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2508084 posted:You left out the part where she took a phone call during the session and told you to find God. It always takes me back when people know details about me... Mental help megathread? Anyway, I didn't purposely leave that out. I admitted I don't know if I trust my new doctor and her behavior is why. The thing is, I want the ritalin. I was diagnosed with CFS and my PCP said that ADD meds would help but she wouldn't feel comfortable prescribing them off label. She even suggested I bring up ADD with my new psychiatrist for that reason. I'm still worried about going on meds for a problem I'm not sure I have.
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Feb 16, 2011 06:07
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^ if you followed the link in that megathread, i'm the one who linked you. Theres a difference between "I don't trust my doctors behavior because i didnt like his tone" and "I dont trust my doctors behavior because she slit the throat of a chicken and danced around her chair." Your doc is like the last example. I don't take ritalin, I don't know anything about it, but this stuff is closely related to speed and is addicting. As far as whether it benefits CFS or not, I have no idea. As long as all your doctors are informed of what you're taking and why and have no strong objections, it doesn't seem bad. A lot of medicine is used for off label reasons, just be careful. UnoriginalMind posted:Pills only do so much, if anything at all. How do you guys manage to avoid these feelings of failure that ADHD brings up? I mean, some of you have to feel this way. You have to get distracted one too many times and it ends up being painful. Right? Find a counselor or a therapist. Your issues are related to ADHD, but not in a way that the pills will help. e. I'm going to expand. The pills aren't going to make you perfect. If you're a lazy rear end, but a lazy rear end with ADHD, you're just going to go back to being a lazy rear end who can concentrate. I'm not saying thats whats going on, but just because you found a chemical support for one problem, doesn't mean everything else is going to fall in place. Whats your study area like? Don't have one? Get one and only use it for that. Do you take preventative distraction methods? Turn off your PC completely, turn off your cell phone, no ipod, and take regular 15 minute breaks from studying. If you get too stressed, go for a walk and breathe deeply. Analyze why you feel like you're going to fail. Don't settle for "I don't know", really think about why you feel that way. If you can't sit and read, have a friend help you make flash cards or something. Pills are 10% of the process, the other 90% is all you and the habits you develop to cope. ladyweapon fucked around with this message at 06:16 on Feb 16, 2011 |
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Feb 16, 2011 06:08
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Hey man, I can sympathize with you 100%, and so can everybody else in this thread. When it comes to social interactions, I still stress out sometimes about the stupid poo poo I think I said, but you have to remember it's all perspective. You spend most of your time thinking about yourself, right? So does everybody else! If you make some stupid social faux pas, who cares, nobody will remember next week. If they do, and bring it up, they should go gently caress themselves for being so petty. You have to remember, there is nothing anybody can say to you to make your social interactions easier, we're like that. We have to experience everything for ourselves and learn from our own actions. If there's any one thing I can tell you, however, the key really is simply being yourself. Don't mind what other people say about you, because if you listen to everybody else's advice on what to do, you lose sight of your own identity. Nobody told the most successful people in the world how to act to get the furthest in life. What do you think Bill Gates would be like today if he listened to people telling him to quit being such a nerd? You know yourself better than anybody else ever will, even your parents. I mean, people tell you all the time the "rules" for dating, and that you're supposed to wait x amount of time after getting a phone number to call the person. Sometimes you don't need to listen to other people, and you know that calling an hour after you get the number is as long as you need to wait, because the other person is like that. Trust your instincts, and do what feels right. As for unreasonably high standards, I'm still struggling with it myself man. I really wish I could give you an answer, but the only way I find refuge from my own incessant demands to literally be perfect, is to recognize I will never be perfect, and try to find something to appreciate about my own success. I don't think I've ever even come close to perfection a single time in my life, in any endeavor, but you're doing much better in that regard than I am. A 3.69 GPA is only .31 away from perfection by anybody's standards! If I can tell you anything now, from 3-4 years in the future, since I'll be 23 soon, it's that the feeling of inevitable failure is never going to go away. I've been living on my own for almost 2 years, after long painful years of repeated failures to become more independent, and I still feel like every hour that passes is just another hour of borrowed time, of undeserved success, a lie that is just waiting to crubmle in ruin around me. People have no loving idea what we struggle with on a daily basis, but if they could see the herculean effort required to push forward day after day, they wouldn't even bother to comment on our frequent tardiness, procrastination, and other bad habits we wish we could break. If you're having a bad week that's taking everything out of you to push through, remember that there is going to be a next week, and if that week isn't easier, one of the weeks coming up after will be the one. As a final note, it helps me to intellectualize psychological issues I have. Read the following articles if you're the same way, it'll help: Imposter Syndrome and the Dunning-Kruger Effect edit: 2508084 posted:Find a counselor or a therapist. Your issues are related to ADHD, but not in a way that the pills will help. This is sound advice here. I'm at the point where I'm so burned out with "therapy" and hoping I'll find somebody who will be able to initiate the right kind of conversation with me, when I already have all the therapy tools I need, from self analysis and reflection to intellectualizing bad thought processes and trying to work my way out of them. That's the way I know I work, but it might be worthwhile for you to have somebody to talk to about these feelings. TheGopher fucked around with this message at 06:29 on Feb 16, 2011 |
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Feb 16, 2011 06:26
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UnoriginalMind posted:
Everyone feels this way. It is not unique to ADHD. It just means that you're 19 and you don't know yourself very well. How can you be comfortable being yourself, when you don't even know what you want? Other people's opinions aren't critical to success, your opinion of you is whats critical. You know what other people are worried about? Themselves. So take 2508084's advice, buckle down and develop good habits that produce results that you're proud of. UnoriginalMind posted:How do you guys manage to avoid these feelings of failure that ADHD brings up? I mean, some of you have to feel this way. You have to get distracted one too many times and it ends up being painful. Right? We all feel this way, and you're not alone. You just acknowledge that it sucks, and set it aside and move on to what you can take care of. One thing that will help is planning and organizing. You will not be able to use established best practices methods- you'll have to come up with something that works for you and that you can do religiously. Every single wildly successful person I know has some weird way of organizing their workload that no one but they and their personal assistant can figure out. You're going to look back in ten years, and you won't feel bad about skimming Environmental Biology chapters. You'll feel bad because you were worried about what people who won't remember you existed thought to the point you didn't take any chances or try anything new.
