Increased anxiety with different Wellbutrin generics?

October 26, 2015 1:52 PM

I was on one generic Wellbutrin, now I'm on another, and I'm feeling kind of bananas.

I have been on Wellbutrin 300mg XL for years. I normally get my prescription refilled at the same pharmacy, but this time went to a different one. I was given a different brand of generic (the one I was given is from Zydus; I'm not sure which manufacturer makes the one I normally take).

I noticed the past couple days since I started that I'm experiencing a tiny bit of decreased appetite and some elevated anxiety. I'm going through a stressful time so it's hard to pinpoint the exact source of the anxiety, but I'm usually okay and talking myself down from needless worrying and am feeling unable to reason with this bout.

I googled Wellbutrin generics and see a bit about how one brand was recalled in 2013 and a few people complaining about Zydus but wanted to check and see if anyone in the AskMeFi community had any experiences with side effects from different Wellbutrin generics. YANAD, I know, I know.

posted by Drohan to Health & Fitness (17 answers total)

Wellbutrin is great, but it's not perfect. I was on it for years and occasionally experienced little ups and downs in its effectiveness. On the other hand, it's always possible for a generic to have slightly different efficacy or side-effects, and when the generic is psycho-active, those small differences can loom large. Tell your prescriber: they're (supposedly) in the best place to know whether what you're experiencing is just a normal (for you) reaction to stress, or if the generic might be at fault. If they write the prescription as "no substitutes", your insurance will cover it (though your prescriber may need to provide a written justification).
posted by ubiquity at 1:59 PM on October 26, 2015

It could be the specific generic. My online pharmacy changed the generic version of anxiety med I was on and I started to have many more attacks. Had my MD write a note saying I needed to be on a specific maker's version of generic and they send me the stuff that works better. Definitely read up on this. It's not uncommon for formulations to be slightly different and when dealing with psychoactive drugs this can cause noticeable issues.
posted by white_devil at 2:08 PM on October 26, 2015

Yup - my husband once picked up his Lexapro generic prescription from a different pharmacy than usual and noticed almost immediately. Getting back on meds from our usual source fixed it. My sister experienced similar when she got a different generic than usual for her epilepsy too.
posted by jrobin276 at 2:13 PM on October 26, 2015

I was on generic buproprion for several years and ended up stopping it because my anxiety was too much to handle. I was on a few different generics. For me, it wasn't the generics but the drug itself that gave me issue. So it may not be a good fit for you.
posted by pintapicasso at 2:18 PM on October 26, 2015

Response by poster: Just want to clear up that the drug itself has proven indeed to be a good fit for me as I've been on it with great success for some time. This is a new generic that I'm worried is causing some side effects.
posted by Drohan at 2:25 PM on October 26, 2015

The pharmacokinetics of different generics can definitely vary. You could be absorbing your active ingredient at a different rate than you're used to, for example.
Could you talk to your normal pharmacy about swapping your new ones out for what you normally get?
posted by Kreiger at 2:34 PM on October 26, 2015

When I was on it, I was switched from the name brand stuff to a generic per my insurance company and while I went into it firmly believing that generics are the same as the original and wasn't concerned, it stopped working for me entirely. Wellbutrin specifically, I found afterwards, has had problems with the generic versions. My doctor wrote me a new prescription indicating it had to be the real thing, no generics.
posted by cecic at 2:42 PM on October 26, 2015 [6 favorites]

There have been serious concerns with generics, including Wellbutrin, from Ranbaxy, for example; I will not take anything they make for any reason. You can specify which generic brand you want at the pharmacy, usually, so find out the brand from your usual pharmacy and make sure to specify that one in the future.
posted by poffin boffin at 3:19 PM on October 26, 2015 [2 favorites]

Someone in my family experienced anxiety and depression recently, after switching from trade Wellbutrin to generic. And a close friend of mine also felt very different after making that switch -- more confused and foggy than anxious in her case. Both were told by pharmacists that it happens a lot.
posted by wryly at 3:45 PM on October 26, 2015

I've been on Wellbutrin XL for several years. For the first year or two I was on the brand name, but then my insurance changed and I had to switch to generic (specifically Bupropion XL by Par Pharmaceutical). Since then I've been extremely anxious, to the point that I've had to give up coffee and started meditating. I thought it was because my circumstances changed (less physical exercise), or Wellbutrin stopped working for me in general (as some anti-depressants do), or it was all in my head, but this thread is making me think my experience was genuine and I should try to return to the brand name somehow.
posted by bluecore at 4:54 PM on October 26, 2015 [2 favorites]

One more chiming in. I had subpar results from generic buproprion - out of three generics, one made me despondent and miserable (teva, the one that was recalled), one was very good (a little "zippier" than GSK brand, actually - someone with higher energy levels may have gotten anxious), and one appeared to have no effect.

