What Is The Best Generic Version Of Wellbutrin Xl - Watson Or Anchen? (Page 8)

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My doctor will not prescribe generic Wellbutrin XL but my insurance will no longer pay for brand name drugs. I will have to pay about $7000 per yer for what I am taking now (3 of the 150mg Wellbutrin XL brand name per day). I am reading that the problem with the generics is the time release mechanism and not the drug itself and that some are better than others. Anybody have experience with the generics made by Watson and /or Anchen?

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141

Ive been back on Watson for a little over a month now - I am only taking 150mg 1x day even thought my scipt is for 150 2x day. I was having chest pains (had EKG - eveything is fine) a few weeks ago and wasn't sure if it was the Wellbutrin or combo of other recent vitamins Ive been taking. Stopped everything for a couple days, felt better , started back on WellButrin 150 1xday and NO vitamins - I feel fine now. Will add second daily dose next week. Then wait a couple weeks before re-intrducing vitamins one by one for a couple weeks at a time. Hopefuly I never have that experience again - or at least I will be able to determine what caused it by process of elemination. BTW - no serious side effects from WB - a slight headache, tension in jaw & neck, but have been taking one Alieve along with WB and seems to help a lot!

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142

Also - I do feel much better mentally, although when I used to take WB awhile back, it helped to quiet the negative tape that runs constantly in my head. This time it isn't seeming to help much with that. I had also experience loss of appatate (good side effect for me!) and ended up loosing 70 lbs in 6 months without effort. Doesn't seem to be happening at all this time. So sad as I could really use a kick start to loose weight I have gained back due to surgeries/illness. Hoping it will happen as I add the second 150mg a day, and with being on WB for a couple months. Will repost in a month or so for update.

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143

I have been on the Watson generic Wellbutrin XL for about a year. I agree with another poster that it doesn't give me the same kick as the real thing, and I have gained weight (I had been steady for a long time on the brand Wellbutrin). Watson is probably the best of the generics, but I really wish I could afford the real thing

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144

I started with generic made by Watson, and I feel the improvement, but went to Medco for 3 month supply and they gave me one`s made by Actavis and I had to stop it after week or so, I started to feel terrible. Now I`m looking for Watson, and Target now switched to Actavis also that's were I got my before made by Watson. Looks to me that they can get the Actavis for chipper, disregarding the quality of this drug, only in America. Actavis 141 bad for me.

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145

I believe CVS carries Watson and I also made Rite-Aid order the Watson for me instead of the Anchen they normally carry. They want your business and ultimately they are getting reimbursement from your insurance company just ask them. Hope this helps.

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146

Thank you Cheri for sharing your Canadian Pharmacy referral. Finally!!

I started taking 2 75 mg Buproprion by Mylan (the original no extended release version) twice a day for 300mg total about 4 weeks now for mild depression. My Dr. and I wanted to see how I would respond to it so I picked some up at Walgreen's with the Pharmacy savings card that I have it ran me about $27.00 a month which I could afford. I actually lucked up because she originally wrote the script for 150 mg twice per day. which was going to cost me more. They didn't have it so they gave me the 2-75mg twice a day and when the pharmacy charged me $27.00 I thought it was a mistake and ran before they could figure out they had made a mistake. (Just kidding) but I did call later to make sure it wasn't a mistake.

I have noticed a remarked difference in my mood but naturally am curious if their is a better version for me or if the name brand would perform better and how much it would cost. I can definitely sympathize with Mimi.

First I investigated what generics people liked, what seem to work for them and what didn't? I had read, as many have indicated, people beat up on Teva and say if you're going to go generic then Watson is the way to go. So I spend a lot of time calling local pharmacies, finding out what they charge for SR and XL, and find out who their manufacturer are.

So in search of the cheapest place to find Wellbutrin, I even looked into changing to SR or XL which ended up costing more but just compiling the facts.

I tried to investigate Canada as an option to fill my prescription. But honestly, it is a full time job and trying to ascertain what is what and who is who and who makes what, how long it takes to get here by mail, etc is alot of work.

I learned that Glaxosmithkline sold the commercial rights for the drug Wellbutrin XL to Biovail of Canada for $510 million. (Now does that mean it is exactly the same, mostly the same, or what?)

Then I found that Biovail acquired another drug company company called "Valeant". Now I had remembered seeing Valeant in my Canadian Pharmacy list. So now i had to go over my lengthy notes to see how much their Wellbutrin cost and if they too made a generic version but I gotta stretch these pennies.

Well as you can imagine the I dug the more questions I had and was just getting stuck. Now I had more questions than when I started. Could I presume that buying Wellbutrin for either of these companies ensure that I was getting Wellbutrin brand for generic cost?

After taking the time to write down all of the prices and dosages comparing and reading personal reviews of the companies and the products. Now I've found a real person who has actually used one of these pharmacies. I think I feel confident now to try Northwest Pharmacy, who is on my list, but wasn't my first choice to finally make a decision, so thank you for helping me do that.

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147

I think I can help with that GSK sold the commercial rights to Wellbutrin XL (only) to Biovail. Biovail acquired Valeant.

dealbook.nytimes.com/2009/05/06/biovail-swallows-glaxos-wellbutrin/

reuters.com/article/2010/06/21/us-biovail-valeant-idUSTRE65K1LA20100621

So I like you am going to ask for biovail or valeant

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148

I printed out the patient savings card for Wellbutrin XL. I am wondering if I can use it for one of the Canadian Pharmacies online?

