I took this medication for about 5 years. I was scared to take SSRI’s because of the side effects. It helped my anxiety a little bit, just enough to get me out and be somewhat productive. However, when my doctor switched me to Effexor XR, that is when I found out how week Buspar is when taken alone. Once I titrated to my therapeutic dose of Effexor, I started to see real relief from my anxiety.
@@EphesianRose I found it effective once I was on 30mg a day for GAD. However, once I started to develop bad panic attacks( I’m a combat vet) I got prescribed a benzo as a rescue medication for the panic attacks. From that point forward, the Buspar was less affective until it didn’t even touch my General Anxiety. Then I switched to Effexor XR and that was a game changer for my normal anxiety. I still get a panic attack every now and then, but the frequency is less. That means less use of benzo’s, which is always a good thing! Anyway, that is my story. I wish you well, take care.
@@matthewkitch1 - Thank you for opening up about your experience and I pray you continue to find long term, and permanent relief. I too may return to the SSRI I was on or try something new. I think main issue with Buspar is the frequency with which one takes it during the day.
Thats awesome, glad you found success with treatment. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here
Dizziness was definitely a side effect in the beginning. First few weeks I had strong vertigo for the first 20-30 minutes of dosing. But after the first month it fell off sharply and I now only experience it once every couple of weeks
@@michaelthau1007 Hi 👋🏻 I decided to start 15mg of Mirtazapine due to some low grade Postpartum depression but huge anxiety due to some cancer they removed after my delivery. So far is only been 1 week on this medication along with with 1mg of klonopin and the first few days I feel super tired but my insomnia is improving daily and I hope my mood and anxiety does as well. Wish you the best!
@@blakemoore666 No I’m not taking it anymore once I got up to a full 7 mg I didn’t feel right I was dizzy all the time. Then the doctor wanted to increase it. And I said no I’m fine it just quit taking it. It’s hard to say if that was actually making me dizzy or not but I wasn’t willing to find out.
@@claytonhubbard612 I took it for 12 weeks, 5mg am, 5mg pm, helped my anxiety tremendously, helped me sleep great however made me lil dizzy, super tired all the time and short of breath upon any activities. Not sure what I’m going to next….
hello dear doctor in your opinion is it possible to use it for the effects of SSRI withdrawal?, I mean, is it useful for various anhedonia, or sexual problems of pleasure and similar things?
I've been on Zoloft for over a year for GAD (not severe) and had bruxism before the Zoloft somewhat and it's gotten severe day and night on Zoloft to the point of me having some bone loss in teeth and now nerve pain. Also, I've gained weight like crazy on Zoloft and now have back pain. I'm considering just trying the busprosine by itself to see if it can treat the GAD and get rid of these awful headache/neckache/shoulderaches from constant subconscious clenching.
hey it’s been awhile but i’m also on sertraline and busiprone and i get horrible shakiness and muscle twitches all day what did u end up doing? going with busiprone by itself?
Theoretically, because this medicine is thought to specifically target serotonin levels in the amygdala, and does not have much potential for abuse, is there a reason this wouldn't help alleviate PTSD symptoms? I have recently come off half of the "welloft" combination, and am still on the buproprion. I am considering trying pristiq but its downsides give me pause, and would like to try alternatives first. Buspirone seemed like a relatively safe medication, and I wonder if buspirone combined with buproprion could take some of the edge off of my hyper arousal, and avoid a lot of the negative side effects of SSRIs and SNRIs that have made wanting to continue with the Zoloft seem no longer worth the trade off. I would love to hear your thoughts from a theoretical perspective... but if it PTSD is primarily an anxiety disorder rather than a mood disorder (theoretically), and benzos are too risky because of the potential for abuse... why is this not being tried as an alternative?
I will have to disagree with saying it takes a long time to work. Mine worked immediately I have epilepsy and I get anxiety pretty easy. These were prescribed for sleep medication but works for anxiety. To me I feel better taking this than Klonopin.
Great, but you would be in the minority of people taking the medication. When we talk about the medication taking a certain length of time this is in general based on the number of participants in the research studies, each individual person may have a different response. Glad you had success, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about the community we are building here.
@@AlwaysLoveEvery1 Yes hello. I haven't had any trouble with seizures. Looking at the fact I take 300 mg extended release Lamotrigine and 150 mg vimpat for my epilepsy. I only take as needed. They are safe for me at 5-10mg. I was given them for sleep. Only use for anxiety. Hope this helps. It's great news also you haven't have a seizure in so long God bless. I also had a brain tumor moved in left temporal lobe.
No problem we listen to you guys about what to cover, Buspar came up a bunch of times as a request. If you haven't subscribed to the channel, please do and spread the word about what we are doing here. Also check out the instagram page as we are updating content daily to reduce stigma and educate about mental health treatment.
Thank you for your informative and clear explanations of complex psychotropic mechanisms and effects. I’ve been taking Buspar for about two months at 22.5mg per day for GAD. It has been helpful. I’ve recently added Effexor at 37.5mg, which is having an immediate positive effect on mood and IBS issues, helping to round out and stabilize the anti-anxiety effects of Buspar. But I’m now experiencing anorgasmia (an experience I’ve had on every SSRI I’ve tried-Lexapro, Prozac, etc.). I’m someone who experiences delayed orgasms without medication and have been hoping to find a combination that will both treat anxiety and improve orgasm function (or at least not pile on to a pre-existing condition). Do you have any advice for me?
This is not medical advice and is provided for educational purposes only, please talk with your doctor before making any changes. This can be a good thing or a bad thing, I've treated people in the past who were premature ejaculators and delaying orgasm was a good thing and actually improved their sex life. This is not the case here but there are several options, one would be to keep buspar in play as an adjunctive treatment for sexual side effects. Another option would be to talk with your doctor about a change to bupropion which has no sexual side effects, or mirtazapine which has lower risk of sexual side effects. Hope this helps.