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Feb 16, 2011 06:31
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2508084 posted:You left out the part where she took a phone call during the session and told you to find God. Oh man, somebody else had this experience too? I swear my jaw hit the floor when my new [this was a few years ago] doc asked me about how my personal relationship with jesus was. Then, when I mentioned that I meditate but don't talk to jesus, she told me that "that would fail me someday soon." I'm Jewish. You better believe I got a new fuckin' doc.
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Feb 16, 2011 16:21
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cloudstrife2993 posted:Oh man, somebody else had this experience too? I swear my jaw hit the floor when my new [this was a few years ago] doc asked me about how my personal relationship with jesus was. Then, when I mentioned that I meditate but don't talk to jesus, she told me that "that would fail me someday soon." Yeeeah, the number of people who go into 'helping' fields like medicine (and by extension psychiatry) because of strong, overbearing religious convictions or codependency (wanna help people so they like me/care for me as I need, or help people in ways I need(ed) to be helped) makes for some seriously hosed up patient-doctor interactions.  Lackadaisical posted:Don't risk taking a potentially life loving medication because of a quack throwing pills at you with a short, unprofessional visit with no actual testing, especially considering what seem to be considerable behavioral and physical health considerations you are already contending with (no offense but you don't seem functional enough to have a safe margin of error for further loving up.) A 20-question quiz? Whoop-dee-loving-doo, this is medicine not Cosmo's 'Is He Into You' quizlette of the month, and getting a diagnosis and subsequent medications for ADHD can disqualify you from some future employment opportunities by merit of having taken an amphetamine. Getting hopped up on speed might seem to help fatigue as a bandaid, so if you want to experience that go buy some diet pills and keep working to improve your social environment to aid in addressing the many things that contribute to depression. The distraction, or lack of ability to concentrate caused by the duality of depression-anxiety working on making life hell really sucks but it is not the same thing as the neurobiological fuckery that results in ADHD (the phenotypic expressions of fatigue/depression's effects on memory/concentration and ADHD being similar does not mean that you should treat them with the same drugs, especially ones which make anyone and everyone feel better or at least different in the short-term.)
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Feb 16, 2011 19:41
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I got back from the psychiatrist and everything went well! The biggest thing I got from the visit is validation. It felt good to hear that I'm not some failure and that I'm not the only one that has these ADD issues. It was also good to talk to the doc, tell him my characteristics, and have him actually say that I have it. That I'm not lazy, stupid, etc. I walked out of there with a feeling that I can do better.  The doc is going to start me on 20mg of Adderall and evaluate me again in a few weeks. Hopefully there aren't any side effects. Especially since I love my coffee in the morning and having a beer at night.
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Feb 16, 2011 19:43
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Dolemite posted:The doc is going to start me on 20mg of Adderall and evaluate me again in a few weeks. Hopefully there aren't any side effects. Especially since I love my coffee in the morning and having a beer at night. You really shouldn't combine larger quantities of caffeine (such as the amount in a cup of coffee) with amphetamine-based medications. Alcohol is also potentially quite problematic, though you might be alright if you're drinking it long enough after your last dose of Adderall that day. It's fine to wait and see, but just bear that in mind. If you are noticing side effects, it is highly possible that cutting out one or both of those factors will reduce or eliminate them (start with the coffee). I had headaches, irritability, a racing heart, and a bunch of other lovely symptoms until I quit coffee, and all that poo poo miraculously disappeared overnight. I actually felt more awake and alert without my morning joe, because my body wasn't getting the snot beat out of it by interacting stimulants. Adderall is strong stuff and it will have no trouble waking you the gently caress up if you're feeling sleepy in the morning.
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Feb 16, 2011 19:49
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I'm feeling weird this morning, and it's not the first time this has happened since using Adderall. I'm sitting here typing away and looking at my computer screen, and hyperfocus sets in, and I get some hardcore tunnel vision. As I get this tunnel vision, I start feeling incredibly disoriented - almost like I'm upside down slowly rotating in one direction or another. Starting to get really nauseating... Yeah yeah, I know, go see my doctor. Reality doesn't always allow for me to take even a little time off to go see a doctor like I should. Yay for considerations for mental health in the U.S. ...
