Resurrecting old topic: Wellbutrin

I would like to try this as well. There were recently a few women here trying wellbutrin for UC but I don't think any had luck. I think they both had adverse reactions to the medication and strange side effects so they weren't able to tolerate it long enough to see if it helped their UC. It will be interesting to see if it helps you. In your case, the chances of an adverse reaction are slim since you have been on wellbutrin in the past.

I am happy to hear you're improving :)

I also read that the version of Wellbutrin was key, either on here or one of the other forums, so that is why I tried it two years ago, after having taken the SR version in the past.

Combined with a several other factors, the generic immediate release Bupropion appeared to make a big difference for me in July 2011. about 6-7 weeks after starting and then recently stopping fecal transplants, I started Bupropion 100 mg x 3 per day, 6 mg of Silenor (Doxepin,) started rapidly tapering Prednisone from 40 mg to 0 in 10 days, re-started taking Apriso, mesalamine suppositories. By the end of the next day all diarrhea completely stopped and I had the first well-formed bowel movement in months. I have now been free of symptoms - no blood for almost two years, after being a near-chronic problem for 12 years.

Given the combination of factors I can't say to what extent that it helped or for which reasons. It have helped by treating depression, helping slow diarrhea along with other factors. Or it could have helped with the inflammation by being a TNF-a inhibitor. I continued to take the immediate release form for a few more months before switching to the once a day XL version, since I sometimes forgot to take one of the 3 doses throughout the day.

While in the past I had taken Wellbutrin SR, including for a few weeks in January 2011 which seemed to help, I never made the connection that it might help me with inflammation. It wasn't until I read about this on here and other places that I thought to give it a shot. I went with the immediate release version because some people reported that they thought it was more effective in that form, although I don't know why that would make a difference whether you are using immediate release 3 times a day, Sustained Release twice a day or Extended Release (XL) once a day.

Here is some info I found which I remember reading two years ago. There seems to be less reporting on it's use for UC, however given the amount of overlap in treatment approaches used for the two diseases, it seems worth a shot. I'm actually trying SAM-e to see if it might help similar to Bupropion now since it is supposed to help with joint pain as well as anti-depressant. Maybe inflammation and depression are linked?

Back on Wellbutrin for Crohn's & It's Working Again
https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=17&m=2115308

Daughter with Crohn's
http://www.crohnsforum.com/showthread.php?t=495

Here is a trial done by the drug's maker Glaxo Smith Kline, however even though the study was completed 7 years ago, there aren't any reported results. I wonder why this is.

A Trial of Wellbutrin for Crohn's Disease
http://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT00126373
Detailed Description:
Wellbutrin (bupropion) is approved for use as an antidepressant. There have been some cases in which people on Wellbutrin had significant improvement clinically in their Crohn's disease. In this trial, the hypothesis that Wellbutrin can induce clinical remission in Crohn's disease will be tested. The investigators will also be looking to see if Wellbutrin can lower levels of the inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF).
Primary Completion Date:
March 2006 (Final data collection date for primary outcome measure)
No Study Results Posted on ClinicalTrials.gov for this Study


A new chapter opens in anti-inflammatory treatments: the antidepressant bupropion lowers production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and interferon-gamma in mice.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16644475

"In a wide range of human diseases of inflammatory nature like Crohn's disease, pathology is mediated in part by pro-inflammatory cytokines like tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF) or interferon-gamma. We show here that a commonly used generic antidepressant bupropion, in wide use worldwide to treat depression in humans for a decade now, profoundly lowers levels of TNF, interferon-gamma, and interleukin-1 beta in vivo, in a mouse lipopolysaccharide (LPS) induced inflammation model. Mice challenged with an otherwise lethal dose of LPS were protected by bupropion and levels of the anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10 were increased. Previous data in rodents and humans indicate antidepressant effects of bupropion are mediated by its weak reuptake inhibition of norepinephrine and dopamine. Concordant with this, TNF suppression by bupropion in our mouse LPS model was largely abrogated by beta-adrenergic or dopamine D1 receptor antagonists but not by a D2 antagonist. TNF synthesis is controlled by an inverse relationship with intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) and stimulation of either beta-adrenoreceptors or D1 dopaminergic receptors result in increased cAMP but stimulation of D2 receptors lowers cAMP. We conclude that bupropion may suppress TNF synthesis by mediating increased signaling at beta-adrenoreceptors and D1 receptors, resulting in increased cAMP that inhibits TNF synthesis. Bupropion is well tolerated also in non-psychiatric populations and has less risk with long term use than current anti-inflammatory, immunosuppressive or TNF suppressive treatments such as prednisone, azathioprine, infliximab, or methotrexate. New anti-inflammatory treatments are needed. We believe a new chapter in antiinflammatory, TNF lowering treatment of disease has been opened. Bupropion's use for this in humans should be explored."

Hi
For me wellbutrin is absolutelly woking. I am on remicade as well and it works till 3 -4 weeks after thid time its effect reguarly start to decline..in this period i used to take wellbutrin not the fast version till now the werlbutrin always helped me and put me almost complete remmision...but now i dont take continiuosly...
Tomorow i receive my next remicade..in this way i dont take wellbutrin...wellbutrin cause me very high anxiciety...i should optimize later the amoujt of this.
But very importan factor to working of buprion is the iron...usualy at these kind of people who have crohn or colitis the iron level used to be low...therefore u have boost a little the iron in opnion...but be carefful because iron can higher your flame ...but for me make higher iron leve did not cause more seriously effect in my colitis...
My iron aprox 22 according to my last blood test...sometimes i take some wellbutrin pills and after i will start to go better and better state regarding my colitis..and after make a little break...approx 1 week ..aftet again take some pills...
The stress has got very big effect to my colitis because of my work...some times i also take relaxing pills..
Type google selfhack buprion or wellbutrin you see what kind of effect it has got abd iron is an important thing in its process

Good luck
If you need any help or experience write me