Hello can you help me out, I had persistent dizziness in November last year then nausea. It just kept getting worse and I didn’t know it was anxiety for the first 3 months and I became bedridden. My symptoms Nausea Dizzy Numbness in limbs Pins and needles Dry mouth Muscle pains Heart rate Heart palpitations Blood pressure Ear pressure Bad breath Cold hands and feet Stomach trouble Acid reflux Bad dreams Vision problems. These symptoms happen at random they come and goD I had all tests done under the sun and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me. I tolerate the medications very well but don’t seem to work I was on lexapro 40mg for 6 weeks and it didn’t work I’m on 3 weeks on 100mg Zoloft now but no improvements. The persistent dizziness is the worst. Do I have a rare disease or is it actually anxiety??? Doctors keep saying it’s just anxiety. The physc doctor told me I have acute anxiety.
Doctors are educated guessers,no one knows how these mind bending drugs work on the brain.That’s why they have so many of them on the market.It’s a trial and error process.They will take you off of benzodiazepines put you on mind benders and you end up with TD and treat that with Benzodiazepines so be careful out there
Most guidelines would suggest a medication like lexapro as a first line option. The reason I think buspirone is a poor medication to treat anxiety is thats what the data shows. The effect size is 0.17 which translates to no clinically meaningful improvement in anxiety symptoms. Now, for some people it may work amazing but in general it's not a great option and the data proves that. Hope this helps, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here,
For interactions, Adderall xr 20mgs, Wellbutrin 300mgs, and then add Buspar (15mg) (All for ADD + Stress/Aniety/PTSD, and anxiety attacks. Would adding Buspar cancel out that dopamine lacking with ADD people?
If there is a response! I have never found this useful for any of my pts. I might as well be giving them pez! Why do so many kids NOT respond to this? I have basically stopped prescribing it. Are you really getting a placebo response?
Thank you for this information it really helps. I am on Lorazepam right now and would like to get off of that. Switching to Buspar sounds ok to me. Is there a delay time from switching over or can you switch it right away?
Dr. Rossi first i thank you for what your doing. Second in MY opinion you should give a little more of your personal opinion or experiences with patients as opposed to reading from a script.
It has a shorter half-life, and therefore needs to be dosed multiple times a day. Think, for example, an ibuprofen or paracetamol must be taking every 6 to 8 hours.
Sup man. Another great video! Have you done a vid about the tricyclics and their use as augmentation agents for depression and anxiety? And in what cases they would be favored for augmentation over buspirone, antipsychotics, and atypicals?
I have an entire video on TCAs so start there and check that out. I would consider a TCA after other medications have failed to improve symptoms. I will usually start with nortriptyline unless there is OCD in which case clomipramine is the gold standard. TCAs can be combined with other antidepressants but it's a risky game, might be better off trying an MAOI at that point. Hope this helps
I'll ask my Dr when I see him, but if Buspar takes 2 to 4 weeks to reach optimum effect, why am I increasing my dose every week from the start? Feeling pretty good at 7.5mg x2 after a week. I think I prefer to stay there for a month and let the effect peak before deciding on taking another step up. My final step would be 15mg x2 but if half that continues to work I'd prefer the lesser dose. Thoughts?
Hello Doc, I have been on 50 mg Buspirone for 3 months it was added to the antidepressant I've been taking for years ( Anafranil 10 mg ) I have a Gad and ADHD ( I don't do well with Escitalopram, it rises my anxiety like crazy) I was prescribed Buspirone to calm down a really bad Anxiety attack after 3 months of methylphenidate which I stopped. It has really worked for me. I haven't been taking any benzo during the day since I'm on it ( apart 10mg of oxazepam at night ) hope it stays that way...I was really surprised by its efficiency.
it's always hard to predict who will respond to a medication or combination of medications when we talk about a research study it's a general assessment of the medications efficacy but will not apply in every case. Hope this helps, I'm glad things have worked out well for you
If there is a generalized anxiety disorder present than Buspar may help. If there is a significant lack of energy or motivation than Wellbutrin is a better option.
Lil over a year ago I was taken off clonazepam and put on buspirone and ive felt worse ever since. Over a YEAR later and i get lightheaded almost every morning dose. I have finger twitching i didnt have before and my sleep quality is hell. They wont give me any benzos, only buspirone or a anti depressant.
I have a whole video on it if you are interested. It seems to have a rapid onset of action, and good efficacy but it failed in a large trial of treatment resistant depression and the cost is high. It is possible to use generic medication to make the combination and reduce cost for the patient. Overall it looks good
@@ShrinksInSneakers Firse of all, I am subscribed😉you explain everything- even when I have no idea what you're talking about- so well. I was excited to try Auvelity. It made me so out of it and zero appetite. I was on Wellbutrin but even with the dose increase and promis I would fell 'motivated', it didn't work. I went through a lot of loss, including my career during covid, so now (both mental and medical issues) So now I'm in the process of eviction. Yay!🙄Very stressful time and whikle I know they don't fix everything, I really need to be able to cope (MDD/anxiety). Wished the Ketamine troches worked ut felt derealization/depersonalization. I need to be focused and calm. I was on Effxor before Buproprion but the worst to stop. Before that it was Lexapro. The only med at the pharmacy now is Adderall. I feel good/calm at first, but then not so well. My nurse just seems cluless. Thanks!💖
Doc- ⚠️URGENT⚠️Please explain how this medication along with Hydroxyzine would work for generalized+separation anxiety. This summer, I’m taking a one week trip away from home, then will be back home briefly (about a week) before going on another 3 week trip (the longest I’ve been away from my family). For most, that’s no big concern, but as someone who experiences anxiety when away from home and familiar locations, I’m worried about what will happen. Currently take Hydroxyzine when needed as well as an Olly supplement for stabilizing mood. Need to find a medication soon so it has time to come into effect before these trips. I experience occasional anxiety at home as well, but much more when away. Thank you!