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Feb 16, 2011 21:19
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2508084 posted:Find a counselor or a therapist. Your issues are related to ADHD, but not in a way that the pills will help. This is great advice, thanks. I understand ADHD isn't to blame for laziness, and I try not to use it as an excuse for things. Shutting out distractions isn't impossible, but when I think about doing it, I realize the only thing keeping me from it is a desire to be distracted. I'll have to be more stringent in my study techniques. Also, the college I go to has free therapy that I've been attending for a while, and that helps. They've just been busy with a therapist switch and busy schedules and I haven't been making a proactive effort. Thanks again for everything, everyone.
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Feb 16, 2011 21:44
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cloudstrife2993 posted:Oh man, somebody else had this experience too? I swear my jaw hit the floor when my new [this was a few years ago] doc asked me about how my personal relationship with jesus was. Then, when I mentioned that I meditate but don't talk to jesus, she told me that "that would fail me someday soon." Ya, she flat out asked me if I believe in god. When I said no, she went on about how god has allowed her to find peace in her life. I was speechless for a minute then awkwardly changed the subject. extraneousXTs posted:Don't risk taking a potentially life loving medication because of a quack throwing pills at you with a short, unprofessional visit with no actual testing, especially considering what seem to be considerable behavioral and physical health considerations you are already contending with (no offense but you don't seem functional enough to have a safe margin of error for further loving up.) Ya, I was sort of mocking that the test was only 20 questions. I realize that it was incredibly unprofessional. And I realize I can't afford to gently caress up more right now, but I'm honestly curious what could go so wrong by just seeing if the meds work? She listed some mild side effects but nothing "potentially life loving". I'm not worried about the effects it'd have on my future employment. I know I come off sounding stubborn, but I'm just really curious as to WHY it's a bad idea (other than my doctors erratic behavior). I may not fully trust her but I need something to go on to compel me to trust the internet over her.
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Feb 17, 2011 01:41
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Lackadaisical posted:And I realize I can't afford to gently caress up more right now, but I'm honestly curious what could go so wrong by just seeing if the meds work? She listed some mild side effects but nothing "potentially life loving". I'm not worried about the effects it'd have on my future employment. I know I come off sounding stubborn, but I'm just really curious as to WHY it's a bad idea (other than my doctors erratic behavior). I may not fully trust her but I need something to go on to compel me to trust the internet over her. No offense, but after reading your posts in the break-up thread, I don't really think taking these pills are a good idea at the time. I'd say get yourself together, try some anti-depressants and maybe strattera/concerta or something low dose and see how that goes. I'm mostly saying this because in my low lows, it was pretty easy to start doubling my dose or seeking other doctors to give me stronger stuff since I was wrongfully pinning my ADHD for my depression problems. It also gives you a safer introduction to the pills, according to my doc. Long acting medication is also a godsend for people who can't remember to take 4-5 pills a day as well. Honestly, try to switch it out for some XR's and ramp them up to an "average" dose for the drug before jumping into taking things that can cause pretty nasty side effects. It's no fun going on dexedrine and feeling good for a day, then suddenly have heart palpitations nad chest pains.
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Feb 17, 2011 01:50
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Lackadaisical posted:And I realize I can't afford to gently caress up more right now, but I'm honestly curious what could go so wrong by just seeing if the meds work? She listed some mild side effects but nothing "potentially life loving". I'm not worried about the effects it'd have on my future employment. I know I come off sounding stubborn, but I'm just really curious as to WHY it's a bad idea (other than my doctors erratic behavior). I may not fully trust her but I need something to go on to compel me to trust the internet over her. Alucard nailed it pretty well. Your doctor understated the side effects, especially emotional ones during crashes from a daily dose. The moodiness from the speed itself and then the speed crash are not things that an already depressed/person with history of emotional issues (and current interpersonal emotional problems re: break-up coping) needs to experiment with especially if you do not have a trustworthy doctor to hand-hold you through dosing experiments. It doesn't come off as stubborn, just desperate, and desperate gets people into deep poo poo with some classes of drugs. Weren't you on thyroid meds to treat subclinical/euthyroid hormonal levels at some point as well after doc shopping through a few quacks/bad doctors? Amphetamines can gently caress with your heart and stack that on top of the heart damage unnecessary thyroid hormone doses do and you ramp up the cumulative consequences of being curious about getting something, anything, to help with how you feel. Just because some things are medicines and help with symptoms does not mean your long term health will be free of side-effects, find a good long-term doctor to manage your care comprehensively instead of weighing the words of a lovely doctor versus the words of goons. If you really want to take the speed then ask the recreational/experimental uppers thread in TCC, they might be better equipped to help you.
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Feb 17, 2011 02:41
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extraneousXTs posted:Alucard nailed it pretty well. Your doctor understated the side effects, especially emotional ones during crashes from a daily dose. The moodiness from the speed itself and then the speed crash are not things that an already depressed/person with history of emotional issues (and current interpersonal emotional problems re: break-up coping) needs to experiment with especially if you do not have a trustworthy doctor to hand-hold you through dosing experiments. It doesn't come off as stubborn, just desperate, and desperate gets people into deep poo poo with some classes of drugs. Yes, yes. A low dose of Adderall made near suicidal when it wore off. And I currently don't have depression issues. Not to mention the high addictive potential these drugs have. They can be lifesaving, yes - but they can also be a serious world of no fun. And if I had a non-speed option to take, I'd do so in a heartbeat. (Already tried Strattera, and that was a no-go.)
