The People's Pharmacy® with Joe and Terry Graedon

I have been taking several different medications to see which one fits. The latest on the list is Budeprion xl. The symptoms of bloating, fatigue, being tired, the worst of all, extreme weight. I've only taken the medicine for about 4 to 6 months and my original size was 185 pounds, and now i am about 230.

My story is the same as the others--I was on Wellbutrin XL and felt great, was switched by insurance to bupropion and everything gradually changed for the worse. Rapid weight gain (without changing my eating & exercise habits), bloating, anxiety, insomnia and my depression returned. The worst part is the weight gain--talk about depressing!

My doctor switched me to Celexa (because my insurance wouldn't pay for Lexapro!), but I don't like the side effects so right now I'm not taking any anti-depressants. It borders on fraud that insurance companies force the generic on you when it not only isn't effective but actually makes things worse!

I've been doing well with buproprion 150 SR 3x, but Rite Aid apparently has decided to get cheap and shifted to TEVA budeprion. In the last three weeks, I've been getting more and more depressed and I finally realized today that it's the change in the drug. I dug around and found a few days' worth of buproprion from Watson and I'm going to get a real buproprion or Wellbutrin XL in the next couple of days.

I cannot tell you the relief that I felt after reading the posts regarding generic Wellbutrin XL (TEVA budeprion). I too have the same story. After years of great success with Wellbutrin XL my insurance company switched me to budeprion. My pharmacist told me that it was exactly the same as Wellbutrin XL.

I started feeling extreme fatigue and irritability, anxiety, insomnia, increased headaches and migraines, severe PMS, joint and muscle pain, bloating, rapid weight gain (even though I increased my walking to 20 miles a week and have a good diet, I am still gaining). My GERD was under control but suddenly returned.

A friend told me to think about when my symptoms first started and try to remember if I had changed anything. That's when I realized the change was budeprion. After finding this website I immediately called my doctor to ask for name-brand Wellbutrin XL. I just hope my insurance will agree.

I have been taking Bupropion HCL XL since it came out in generic. The generic pills were BIG and yellow. I received a new prescription about two weeks ago and these pills are very small and white. They say that it is the same thing, but a lot of people have noticed (especially my family) and so have I that I seem to be like I was before. Could it be this new generic pill?

Insurance company has Tier meds and Wellbutrin XL is on the highest Tier, meaning the most out-of-pocket expense. The $45.00 monthly seems minimal, but not when you are single and really trying to stay afloat. I have BUDEPRION XL 300MG and have been taking them (3) days with my symptoms of depression worsening.

My experience of switching from wellbutrin 300 XL to the TEVA generic is very similar to others posted on this site. Last spring my health plan immediately switched from wellbutrin to the TEVA generic. I reported to my pharmaceutical nurse that my symptoms (of paranoia, nervousness, and doom) were returning. I asked if the TEVA generic was identical to wellbutrin. She said generics are "basically" formulated in the same manner, but that depression is an episodic disease. I requested a DAW prescription for wellbutrin, but the pharmacy wanted to charge me nearly $300.00. I continued to take the TEVA generic, but it was not the same as Wellbutrin. Today I picked up my new generic prescription and it had now changed to a generic by Watson. Though I'm glad to see the tablet resembles wellbutrin 300 XL, I'm nervous about any possible side effects and acclimmating horrors from changing brands. Has anyone experienced any dentrimental effects with the Watson Bupropion generic?

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I was switched about a year ago to Budeprion XL 300 and I have yet to feel right. I just thought it was me! Why can't we just get the drugs we need?

In the past few months, I have felt my depression & anxiety returning. I purchased so many TUMS that I should be given stock in the company. My anxiety attacks me in the form of severe chest pains and the weight gain is unbelievable. I too, was at 185lbs and am now diabetic and tipping the scales at 240.

I was beginning to think it was me until I found your website! I was put on a sample of Wellbutrin by my doctor and after finishing the samples, got the prescription filled. The pharmacy gave me Budeprion XL. Depression is coming back, dull headaches have started, and I have developed circular type rashes on my stomach, back and side of neck. Also, I feel shaky.

I am calling the doctor today to get put back on the Wellbutrin even if my ins. doesn't cover it!

I am sorry for everyone else who is going through this, but I am glad that I am not alone.

