Buspirone and Anxiety: What Users Say (Page 2)

• Anonymous
• Taken for less than 1 month
• September 20, 2021

Buspirone for Anxiety "This medication was a total nightmare for me. I went from having generalized anxiety to, after taking it for about a week, having MAJOR panic and anxiety 24/7, sleeplessness, moodiness - it was terrible. I had to stop taking it after 2 weeks. While I don’t doubt at all that it does work for some (I read these reviews and remained cautiously optimistic) - it DID NOT work for me. Just goes to show how unique and different brain chemistry is for people."

• Mel...
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• February 15, 2017

Buspirone for Anxiety "I left a review a while back, but now I have to revise it. When I first started taking BuSpar, I was happy with it, but then it stopped working for me. I'm now on the max dosage of 60 mg. I take 30 mg in the morning and 30 mg in the evening, but it is not helping me at all. I still have very bad anxiety, panic attacks, and paranoia. Since it isn't doing anything for me, I will probably stop taking it."

• Che...
• February 7, 2021

Buspirone for Anxiety "This stuff isn't for me. I took BuSpar 7.5 mg for two weeks and said enough. 15-20 mins after taking it, I felt like I was on an elevator moving up and down at warp speed. It made my anxiety much worse, and it made me super angry. If I took my prescribed Adderall with it, then I was so annoyed, terrible mood, anxious, and tense. Even without the Adderall, this made me tense and made my jaws clench. It gave me increased body tension and unusable energy. I was always wanting to run a marathon but didn’t actually have the energy to run. I’ve been off it for 5 days, and I’m still detoxing. Never again."

• Sab...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• March 6, 2023

For Panic Disorder "Absolutely horrible!! Only took this for 4 days, and I’m immediately stopping it. I was only prescribed 5 mg too. The first 2 days I didn’t feel anything, but the next days I felt horrible around 15 min after taking it. I felt extremely disassociated, stressed, and sad out of the blue. It led me to have an anxiety attack, which is crazy because it’s supposed to help with anxiety. I personally would not recommend this and would never take it ever again. I felt horrible, and I’m glad I’m finally feeling myself since I stopped it."

• chr...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 1, 2019

For Anxiety "This drug is working for me. I avoided a lot of the side effects by titrating up slowly from 5 mg to 20 mg (over 2 weeks). Then began the long waiting game for it to take effect. It took 3 more weeks (5 total) to start working. The hardest part was waiting and the various side effects, especially the nervousness. I take this with Lexapro, as a booster. From reading the reviews, I think people jump in too fast and then don’t wait long enough for it to work. I did not experience any of the insomnia and brain zaps mentioned here. I take 15 mg 2x per day, in the morning and afternoon. Now that it’s working, it works well. If your doctor prescribes it, go slow and persevere. I asked my doctor if it really works, and he said he’s been prescribing it for 30 years and yes, it works."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• March 4, 2025

Buspirone for Anxiety "I don’t like medication but reached a point where I had to be honest with myself and try something new—I’m so glad I did. The first week was rough with nausea, anxiety, dizziness, insomnia, and wild dreams, but I pushed through, and it was worth it. Now, a month in, I feel so much less anxious, happier, and more confident. I do get excitable with scattered thoughts, but once I focus, I get locked in. That scattered feeling is improving as I adjust. Mild shortness of breath and insomnia (if taken late) are the only side effects. Therapy and exercise enhance the benefits. BuSpar doesn’t feel overwhelming or drugged—it’s subtle, and I just feel great and more in control. I’m sticking with it—totally worth trying!"

• Dan...
• August 21, 2016

Buspirone for Anxiety "I was recently prescribed Cymbalta for depression. It helped, but I felt very jittery and anxious on it. My doctor added BuSpar, and now I feel very much calmer and in control. I take 30 mgs twice a day."

• Dan...
• August 21, 2016

Buspirone for Anxiety "I was recently prescribed Cymbalta for depression. It helped, but I felt very jittery and anxious on it. My doctor added BuSpar, and now I feel very much calmer and in control. I take 30 mgs twice a day."