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149

There should be an 800 number that you can call and ask. I know that the Effexor XR savings card will not let you do that - I called and asked them -

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150

The only generic I have found that works for me is Global. CVS used it for many years but now they use Watson, which didn't work at all for me. If you want to try Archen, my doctor says its the better of the many generics 'out there'. The Global brand I now have my doctor e-scribe to an online Rx company in CA - drugsdepot.com. This generic brand is $40.00 or so for 60 200 mg tables, with shipping it's about 50.00 per month. It's been a life saver for me! I feel great on it brand generic when most do not work for me. It is difficult to find.

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151

Renee M - look through past posts - starting around post #60 - possibly a little further back. FYI, I initially ordered from Northwest, and what I received came from Turkey, not Canada.

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152

Does anyone have any feedback about Wellbutrin and weight loss or gain?

If so, please include if you are takin generic (manufacturer name), or brand name (where do you get yours if not generic?

I had been on Tevia 150 2x's day and lost weight so easy. Now on Watson 150 2x's day and seem to be gaining some weight after 2 months.

I can't afford to gain weight!! Please help!!

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153

Try the generic Global from drugdepot.com in Calf. It is the only generic that works for me and I've been on them all. Check for me previous post from Friday on this thread. It will give you more info. price, telephone, etc. Good luck!

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154

@ Hope. Yes, thanks and I have read through this whole thread. It has been very helpful reading what people had concerns about and how they played out.

At the moment I intend on seeing about getting a new script for the Xl version. I found that if you have a plus membership @ Sam's club in my area I called them and learned that I could get Bupropion Xl 300 mg one month supply for $36.93. I inquired about the manufacturer and they told me that it is Watson.

I think I'd rather go that route instead of ordering from Canada first because it is local. 2. I've read an opinion that if a patient starts on a generic oft times you can do well on generics if your patient enough to sort through them. But if you start on the Brand name, going to generic could pose additional challenges. So, I'm going to be prudent.

I can always go to plan "B" which is the brand name through a Canadian Pharmacy should that not pan out. I have some reservations with dealing with a Pharmacy so far away simply because I never have.

Hoping that even if I following the recommendations here and request only the Wellbutrin manufactured from Canada that someone isn't going to get that memo and I'll get something else and be disappointed because not only did I have to wait so long for delivery but that when it got here it wasn't what I asked for. Being local just gives me that extra peace of mind.

I really just want to best choice that I can afford. My safety net is that I know I could work with what I am currently using if I had to (Mylan basic wellbutrin 2 75's twice a day.)

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155

A small update since this post. I think I would make Blue Mountain my first choice should I go the Canadian route per the dialogue between Hope and Rhonda around post 60.) Also, I would find the cheapest price, request a price match, ensure that I got the Wellbutrin manufactured in Canada.

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156

Oops. I meant BIG Mountain. Lord please let me get this medicine soon. My brain isn't firing on all cylinders. ;-)

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157

Renee - Yes, I have read many times, and from the reading I've done, it does seem that those that start on the generic can do well. It is when you have taken brand name that it is a problem to switch to generic. If I were going to take generic, I would certainly try to get it locally. Brand is just unbelievably expensive unless you are fortunate enough to have insurance that will cover it. Personally, I have insurance, but it would still cost me $250+ per month.

If you end up ordering brand name from Canada, it typically comes in (at least for me) in about 7-10 days - not bad at all. Good luck!

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158

CAREFUL , my wife was switched from the Global generic to ANCHEN and has been going through hell . I find lots of people posting on the net about the ANCHEN brand making them miserable .

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159

It's so interesting how different people can have such diverse reactions to the same brand. Less than 2 months ago my doctor put me back on generic Wellbutrin XL. I have never had the brand name, so I can't make any comparisons to it. I started with Anchen 150 mg, and had very good results. After a month, my dosage was increased to 300 mg - but the Pharmacy (Walgreens) switched to Mylan. I felt an immediate and sharp decrease in the effects, as if I had lowered the dosage. I gave it a few weeks but eventually sought out a pharmacy that had the Anchen 300 mg (CVS), which I will be starting tomorrow. I'm hoping I'll have comparable results. It is absolutely astounding to me how much one generic can differ from another!!

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160

Generic vs name brand Wellbutrin. I have been on Bupropion for several years. I just recently switched to mail order through my insurance because it was cheaper. I take it at night, every night. There have been times when I have run out for two or three days and I start to feel very tired, and my brain feels fuzzy if I miss a couple of doses. With that said, I just got my mail order Bupropion (Anchen Pharm) started taking it on Friday it is now Monday night and I feel terrible. I have been taking generic Bupropion for a long time so I didn't think that could be it, but when I looked at the bottle I realized this was manufactured by Anchen and I have always taken name brand or generic by Watson. I called the pharmacist with my express scripts and explained I thought this was a bad batch or something and they explained it can be the difference in manufactures. Now I have to get a new prescription and pay for 3 more months worth because this Anchen stuff is like a sugar pill. Ugggggg... I had no idea there was such a difference in generics. Until I started feeling bad and started trying to track down what I was doing differently. And the only thing I changed was from Watson Generic to Anchen Generic. I'm 99% sure that is what it is.

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