Does Wellbutrin increase Dressing?

[Miss Mandy]

I have started transitioning from Zoloft to Wellbutrin. I have read that Wellbutrin may induce hypersexuality and more obsessive behaviors. While on Zoloft, I still dress but am pretty apathetic towards it. I have also observed that it has severely lessened the sexual satisfaction I take from getting dolled up. Enough!

I want to return to the erotic bliss I once had slipping on lingerie, make-up, and all my favorite girly things. I went to the doc today and she switched my meds. Has anyone on the forum seen a change in their dressing habits and level of satisfaction on wellbutrin?

On a hunch, I ordered some new dressing items in case something changes :)

Hugs,

Miss Jessica

[sandra-leigh]

It didn't work that way for me, but rather than repeat myself, please see:

http://www.crossdressers.com/forums/showthread.php?58153-wellbutrin-and-crossdressing
http://www.crossdressers.com/forums/showthread.php?169015-Did-Wellbutrin-stop-my-dressing

[Vickie_CDTV]

Wellbutrin might increase libido and can definitely supercharge one's sexual response and orgasmic intensity (but it doesn't happen for everyone.) If dressing is sexual for someone, yes it is certainly possible it will increase interest in dressing along with an increased interest in sex.

[ReineD]

I don't think Wellbutrin increases libido so much as the SSRIs (Zoloft) decrease it. Not taking Zoloft returns your libido to normal. Many people prefer Wellbutrin because it doesn't impact libido negatively like other anti-depressants.

There have been reports that some women experience increased libido with Wellbutrin, but this may be because it is helping with their depression. The libido killing depression is being treated with an anti-depressant that does not suppress libido like SSRIs.

[Helen Grandeis]

I have only heard of these effects in GG and then only second hand. My wife has been on Wellbutrin for many years, it did nothing to change her consistently strong desires.

[Shananigans]

You may experience an increase in dressing because Wellbutrin has stimulant effects for many people. If it's treating your depression, you should see yourself returning to activities that you may have stopped due to depression.

Wellbutrin is a drug usually taken long term, so a lot of the stimulant effects taper off as you take it daily. In other words, you are taking it daily...your body gets used to it...it's an atypical antidepressant, not Ecstacy. I'm sure it increases libido for quite a few people because most people's libido is non-existent when they are depressed, and also because Wellbutrib has some stimulant effects when you first start taking it. But, you get at a norm with this drug in about 6 weeks.

If you are looking for a sex drug, ask you doctor about Viagra.

[Sophie_C]

Nope, been taking it forever. It's been the same before and after.

I think shananigans hit it dead-on with the fact that not being depressed brings you right where you used to be, so a difference in that sense would be felt.

[Jeannie]

I have been on Wellbutrin for about 7 years and it really didn't change me any except I can handle pressure a lot better than before. My urges are just as strong now as they were before and the pleasure I get from dressing, which are not always sexual, are just the same. Since I don't know where you are in your transition and I am not familiar with Zoloft, I would give it a little time. IF your doctor knows about Jessica, I would ask him or her about this. Also a nice scented bath and some body lotion along with the new clothes you have ordered probably wouldn't hurt either. Hugs!!

[sandra-leigh]

Interesting. Brain chemistry sure is a challenge!

There is no anti-depressant known to work on everyone. Some of the anti-depressants on the market have worse records than placebos. I do not recall having heard of any anti-depressant that is effective on more than 54% of people. Wellbutrin works completely differently than the Paxil and Zoloft type anti-depressants, and can be effective for people who do not react or react poorly to traditional anti-depressants -- but by the same measure, Wellbutrin can be completely ineffective for people who do not happen to match up to whatever biochemistry that Wellbutrin uses.

Unfortunately anti-depressants can be a lot of trial-and-error for any particular person. Certainly for me. The "typical" anti-depressants either don't help me at all or provide short term benefits that wear off for me; the only two that have really worked for me are both "atypicals".