• Gai...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• February 15, 2022

For Anxiety "I know some meds are not for everyone, but this medication made me feel insane in a way no others have before. It made me feel completely on edge at all times, along with restlessness, anxiety, hopelessness, crying spells, fear of outside, light, and being alone, disassociation, and constant fear. I can't believe a medication can make you feel this way. I just wanted to post my review in case others are going through what I went through-that you need to get off the meds and give it time, unfortunately. I truly felt like I was going insane and went to the ER, my PCP, and psychiatrist, and all of them were surprised that buspirone could cause this, but it was buspirone. So if you are going through getting off this med, just know that you will be okay and that you will not feel this way forever, and it just needs to work its way out of your system. Be careful and don't lose hope."

• Jon...
• February 7, 2020

For Anxiety "Buspar worked great for about two weeks. Now I feel very spaced out, irritable. I kept having muscle spasms and panic attacks from it. My anxiety got way worse, and mentally and physically I feel awful from this. I didn't take any today and felt 20 times better, although I still have a very weird body high from it. It is making me feel really nauseous, lightheaded, dizzy, made me paranoid, and made my PTSD way worse. I'll never take this stuff again. I just want to feel halfway normal again."

• Jon...
• February 7, 2020

For Anxiety "Buspar worked great for about two weeks. Now I feel very spaced out, irritable. I kept having muscle spasms and panic attacks from it. My anxiety got way worse, and mentally and physically I feel awful from this. I didn't take any today and felt 20 times better, although I still have a very weird body high from it. It is making me feel really nauseous, lightheaded, dizzy, made me paranoid, and made my PTSD way worse. I'll never take this stuff again. I just want to feel halfway normal again."

• Sou...
• December 26, 2019

For Anxiety "I've been taking buspirone for over a year and a half. The first 6 weeks were a nightmare. I was going to quit taking them many times. But I invested so much time on the side effects that I stuck through it. I got constant headaches, nauseous, confusion. I had night terrors. But I stuck through it. I had severe anxiety and panic attacks. But I'd have to say it was worth it. I still get anxiety, but not as much. I can go to work now, and I go to therapy. It's not a miracle drug. But it does help a lot. I'm glad I didn't stop taking it. I started off with 15 mg a day. But now I take 30 mg a day. One in the am and one at night. I do get dizzy and nauseous still after I take them sometimes. So I lay down after I take them, and after an hour, I'm fine. I get little confusion every now and then. My advice is stick it out for a while, and hopefully it helps you like it helped me."

• Pus...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 19, 2015

Buspirone for Anxiety "Been on BuSpar for 6 weeks, and I'm not feeling any better. My anxiety is mild compared to most, but the irritability and sometimes nervous feeling is why I elected to try BuSpar. So far, at 6 weeks, I haven't felt any benefits. The dizziness has been hard to deal with, although I found some relief with 25 - 50 mg Dramamine."

• bek...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• February 11, 2025

For Anxiety "I take 10 mg 3 times a day. This med works for me. My biggest issue is it metabolizes quickly, so I find I need to take it throughout the day. I also need to take it with a fairly large meal, otherwise, I have dizziness, heart palpitations, and increased anxiety. I find this helps my anxiety and does give a bit of mood elevation, but that could simply be due to the reduction in anxiety. It doesn’t stop me from having an anxious thought, but it keeps me from spiraling into my anxiety. I also like that it doesn’t have significant withdrawal symptoms that benzos have. This more so stabilizes my anxiety and doesn’t stop an anxiety attack. I also did have to get through the elevated anxiety. But truly, take this with a whole meal. (Literally put my ED into remission by being dedicated to taking medications)"

• Uni...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• May 2, 2022

Buspirone for Panic Disorder "I really wanted to like BuSpar, but unfortunately, both times I tried it, it sent my resting heart rate through the roof, 120s and 130s. It only intensified my anxiety and made me sweat a lot. I understand how these medications work and how they take time, but for me personally, BuSpar is not a good fit. I gave it a trial each time at only 2.5 mg twice a day, only half the recommended dose. I'm happy it has helped others, but this medication is not for me."

• Amb...
• February 21, 2017

Buspirone for Anxiety "This stuff is horrible. Made me very irritated, jumpy, even more anxious. Felt like my mind was racing... felt even more overwhelmed. This is the worst stuff I've been on yet. I had to stop taking it because I couldn't even function right. This stuff is really, really bad. Doc put me on Lexapro today, hopefully, that helps!!"

• Amb...
• February 21, 2017

Buspirone for Anxiety "This stuff is horrible. Made me very irritated, jumpy, even more anxious. Felt like my mind was racing... felt even more overwhelmed. This is the worst stuff I've been on yet. I had to stop taking it because I couldn't even function right. This stuff is really, really bad. Doc put me on Lexapro today, hopefully, that helps!!"