I was wondering the same thing because I've been taking hydroxyzine as needed for a while. But recently my anxiety has gotten bad enough that taking it daily doesn't work anymore, like I've built up a tolerance. And I was just started on buspirone.
Yes! I have learned that often times when I feel "anxiety" I am really just excited about something, but I have come to associate it with anxiety. So, I have had to reframe my mind sometimes that I am just excited, it's not anxiety.
Doc, I'm on 225mg venvaxiline XR (Effexor) and 7.5 Buspirone q.d. I know that in higher doses, venvaxline has some effect on dopamine receptors. My question is: Am I kinda defeating my purpose when I take Buspar as it blocks dopamine?
This is not medical advice, and it’s only for educational purposes. As always talk with your doctor about the situation. I do not think using buspar in combination with venlafaxine is fully eliminating the effects on dopamine neurotransmission. It’s important to remember that the norepinephrine effects of venlafaxine begin around 225 mg and increases up to 375 mg/day. There is no direct dopamine effect from venlafaxine, what happens is in the prefrontal cortex the norepinephrine transporter is primarily responsible for dopamine reuptake and thus dopamine is increased in those locations in the brain when on an SNRI. Buspar is a very poor dopamine blocking medication and had very low antagonist effects at D2 as stated in the video. This all depends on the reason for the buspar in treatment what the goal of using the medication is in this example. Hope this helps, if you haven’t subscribed to the channel please do, and spread the word about what we are doing here. Also, we have daily content on Instagram now to educate and reduce stigma associated with mental health treatment.
Hello can you help me out, I had persistent dizziness in November last year then nausea. It just kept getting worse and I didn’t know it was anxiety for the first 3 months and I became bedridden. My symptoms Nausea Dizzy Numbness in limbs Pins and needles Dry mouth Muscle pains Heart rate Heart palpitations Blood pressure Ear pressure Bad breath Cold hands and feet Stomach trouble Acid reflux Bad dreams Vision problems. These symptoms happen at random they come and goD I had all tests done under the sun and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me. I tolerate the medications very well but don’t seem to work I was on lexapro 40mg for 6 weeks and it didn’t work I’m on 3 weeks on 100mg Zoloft now but no improvements. The persistent dizziness is the worst. Do I have a rare disease or is it actually anxiety??? Doctors keep saying it’s just anxiety. The physc doctor told me I have acute anxiety.
I am Effexor ER 150mg per day and Lamotrigene 100mg per day. My doctor told me i should also be taking burspar 30mg per day cut in half for 15 and 15 per day. I really want it to help my sexual side effects because being a new relationship i want to have that connection with my partner. The only thing i am worried about is seratonin syndrome and when i was on burspar before it made me super drowsy and was hard to function. Does it have a good benefit on sexual side effects and delayed orgasum?
This is not medical advice, you should always talk with your doctor before making and changes, this information is for educational purposes only. In general it is safe to combine buspar and other antidepressant medications. It does have evidence to support its use to reduce sexual dysfunction associated with serotonin based medications. Sedation is more likely to occur at doses above 20 mg/day so I would usually start at 10 mg twice per day and assess the benefit before increasing because we are not looking to treat anxiety just the side effect. Hope this helps, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do, if you have thank you. I'm also doing daily Instagram content which can be found @Shrinks_In_Sneakers
My doctor prescribed me 10mg twice daily. I'm a big time coffee drinker, about 2 to 3 cups per day. I read on Google that buspar and coffee can make your anxiety worse. My question is how long should I wait to take this after coffee? By the way my first night of taking this medication felt great. My thoughts are more clear. I'm more relaxed and free from anxiety!
Hey how are you doing now? I used to be a big coffee drinker until my anxiety started getting bad. But it usually makes me dizzy when I take it in the morning I couldn’t imagine adding a cup of coffee to it
@@dixienormus7779 I quit taking it months ago. Honestly It was making me too dizzy, and the side effects were worse than the treatment for anxiety. But it works in different ways with different people. Best of luck to you with the buspar!
Hi! I take Zoloft and lamotrigine for depression but trying to find a way to improve the libido side effects. Doctor has me trying TRINTELLIX while slowly tapering off Zoloft. (Wellbutrin makes me anxious so that didn’t work.). I’m still only at 5 mgs TRINTELLIX so I don’t know if it will help yet but I’m missing Zoloft already. That was really helping depression like nothing else I’ve taken. Do you think adding buspar to Zoloft would work better for the sexual side effects rather than switching out Zoloft for TRINTELLIX? Thank you.
This is not medical advice it's intended for educational purposes only please talk to your doctor before making any changes. If the zoloft has been the most effective medication for treating depression I would be inclined to try and treat the sexual side effects before switching to another medication. Hope this helps, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here
I was hallucinating lights and dizzyness and heart beats fast when i lift up and pressure should I stop the med or will the diziness always occur after each dose? Its been 8 days but I am worried about the side effects as no other med is tolersble for me except benzos :/
I just got prescribed this medication and I’m worried about these side effects. Did they subside for you? I kept hearing that you gotta just keep going with it and eventually that will stop
I'm on day four of buspirone and it's making me very bloated and gassy. I already have IBS but it's worse. Are stomach issues a side effect that is likely to dicipate over time?