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Feb 17, 2011 03:01
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Well, I did this massive post and quoted everyone with reallyyy detailed responses and then accidentally closed the window. So I apologize is this is a little scattered. To everyone who commented on my situation, I want to be VERY clear about one thing: I am admittedly pretty desperate to figure out the cause of my fatigue and to be able to treat it, but I would never take the medication other than directed. In the past, I've been given large quantities of highly abused pills (valium, percocet, vicodin, etc) and have never been tempted to abuse them and this is no different. I also would never doctor shop for meds and I certainly don't want to be on anything that isn't doctor recommended to treat my fatigue. Anyway, to the person who brought up the thyroid problem - I am being treated for Hashimoto's currently. I disclosed the medication for that to the psychiatrist and get my hormone levels checked monthly to ensure the medication I'm on is keeping my levels within a normal range. My PCP knows about my thyroid medication and even she suggested I get tested for ADD. I fully realize how terribly unprofessional my psychiatrist was. But like someone said, I'm desperate. I sleep 12 hours a night and nap. I'm tired even when awake. It has affected my work, my classes and my relationships. I have spent two years being on 5 different antidepressants (prozac, lexapro, then lexpro with Wellbutrin, then just Wellbutrin, Cymbalta and then Zoloft). They didn't help with my mood or my fatigue. Even my last psychiatrist who was wayyy more conservative told me he was doubting that depression was my underlying problem because of the lack of response to medications. I don't care about long-term effects right now... I care about coping in the present. And who knows, it IS possible that even though she didn't go about diagnosing my in a very thorough manner, she is correct. I appreciate all the advice and concern. I guess I was hoping for more practical advice on what to expect with medications or what to look out for more than validation for my decision. I want to get better, not worse. Not taking any meds is the alternative and that definitely won't be better for me. I fully realize how stupid I sound but until you're in the situation where every diagnosis seems to be wrong and every safe method of treatment has done nothing, than it's hard to understand why I'm so casual about just taking pills a doctor hands me.  Please don't judge me too harshly.Oh, and I would MUCH rather take XR medication but my psychiatrist said she wanted to start me out with pills that had a shorter half life to see how they'd affect me before discussing the XR version.
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Feb 17, 2011 03:27
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I don't think anybody's judging so much as they're expressing outrage at your psychiatrist. If you think the Ritalin will help, and it might, you should get a second opinion first. Even though the person who wrote the prescription is a doctor, the way she handled your appointment was completely unprofessional and objectively wrong. You might in fact have ADHD, but you should see somebody else before taking your medication. Nobody's going to stop you from experimenting if you want to, but this kind of medication is supposed to be taken under good medical care, and the care you received when getting a prescription for Ritalin is dubious as best. If you really want to talk about a diagnosis for ADHD, see a psychiatrist that specializes in ADHD. If you can't find one, child psychiatrists are usually a good bet, and they see adult patients in addition to children. Not all doctors are equal, and there are bad doctors out there. Part of the reason everybody here is being so zealous about whether or not you should take your medication, is that it's an extremely controversial drug, and the way your doctor prescribed the medication is exactly why it's so controversial. It's a potentially dangerous drug as well, both from the standpoint of health risks as well as potential for abuse, so keep both of these things in consideration when you decide whether or not to try the medication before going and seeing another doctor. Keep in mind, a positive reaction to the medication alone is not indicative of ADHD. By taking the medication, you could be temporarily solving some of your problems, only to find out down the line it was merely covering up other underlying issues. Be safe, and try to think about your long term health. TheGopher fucked around with this message at 04:33 on Feb 17, 2011 |
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Feb 17, 2011 04:30
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Lackadaisical posted:I want to get better, not worse. Not taking any meds is the alternative and that definitely won't be better for me. I fully realize how stupid I sound but until you're in the situation where every diagnosis seems to be wrong and every safe method of treatment has done nothing, than it's hard to understand why I'm so casual about just taking pills a doctor hands me. I can understand the frustration; my mother's suffered very badly from CFS since I was a child. She's also had bad doctor or two! Our long term family GP refused to believe the condition even existed. From what I can remember she's tried everything under the sun and I believe now self medicates from an online pharmacy. At one point she was heavily into the healing power of crystals... Yeah. Sorry I'm not much help but hey, my mum's a lot better these days so I guess there is something out there to alleviate the symptoms of CFS  .
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Feb 17, 2011 04:47
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quote:and this is no different. Actually, it is different. All the addictive drugs you mentioned are downers. Ritalin and its coparts are uppers. Every drug is different. Someone who doesn't get hooked on cocaine can still get hooked on heroin. quote:it IS possible that even though she didn't go about diagnosing my in a very thorough manner, she is correct. That sounds a bit harsher than it was intended, but honestly "She COULD be right" means you're looking for any justification to take them. A medical professional who urged you to seek God while taking phone calls during a session is who you're about to trust with your physical, mental and emotional health. e. Not to mention, that's a lot of loving drug you're getting. I've had four separate diagnoses of ADHD throughout my life, by different doctors in different states, and I'm on 5mg adderall twice a day. You're taking.. double or triple with a 20 question quiz and a 'seek god' recommendation? Qu Appelle posted:Yes, yes. A low dose of Adderall made near suicidal when it wore off. This explains my ~mood~ in the evening then. I tend to get a bit cranky, but tonight I just wanted to throw myself in front of a car over something relatively minor. (not suicidal, not going to harm, etc. God, I've been in way too much therapy. Autodisclaimers.) ladyweapon fucked around with this message at 04:51 on Feb 17, 2011 |
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Feb 17, 2011 04:49
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Yeah... The mentions of Vyvanse in this thread I made, pretty much wrecked me for a week or so, so its pretty rough if you get it wrong. Also, your sleeping issues reminds me of EXACTLY how I felt before I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. I would check into getting a sleep study.
