Anybody ever take ZYBAN (Bupropion Hydrochloride)?

[davsand]

Did it work for you? Did it make it easier to quit smoking? Did it have side effects when you used it?

My doc gave me Zyban to use to quit smoking, and I'm wondering what I'm in for if I use it...

Please give me your feedback!


Laura

[NNadir]

1. I've never smoked but I heard it works well.

[mr_hat]

2. Also marketed as the anti-depressant Wellbutrin, IINM. >

Have a buddy who uses it for depression/anxiety. Swears by the stuff, but then he's a non-smoker.

[arwalden]

14. Doesn't Zyban Cost More Than Wellbutrin...

... even though it's the same medicine that's labeled differently and prescribe for two different reasons.

That sucks.

-- Allen

[mr_hat]

15. You figure in the $$$ you're not spending on smokes...

I'll bet that's the marketing rationale that supports the pricing.

[arwalden]

17. Yep... For Me, Six Weeks Of Nicotine Patches

cost more than cigarettes... but, the results made it all worthwhile (and that was over 2 and a half years ago.)

Still... it's a shame that the SAME product has it's price jerked up. It's like a final "gotcha" to smokers. Not really fair IMO.

-- Allen

[miss_kitty]

3. I took Wellbutrin and ended up nearly dead

due to an allergic reaction. I don't recommend it. Have you thought of hypnosis? Zyban (wellbutrin) is a heavy drug. Read the warnings and side effects CAREFULLY if you decide to go ahead.

[tridim]

4. I tried it once

I'm a very laid back person and the drug turned me into a pissed off asshole. I had to quit Zyban after 3 days. I think my reaction was rare, so you might want to do some net research.

[miss_kitty]

7. No wellbutrin caused a profound change in personality for me, too

two weeks before the allergic reation kicked in...People kept asking, "Are you OK?" I was pissed off and edgy.

[Deja Q]

5. That's wellbutrin. I had. Developed a problem after 18 months.

Spasms.

Spasms exacerbated by fatigue or stress.

The spasms affect the left side of my body.

The last couple of weeks have seen these spams happen a little more frequently; to the point of occurring when standing; I nearly collapsed.

I took it officially for depression, but it helped my (then undiagnosed/unconfirmed) ADD.

[liberalmuse]

6. Yes it did!

I set a goal for 14 days but quit in 10 and haven't had a cigarette since, which was over 6 years ago. I was also a chain smoker at 1 pack a day, but there were times I could almost smoke 3 packs a day. God, I sound like a commercial.

Basically, Zyban makes smoking seem dull, which I never thought was possible because I loved smoking (hated not breathing, though, and the gunk that collects in the lungs-yuck!). It does something in the brain so you just don't enjoy smoking the longer you take the pill. I wish you luck!

[wellstone_democrat]

19. Exactly my experience!

No big "hit" of nicotine feeling but more a "feh..."
interesting effect and, as I said below, I wasn't expecting it to work at all.

No side effects for me other than positive ones---my chronic low-grade depression problem is gone and it suppressed my appetite a bit so I lost weight as well. And, I was an *enthusiastic* smoker.

[Liberal Veteran]

8. I did just fine on it....and quit smoking.

Going on 3 years without a cigarette and don't regret taking the wellbutrin.

[AlCzervik]

9. I took it for 3 weeks and then i stopped

It made me lightheaded and i had severe dry mouth. I did not enjoy but i will say that it made me not want to smoke. I also 12 lbs on it, i think i must have drunk 2 gallons of water a day while taking it.

[PassingFair]

10. I used Zyban when I tried to quit 4 years ago...

Seemed to help somewhat. I fell off the wagon in Paris during vacation, but it was kinda preplanned. Couldn't sip espresso at cafes without Gitanes!
When I came home and got off the Zyban I started smoking again.
I took the Zyban because studies showed that in conjunction with nicotine gum or the patch, users experienced no weight gain. This was important to me....
I felt no side effects from the Zyban, and indeed did not smoke, nor gain weight whilst on the plan.