I have a whole video on treating nausea and GI disturbance from these medications check it out. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here.
i was diagnosed with GAD and my therapist told me taking something like sertraline might help me especially that i am not really getting better with only CBT but when i looked up antidepressants and found out abt that permanent sexual dysfunction might occur i decided that i won't take medication, even thought i wanted something to help me since i can do it on my own now but knowing that buspar doesn't cause problems on that matter made me think that finally there is something might be helpful and won't cause sexual side effect just to know it might be weak and not helpful enough i don't know what should i do
There is a lot in the question and I will try and answer it. The permanent sexual dysfunction associated with SSRIs is something that is still under investigation. I have not personally seen a case but people have reported it here to me. Like all treatments it’s a question of risks VS benefits. You should discuss this with your doctor those risks and benefit and ask any questions at that time. Another aspect that people often forget is depression destroys sexual desire and cause other sexual dysfunction. Buspirone has such a small effect size that it wouldn’t even be noticeable clinically. I’m not a big fan of it and only use it to treat sexual dysfunction in those using SSRIs or SNRIs. I will usually use vortioxetine or bupropion is sexual Side effects are the primary issue. Hope this answers the question
I can’t provide direct medical advice and always talk with your doctor before making any changes. It can cause some anxiety initially when starting the medication. It occurs in about 5% of people. That could appear as anger or irritability. I would not say this is common and in clinical practice I have not had anyone endorse these side effects although I do not use this medication often. Hope this helps, if you haven’t subscribed please do and spread the word about what we are doing here. I’m also doing daily Instagram posts now check them out for additional mental health tips.
I’m not aware of any cases and there is even some evidence that it may treat ataxia. jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaneurology/fullarticle/593671#:~:text=Conclusions%3A%20Buspirone%20may%20be%20effective,in%20cerebellar%20ataxia%20is%20warranted. Hope this helps, if you haven’t subscribed to the channel please do, and spread the word about what we are doing here.
This is not medical advice it’s for educational purposes only always talk to your doctor before making any changes. The doses from the most cited study were 20-60 mg daily. The mean dose was 48.5 mg/day. 58% of people reported improvement in sexual function and the response rate was 30%. Overall women responded better than men. Hope this helps. If you haven’t subscribed please do and spread the word about what we are doing.
I am lost . Are u saying that it also is an alpha 2 antagonist ? no way that an alpha 2 antagonist is anti anxiaty , alpla 1 antagonist do it . Antagonice alpha 2 do excactly the oppositive, is like agonist alpha 1 that way . You don’t want to mess with adrenaline ig you have anxiety, that os why ATD like bupropion, vortioxetin are a big NO for anyone with anxiety .
clonidine is used all the time off label in psychiatry for anxiety. It is an alpha-2 agonist. We can debate the efficacy of the medication in anxiety disorders but many people I trained with loved using it. Alpha-2 receptors are presynaptic and stimulating them will decrease NE release as similar to the way negative feedback from NE itself would work. Hope this clears things up. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here
Hello can you help me out, I had persistent dizziness in November last year then nausea. It just kept getting worse and I didn’t know it was anxiety for the first 3 months and I became bedridden. My symptoms Nausea Dizzy Numbness in limbs Pins and needles Dry mouth Muscle pains Heart rate Heart palpitations Blood pressure Ear pressure Bad breath Cold hands and feet Stomach trouble Acid reflux Bad dreams Vision problems. These symptoms happen at random they come and goD I had all tests done under the sun and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me. I tolerate the medications very well but don’t seem to work I was on lexapro 40mg for 6 weeks and it didn’t work I’m on 3 weeks on 100mg Zoloft now but no improvements. The persistent dizziness is the worst. Do I have a rare disease or is it actually anxiety??? Doctors keep saying it’s just anxiety. The physc doctor told me I have acute anxiety.
Thank you for helping people like me, as a patient, who need clarification on the various psychiatric medications that exist.
No problem I appreciate the support. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here.
I took this medication for about 5 years. I was scared to take SSRI’s because of the side effects. It helped my anxiety a little bit, just enough to get me out and be somewhat productive. However, when my doctor switched me to Effexor XR, that is when I found out how week Buspar is when taken alone. Once I titrated to my therapeutic dose of Effexor, I started to see real relief from my anxiety.
Interesting. That's my question. Buspar ALONE...is it solely effective as an adjunct or can it be taken alone?
@@EphesianRose I found it effective once I was on 30mg a day for GAD. However, once I started to develop bad panic attacks( I’m a combat vet) I got prescribed a benzo as a rescue medication for the panic attacks. From that point forward, the Buspar was less affective until it didn’t even touch my General Anxiety. Then I switched to Effexor XR and that was a game changer for my normal anxiety. I still get a panic attack every now and then, but the frequency is less. That means less use of benzo’s, which is always a good thing! Anyway, that is my story. I wish you well, take care.
@@matthewkitch1 - Thank you for opening up about your experience and I pray you continue to find long term, and permanent relief. I too may return to the SSRI I was on or try something new. I think main issue with Buspar is the frequency with which one takes it during the day.
Thats awesome, glad you found success with treatment. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here
What medication do you prefer for GAD?
Would think divide so take cumative dose via three or four times a day due to its short shelf life.
Dizziness was definitely a side effect in the beginning. First few weeks I had strong vertigo for the first 20-30 minutes of dosing. But after the first month it fell off sharply and I now only experience it once every couple of weeks
Getting ready to start this medication any insomnia issues from it? Hope its working for you
Any insomnia issues? Hope you can help. I’m also experiencing vertigo for the first 20-30 minutes
@@hoyconjessi5141 Hello hope all is well, have you started Buspar yet? Any bad side effects
@@michaelthau1007 Hi 👋🏻 I decided to start 15mg of Mirtazapine due to some low grade Postpartum depression but huge anxiety due to some cancer they removed after my delivery. So far is only been 1 week on this medication along with with 1mg of klonopin and the first few days I feel super tired but my insomnia is improving daily and I hope my mood and anxiety does as well. Wish you the best!
excellent presentation - could not thank you enough.
Thank you, I appreciate the love and support
I’m using it for generalized anxiety and it’s working just fine 3.5 mg twice a day
Clayton, Curious are you still using Buspirone? How long you been using it?
@@blakemoore666 No I’m not taking it anymore once I got up to a full 7 mg I didn’t feel right I was dizzy all the time. Then the doctor wanted to increase it. And I said no I’m fine it just quit taking it. It’s hard to say if that was actually making me dizzy or not but I wasn’t willing to find out.