• Mon...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• October 9, 2017

Buspirone for Anxiety "I had high hopes that this would help my anxiety, but it seems like it made my anxiety a lot worse. I now experience bad nausea and trembling, which didn't happen before. I also had low appetite and more severe anxiety attacks. I took 15 mg twice a day for six weeks. Thankfully, it doesn't have withdrawal effects, but unfortunately, it didn't work for me."

• Pur...
• November 19, 2019

For Anxiety "The third week on buspirone for anxiety, and I developed side effects of tachycardia, didn’t sleep more than 3 hours/night. I also developed tremors, fever, muscle aches, bone pain. I also developed chest pain and pressure. It became so bad I was close to fainting constantly. I thought my thyroid problems had come back. At the end of the third week, I went to the doctor who told me to immediately discontinue. I had an ECG, which was normal, and so was my thyroid. But it was the worst experience I had with a medication, and I had become so exhausted and confused I didn’t realize I had to stop until the doctor told me so. Please be careful with this medication. If it works for you, that’s wonderful. However, if you start developing weird symptoms, go talk to your doctor right away. I stopped taking it 4 days ago and am now experiencing withdrawal symptoms: depression, lots of anxiety, extreme lethargy, nausea, even flu-like symptoms, but I know it will pass."

• San...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• January 19, 2025

For Anxiety "I tried buspirone for about 5 weeks. Started with 5 mg twice a day. That dose increased my anxiety. Cut down to 5 mg once a day. Even with that dose, my anxiety did not improve, and it just made me feel weird. Perhaps your experience would be better, as everyone reacts differently to medication. I will warn you that the withdrawal symptoms are horrible if you decide to stop, even after a short amount of time. The drug did not work for me and made me feel horrible."

• Ver...
• June 21, 2016

Buspirone for Anxiety "Started a 90-day prescription right after I had my daughter, and it was horrible. Gave me anxiety and terrible panic attacks. I had to hop in a cold shower once. I felt as if I was gonna have a heart attack or my chest explode. Just got prescribed Wellbutrin, hoping to have better luck."

• Anx...
• November 17, 2016

Buspirone for Anxiety "I was just wondering what does everyone start out at, and if and when they knew to increase. I am currently at 5 mg 2x a day, I originally started out just taking 5 mg once a day at night, and then just recently increased to 5 mg 2x a day. I know that it has helped, but I am still waking up anxious, and having some breakthrough anxiety in the day. I was wondering how others increased their dose, and how they knew when they were at the right dose for them."

• Anx...
• November 17, 2016

Buspirone for Anxiety "I was just wondering what does everyone start out at, and if and when they knew to increase. I am currently at 5 mg 2x a day, I originally started out just taking 5 mg once a day at night, and then just recently increased to 5 mg 2x a day. I know that it has helped, but I am still waking up anxious, and having some breakthrough anxiety in the day. I was wondering how others increased their dose, and how they knew when they were at the right dose for them."

• Sar...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 4, 2017

Buspirone for Anxiety "I have epilepsy as well as generalized anxiety disorder. I have been taking Klonopin, and my doctor is concerned about addictive behavior, so she put me on Buspar and decreased Klonopin. After the first dose, I had a massive panic attack (which can trigger seizures), so I also had a seizure in which I had to go to the E.R. for. It also made my hands and feet sweaty, I was shaky all over and always anxious. I was very appreciative that my doctor let me get off of Buspirone because it is just awful! I would not recommend it to anyone, especially patients who have epilepsy!"

• DB8...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• December 10, 2016

For Anxiety "Buspirone has improved my life! Initial response was unpleasant. Prescribed 10 mg 1/2-1 pill every 6-8 hrs. First dose felt odd, not myself, jittery, detached. Others' positive reviews prompted me to start with only 1/4 pill before a nap, then 1/2 before bed. Being asleep made a difference, I woke up refreshed, alert, at ease. Then I took 1 pill 3 times a day. Day 5, the constant ringing in my ears from tinnitus was less noticeable and my stress level better. After a month, I feel so much happier! Positive, alert, more in control. Negatives: vivid dreams. Symptoms of my autoimmune disorder are improved, it appears Buspirone helps in more ways than are listed and has turned out to be the single most effective medication I take. Wish I had it years ago!"