Sad that so many of us are being affected by the poor showing of TEVA vs. Wellbutrin. I had been taking Wellbutrin SR for Seasonal Affective Disorder and recently my scrip was changed to the generic form produced by TEVA. My progress went right into the tank and I was back to square one after 2 weeks!! I'm calling my doc today to request he re-write the scrip for Wellbutrin products only--fortunately, right now I can cover any excess cost for the non-generic form.

Why can't we get people to believe us when we insist that "One Size Does Not Fit All" when it comes to switching from brand name to generic drugs? I don't know why these two products affect ME in different ways--all I know is that they do and this is a serious quality of life issue for myself and other users. I hope everyone finds a workable, cost-effective answer for their problems!

This is just not fair. I was told the same thing, that Bupropion XL was the same as Wellbutrin XL. My God, if we are prescribed Wellbutrin, it is because we have been diagnosed with depression. Why have us switch? I had been taking Wellbutrin XL for a year and can honestly say I was feeling and had felt like my old self. However, since switching to the generic, my symptoms were slowly returning. At first, I thought it was my imagination. I would fight my daily feelings of depression, as I had done in the past, not really knowing what I was doing. As it came time for me to refill my prescription, I started thinking that over the past month, I really had not been feeling very well, more crying episodes, extreme sadness, loneliness and irritability. It made sense now, it had to be the generic medication, as nothing else had changed in my life. This issue needs to be addressed. We have enough to deal with. Our medication should not be causing us more problems.

I just got on the 300 MG wellbutrin generic brand and I have been throwing up and cannot sleep. I am gonna get back on the real wellbutrin, this generic stuff is just not the same as they told me it was at the pharmacy.

I have been on Bupropion for a couple of years, and it has worked beautifully. I switched from Paxil, and it was so nice to have more energy. I'm not sure I ever used Wellbutrin. But the Bupropion works great (even though it did not work so well for my sister). I hope my insurance doesn't ever tell me to go to the Bodeprion. Sounds like this version is not making the cut for a lot of people.

My first episode of depression was handled by Lexapro and Wellbutrin, excellent results after six weeks. Side-effect was decreased libido.Tapering off medication after two years.

Recurrence of depression six months later following a period of great stress. Started with generic Prozac (fluoxetine). Added generic Buproprion after four weeks. TROUBLE. Eyesight got blurry, anxiety, unable to work during the day, shaky. Tapered off, ramped up on Lamictal. Blurred vision cleared up, anxiety greatly reduced. Working normally now after five months- it took a while. Article on NPR this am made me aware of the problem with Buproprion. I agree strongly.

Very interesting. I have been on Wellbutrin for 10 years. OUTSTANDING drug--changed my life. Thank you GlaxoSmithKline! First the 150 then XL300.

In January '07 my insurance unilaterally placed me on the cheap generic Bupropion. I tried it for exactly 23 days and then my significant other "ordered" me back to the doctor. She noted a huge rise in irritability-(flash snap temper) followed later by listlessness, unfounded guilt and depression.

I went immediately back on the good old pills. Noticed immediately a return to level headedness, confidence and focus. Funny how I didn't personally notice the regression that came on almost immediately (it was pointed out to me--and i agreed) but did experience the remarkable recovery when I went back on the original formula. I can only hope someone finds a nice mean attorney out there and gets this figured out before someone gets hurt.

My physician told me that I was very sensitive to variations in the dosage of my wellbutrin. He told me never to use a generic drug for this prescription for that reason.

Twice I have tried a generic due to pressure by the insurance company. On each occasion I switched back to wellbutrin after one tablet of the generic. For one thing, I immediately experienced discomfort in urinating. I attributed this side effect to a different time release method.

If the skeptics wish to try me, I guarantee that I can take a blind dose of wellbutrin/generic and correctly ascertain within six hours which one I took with a degree of accuracy of 100%.

My insurance fully covers brand name Wellbutrin XL without hassle if that's what's Rx'ed. I'd been taking it for a little over a year for (relatively speaking) mild depression. It worked well. My last several months were generic. Why, I don't know, probably because the Dr. didn't specify. I didn't care because I was a strong believer in not wasting health care money even when it's not my money. Recently it didn't seem to be working anymore. My Dr. switched me to brand name. She said some patients claimed generic didn't work as well. It seems to be working again now that I'm taking brand name. Maybe it's not the difference between brand name and generic. It's such a subjective thing. A recent study showed that kids eating identical food in plain wrappers and in McDonald wrappers said the "McDonald's" tasted better. Although I generally support the idea of generic vs. over-priced and over-hyped Big Pharm brand names, I thought I would report my experience.