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Feb 17, 2011 04:49
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My mood has been flying around in recent weeks, and I noticed until this week that I wasn't handling frustration very well at work. Granted, my job is pretty ridiculous, and people have been telling me my job is so bad to just quit on the spot and figure out employment after the fact. I'm trying really hard to avoid these impulsivities, but I digress. When I'm not on Adderall, I can get in really, really lovely moods. Even when I am taking the drug, some days I can't do anything except entertain suicidal ideation, and other days I'm practically euphoric. I cut out coffee, for the most part, because I suspected it was loving with me, both from the addiction, and how it reacted with Adderall. Even after the fact, some nights I have literally zero motivation to do anything besides sit in front of a glowing screen and want to jump off a bridge.* * Not going to harm myself, I've never attempted suicide. If I do become suicidal beyond ideation, I will always call somebody at the very least, if not a prevention hotline.
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Feb 17, 2011 05:05
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TheGopher posted:When I'm not on Adderall, I can get in really, really lovely moods. Even when I am taking the drug, some days I can't do anything except entertain suicidal ideation, and other days I'm practically euphoric. I cut out coffee, for the most part, because I suspected it was loving with me, both from the addiction, and how it reacted with Adderall. Do you drink tea? Tea has caffeine too. Have you been checked for bi polar? If you're having extreme mood swings on and off the adderall, you might want to see about it. Bi polar and severe adhd look a lot alike.
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Feb 17, 2011 05:08
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2508084 posted:Do you drink tea? Tea has caffeine too. Have you been checked for bi polar? If you're having extreme mood swings on and off the adderall, you might want to see about it. Bi polar and severe adhd look a lot alike. I've cut out caffeine altogether, I should have clarified. Beyond the issues I've had with it and adderall, I feel better all around. Regretting having coffee this afternoon instead of taking my second Adderall dose, but oh well. As for bipolar, I've seen so many shrinks at this point I'd be incredibly surprised if it flew under the radar. Even still, I know last night I mentioned I probably don't need to see another therapist, but now I'm entertaining the idea again. I wish it was easier to find mental health professionals that didn't suck dick and actually gave a poo poo. With my work schedule I don't have time to go see several doctors and pick the best. Then again, I hate my job and I'm hoping this situation changes when I get a different job. What pisses me off more than anything else about having adult ADHD is that there is virtually no support for it. There is increasing awareness for children with it, but as you get older your venues for help beyond seeing a psychiatrist for medication and a psychologist for therapy, are basically nonexistent. My mother's an educator with good connections to mental health support and she asked around about what I should do, because some days have been getting really hard. She only got the same advice - see a psychiatrist for medication and a psychologist for therapy. I'm ok with people not taking my condition seriously, and being unable to be open about it, but I'm getting really frustrated with getting help at times. Adderall only goes so far, and there's only so much willpower I can muster.
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Feb 17, 2011 05:24
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therapy chat itt. if you've seen my posts about my therapist, yeah. The only thing worse than not finding one, is being contractually obligated to see a lovely one. Yeah. Its a long story. ANYWAYS, have you looked into peer support groups? There may be one in your city specifically for ADHD. There has to be one for depression, and a lot of what you're describing sounds like you're depressed. You hate your job, where I'm assuming you spend a good deal of time (40hrs/wk?), which would take a toll on anyone. Sometimes talking to someone (or a group) with the same disorder is as beneficial as therapy if you can't find one you get along with. How often are you missing doses of Adderall and supplementing it with caffeine? I can't imagine that would be good for anything - physical or mental/emotional.
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Feb 17, 2011 05:31
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Eh, hasn't been that long. Part of my problem is my schedule, because if I take Adderall past like 3pm, it just fucks with me for the rest of the night and doesn't provide much benefit for dealing with the side effects. What I should be doing, is taking Adderall when I wake up at like 8am, and then taking a second dose around 1pm, but there's too much potential for me to miss a dose. Instead, I've been taking one pill at around 10am, and that usually lasts me through the day. Until recently, if I needed a boost I would get coffee, but I think I might go grab the pills out of my car and split them up between the house and the car and try that out for a few days. As for the support group, there is one in my area. It just meets when I'm at work and is closer to my house than my job... Even if I could get the time off to go to it, it's an hour away in LA traffic and I would have to leave even earlier so it's pretty much a "why bother" situation. I don't get ADA protection with my current employer because the company is less than 15 employees. As for depression, yeah I'm probably suffering from depression. I had some major bouts, undiagnosed but I'm 100% positive, of it when I was younger. I would sit in my room all weekend and feel like complete poo poo, complete despair, hopelessness, and lack of motivation. I've had so many different issues, however, it's only going to take more time to figure out which issues belong(ed) to the ADHD, depression, and traumatic childhood filled with bullying. I was going to a lovely therapist for awhile, and then I realized I pay him and I stopped going. I was vindicated when he didn't even call about missing the appointment, though I would have told him I felt our time together had been sufficient. It's hard for us to speak up sometimes, but I'm getting better and better at being more assertive, and it only gets easier. What I've been learning is that you can say pretty much whatever you want (within obvious reason) so long as you mind your tone of voice, don't get emotional, and always stay polite. I'm not perfect at it, but it's really hard to mistake frankness when you stay polite and friendly. It's different with people who you have some kind of interpersonal relationship with, but the more you worry about how other people will react, the more you're not treating them with respect and only put pressure on yourself for no reason. Then again, I don't know your situation very well, so I may be completely off the mark here.