@@claytonhubbard612 I took it for 12 weeks, 5mg am, 5mg pm, helped my anxiety tremendously, helped me sleep great however made me lil dizzy, super tired all the time and short of breath upon any activities. Not sure what I’m going to next….
@@blakemoore666 no medication I’ve ever taken didn’t do something to the point to where I could take it. It’s all trash to me.
Is Buspar safe and effective for long term use, even though I see it’s only noted for short term?
How much time we need to take it ?
All these comments have me scared to take this medication. I just got prescribed it and it’s nerve wrecking
How does it help with sexual dysfunction with D2 antagonist property ? Won't it reduce motivation and desire ?
hello dear doctor
in your opinion is it possible to use it for the effects of SSRI withdrawal?, I mean, is it useful for various anhedonia, or sexual problems of pleasure and similar things?
I've been on Zoloft for over a year for GAD (not severe) and had bruxism before the Zoloft somewhat and it's gotten severe day and night on Zoloft to the point of me having some bone loss in teeth and now nerve pain. Also, I've gained weight like crazy on Zoloft and now have back pain. I'm considering just trying the busprosine by itself to see if it can treat the GAD and get rid of these awful headache/neckache/shoulderaches from constant subconscious clenching.
hey it’s been awhile but i’m also on sertraline and busiprone and i get horrible shakiness and muscle twitches all day what did u end up doing? going with busiprone by itself?
Theoretically, because this medicine is thought to specifically target serotonin levels in the amygdala, and does not have much potential for abuse, is there a reason this wouldn't help alleviate PTSD symptoms? I have recently come off half of the "welloft" combination, and am still on the buproprion. I am considering trying pristiq but its downsides give me pause, and would like to try alternatives first. Buspirone seemed like a relatively safe medication, and I wonder if buspirone combined with buproprion could take some of the edge off of my hyper arousal, and avoid a lot of the negative side effects of SSRIs and SNRIs that have made wanting to continue with the Zoloft seem no longer worth the trade off. I would love to hear your thoughts from a theoretical perspective... but if it PTSD is primarily an anxiety disorder rather than a mood disorder (theoretically), and benzos are too risky because of the potential for abuse... why is this not being tried as an alternative?
I will have to disagree with saying it takes a long time to work. Mine worked immediately I have epilepsy and I get anxiety pretty easy. These were prescribed for sleep medication but works for anxiety. To me I feel better taking this than Klonopin.
Great, but you would be in the minority of people taking the medication. When we talk about the medication taking a certain length of time this is in general based on the number of participants in the research studies, each individual person may have a different response. Glad you had success, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about the community we are building here.
@@AlwaysLoveEvery1 Yes hello. I haven't had any trouble with seizures. Looking at the fact I take 300 mg extended release Lamotrigine and 150 mg vimpat for my epilepsy. I only take as needed. They are safe for me at 5-10mg. I was given them for sleep. Only use for anxiety. Hope this helps. It's great news also you haven't have a seizure in so long God bless. I also had a brain tumor moved in left temporal lobe.
@@AlwaysLoveEvery1 you are welcome.
@@AlwaysLoveEvery1 thank you
@@AlwaysLoveEvery1 lamotrigine/lamictal has always helped. If I miss the medication I do have sezuires. I am dependent on them. Hope this helps
Can I smoke weed with Buspirone?
Thank you for dropping this!!!!
No problem we listen to you guys about what to cover, Buspar came up a bunch of times as a request. If you haven't subscribed to the channel, please do and spread the word about what we are doing here. Also check out the instagram page as we are updating content daily to reduce stigma and educate about mental health treatment.
Thank you for your informative and clear explanations of complex psychotropic mechanisms and effects. I’ve been taking Buspar for about two months at 22.5mg per day for GAD. It has been helpful. I’ve recently added Effexor at 37.5mg, which is having an immediate positive effect on mood and IBS issues, helping to round out and stabilize the anti-anxiety effects of Buspar. But I’m now experiencing anorgasmia (an experience I’ve had on every SSRI I’ve tried-Lexapro, Prozac, etc.). I’m someone who experiences delayed orgasms without medication and have been hoping to find a combination that will both treat anxiety and improve orgasm function (or at least not pile on to a pre-existing condition). Do you have any advice for me?
This is not medical advice and is provided for educational purposes only, please talk with your doctor before making any changes. This can be a good thing or a bad thing, I've treated people in the past who were premature ejaculators and delaying orgasm was a good thing and actually improved their sex life. This is not the case here but there are several options, one would be to keep buspar in play as an adjunctive treatment for sexual side effects. Another option would be to talk with your doctor about a change to bupropion which has no sexual side effects, or mirtazapine which has lower risk of sexual side effects. Hope this helps.
Hello can you help me out, I had persistent dizziness in November last year then nausea. It just kept getting worse and I didn’t know it was anxiety for the first 3 months and I became bedridden.
My symptoms
Nausea
Dizzy
Numbness in limbs
Pins and needles
Dry mouth
Muscle pains
Heart rate
Heart palpitations
Blood pressure
Ear pressure
Bad breath
Cold hands and feet
Stomach trouble
Acid reflux
Bad dreams
Vision problems.
These symptoms happen at random they come and goD
I had all tests done under the sun and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me.
I tolerate the medications very well but don’t seem to work
I was on lexapro 40mg for 6 weeks and it didn’t work
I’m on 3 weeks on 100mg Zoloft now but no improvements. The persistent dizziness is the worst.
Do I have a rare disease or is it actually anxiety???
Doctors keep saying it’s just anxiety.
The physc doctor told me I have acute anxiety.