My son has been struggling with his most-recent refill of TEVA-manufactured Budeprion (TEVA's trade name for their bupropion generic).

Now that he's ready for another refill, we've called around town and successfully found a couple of pharmacies that carry the Sandoz-made generic. Sandoz bought Eon labs awhie back. Eon, in my personal experience, made the generic bupropion that seemed to work closest to brand Wellbutrin. It pays to call around.

FYI, I know Costco carries generics from a couple of different manufacturers (sadly, including TEVA). If you go to COSTCO's online pharmacy, you will quickly see why TEVA has been able to flood the market. Their stuff is a third the cost of the other generics.

This is very frightening. I had been on Wellbutrin XL for 2 years. Within 10 days of starting that medication my symptoms improved - I had previously had extreme trouble concentrating and lacked motivation to do anything that required mental effort.

I switched to Bupropion HCL XL generic in early August of this year. By the beginning of Sept. I started having difficulty again feeling motivated. Not depressed exactly, just not enthusiastic about anything. I thought it had to do with the end of summer, but now I clearly can see that I'm having that difficulty concentrating and getting started on tasks requiring concentration and have even begun to have trouble articulating my thoughts. I thought this Bupropion was exactly the same as Wellbutrin. I even asked the pharmacist and was told it had the same ingredients.

The difficulty definitely began after the switch, but how can that be if they both have the same ingredients? I'm trying to determine if this is real or imagined. It certainly seems real enough!!!

Just tapered off Paxil to start Wellbutrin SR because the Paxil didn't cut it. I am on my third day of BUDEPRION 150 MG SR--had to be changed because of insurance. I cannot function at all, and I have 3 kids. I have brain zaps, nausea, vomiting, and just feel foggy. Could it be generic or Paxil remains? Anyone?

I thought I was going crazy! I just recently got switched to (TEVA) Buderprion XL 300, this is my second refill. I feel like I did before I started taking Wellbutrin XL 300. Sad and angry, very snappy to my husband, and all I want to do is eat! I loved Wellbutrin XL 300--it saved my life, and it was safe for me to take during my pregnancy, thank goodness. But now I'm just not happy at all. I heard about people questioning the generic from a client and thought I would look it up. Glad to know I am not going crazy, or at least I'm not going alone! Call your doctor, I am!!!

I thought my body was playing tricks with me. I had been taking the Wellbutrin XL for 4years. Then was given generic by Walgreen's (without permission). In just a couple of days it seems as if everything started to fall apart... could not explain to anyone... I was having a meltdown and wanted to die... I figured out myself that it was not working and said NO MORE GENERIC anything...

The thyroid meds are suspect as well. I just heard a news report on the East Coast regarding this problem . In Calif no attention has been called to it... I will make that my mission this week...

I was feeling so bad... it scares me to think about it... Walgreens knew what had happened... I made it very clear to them all that was happening to my mind and body... I think they just dismissed me as a problem patient. I asked them to make a comment in the chart so there would be documentation of the event. It was quite horrible for me... I did wish I was not here anymore... I am happy to say I am much better MUCH better... Thank you Cynthia

I HAVE TAKEN WELLBUTRIN XL FOR A NUMBER OF YEARS. NOW MY INSURANCE COMPANY IS PLACING ME ON THE GENERIC. THE GENERIC HAS TERRIBLE SIDE AFFECTS: SHAKY, BLURRED VISION, VERGE OF TEARS ALL DAY, ANXIETY. WHY SHOULD I HAVE TO SUFFER? ONE PILL FITS ALL THINKING IS TAKING A TOLL ON ME. THANK GOD I CAN AFFORD THE COST DIFFERENCE RIGHT NOW BUT WHAT ABOUT WHEN I'M ON MEDICARE AND IN FINANCIAL STRESS BIG TIME. PLEASE HELP US ALL WHO CANNOT TOLERATE THE MEDS CHANGE AND PAY TOP DOLLAR FOR THE "SAME" MEDICINE $83.00 TO $15.00 FOR GENERIC X'S 12MONTHS--AND THAT'S NOT THE ONLY MEDICATION I TAKE. HELP!

I am absolutely terrified of BUDEPRION. I have been on WELLBUTRIN XL 300 MG for at least 3 years and Unison Health Care Plan took it from me and placed me on this BUDEPRION for at least 4 months now. In the first month and since then I have become quite paranoid, emotional, moody, physically ill in many many ways, more depressed than I ever had been before I was ever place on WELLBUTRIN. I have also put on at least 30 pounds.