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Feb 17, 2011 05:57
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TheGopher posted:Eh, hasn't been that long. Part of my problem is my schedule, because if I take Adderall past like 3pm, it just fucks with me for the rest of the night and doesn't provide much benefit for dealing with the side effects. What I should be doing, is taking Adderall when I wake up at like 8am, and then taking a second dose around 1pm, but there's too much potential for me to miss a dose. Instead, I've been taking one pill at around 10am, and that usually lasts me through the day. Until recently, if I needed a boost I would get coffee, but I think I might go grab the pills out of my car and split them up between the house and the car and try that out for a few days. I take my pill at 7AM and noon, I just carry one pill, in a bottle, in my purse. You could get one of those little single-pill cases and put it in your pocket and then you can take it before you go to work and while you're at work. You're literally peaking yourself. You get up and youre tired. You take your adderall and you go up and get normal.. then you come off it and crash (so to speak) mid-day when you should be 'crashing' at night just a couple hours before bed. Speaking of bed, lately I haven't wanted to sleep at all. Not adderall related, I just.. I don't know, I don't want to sleep. I still do, because I'm busy as poo poo. 
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Feb 17, 2011 06:10
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You're right, I do need to take my medication more regularly. If I rely on remembering to "pack a pill" for myself and carry it with me, I will forget until I'm more used to it. At the very least, I'll bring a few pills into the house, leave the bottle in the car so I can run out and get it in the morning if I need to, and bring a pill in to work with me. I'll try to hunt down a single pill carrier, that's a good idea. I have some nights where I just cannot go to sleep, and it's not the Adderall. It's usually due to stress in my case but long before I took medication I remember having nights where I just couldn't slow down and get in the mood to pass out. Hard to tell what's causing what these days for me, but I haven't had issues sleeping recently except one odd night of insomnia until like 4am a few weeks ago. Are you simply not getting tired, or do you feel like you're being run by a motor and couldn't imagine going to bed?
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Feb 17, 2011 06:38
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2508084 posted:Do you drink tea? Tea has caffeine too. Have you been checked for bi polar? If you're having extreme mood swings on and off the adderall, you might want to see about it. Bi polar and severe adhd look a lot alike. Not to play Internet Doctor, but I get the exact same effects on Adderall (re: the mood swings), and I asked my doc, who I've seen for a decade now, about Bi-Polar possibilities. He said that in my case, absolutely not. It's just the effects of the drug. Though it is something to look into, I'd be hesitant to mark it as a possibility. If someone is having these mood swings without the Adderall, or if they're being made worse by the Adderall, then sure. But if Adderall is the main cause? Probably not Bi-Polar. For the record, I don't get the mood swings at all on Dexedrine, so that may be an option if one is bothered by them.
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Feb 17, 2011 06:47
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^ He said he had them without the adderall, though, thats why I said that. e. actually he said he has lovely days off it, then added with adderall he has mood swings. I pushed it all together and assumed both happened with and without. No internet doctoring, see a real doctor about anything before doing anything with anything. TheGopher posted:You're right, I do need to take my medication more regularly. If I rely on remembering to "pack a pill" for myself and carry it with me, I will forget until I'm more used to it. At the very least, I'll bring a few pills into the house, leave the bottle in the car so I can run out and get it in the morning if I need to, and bring a pill in to work with me. I'll try to hunt down a single pill carrier, that's a good idea. I might or might not be drinking a poo poo load of Coke Zero lately, just before bed. Pretty sure thats my issue. I might just be trying to compensate for the adderall wearing off without realizing it. Hell, I didn't even realize that last sentence until I typed it out. I'd put like a couple days supply in your car. I went through a scare a few pages back where I thought i had lost half my pills because they were in my backpack and the zipper pouch broke (didn't lose them). Then, create a routine. Roughly, mine is this: 5:30-6:20AM; Get up 6:30AM; Bitch at the cats about having to get up so god forsaken early good god why did I allow myself this schedule this sucks whatever I hate everything 6:40AM; scrounge for breakfast, cook. 7:00AM; Finished breakfast? Grab adderall + wellbutrin, swallow both. 7:20AM; leave house, go to work 8-1:30; WORK! SO EXCITE! 12-1:30; Take your pill! Depending on how grouchy I feel is when I take my pill. If I'm grinding my teeth (metaphorically) or having semi-obsessive thoughts about things I shouldn't (exboyfriends from 3-4 years ago, for example), I go take my pill because I know its time (and its always between 12-130) 2:50-4; class 4:30-9; home, dinner, wind down 9PM; Temazepam (sleeping pill) 9:30PM; SLEEP NOW. Its currently 9:48  I like temazepam. Its effective, but its not a knock out. I took 300mg trazodone and it was awful. I sleep through the night now. I need to stop drinking caffeine when I get home.edit edit: Is there any reason you haven't looked into a XR version of adderall? If you have trouble taking your secondary dose, extended release might be something to look into. That has its own issues/success rates/etc that you'd have to contend with and get to know. ladyweapon fucked around with this message at 06:54 on Feb 17, 2011 |
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Feb 17, 2011 06:49
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2508084 posted:^ He said he had them without the adderall, though, thats why I said that. Fair enough. I haven't been doing a whole lot of reading at work, because I've been really busy. And by the time I get home, the  have fully worn off and I'm in "LET'S GO RIDE BIKES!" mode.