Story has a happy ending..................
Have been smoke-free for over 2 years now, using nothing but nicotine gum. I gained 40 lbs! Egad! But I've lost 20 and am working (hardly) at losing the rest.
What did it for me? MONEY...I simply couldn't justify the expense. For heaven's sake, I couldn't make the health insurance payment, so my husband and I BOTH quit. Had to suck it up and gain the weight, but I determined that quitting was "priority one" and the rest is history.
I still LOVE the smell of cigs, even stale old offices and such, and I know that if I spark up even ONCE, it will be right back to 2 packs a day.
I just remind myself when I get a craving that smoking will NOT alleviate the craving, I will just want more and have cravings every 5 minutes like before. I can live with fighting the urge 4 or 5 times a week....
Good Luck, and sorry for rambling..............

[ScreamingMeemie]

12. What were you saying???

:smoke:

[latebloomer]

11. It can have a LOT of crazy side effects

My mom, 2 days after she began taking it, hallucinated, slid to the floor and couldn't get up, was dizzy for days-- I googled Welbutrin and found all her symptoms among possible side effects.

Someone else I knew couldn't eat or sleep, got extremely anxious and agitated.

However, I know quite a few others who have had no particular side effects-- on the other hand, they were taking it for depression and I didn't see any particular improvement either.

[davsand]

13. Yikes! What a mixed reaction!

This is kind of creepy to see! Those who did well with it seem to think it is just fine and those who had reactions to it make it sound awful! I'm a bit wary because I had a terrible reaction to Ambien--a sleeping pill--it gave me massive panic attacks!

I realize they are diferent drugs, but I have to say, that made me wary of ANY pills that deal with neurotransmitters or emotional stuff. I lived thru three days of wave after wave of panic and anxiety from that other stuff, and I swore never again!

I asked my Doc about the possibility of the same reaction to Zyban, and she told me that the worst problems she has seen with Zyban is the dry mouth thing...

Thanks, all of you, for the feedback. I think I better read some more stuff about it before I start down this path!

Still smoking, but looking to quit...

Laura

[DemExpat]

21. Prozac increased panic attacks in me 8 years ago

and after stopping it took 6 months to get over....:-(

I know now not to mess with my brain and nervous system.

Best of luck, my hubby succeeded after many attempts with the nicotine gum.

:hug:

DemEx

[politicat]

29. The way they work is completely different.

I know that reading the patient insert on the clinical pharmacology can be painful and difficult at the best of times, but i'll try to put it in lay terms as best as I can.

The way buproprion works on the brain is not entirely understood, but it is a norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitor. The norepinephrine inhibition is what probably causes seizures in those susceptible to them. Unfortunately there's no good way to know if someone's susceptible to seizures if they are not an active seizure patient. (Remember the whole Pokemon thing - many of the kids who seized had no previous history of seizure.) It also has a Central Nervous system stimulant effect, which is the opposite of Ambien. The dopamine reputake inhibition is probably what makes people feel good or better while on it because dopamine is the neurotransmitter in the brain that is associated with pleasure. (It's a big part of orgasm, the runner's high, and it is what opiates mimic. As it happens, it's also what nicotine mimics.)

The way Ambien works on the brain is somewhat better understood. It's a muscle relaxant, a tranquilizer and a hypnotic. The neuro-receptors that are affected are not the same at all. I can say that your reaction to ambien was considered a rare side effect - less than 1% of trial users had panic attacks.

Of course, it's your body, so you need to determine the risk, but please do so with as much information about the chemistry as you can understand. Getting your medical advice from a bunch of random strangers on the web means you're likely to get both very negative and very positive extremes, rather than objective information. The objective information is going to come from the chemistry and the clinical trials, not us.

Good luck, and I hope you manage to quit soon.

Pcat

Edited to add: No, I don't work for the drug companies and I get nothing for recommending them. I'm a psychologist, not a psychiatrist. I can't touch a scrip; the pharmacology is because I'm interested in the chemistry and took the classes while in grad school.

[MnFats]

16. A friend mentioned two side effects:

increased sex drive;
you might say 'hey-hey,' but she cited instances of inexplicably "acting like a slut' (her words).
but maybe she was looking for an excuse.
there's that and:
memory loss.



google search "Welbutrin, sex drive"
and
"Welbutrin, memory loss" and you'll see what I'm talking about.