Doctors are educated guessers,no one knows how these mind bending drugs work on the brain.That’s why they have so many of them on the market.It’s a trial and error process.They will take you off of benzodiazepines put you on mind benders and you end up with TD and treat that with Benzodiazepines so be careful out there
yes, hi ... my question is why don't you think its a good anxiety medication of choice?. Do you think Lexapro is a better option?
Most guidelines would suggest a medication like lexapro as a first line option. The reason I think buspirone is a poor medication to treat anxiety is thats what the data shows. The effect size is 0.17 which translates to no clinically meaningful improvement in anxiety symptoms. Now, for some people it may work amazing but in general it's not a great option and the data proves that. Hope this helps, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here,
Propranolol and Buspirone??
For interactions,
Adderall xr 20mgs, Wellbutrin 300mgs, and then add Buspar (15mg)
(All for ADD + Stress/Aniety/PTSD, and anxiety attacks.
Would adding Buspar cancel out that dopamine lacking with ADD people?
Great question. I’m on adderall XR 10 mg & just they just prescribed me buspirone 10 mg .
He said above that’s it’s not very effective at the re-uptake of dopamine so probably not.
If there is a response! I have never found this useful for any of my pts. I might as well be giving them pez! Why do so many kids NOT respond to this?
I have basically stopped prescribing it.
Are you really getting a placebo response?
Great video mate. Thanks for putting this together
No worries, appreciate the support, if you haven't subscribed please do, and spread the word about what we are doing here.
Thank you for this information it really helps. I am on Lorazepam right now and would like to get off of that. Switching to Buspar sounds ok to me. Is there a delay time from switching over or can you switch it right away?
Hey, did you ever end up switching?
Dr. Rossi first i thank you for what your doing. Second in MY opinion you should give a little more of your personal opinion or experiences with patients as opposed to reading from a script.
Exactly! I can read the same stuff off WebMD. For all we know this guy is even a Dr he only reads from the literature.
Been at max dose of mirtazapine for about a month. Dr added 5mg Buspirone twice a day. We’ll see. What is it twice per day rather than once?
It has a shorter half-life, and therefore needs to be dosed multiple times a day. Think, for example, an ibuprofen or paracetamol must be taking every 6 to 8 hours.
Sup man. Another great video! Have you done a vid about the tricyclics and their use as augmentation agents for depression and anxiety? And in what cases they would be favored for augmentation over buspirone, antipsychotics, and atypicals?
I have an entire video on TCAs so start there and check that out. I would consider a TCA after other medications have failed to improve symptoms. I will usually start with nortriptyline unless there is OCD in which case clomipramine is the gold standard. TCAs can be combined with other antidepressants but it's a risky game, might be better off trying an MAOI at that point. Hope this helps
@@ShrinksInSneakers Thanks much!
I'll ask my Dr when I see him, but if Buspar takes 2 to 4 weeks to reach optimum effect, why am I increasing my dose every week from the start? Feeling pretty good at 7.5mg x2 after a week. I think I prefer to stay there for a month and let the effect peak before deciding on taking another step up. My final step would be 15mg x2 but if half that continues to work I'd prefer the lesser dose. Thoughts?
Hello Doc,
I have been on 50 mg Buspirone for 3 months it was added to the antidepressant I've been taking for years ( Anafranil 10 mg ) I have a Gad and ADHD ( I don't do well with Escitalopram, it rises my anxiety like crazy) I was prescribed Buspirone to calm down a really bad Anxiety attack after 3 months of methylphenidate which I stopped. It has really worked for me. I haven't been taking any benzo during the day since I'm on it ( apart 10mg of oxazepam at night ) hope it stays that way...I was really surprised by its efficiency.
it's always hard to predict who will respond to a medication or combination of medications when we talk about a research study it's a general assessment of the medications efficacy but will not apply in every case. Hope this helps, I'm glad things have worked out well for you
How ling did it take to work?
When is it best to use Buspar as an augmentation for SSRI like Lexapro, versus Wellbutrin?
If there is a generalized anxiety disorder present than Buspar may help. If there is a significant lack of energy or motivation than Wellbutrin is a better option.
@@ShrinksInSneakers Hi Lexapro became so fatiguing…I wanted to know what your thoughts were on the efficacy/mechanism of Buspar as a MONO-therapy?
Lil over a year ago I was taken off clonazepam and put on buspirone and ive felt worse ever since. Over a YEAR later and i get lightheaded almost every morning dose. I have finger twitching i didnt have before and my sleep quality is hell. They wont give me any benzos, only buspirone or a anti depressant.
In Germany Buspirone seems to be not used often 😭😭😭 Monday I want to talk to my doctor about it. My OCD and anxiety is not very good on escitalopram 😭
Take it as prescribed 15 mgs per day for 2 or 3 weeks and make your own decision.
What do you think about Auvelity?
I have a whole video on it if you are interested. It seems to have a rapid onset of action, and good efficacy but it failed in a large trial of treatment resistant depression and the cost is high. It is possible to use generic medication to make the combination and reduce cost for the patient. Overall it looks good
@@ShrinksInSneakers Firse of all, I am subscribed😉you explain everything- even when I have no idea what you're talking about- so well. I was excited to try Auvelity. It made me so out of it and zero appetite. I was on Wellbutrin but even with the dose increase and promis I would fell 'motivated', it didn't work. I went through a lot of loss, including my career during covid, so now (both mental and medical issues) So now I'm in the process of eviction. Yay!🙄Very stressful time and whikle I know they don't fix everything, I really need to be able to cope (MDD/anxiety). Wished the Ketamine troches worked ut felt derealization/depersonalization. I need to be focused and calm. I was on Effxor before Buproprion but the worst to stop. Before that it was Lexapro. The only med at the pharmacy now is Adderall. I feel good/calm at first, but then not so well. My nurse just seems cluless. Thanks!💖
Doc- ⚠️URGENT⚠️Please explain how this medication along with Hydroxyzine would work for generalized+separation anxiety. This summer, I’m taking a one week trip away from home, then will be back home briefly (about a week) before going on another 3 week trip (the longest I’ve been away from my family). For most, that’s no big concern, but as someone who experiences anxiety when away from home and familiar locations, I’m worried about what will happen. Currently take Hydroxyzine when needed as well as an Olly supplement for stabilizing mood. Need to find a medication soon so it has time to come into effect before these trips. I experience occasional anxiety at home as well, but much more when away. Thank you!