Whenever someone says that Wellbutrin doesn't work for them, I want to ask if they are really taking the GSK stuff, because if I had never tried the name brand, I would think Wellbutrin was a dud. But the GSK Wellbutrin has helped me a lot. (So bluecore, I don't think you're imagining things!)
posted by hiker U. at 5:38 PM on October 26, 2015

I'm on the Par Pharmaceutical version too, though that's the only one I've ever been on, and I would guess I probably experience the anxiety symptoms too.
posted by XMLicious at 6:22 PM on October 26, 2015

I've been on Wellbutrin for many years, on the brand name as well as on several different brands of generics. I have found sometimes huge differences in how well I do. I have even hopped pharmacies twice just to get the generic that works best for me.

What I use now comes from Actavis, which I get filled at Target. Every month I pick it up, I am always a little nervous they will have changed their brand (as Walgreens did to me, and then Costco). I pay out of pocket since Target does not accept my insurance. It costs $25-30 per month for the 300 XL that I am on. Totally, totally worth it.

If Target switches on me, I will seek out online pharmacies (legit ones!) if I can't find the Activis anywhere local. It's that important to me because each time I switched generics in the past, I could feel myself just sinking lower and lower. It was quite noticeable. The first time it happened, I had my psychiatrist put on the rx that I needed name brand, but insurance denied it, even after I appealed it. So ymmv.

Good luck. Don't be afraid to call around to pharmacies and ask them what brand(s) they stock. Also I found the list of good online pharmacies via the national board of pharmacy's VIPPS program if that helps you.
posted by fellow eye at 8:47 PM on October 26, 2015

Generics absolutely can differ. I feel the difference with different generic psychotropics. Get the pharmacy to special order the original brand and only fill with it. I do this, and they accommodate it.
posted by persona au gratin at 12:03 AM on October 27, 2015

chiming in to say that when I was on wellbutrin, the generic did not work - my doc wrote no generic on my prescription. it seems this is a common issue with the generic for wellbutrin
posted by SanSebastien at 7:36 AM on October 28, 2015

Response by poster: Just wanted to say thank you for the responses and that I went to my regular pharmacist and paid out of pocket for the generic I'm used to and the symptoms have disappeared.
posted by Drohan at 9:01 AM on October 28, 2015

I just want to say that this question was very timely for me. I've taken generic Wellbutrin XL, 150 mgs per day, for the last year with mostly positive results (I still feel depressed and anxious, but it's drastically reduced from before when I wasn't taking anything).

However, the last couple weeks, I've taken a nose-dive and it didn't even occur to me to check that until now. I noticed that this month's pills looked different than usual, but I'm fairly new to medications and even though that worried me, it had the same lettering and came from my usual pharmacy. I checked my new bottle and my previous bottle and sure enough, different manufacturers. The one I've been taking previously is made by Actavis and this new one is by Anchen.

Like you, I'm going through a particularly stressful period of my life and can't be totally sure that my increased depression and anxiety is because of the change, but I was on vacation in Hawai'i the last 13 days, my favorite place on earth, and while I was able to go do fun stuff, I felt like a wet, sandy cardboard box full of lead most of the time. I shouldn't have been needing to pop a xanax every day to feel excited about laying on a gorgeous beach reading my favorite book and snorkeling with fishies.

I did a cursory google search about generics and saw that there's a program called Direct Success where you can get name brand Wellbutrin for $50 a month (as long as you don't involve insurance). I noticed rumblings that Direct Success may or may not be a reputable company, though, so I'll be doing a little more research.

In the mean time, I'll be making sure my pharmacy is giving me Actavis bupropion.
posted by E3 at 9:06 PM on October 28, 2015