- Is BuSpar Really Safe?
QUESTION:
Dr. Heller,
My cybernickname is Perkins. I found your web site about BPD very inspiring! It gave me some of my feelings of hope back! It is sooo refreshing to see positive literature about BPD. There are sooo few psychiatrists who think even a little bit positive about BPD. There is just too much prejudice against those who have it out there. I’ve heard sooo much negativity about BPD from even psychiatrists and social workers who should know better! Lots of them refuse to work with people who have BPD!! I should know..I found out the hard way.
Most therapists freak out when I tell them I have *traits* of it, but they calm down when I tell them that I do not meet criterion #5. My former psychiatrist told me about three years ago that I have *TRAITS* of this disorder, but that it’s not a diagnosis because it’s not full-blown. She added that it’s healthier to have just traits of it as opposed to a full-blown syndrome or Dx. I just needed to ask you about BuSpar…right now, I am taking 150 mg of Zoloft and half a tablet of Klonopin every other day. I take Inderal PRN. http://pks.947.myftpupload.com/AskDoc/doc699.htm This site says “BuSpar is one of the safest medications available.” Do you still feel that way? Doesn’t medication affect everyone differently? What’s safe for one person may not be safe for another person?
BuSpar was one of the first medications that I tried out 3 years ago.(I was on Paxil and BuSpar at the same time).I had a VERY bad reaction to BuSpar during July 1997 so I asked my then-psychiatrist to take me off it…when she did, the bad reaction went away totally!! I am very sensitive to most psychotropics. Anyway, this reaction took the form of jerky movements in my arms, butt, and legs..only when I was in bed. That was the first and last time in my entire life that I had ever experienced those kinds of jerky movements!! It was a scary experience! I normally do NOT experience any kind of jerky movements or seizures. My then doctor told me it was a form of Huntington’s Chorea??? Jack M. Gorman, M.D. also wrote in a book called “The Essential Guide to Psychiatric Drugs” on pages 144-145 that theoretically, BuSpar MIGHT cause Tardive Dyskinesia if taken for many years. He goes on to say “In fact, this has not occurred to patients who have taken it although the drug has been on the market only about three years.” The copyright info says this book was published in 1990 and 1995. I am not sure what year BuSpar got on the market. Just wanted to point that out. I sure hope you don’t mind. Again, thanks for writing a BPD web site that is full of hope and realistic optimism. It made me feel much better.:-)
Cordially, Perkins
ANSWER:
First thank you for the kind words. The problem with BuSpar is that it often makes patients worse before they feel better. Those side effects are usually the same as those you would get from being very scared. There are 15 different serotonin receptors, but elevations in #’s 1 and 2 (5 HT-1 and 5HT-2) are the problem here. BuSpar will block #1 after initially raising it. This is a genetic worry gene. The 5HT-2 is more associated in my experience with post traumatic stress disorder. At this time BuSpar is still considered one of the safest medications on the market – considerably safer than not taking it if needed since anxiety causes profound effects on the body. I had a patient take 250mg of them, and the poison control center told us to ignore it! There’s no significant information that I’m aware of regarding tardive dyskinesia and BuSpar. What I’ll often do for individuals like yourself is start with low BuSpar doses (perhaps as low as 2.5mg to start). If these doses are a problem I’ll usually need to add Remeron or Serzone to block the 5 HT-2 receptor site. Then the BuSpar and Prozac can be taken without side effects. Never, ever minimize the effects inappropriate anxiety can have on someone.