I was wondering the same thing because I've been taking hydroxyzine as needed for a while. But recently my anxiety has gotten bad enough that taking it daily doesn't work anymore, like I've built up a tolerance. And I was just started on buspirone.
Hey, does Anxiety mimic excitement? Similar feelings in the chest? Tnks
Yes! I have learned that often times when I feel "anxiety" I am really just excited about something, but I have come to associate it with anxiety. So, I have had to reframe my mind sometimes that I am just excited, it's not anxiety.
Doc, I'm on 225mg venvaxiline XR (Effexor) and 7.5 Buspirone q.d. I know that in higher doses, venvaxline has some effect on dopamine receptors. My question is: Am I kinda defeating my purpose when I take Buspar as it blocks dopamine?
This is not medical advice, and it’s only for educational purposes. As always talk with your doctor about the situation. I do not think using buspar in combination with venlafaxine is fully eliminating the effects on dopamine neurotransmission. It’s important to remember that the norepinephrine effects of venlafaxine begin around 225 mg and increases up to 375 mg/day. There is no direct dopamine effect from venlafaxine, what happens is in the prefrontal cortex the norepinephrine transporter is primarily responsible for dopamine reuptake and thus dopamine is increased in those locations in the brain when on an SNRI. Buspar is a very poor dopamine blocking medication and had very low antagonist effects at D2 as stated in the video. This all depends on the reason for the buspar in treatment what the goal of using the medication is in this example. Hope this helps, if you haven’t subscribed to the channel please do, and spread the word about what we are doing here. Also, we have daily content on Instagram now to educate and reduce stigma associated with mental health treatment.
Hello can you help me out, I had persistent dizziness in November last year then nausea. It just kept getting worse and I didn’t know it was anxiety for the first 3 months and I became bedridden.
My symptoms
Nausea
Dizzy
Numbness in limbs
Pins and needles
Dry mouth
Muscle pains
Heart rate
Heart palpitations
Blood pressure
Ear pressure
Bad breath
Cold hands and feet
Stomach trouble
Acid reflux
Bad dreams
Vision problems.
These symptoms happen at random they come and goD
I had all tests done under the sun and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me.
I tolerate the medications very well but don’t seem to work
I was on lexapro 40mg for 6 weeks and it didn’t work
I’m on 3 weeks on 100mg Zoloft now but no improvements. The persistent dizziness is the worst.
Do I have a rare disease or is it actually anxiety???
Doctors keep saying it’s just anxiety.
The physc doctor told me I have acute anxiety.
Buspar made me so anxious. I was taking the lowest dose
If anxiolytic medication is making you anxious, you either are taking a too low or a too high dose. In your case, too low.
Buspar has been around since the 80s
it's been around a long time 1986 was the FDA approval. I'm not a big fan I do use it in some cases TBI, sexual dysfunction
Is it OK for this to be prescribed alongside 25mg of Zoloft? So 20mg of Buspirone and 25mg of Zoloft?
yes but 25 mg of zoloft is very low. 50 mg is the minimal effective dose for an adult.
I am Effexor ER 150mg per day and Lamotrigene 100mg per day. My doctor told me i should also be taking burspar 30mg per day cut in half for 15 and 15 per day. I really want it to help my sexual side effects because being a new relationship i want to have that connection with my partner. The only thing i am worried about is seratonin syndrome and when i was on burspar before it made me super drowsy and was hard to function. Does it have a good benefit on sexual side effects and delayed orgasum?
This is not medical advice, you should always talk with your doctor before making and changes, this information is for educational purposes only. In general it is safe to combine buspar and other antidepressant medications. It does have evidence to support its use to reduce sexual dysfunction associated with serotonin based medications. Sedation is more likely to occur at doses above 20 mg/day so I would usually start at 10 mg twice per day and assess the benefit before increasing because we are not looking to treat anxiety just the side effect. Hope this helps, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do, if you have thank you. I'm also doing daily Instagram content which can be found @Shrinks_In_Sneakers
My doctor prescribed me 10mg twice daily. I'm a big time coffee drinker, about 2 to 3 cups per day. I read on Google that buspar and coffee can make your anxiety worse. My question is how long should I wait to take this after coffee?
By the way my first night of taking this medication felt great. My thoughts are more clear. I'm more relaxed and free from anxiety!
Hey how are you doing now? I used to be a big coffee drinker until my anxiety started getting bad.
But it usually makes me dizzy when I take it in the morning I couldn’t imagine adding a cup of coffee to it
@@dixienormus7779 I quit taking it months ago. Honestly It was making me too dizzy, and the side effects were worse than the treatment for anxiety. But it works in different ways with different people. Best of luck to you with the buspar!
Hi! I take Zoloft and lamotrigine for depression but trying to find a way to improve the libido side effects. Doctor has me trying TRINTELLIX while slowly tapering off Zoloft. (Wellbutrin makes me anxious so that didn’t work.). I’m still only at 5 mgs TRINTELLIX so I don’t know if it will help yet but I’m missing Zoloft already. That was really helping depression like nothing else I’ve taken. Do you think adding buspar to Zoloft would work better for the sexual side effects rather than switching out Zoloft for TRINTELLIX? Thank you.
