Wellbutrin side-effects- anyone have numbness, tingling, muscle tension?

August 19, 2015 1:06 PM

I recently went back on Wellbutrin, and although it's been helping with my depression I'm getting a lot of side effects. I have muscle tension in my pecs, shoulders, and neck, and am experiencing tingling sensations in my hand. Has anyone dealt with similar side effects? Were the side effects a deal breaker for you?

I've taken Wellbutrin twice now. The last time I was on it, I felt GREAT! But I gradually developed a lot of muscle tension in my neck, shoulders, and pecs - it was like my pecs were a vice pulling my shoulders forward. No amount of stretching or foam rolling helped. I also had weakness and tingling in my hands and shoulders when I would do simple things like blow-dry my hair or play piano.

These issues didn't spring up until I was 6 months into the WB treatment, so at first I thought it had to be something else; I was going through a lot of life stressors at the time so I eventually attributed the tightness to that. However, when I got off WB the tension magically disappeared.

It's been years now, and I decided to give it another try since it's been the only antidepressant to not only make me feel even-keel but also not take away my libido. But after 8 days of being on the med I can feel the tension coming back into my pecs + neck in particular. I am also getting some tingling sensations again.

Has anyone else experienced similar symptoms on Wellbutrin? Did they go away? I'm at a lower dose than last time if that counts for anything (150 vs 300). I love what the med does for me and don't want to give it up again as I can already feel it helping out with the depression, but the muscle weakness in particular is a deal-breaker for me. I'm on 150mg of brand-name WB by the way. Thanks.

posted by CottonCandyCapers to Health & Fitness (13 answers total)

I've taken Wellbutrin off-and-on over the past 20+ years (often at very high dosages) and have never experienced what you're describing. Honestly, I've never experienced any negative side-effects.

At one point several years ago, my son was put on Wellbutrin and he had a horrible reaction to it (which we determined was an effect of how the particular generic was manufactured), but that was more emotional and not anything physical.
posted by Thorzdad at 1:13 PM on August 19, 2015

Yes exp and yes went away after I weaned back off.
posted by tilde at 1:14 PM on August 19, 2015

Yup; Wellbutrin made an old knee injury of mine flare up much in the same way you describe; tightness and tension. For me, it also produced insane insomnia and actually made me more anxious; so its very possible that the muscle tension was just from me slowly going insane on that particular med. Needless to say, I backed off, and the tension slowly got better in the ol' trick knee.

However, this is totally anecdotal; you should totally talk to your doctor/prescriber.
posted by furnace.heart at 1:16 PM on August 19, 2015

I had an allergic reaction to Paxil that caused me to lose control of the muscles in my hands. Have you tried Benedryl or another histamine-blocker?
posted by Juliet Banana at 1:17 PM on August 19, 2015

I had muscle tension on it. But the anxiety was the worst side effect, and caused me to discontinue it.
posted by persona au gratin at 1:25 PM on August 19, 2015

I took it to quit smoking years ago and yes I had those same side effects and yes they were dealbreakers for me.
posted by Majorita at 2:09 PM on August 19, 2015

I've been on it for several years and have definitely experienced an increase in tightness and tension in my neck, shoulders and upper back. Because it is the only antidepressant that works for me, I've elected to still take it and cope with the chronic tension by doing yoga twice a day, using a foam roller/tennis ball to self-massage trigger points, working on my posture (especially while seated and working at a computer), and using other relaxation techniques (i.e. daily zen meditation). It sucks, but being depressed sucks even more.
posted by nightrecordings at 2:16 PM on August 19, 2015

This is definitely something you should discuss with your doctor too.
posted by radioamy at 3:03 PM on August 19, 2015 [1 favorite]

Yes! But until now it didn't occur to me that it might be related to the Wellbutrin I'm taking. In my case, the tingling starts in my right pinky and then moves finger-by-finger towards my thumbs. I've always assumed it was just a pinched nerve because massage, osteopathic adjustments, and muscle relaxers make it go away.
posted by Jacqueline at 6:51 PM on August 19, 2015

Yes, it was awful. That plus the increased anxiety was a dealbreaker. Also I had hand tremors for months after quitting. I had to stop painting entirely and doing anything detailed with my jewelry making because I couldn't hold my brushes or pliers or soldering iron still enough. I remember hearing the generic is particularly bad, and that the name brand has less side effects, but that might just be rumor.
posted by ananci at 11:01 PM on August 19, 2015

You might find a lower dose better. Or XR.
posted by persona au gratin at 1:59 AM on August 20, 2015

Though if you're doing 150, it probably already is XR.
posted by persona au gratin at 2:00 AM on August 20, 2015

I didn't have tingling or muscle tension, but the first time I took Wellbutrin it made me stupidly, insanely, horrifyingly sweaty. It went away when I stopped. I now take XR and continue to sweat at my normal level.
posted by mchorn at 11:41 AM on August 20, 2015