeah, Wellbutrin is basically a first cousin to amphetamines, so probably not a good choice for anxiety or PTSD.

I agree, it's not sleep-inducing nor is it relaxing, really.

You want xanax or one of the mellowing drugs.

I used to take Xanax. Now I’m on Lexapro.

R3 how exactly is it like meth? You're nuts. I have been on Bupropion, the generic form of Wellbutrin, for years. (Bupropion (also known as the brand name product Wellbutrin®) is a norepinephrine/dopamine-reuptake inhibitor (NDRI) used most commonly for the management of Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD), and as an aid for smoking cessation.) I have never liked SSRIs. Wellbutrin is the only NDRI as far as I know. I have never had bad dreams on Bupropion. The only real side effect is it causes shaky hands but as I take two supplements that naturally increase both serotonin and dopamine, those get rid of the shaking hands entirely. Shaking hands is a natural thing for PTSD. I have seen many who have it with PTSD.

This is the DL, OP, smoke copious amounts of pot.

I don’t really care about the sleep, I want to get rid of the nightmares or at least reduce them. Mind you, I’ve been on various psych meds for 20 years... I know a thing or two. I just want some honest , EXPERIENCED, input.

What are those nightmares that are so terrifying that you'd rather not sleep?

Wellbutrin caused vivid dreams (nightmarish) for me. I would not recommend it if you already have nightmares.

I am not experienced in this, OP, but I have a friend who had decades of it.

She has an elaborate bedtime ritual. Everything quiet, bath or shower, reading, low level light and eventually sleep. I was kidding about the copious amounts of pot but she smokes some before bed.

The content of the nightmares is irrelevant... Interesting, what was said about the shaky hands. I’ve had those for years and never understood why.

RN here. We use Prazosin where I work. . Here's a quick blurb off the web. Prazosin is an alpha-adrenergic blocker originally used to treat hypertension. "The reason we think it works in the setting of nightmares is that prazosin crosses the blood–brain barrier, so it gets into the brain and kind of dampens the norepinephrine effects, which we think contribute to nightmares. Also weed, as noted above, interrupts the dreaming process, really fragments it to the point where you have no recall. Hope this helps Hope.

Nightmares are one of the biggest symptoms of PTSD/ComplexPTSD. Not every one of them will have nightmares though but it is one of the main criteria. My younger sister has PTSD and she has had nightmares her whole life. She also went completely psychotic many times and required frequent hospitalizations. Her violence, police record got so bad she has been ordered by the authorities to take her meds or go to jail. Nightmares are a symptom of a seriously unwell mind that is not at peace. Psychic and neurotic conflicts reign supreme with these poor folks. If you have them there is really not much you can do about it. It would probably take decades of therapy to completely unravel all your psychic conflicts. I used to be prone to bad nightmares as a child but thankfully as an adult I rarely have them. Having NO dreams or at least not remembering them is a sign of being mentally well/healthy.

Oh Dear!

To be perfectly honest and anonymous online forum isn't a great place to seek medical advice. Your psychiatrist however is the perfect person to ask. Good luck.

To RN: Yes, I’ve read up on Prazosin. But I do not have high blood pressure at the moment. I just have that thing where if I bend down too long I get terribly dizzy when I stand up strait. What is that called, do u know? I just thought Wellbutrin because I’ve taken it in the past and it was relatively mild. The only side effect really was these EPIC nightmares, which at the time were benign, but stuffs happened to me in the past 10 years since I’ve taken it if u get my meaning... The last thing I need is epic bad dreams.!

R16 O please. Fuck psychiatrists. Most of them are just shills for BigPharma. If that is your only advice best to just bite your tongue. In other words, STFU.

Lol. Y’all gettin so serious about this. And to reply # 14... I’m sorry to say, but u are seriously misinformed! Nightmares are indeed a sign of mental “ unwellness “ But to take it to a level of judgement isn’t cool for your loved ones who suffer from them, or for me. Thanks for your input. BTW , people, I am working one on one with a psychiatrist. Its all good. She told me to read a book called The Body Keeps the Score. Look it up, it’s very clinical, but very spot on about what PTSD really is. It’s by Bessel Van Der Kolk, MD.

[quote]I don’t really care about the sleep

The less sleep that you get, the more delirious you will get, then when you finally do get to sleep, your nightmares will probably be worse. So you should care about sleep.

