My 69 year old husband has been "diagnosed" by a neuro...a year ago....with Sluggish Cognitive Tempo, low T and peripheral neuropathy in his feet. I believe he has Parkinson's (he now has hand tremors) and his grandfather had it but his doctor believes he just has benign tremors. His voice has become so low I can barely hear him. His doctor tells him to "try to talk louder." His antidepressant (he was getting nasty 2 years ago) was changed from Lexapro to Wellbutrin because his energy levels are so low (even though he is on T shots). But since going on the wellbutrin he has become even nastier (the Lexapro had stopped that) though his energy levels are way up. He is short-tempered, mean, his memory is worse, he is combative, distant and denies he is ever any of those things...it is all me. Can Wellbutrin cause these symptoms? I am 8 years younger than he is. We have been married for 7 years. Is his body just getting used to the Wellbutrin? He has been on it one month now. I honestly cannot stay with him if this continues.
Wellbutrin made me very tense, anxious and irritable.
it’s the Wellbutrin.
Just my amateur opinion.
Definitely report his change in behavior to his doctor. He may be on the wrong dosage or may need a different drug to try.
Wishing you all the best best.
Also other problems can cause the lack of energy. A thorough evaluation by an internist is worthwhile to identify and treat them.
His behavior problems are best addressed by a geriatric psychiatrist. No matter the cause of his dementia, your husband's perception of the world or reality has changed. He sees things that don't make sense or seem threatening. Any threats will make his adrenal system cause "fight or flight" surges. Some people will cry and cower when this happens. Others get agitated and or combative - the "fight response." It appears your husband is the latter. A consistent routine will help. Also antianxiety medications are worth a try. It takes awhile for these medications to reach therapeutic levels in the blood stream. It also takes some trial and error to find the right medication.
Here is a link to a website that discusses a few simple hand tests that can be conducted to see if your DH may have PD (with videos showing you how to do the actual tests):
https://stanfordmedicine25.stanford.edu/the25/parkinsondisease.html
Mother has been taking enough Wellbutrin to make a horse happy since 2011. It hasn't contributed to her nasty temperament a bit; she's always been nasty, and she's still nasty! Cymbalta changed her into a civilized human being 100% who was actually nice to talk to, even, but made her dementia SO bad that she was falling so often (more than usual which is a lot) and lying on the floor of the Memory Care not even realizing she had fallen. So off the Cymbalta she went, and back onto the Wellbutrin and back to being the mean and miserable human she's always been. Yay.
I don't know if the Wellbutrin is contributing to your DH's nastiness or not, the only way to know for sure is to wean him off and see what happens *under his doctor's guidance, of course* My mother has always had hideous reactions to most meds, so I can rest assured there will be SOME madness to deal with if a new med is prescribed.
My mother doesn't have a low speaking voice, which is unfortunate really, b/c her constant talking in a loud voice is enough to drive a sane person to drinking. My father did, however, and I could barely hear him. It was not due to PD, though.........I'm not actually sure WHY he spoke so low that nobody could hear him prior to his death in 2015. He did have a brain tumor and as it grew larger, that's when his voice became inaudible. Did the tumor contribute to it? I have no idea.
I'm sorry you're going down the dementia highway because it truly stinks, all of it. My mother blames me for absolutely everything that's wrong in her life, but then again, she blamed my father for it before he died. The dementia has only worsened the toxic behavior she's always displayed. It's also exacerbated her depression issues and complaints of 'having the blues' I've heard ever since I was a child. The doctor will see her next week to decide if a new anti-depressant should be prescribed, God help us all.
Wishing you the best of luck trying to find peace amidst the chaos of dementia. Sending you a hug.
I would talk to a pharmacist to see if they know of any similar problems with the Wellbritin.
Hugs
He has classic signs and symptoms or Parkinson's and he should be checked for LBD. Lewey Body Dementia needs to be properly diagnosed so that appropriate medications can be given and more importantly there are some medications that should NOT be taken.