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Feb 17, 2011 07:25
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2508084 posted:^ He said he had them without the adderall, though, thats why I said that. Biggest issue for everything is seeing a doc. The doc I see right now only sees patients between 9am and 2pm on weekdays only. He has a stack of charts a foot high for patients for that day alone, and doesn't give a poo poo. I've tried looking up other doctors that have weekend hours, and I called 15 or so offices before just giving up. It doesn't help that I can't necessarily call any doctor, but need to find one familiar with ADHD that my medical insurance will pay for. Don't even get me started on trying to find a psychologist, that's even more impossible because nobody does therapy for ADHD. It additionally doesn't help that my employer is exempt from ADA employment provisions since the company is smaller than 15 people, so I get docked PTO to go to medical appts during work hours. I live in the second or third largest metropolitan area in the US, you'd think this would be easier, right?
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Feb 17, 2011 07:54
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TheGopher posted:I live in the second or third largest metropolitan area in the US, you'd think this would be easier, right? Take the time off to see a legit psych for proper meds. I see mine once a month/once every two months. I just have to take that hit. Tell your job its a medical doctor and see if they'll flex some shifts around so you can take off early that day. I mean, how's what you're doing now working for you? You gotta do something and all you have is reasons to not do it. Your life is insurmountably easier compared. Imagine paying out of pocket for everything AND taking a pay hit to see them. I doubt you'll find someone working weekends, no one really does. If you can't get a therapist that specializes in ADHD, get one that specializes in CBT treatment so you can learn to cope with the negative thoughts and learn to change the way you think. Doing something is better than doing nothing, even if the something turns sour. YES IM STILL UP MOTHERFUCKING BIKES OK. I ALSO SAW A THING ON THE INTERNET BUT I FORGOT WHERE IT WAS AND gently caress WHERES MY BIEK k going to bed now i swear
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Feb 17, 2011 08:03
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TheGopher posted:I don't think anybody's judging so much as they're expressing outrage at your psychiatrist. This was a really informative post. To be honest, I'm not really hoping to confirm or deny any diagnosis. I don't even CARE if I really do have ADD. I've been diagnosed with every possible problem in existence at some point or another. I'm just looking at the symptoms right now and how to manage them. I mean, ritalin also helps narcolepsy but I wouldn't assume I had that. Also, this psychiatrist was one that was recommended to me because she does specialize in child and adult ADD. I'm getting really discouraged with how many times I'm having to switch doctors. My PCP left and I had to get a new one. This is my third psychiatrist in 2 years. I'm now having to find my third therapist in two years as well. gently caress, I want stability. My desire to just stick with someone is the reason I'll give her another chance and go to my follow up, but this thread has made me decide to switch again if I feel like her behavior wasn't just a one time thing. She had mentioned that someone had broken into her e-mail, changed her password and stole her personal information. That's no excuse for being flippant about medical decisions, but I could see how that might affect her behavior so I'd like to at least give her another chance and ask some follow up questions about why she diagnosed me with ADD. strange posted:I can understand the frustration; my mother's suffered very badly from CFS since I was a child. She's also had bad doctor or two! Our long term family GP refused to believe the condition even existed. Thanks for this. It's nice to know someone else is in the same boat. My PCP is comfortable with diagnosing me with CFS but there are no specialists anywhere in a 5 hour driving distance of me that treat it and she has no idea how to do it herself. It's probably the most isolating and frustrating thing to have.
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Feb 17, 2011 08:34
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Greatest Health Care system in the world!* *Unless you want to be treated for something. I'm in the same boat as you for finding a psychiatrist and psychologist. It's incredibly frustrating, and I wish I could simply show up at a doctor's office and have them be everything I need but it's not going to happen. Luckily in this case medication is a little different, and doesn't require as much as a personal connection. If you go see another psychiatrist, worst case scenario you're still where you left off, best case scenario you get a diagnosis or avert a medical emergency because of something the previous psychiatrist didn't take into consideration. As for the therapist, let me know how you found a good one when you do. I'm sick of trying to find people that at least pretend like they give a poo poo. 
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Feb 17, 2011 09:51
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I'm about to take my first dose of Adderall and I'm not sure what to do about my caffeine consumption. I usually drink two cups of coffee in the morning as part of my routine. I know the caffeine has the potential to negatively interact with the Adderall, but I'm afraid to quit caffeine cold turket and get the withdrawal symptoms that come with it. Instead of coffee, is a caffeinated tea a safe option to come down off caffeine? Or hell, is the drug enough of a stimulant that I'll be fine quittin cold turkey?