RN here: You have orthostatic hypertension per your description. I wouldn't rule out Prazosin if you don't have hypertension. We give clients 1 mg-4 mg and it doesn't lower blood pressure enough to cause problems. Other drugs like clonidine we do watch more closely. If your BP runs in the 115/75 range or higher it wouldn't be problematic--my opinion and I'm NOT a prescriber. Another tactic is acupuncture. Ask them to turn up your parasympathetic nervous system. I know this may sound weird but it worked well for me in terms of dropping my anxiety to a minimum. ( I'm an anti-pill nurse) The sympathetic nervous system is the fight or flight mechanism-- once overactive it tends to stay that way. Increasing the parasympathetic nervous system brings the balance back.

No offense, but try to sleep when you have a truly horrifying demon like figure standing over you pouring hot wax all over your body and you can feel it burning even through the sleep, and all you want to do is wake up but you can’t! Then listen to people tell you, girl, you need some sleep. Please. Ever see Nightmare on Elm St. 3? That’s me...

RN: Interesting! That makes total sense that me, but unfortunately things like that aren’t covered under my type of insurance. And the cost might be a little high in relation to the possible outcome of something like acupuncture. Just curious, have you looked at or read the book I mentioned before? It’s an amazing read if you know anyone with PTSD or any trauma in their background. Our bodies actually make up a sort of chemical shield so that if it’s ever threatened in the same way again it will react and defend itself. Period. By the way, I realize that one on one therapy is the best way to deal with this situation as it is. However as I’m going through some pretty serious marital issues right now, medication just seems the faster way to fix things for now until I can get therapy more intensive and start seeing more results from that. Get me?

Yes, Body Keeps The Score is pretty much the bible for PTSD. It is a very well known book.

Yup I understand. We have what's called community acupuncture where I live. Eight or so people all getting acupuncture in the same room. The provider moves from person to person and needles are only placed feet to knees, arms to elbows, and head and neck. The cost is sliding fee and i pay $30 a session. It took about THREE sessions for me to get 90% relief and this was for fairly serious anxiety and panic and the comorbid gut issues that went along with it. With the initial consultation it was $115. Any anti depressant will take 2-3 weeks to show any improvement. Acupuncture 'fixed' it in 10 days. I don't tend to read books like you describe-- I find it feeds symptoms rather than fixes them.

I have PTSD and was reluctant to sleep. I prayed asking for relief and I haven’t had a nightmare in the past 10 years. It worked for me.

[quote]My doctor has mentioned Wellbutrin to me before and I had been on it Years ago, and I remember my dreams being very vivid. My fear of going on this medication is that my dreams will get worse because of the vividness of them. Can anyone help me with this?

In my experience it either:

A.) caused me to have messed up but vivid dreams or

B.) caused me to not want to sleep at all.

It was like being on a bad stimulant for me. I lost a lot of weight. I was quick to anger. I was excessively (according to my friends) happy (and they hated it) and I had a lot of energy.

I stopped taking it after I had a MASSIVE anxiety attack that caused me to hyperventilate and lay on my office floor for 15 minutes because I couldn't think of what else to do while my admin stood over me fanning me.

I was warned by my doctor that, since I have anxiety attacks and have since I was 12 that it could make them worse but it only took it happening just once for me to know that I needed to be done with it.

See a therapist on a regular schedule and smoke a lot of weed or eat it or however you want to take it. It will work out much better for you in the long run.

R26 Prayer gets rid of nightmares? As if. Jebus cures all! Lol.

Wellbutrin is anxiety producing and a stimulant. It will rob you of sleep. I started taking it when I became so depressed I didn't even want to get out of bed. It helped immediately.

Ask your doctor about Trazodone. Helps me feel sleepy, but does give me vivid dreams. I suffer from PTSD too and the nightmares are not as often as they used to be.

Alcohol, OP. I used to drink myself to sleep every night, and never remembered my dreams.

R30 For most people, alcohol before bed causes poor sleep because you crash for about an hour or two, but then you wake up and have a hard time getting back to sleep. Once you finally do, you will be up again and hour later. Rinse and repeat the rest of the night.

If you have orthostatic hypotension, your MD may prescribe midodrine. For sleep I find trazadone or seroquel helps. Not sure if it’s good for what you have.