Buspar - need advice

[Matthew Caleb]

I have been struggling with anxiwty for 9 months, have tried zoloft, prozac, and now on buspar. I always get off them because I don't like the side effects and I always keep telling myself I can do it naturally.

Anyways, I am now on buspar. I took the first pill 11 days ago. And stopped after taking one pill because I convinced myself I didn't need it. Had headaches for a week after that day. It's now been 11 days and I just took the pill again cause my anxiety is really bad.

My question is, is it normal for me to be having anxiety after I took it 30 minutes ago. My heart was also beating kind of fast and was scaring me. I have anxiety right now and am scared and walking outside as I type this.

I have concluded I need medication, but they just scare me so much. I am starting to see a psychologist starting tomorrow and will do so every friday.

Any words would help. Thanks guys. I'm Matthew

[Anne1221]

Matthew, I too hate taking medication but I concluded that I have to take it. Here's my best advice - just take the medication and don't worry each day about feeling this or that. Just tell yourself that at the end of a few weeks, you'll re-evaluate it. I have struggled with Buspar for 4 months now, trying to figure out just the right dose, should i take it on an empty stomach or with food, etc. I finally concluded Buspar works best if you take it 3 times a day, with food. I also take lexapro. Don't be afraid..just take it until you feel better.

[Matthew Caleb]

Matthew, I too hate taking medication but I concluded that I have to take it. Here's my best advice - just take the medication and don't worry each day about feeling this or that. Just tell yourself that at the end of a few weeks, you'll re-evaluate it. I have struggled with Buspar for 4 months now, trying to figure out just the right dose, should i take it on an empty stomach or with food, etc. I finally concluded Buspar works best if you take it 3 times a day, with food. I also take lexapro. Don't be afraid..just take it until you feel better.

Thanks for the words, I feel a little better than I did before, I can feel a slight headache and it's also making me hungry, something I noticed when I took it 11 days ago. I was thinking of taking 2.5mg in morning and 2.5mg in evening for about 5 days then do 2.5mg 3 times a day, and then finally the 5mg one in morning and one in evening as instructed. I was just so anxious earlier and don't know if I can handle that at the office tomorrow. Being at home is a little easier taking this. The reason why I'm even taking medication is because my anxiety was causing me to have to walk outside too often. I don't want to lose my job or anything so I'm back on meds.

[Anne1221]

Glad to hear that! I know exactly what you mean. I hate the side effects too, but sometimes without them the anxiety is too much and interferes with life to such an extreme. I don't know why, for me, the Buspar was much more effective 3x per day than 2x per day. I read another girl on this forum said the same thing. As for Lexapro and Zoloft, they both help tremendously, so my advice there is just to take a very small amount. That's what I'm doing. I take 5 mg Lexapro..not enough to give me too bad side effects (it still increases my appetite a tiny bit) but enough to take the edge off the anxiety. Keep up the good work!

[Matthew Caleb]

Glad to hear that! I know exactly what you mean. I hate the side effects too, but sometimes without them the anxiety is too much and interferes with life to such an extreme. I don't know why, for me, the Buspar was much more effective 3x per day than 2x per day. I read another girl on this forum said the same thing. As for Lexapro and Zoloft, they both help tremendously, so my advice there is just to take a very small amount. That's what I'm doing. I take 5 mg Lexapro..not enough to give me too bad side effects (it still increases my appetite a tiny bit) but enough to take the edge off the anxiety. Keep up the good work!

Thanks for the words. I actually don't take zoloft anymore. I'm just on buspar. I have something else to tell you. This pill buspar is making my heart race. It is doing it for an hour after I take it and seems to raise my heart rate generally. I called the local walgreens and they said to see my physician. I'm so tired of taking new pills I just want one that works and isn't so bad with side effects.

[Anne1221]

I felt jittery and irritable one hour after I took it before I cut back on the Buspar . I think you might have to try smaller amounts to lessen the side effects but try taking it 3 x per day to keep your anxiety under control. See if taking with food helps.

[Matthew Caleb]

I have been splitting the 5mg in half and taking it at 9am and 4pm. Today I had lots of pressure on my chest and popped a hydroxyzine 10mg. Biggest mistake ever, had a bad reaction. Like i almost called the ambulance. I think my chest was feeling pressure cause my body wanted another hit of the buspar. I might try 3 dosages of 2.5mg tomorrow. Maybe 9am, 3 pm and 9pm. I hate having this. I just had along talk with my cousin and his wife, they didn't know I had anxiety like this.

[Anne1221]

I think you should see what your doctor says about pressure on your chest. I actually don't think it's the Buspar. One day I read
about 75 comments people had written about their experiences with Buspar, and I never saw anyone post anything like that. Please see what your doctor says. I like splitting it up into 3 doses per day because you only have to take a small amount each time (less side effects) AND it keeps the anxiety down all throughout the day, without giving it a chance to pop back up. If you're only take 5 mg per day, you should NOT be having so much trouble (the usual dose is 15-60 mg per day). That is a teeny tiny dose. I think you still have a lot of anxiety that you need to talk to your doctor about. Good luck!