Wellbutrin and back pain

I have chronic neck and back pain. My Doctor put me on Wellbutrin to help me quit smoking with the theory being my circulation would improve and the damaged areas in my back might heal.
I don't know if I will make it. I don't care if I have to quit smoking. I know I should anyway. The problem is the side effects. He took me off Xanax when he put me on Wellbutrin and my panic attacks started to come back, so I went back on the Xanax. But the worst side effect is the irritability.
I have to use every ounce of strength I have not to snap at people. I see my Doctor on Monday and I hope he has an answer. This is no way to live. Even simple things make me angry and want to fly off the handle.

I just ran across this site and WOW! I am not the only one experiencing these crazy syptoms. I hav been on Wellbutrin for 3 weeks now and noticed lack of concentration, extreme forgetfulness, lack of creativity ( I produce videos so this is a bad one) and just two days ago broke out in hives. The hives are like big welts, 1-4inches in size and very red. They itch like crazy and byt day two it progressed to swelling of my joints. The bottom of my foot swelled, then my wrists with aweful aching pains in the wrists, and then the next day I woke up with my left eyelid swollen almost completely shut! I got up today, day 3, to find trhat my left eyelid is better but is transferred to my right eyelid and now my lips are very swolen and uncomfortable. Syptoms seem to be flu like with lost of aching in my joints. Very frustrating. I was prescribed to take it to help with quiting of smoking and sure never expected this. I have never had any reaction to any medication my whole life and I am almost 40 years old. The only medication I took while on wellbutrin was loratab for back pain. I just read somewhere else taht the two shouldn't be mixed. I told my Doctor I was taking loratabs occaisionally and she made no comment about it.

I just was prescribed predisone for the hives/rash. Hope it helps. Have stopped taking the wellbutrin.

Glad I found this site.

Mary

Yes, I developed a severe sore throat when I started the Welbutrin. I failed to mention the other side effects that I noticed while I was on Welbutrin XL 300mg. Dizziness, nausea, HEADACHES EVERY DAY!, sore throat, neck pain, back pain, very sore muscles, tunnel vision, I became anxious and nervous, and I think the worst one that I could not handle was this wierd "electrical" feeling that would pulsate throughout my body. It would make me tense up and it felt like my teeth were tingling all the way down to my feet. I am back over to Lexapro 20mg a day and will just have to put up with the weight gain.