I happen to know four other people who are going through the exact same circumstances, and a couple of them are becoming suicidal. A friend of mine even committed suicide last November when she was on the antidepressant. I have three different doctors arguing with Unison to give the WELLBUTRIN back to me. They will not do it because they say that my pharmacy argues that the ingredients are the same...so they need to go with the cheaper one.

The same thing is going on with my Nexiums and all other meds I have to take. My stomach meds are just literally being taken from me and my esophagus is an inflamed mess to the point where I can't hardly swallow my foods at times. There reason for taking my meds: They believe that I have been on the medication long enough....I should be healed by now. (My father died of Esophageal cancer.)

Everyday I am trying to get through the day battling my own depression.....sometimes sinking down my bathroom walls to the floor in tears praying that something will change for me. I do this on my own of course because I have finally left the bottle of BUDEPRION alone because they are making me feel like I am losing my mind. I feel that the BUDEPRION and other generics are not always the same and aren't always the best for people, and it is sadly going to take a great number of human lives to use as lab rats before "the man" says "ok maybe generic medicine isn't where we should cut our costs." Anything for a buck though right?

My insurance company also stopped paying for WellbutrinXL and so I was switched to Budeprion XL. My depression is definitely back. I have that empty hopeless feeling, irritability and crying. I suspected the change was the reason and now I see I am not alone. Does someone have to die before they realize there is something wrong?

I have been taking Wellbutrin XL for the past 4 years, and it has been wonderful. But then I started getting the generic brand, made by TEVA and then Watson. Most recently, my prescription was filled with Watson bupropion and I have had a worsening rash on my neck and stomach and back. And I have been shaking so badly recently that it is actually hard to write. With the regular Wellbutrin XL, I always shook a little, but now it's awful. It just occurred to me yesterday that it could be the new drug. So, I'm going to get my doctor's opinion tomorrow as to whether the rash is because of the drug or something else. Definitely, regardless, I will switch to the name brand Wellbutrin.

I was taking Wellbutrin XL, but then the pharmacist switched me to Budeprion SR. However, the SR formulation is NOT the same as the XL; the time-release for the SR requires dosing throughout the day while the XL requires only once-a-day dosing. I have put up with the SR simply because most pharmacists I have spoken with, with the exception of one, cannot be convinced the SR is different than the XL.

My point? Not that the SR works any less well for me, but that you should be careful that you are handed XL if that is what you are prescribed. Taking the full 450 mg of the SR at once, as the pharmacist directed, would have had unpleasant results. Fortunately I am an educated consumer. There seems to be a lot of confusion over this drug and the various formulations.

See http://www.wellbutrin-xl.com/prescribed/xl_vs_sr.html.

I am so very happy that I have not lost my mind... I was thinking that it was me. I am a single mom with four children. My children have seen a drastic change in my moods. I have been more depressed, severe headaches, no energy, shaky, and have had numerous crying spells. I only get about 2 to 4 hours of sleep per day, and my anxiety is really bad. I have even started getting panic attacks again. Thank God I am not alone.

I'm glad I am not alone. I have been taking Wellbutrin XL for years, and it has always worked really well for me. Some months ago, I started taking the generic version, Budeprion XL by Teva Pharmaceuticals. I had a recurrence of depression and as a result, had to add Effexor XR along with my Budeprion XL. What I HATE about all SSRIs and SNRIs is the weight gain. I gained 13 lbs in about 45 days! I would love to go off of my Effexor XR, but am afraid to for fear of my debilitating, chronic depression returning.

When I heard on the news that there was a study finding that the generic Wellbutrin may not work as well as the brand name drug, I had an "Ah-ha!" moment. It then occurred to me that my depression resurfaced shortly after my switch to the generic.

What kind of recourse do I have? Can I force my insurance company to cover the name-brand drug at a copay to me that would be the same as if I had the generic filled ($10.00)? I would have an out-of-pocket cost of $60.00/month to have the name brand Wellbutrin XL filled.

The other thing I hate about the generic is the fact that the pill is about three times larger than the little white Wellbutrin XL tablet.

I also didn't put 2 and 2 together until I read other posts about the blurred vision -- I just thought I was getting old and my eyes were getting worse.

Has anyone compared other generic versions of Wellbutrin XL NOT made by Teva?