Three weeks on Buspar - need support!
#216561 - 09/29/05 11:50 AM
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Digby
Reged: 07/31/04
Posts: 453
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I'd love to hear from you folks who've been on, or are on, Buspar. Being extremely sensitive to meds, I started with a half of a 5 mg tablet. That was fine for two weeks. Then I increased it to the full tablet and felt like I'd drunk (drank?) a fifth of vodka! So I went down a bit to 3/4 of a tablet for the rest of this week.
Has anyone else felt this with Buspar? I'm also feeling slightly nauseaus, and I hope that goes away because I abhor feeling that way.
I've been dizzy, too (started before the Buspar). I'm wondering if it's from getting off my morning dose of Klonopin. My doc thinks I'm hyperventilating and should breathe into a paper bag. I disagree. It happens fairly continuously, and at times when I'm just quietly sitting. It's a weird dizziness...sometimes I feel like I'm really short all of a sudden. Or that my head is in a blender.
Anyway, with the encouraging stories on this website, I started the Buspar, not quite kicking and screaming (I do hate the effects of psychiatric drugs on my brain). But the constant worrying is no picnic either. Sigh. Any advice would be helpful. Thanks!
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I remember you asking about it, and I do remember most replies being encouraging, except for mine. As I said before, I tried Buspar and no matter the dosage, it made me dizzy and loopy and dumb, and I did not like that feeling. I can't remember if it made me naseous (I can never spell that word).
I choose to work on my anxiety related IBS attacks by breathing and talking myself through them, by reminding myself that I will get through it, because I always do.
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I take 40mg/day of Buspar and don't experience the degree of dizziness that you described. I'm also really thin.
Yes, it does give me a nice kind of stoned feeling--sorry to be blatant--but nothing compared to the warped clonazepam feeling. It doesn't make me feel like I've consumed alcohol/vodka.
Sometimes, I get dizzy if I rise too quickly from sitting or laying down position. As long as my nutrition is PRIMO, I exceptionally steady.
I suspect it could be a result of weaning off of clonazepam.
Re: Nausea. Yes, I feel this. I also take epileptic drugs which increases/intensifies the NAUSEA. Does it go away?
Well, it can be minimized. Take your pills with food. Sometimes, I crush the pill and hide it in the food.
Ginger anything, and mint, relieves the nausea. Flat soda as well, i.e. gingerale/club soda. I get a very dry mouth--but that's normal of any psych. drug.
Sodium relieves the dizziness. Are you getting enough sodium/potassium?
Just brainstorming. I'll advise if I think of anything else.
Kate.
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I take 5mg morning and 5mg at night. maybe that would be an easier way for you to up your dosage? I don't have your side effects - though I do get occasional headaches and brain-fog. Dan
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Ladies & gentlemen take my advice, pull down your pants and slide on the ice.
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I'm at 40mg/day. Honestly, my worst side effect is nausea/low blood pressure. Does it make anyone else eat less? Nexium helps with nausea related issues. Buspar really works for me--better than anything else I've used. I laugh at life more these days and interpret anxiety positively, i.e. as 'excitement.' I try to see the potential 'fun' in things. I actually speak with people again, i.e. 'live more out loud.' I socialize more.
I do get nightsweats. Dream recall is intensified.
I guess I have my 'sense of humour' back. I catch myself smiling, unconsciously.
Kate.
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Hi, I just saw this. I take 15 mg Buspar/day (1/2 in the morning, 1/2 in the evening WITH food). It does take a while to notice a decrease in anxiety, at least four weeks. I've been on it about six months now, and I'm doing so much better. The first few months I did feel dizzy, usually from getting up too fast; I had dry mouth and vivid dreams. I'm not as sensitive to medications as you are, so it's hard to compare. The side effects did lessen, however. In another couple of weeks you should start noticing some positive effects, although you're starting at a very low dose and slowly increasing it so that might take longer.
If you're interested, I posted how the first couple weeks on Buspar went (I should note that I was probably experiencing reduced anxiety so soon because I was also taking lorazepam, maybe once or twice a week that first month; I don't know why I didn't mention it back then  ):
Week 1 Update
Week 2 Update
Also, are you seeing a counselor or anyone during this time to help you manage your anxiety? I did a few sessions with a counselor, mostly CBT, going over thought patterns that led to anxiety and then to an attack. I think it was helpful, but she sent me on my way after three sessions.
I recently read that Buspirone/Buspar stimulates the 5-HT1 receptor (5-HT is seratonin, which is connected to what we feel in our intestines. Buspirone is one drug believed to reduce the responsiveness (sensitivity) of the sensory nerves to what's happening in the intestine. (Which may be why I'm feeling less pain, rumbling, and urgency since I started treatment with Buspar?) The 5-HT1 receptor stimulators, however, have not yet been tested for effectiveness in IBS...so no studies or evidence yet on how that works for IBSers. (I found this info on Webmd.com and medicinenet.com, and I think there's an article in the IBS Research Library about this).
I hope you start seeing some good side effects SOON! Take care! 
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Thanks for responding to my post. Interesting info about the effects of Buspar on 5-HT1 receptors. That's encouraging.
I've seen psychiatrists and counselors about my anxiety over the years. I found that CBT done in a group setting was most effective for me. It really helped me to change my thinking patterns (and be aware of them!). I've also had some success with EMDR.
I recently had a check-in with my psychiatrist regarding the Buspar. She thinks I'm doing great, and in fact I wasn't feeling particularly anxious until I had several weeks of dizziness. It got worse recently (lasting all day long for days), and I began feeling anxiety symptoms from that. I backed down the Buspar to half of a 5 mg tablet to see if that had any effect, and it helped. I seem to feel fine on just that small dose (at least for now). My doctor and the psychiatrist doubt that my dizziness has anything to do with coming off the Klonopin. I don't know tho...I've been researching on a benzo site and hearing lots of folks complaining of withdrawal symptoms (even from low doses) for months after being off the drug.
On the bright side, my IBS symptoms are practically gone! I attribute this to the IBS self-hypnosis tapes, increasing the Acacia, and quite possibly the Buspar.
Thanks for your support Maria.
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