This is not medical advice it's intended for educational purposes only please talk to your doctor before making any changes. If the zoloft has been the most effective medication for treating depression I would be inclined to try and treat the sexual side effects before switching to another medication. Hope this helps, if you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here
I was hallucinating lights and dizzyness and heart beats fast when i lift up and pressure should I stop the med or will the diziness always occur after each dose? Its been 8 days but I am worried about the side effects as no other med is tolersble for me except benzos :/
I just got prescribed this medication and I’m worried about these side effects. Did they subside for you? I kept hearing that you gotta just keep going with it and eventually that will stop
every 2-3 days you increased by 5 mg. If it was 7.5 mg BID, how should I increase it? is it going to be 10 mg BID. What about 5 mg TID
I'm on day four of buspirone and it's making me very bloated and gassy. I already have IBS but it's worse. Are stomach issues a side effect that is likely to dicipate over time?
I have a whole video on treating nausea and GI disturbance from these medications check it out. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here.
@@ShrinksInSneakers thanks for replying but I hoping you might know if the bloating is likely to go away when you climatise to the medication?
i was diagnosed with GAD and my therapist told me taking something like sertraline might help me especially that i am not really getting better with only CBT
but when i looked up antidepressants and found out abt that permanent sexual dysfunction might occur i decided that i won't take medication, even thought i wanted something to help me since i can do it on my own now
but knowing that buspar doesn't cause problems on that matter made me think that finally there is something might be helpful and won't cause sexual side effect just to know it might be weak and not helpful enough i don't know what should i do
There is a lot in the question and I will try and answer it. The permanent sexual dysfunction associated with SSRIs is something that is still under investigation. I have not personally seen a case but people have reported it here to me. Like all treatments it’s a question of risks VS benefits. You should discuss this with your doctor those risks and benefit and ask any questions at that time. Another aspect that people often forget is depression destroys sexual desire and cause other sexual dysfunction. Buspirone has such a small effect size that it wouldn’t even be noticeable clinically. I’m not a big fan of it and only use it to treat sexual dysfunction in those using SSRIs or SNRIs. I will usually use vortioxetine or bupropion is sexual Side effects are the primary issue. Hope this answers the question
Hi,, I have high blood pressure (145 over 80). I was put on Buspirone . I'm afraid to take it, does it cause high blood pressure,?
Thank you 👍😊
Can anger/irritability be a side effect of Buspar?
I can’t provide direct medical advice and always talk with your doctor before making any changes. It can cause some anxiety initially when starting the medication. It occurs in about 5% of people. That could appear as anger or irritability. I would not say this is common and in clinical practice I have not had anyone endorse these side effects although I do not use this medication often. Hope this helps, if you haven’t subscribed please do and spread the word about what we are doing here. I’m also doing daily Instagram posts now check them out for additional mental health tips.
It made me feel irritable n angry sometimes
Does it cause ataxia
I’m not aware of any cases and there is even some evidence that it may treat ataxia. jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaneurology/fullarticle/593671#:~:text=Conclusions%3A%20Buspirone%20may%20be%20effective,in%20cerebellar%20ataxia%20is%20warranted. Hope this helps, if you haven’t subscribed to the channel please do, and spread the word about what we are doing here.
At what doses of Buspar have you typically seen the most relief for SSRI-induced sexual dysfunction? Thank you.
This is not medical advice it’s for educational purposes only always talk to your doctor before making any changes. The doses from the most cited study were 20-60 mg daily. The mean dose was 48.5 mg/day. 58% of people reported improvement in sexual function and the response rate was 30%. Overall women responded better than men. Hope this helps. If you haven’t subscribed please do and spread the word about what we are doing.
@@ShrinksInSneakers Thank you! Your content is great and very accessible to a lay audience!
@@JoseMendez-co5nm Thank you, much appreciated
I am lost . Are u saying that it also is an alpha 2 antagonist ? no way that an alpha 2 antagonist is anti anxiaty , alpla 1 antagonist do it . Antagonice alpha 2 do excactly the oppositive, is like agonist alpha 1 that way . You don’t want to mess with adrenaline ig you have anxiety, that os why ATD like bupropion, vortioxetin are a big NO for anyone with anxiety .
clonidine is used all the time off label in psychiatry for anxiety. It is an alpha-2 agonist. We can debate the efficacy of the medication in anxiety disorders but many people I trained with loved using it. Alpha-2 receptors are presynaptic and stimulating them will decrease NE release as similar to the way negative feedback from NE itself would work. Hope this clears things up. If you haven't subscribed to the channel please do and spread the word about what we are doing here
Hello can you help me out, I had persistent dizziness in November last year then nausea. It just kept getting worse and I didn’t know it was anxiety for the first 3 months and I became bedridden.
My symptoms
Nausea
Dizzy
Numbness in limbs
Pins and needles
Dry mouth
Muscle pains
Heart rate
Heart palpitations
Blood pressure
Ear pressure
Bad breath
Cold hands and feet
Stomach trouble
Acid reflux
Bad dreams
Vision problems.
These symptoms happen at random they come and goD
I had all tests done under the sun and they couldn’t find anything wrong with me.
I tolerate the medications very well but don’t seem to work
I was on lexapro 40mg for 6 weeks and it didn’t work
I’m on 3 weeks on 100mg Zoloft now but no improvements. The persistent dizziness is the worst.
Do I have a rare disease or is it actually anxiety???
Doctors keep saying it’s just anxiety.
The physc doctor told me I have acute anxiety.
Nervousness is a bad side effect for an anti-anxiety med.
It doesn't have sexual side effects. It has anxiety sides efffectz
I took it once and no thanks. I refuse to take any medication for my anxiety. I’ll be fine. I just gotta challenge my thoughts.
I took it and after 1 10mg dose it helped big time. I guess everyone's chemical makeup is different
Can you occasionally drink beer?
Take it off market. Doesn't work. & if it does work it takes
3 mo.
Dr stop reading from the literature i have already read everything there is to read i want your personal expert opinion not some study!
Way too may side effects with SSRI...cause sexual dysfuctuin in almost all, and cause mania at least when first start.