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Feb 17, 2011 13:57
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Dolemite posted:I'm about to take my first dose of Adderall and I'm not sure what to do about my caffeine consumption. I usually drink two cups of coffee in the morning as part of my routine. Two cups in the morning shouldn't give you a bad time if you don't drink it. I do drink about half a cup in the morning (over about 4 hours), but I would limit your intake heavily until you know how you handle it. The only reason I drink it is because it gets me away from my work and everyone else at my job does it. Tea might be a better, less caffeinated option.
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Feb 17, 2011 15:45
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2508084 posted:Two cups in the morning shouldn't give you a bad time if you don't drink it. I do drink about half a cup in the morning (over about 4 hours), but I would limit your intake heavily until you know how you handle it. The only reason I drink it is because it gets me away from my work and everyone else at my job does it. Tea might be a better, less caffeinated option. Cool. I ended up going with a small cup of tea that says to have about 46mg of caffeine in it. So far, I feel fine. No withdrawal symptoms. I may just try not having any coffee or anything tomorrow and see how that goes. -- I don't know if it's placebo or not, but I think I am feeling a difference already on the Adderall (this morning I literally took my first dose ever). The focused, ability to concentrate feeling I drink a ton of coffee to get, I am feeling that right now. But, the ability to focus feels 'stronger'. But, in a smooth way. It's hard to describe. But it's like a stronger ability to concentrate than I get from 3 cups of coffee, without the nasty jitters, upset stomach, and crashing that comes from coffee. I feel that I can still wander off task, but now I am able to recognize that I have wandered off task and go back to what I was doing with no issues. Before, it took a LOT of effort to resume work after I started loving off on the internet. Then, when I resume work, I can work with the intensity that I could only muster when working on the VERY narrow list of things I enjoy doing. In this case, I am working on an installation document for our software. I dreaded doing this task since it was tedious and well, boring. Well after taking my first dose, I've been working on it all morning and I just now realized that! Wow! I guess this is Adderall working? Dunno.
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Feb 17, 2011 16:15
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YO whats up ADHD people? First off, you can definitely use tea to wean yourself off of caffeine, but really I'd say the best way to do it is just stop cold turkey. You'll get a pretty killer headache the first day, but that's about it! Just take some ibuprofen (not excedrin though, as it contains caffeine!) Also I saw someone mention sleeping pills (temazepam) up there. Beware of using sleeping pills to counteract the effects of your ADHD meds - you shouldn't need a pill to put you to sleep (especially a benzo). If it's just a "now and then" thing where you take it a few times a month because you are too excited and can't sleep, that's one thing. But if you take it every night, you should really try to cut it out. I say this because if you get into the cycle of uppers in the morning, downers in the evening, you will become very psychologically addicted and it can lead to a situation that I call "being cracked out" wherein your dopamine levels are unable to regulate themselves and your mind starts to go a little haywire. If you really can't sleep (i often couldn't on adderall due to that nasty levoamphetamine isomer), consider switching meds to something like dexedrine or desoxyn. Additionally, though you may have very little room in an already full schedule, you need to EXERCISE!! I know it sounds like something your high school health teacher would have told you, but seriously. Just think of it as your body's own sleeping pill - it'll calm your mind down and put your body at ease. I recommend RIDING BIKES YAY!!! (seriously its awesome)
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Feb 17, 2011 16:44
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If people just want something in the morning but can't handle the caffeine, I am finding that Ovaltine is doing the trick for me. I just make it at 'half strength' (put in half the ovaltine mix they call for) so that I don't get overloaded with sugar in the beginning of the day. Oh yeah - I drink it hot. And my roommate, who was raised LDS, said that it reminded her of her childhood. Ovaltine 
Qu Appelle fucked around with this message at 00:57 on Feb 18, 2011 |
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Feb 17, 2011 18:57
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cloudstrife2993 posted:First off, you can definitely use tea to wean yourself off of caffeine, but really I'd say the best way to do it is just stop cold turkey. You'll get a pretty killer headache the first day, but that's about it! Just take some ibuprofen (not excedrin though, as it contains caffeine!) I don't know if it's the Adderall, lack of caffeine, or my killer sinuses still acting up. But, I'm already getting a headache. I've had my second dose today (doc says take 1/2 a pill in the morning, other 1/2 at noon). I've also had one small mug of tea. This isn't a killer headache, just kinda sucks and I want it gone. I've never came off of caffeine before, so I don't really know what the symptoms are like. Other than the headache, I think I feel fine. Or, as fine as you can feel when still congested and stuffed up with mucus from sinuses.
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Feb 17, 2011 19:41
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Dolemite posted:Cool. I ended up going with a small cup of tea that says to have about 46mg of caffeine in it. So far, I feel fine. No withdrawal symptoms. I may just try not having any coffee or anything tomorrow and see how that goes. Heh, that's an excellent description of ADHD and the affects of Adderall. Though, I wonder is an ADHD person with Adderall a normal person now? If so, goddamn all you normal people got it so easy! EDIT - On the subject of adderall, did anyone absolutely hate Ritalin,Strattera,etc but found adderall was the only one that worked well. Gucci Loafers fucked around with this message at 20:24 on Feb 17, 2011 |
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Feb 17, 2011 20:20
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