[Shananigans]

I'm on Wellbutrin 300mg XL daily...it made have me a lot of energy at first and my SO said I was a bit more hot-headed. But, I tend to be a pretty blunt and hot-headed person anyway. Wellbutrin just gave me a bit more energy. After 4 weeks, I felt better and like I was handling stuff better. At the same time, I was addressing the source of my problem. I knew I couldn't just fix things with a pill. People expect a miracle cure for things, or when their problem isn't cured and they act irrationally, it's blamed on the pill. Wellbutrin works on the reuptake of norepinepherine (adrenaline) and dopamine (one of your "feel good" neurotransmitters). People that are depressed are usually low in some of the brains chemicals and so antidepressants make things so the chemicals that Are there work longer. But, it's always a good thing to fix the chemical imbalance and work on coping mechanisms to get the person off of the medication. For example, I have worked through stuff, so my doctor is talking about trying to lower my dose slowly over time until I'm off it. A problem is that we don't test that someone is actually deficient in any neurotransmitter activity, and we kind of just assume that's what's going on...and, a pill is prescribed. Like the above poster said, it trial and error to see what will actually work (different mess work on different chemicals). But, I will say I get very skeptical when people tell me an antidepressant turned them gay for a while or made them wildly out of control. I wonder if it was the pill, it the fact they needed something to potentially blame their loss of inhibitions on. It's hard to say. But, you ARE supposed to call your doctor if you start taking anything and then you start acting strange. So, obviously, the people that took Wellbutrin and went crazy (and, allowed themselves to continue doing so) did not follow directions very well. And, even if your doctor doesn't tell you (in that case, get a new doctor), it says in the information sheet with the drug. Wellbutrin works fine for me. It's not a miracle drug. It increased my sex life because it made me feel better. If it changed my behavior pattern in bizarre ways, I would have called my doctor and changed prescriptions. I didn't expect Wellbutrin to turn me into a obliviously happy sex freak. I had realistic expectations. I hear your expectations of what a drug can do for you can also alter your reactions to it. Either way, the moral of the story is that you call your doctor if something may be making you do bizarre things. And, also, that you have to have realistic expectations with drugs. It's not a miracle pull and an atypical antidepressant that you take daily isn't some crazy sex drug that is comparitive to Ecstacy. If it was That good...it would be illegal lol...that's usually how sh*t works.

[Shananigans]

Sorry about the spelling/grammatical errors. My iPhone is old...and, I can only edit part of my post when on it. Just quote me if you don't understand what I was talking about, and I'll clarify. :o

[Aprilrain]

welbutrin was like ritalin (speedy) for me for about 2 weeks. Once when i first started taking it and again when my doc uped my dose. it didn't change my healthy libido but did make sex more pleasurable. Probably a combo of mitigating the depression and because the drugs is a mild stimulant. twice it seemed to stop working though and so my DR added Abilify. I think that stuff definitely makes me more horny.

[Carrie R]

I seemed to want to dress more when I was taking Effexor. It may have been just because I had less anxiety about it then.

[JustineFallow]

I've been on Paxil for 18 years and Wellbutrin for about 10. I can't say either made a real difference in my dressing frequency/desires, but both have kept me on an even keel emotionally. An experiment last year where I tapered off Paxil, then finally stopped it entirely for six months (kept the Wellbutrin going, though) convinced me I needed to stay on it. Sometimes it really is the brain chemistry at fault, Tom Cruise's medical expertise notwithstanding.

[sometimes_miss]

Anything that alters your body chemistry can change your thought processes. Psycho-active substances of course are more likely to do that. Despite being studied in depth before being put on the market, any drug can effect any person in a different way from that for which it was intended. So, the odds aren't great, but the possibility is certainly there.
That said, it didn't do anything for me, but by that time, I was already dressing every day anyway, so it would have been hard to notice a change as far as my crossdressing was concerned.
I no longer take psycho-active drugs of any kind.

[Marsha My Dear]

Hi Miss Jessica,

my doctor first tried rounds of SSRI's and SNRI's to help with depression. They made me feel as if I were plugged into a 220v wall socket. If there was any sexual/ CD side effects, they were hidden in the nervous buzz. Wellbutrin though has been wonderful. Along with cognitive behaviour therapy, my depression is in check. My libido has always been robust, and Wellbutrin has added a boost. My wonderful wife has noticed a pleasent extra charge both in our hetro life and in my dressing up. But the only thing that actually matters is that it keeps me well away from the Abyss.

Marsha