[davsand]

20. Being married that should make hubby's day!

As for memory loss, well, I find that in this household it is impossible to ever live very much down... :)

Laura

[wellstone_democrat]

18. I liked it and it could not have been placebo effect

as I didn't believe it would work at all---I was humouring the nurse practioner!
It did work well but, you certainly can "over ride" it as you don't crave as many cigs at all but it isn't like you get nauseous if you do smoke. I used Nicorette for cravings but it was easy to quit and I LOVED to smoke.

It also had the effect of suppressing my appetite so I got double the "bang for my buck"

best of luck

[RebelOne]

22. I am taking Wellbutrin now.

And it is not doing a damn bit of good. I have not had any side effects, though. But it is just not working. I'm smoking just a little less, but I cannot quit completely.

[davsand]

23. Did your Doc tell you if the patch was ok to use?

I've seen some articles that say the patch can help a great deal in conjunction with Zyban. You may want to check with your Doc and see if that would help...

Just a thought!

I took the first dose this morning. We'll see how I'm feeling as the day goes on...

Thanks, everyone for helping me out with your stories and experiences. It means a lot!

Laura

[Phillycat]

24. Took it to quit smoking.

Worked, I quit for 3 months. However, I gained 35 pounds and it took me 2 years to get it off. Never again. I'd rather be dead than that heavy again, I hated myself.

[BiggJawn]

25. Yes, Yes, and NO.

I took Zyban for 2 weeks before my "Quit Date", and for 6 weeks afterwards. That was St. Paddy's Day 2003.

I have not smoked since.

I had no side effects. Well, things that were bothering me at that time didn't seem to be such a big deal...Maybe I should go back on it...

Anyway, I did not notice any "side effects" that were negative.

Now, my GF tried Zyban, and while it reduced the ammount she smoked (I noticed that effect, too. by my quit date, I was down to 5 cigs a day) She could NOT bring herself to pick a day to throw the damn things down the shitter. After 4 months of me encouraging her to "Just pick a day and QUIT, dammit!" I finally suggested that it was pretty stupid to be spending $50 a month on pills that were supposed to help her stop spending $160 a month on cigarettes....

Good luck!

[juslikagrzly]

26. Works well for relief from physical symptoms of nicotine withdrawal

my understanding of Zyban and Wellbutrin (yes, same drug, more expensive for smoking cessation) is that the active ingredient binds to the same brain receptors that nicotine binds to, thus you don't crave the nicotine anymore.

It does have some pretty strong stimulant properties, as does nicotine. Most smokers get a "paradoxical" effect from nicotine and actually experience stress relief when they smoke a cigarette (physical and psychological). Zyban doesn't exactly do this. I took it for about 2 months. First week, couldn't sleep AT ALL.

You need to remember too that quitting smoking is very stressful on your body, ultimately good in the long run of course, but your body will react powerfully to the lack of the nicotine. So, some of the stress reactions can be attributed to this.

Plus, the psychological reasons we smoke are all still there, whatever those may be for you. Zyban/Wellbutrin will not help much with the psychological aspects, except give you relief from the physical symptoms.

I'm not a physician, I just play one on the internet :). I am a Ph.D. mental health professional however.

[MissMillie]

27. I did

I don't remember any side effects at all. I ate more, but I think that's par for the course when an addictive personality gives up a vice--they go looking for another.

The Zyban definitely took the edge off of my withdrawal symptoms.

There's a pretty good website if you're looking to quit smoking: www.quitnet.com

Good luck!

[politicat]

28. Yes. It worked very well for me. And had some pleasant side effects.

Unlike most anti-depressants, bupropion HCl does not have a negative effect on the sex drive. It has rather the opposite for about half of all takers.

I lost a few pounds as well and felt like I had more energy. I DID have very vivid dreams and while I was breaking the psychological habit of smoking, I was a little snappish. After I got past that, I was fine. If you can afford the time, take a couple days off from work on the days that will be your first two days without smokes. I took a 4 day weekend so my clients wouldn't be subjected to me when I was less than supportive.

When I have a client who is on an anti-depressant and can take bupropion, it's the one I work with the psychiatrist to get the scrip for first. Prozac, Paxil and Zoloft have far greater negative side effects and take forever to take effect.

I used it to stop smoking. I'd tried to go cold turkey and I can't use patches and I'd failed.

Pcat