Zyban and Antipsychotics
If you are going to stop smoking and you take Zyban as a quit-smoking aid then you should be aware that Zyban is not only used as a quit-smoking cessation, but also as an antidepressant. It belongs to the generic class of antidepressants called Bupropion. You should know that Bupropion may be contraindicated with certain drugs. Among such drugs one can find different types of antipsychotics. Antipsychotic drugs are a class of medicines used to treat psychosis and other mental and emotional conditions.
The names of the antipsychotics that may negatively interact with Zyban are the following: Olanzapine (Zyprexa), which helps people with severe depression or psychotic depression which is often accompanied by a break with reality, hallucinations, or dellusions, Aripiprazole (Abilify), which can be taken as a pill or as a shot, Risperidone (Risperdal), Ziprasidone (Geodon), Clozapine (Clorazil), which are often used as a combination therapy for people who do not adequately respond to lithium or anticonvulsants.
Antipsychotics can produce unpleasant or dangerous side-effects when taken with certain medications, including Zyban. It is highly recommended not to take Zyban and antipsychotics simultaneously. For this reason, all doctors treating a patient need to be aware of all the medications that the person is taking. It is known that both Zyban and antipsychotic drugs affect certain parts of the brains and when taken together the dose may be redundant and it may lead to a number of side-effects. If you cannot but take Zyban and antipsychotic medicine at the same time, then you should be very careful.
The side-effects that may occur are headache, which usually goes away within a few days, nausea (feeling sick to your stomach), sleeplessness or drowsiness, which may happen during the first few weeks but then goes away. Sometimes the medication dose needs to be reduced or the time of day it is taken needs to be adjusted to help lessen these side effects. If you experience any of the side-effects, you should consult your doctor immediately.
If you want to avoid any of these side-effects then you should either take Zyban alone or reduce the dose of antipsychotic medicine. Mind that people respond differently to different medications, it is important that treatments should be designed carefully for each person. In any case you should not take this decision without a consultation with the doctor.