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Geisladisk posted:Here in Iceland... technically, yes? It's a illegal narcotic, and as far as I know has not been approved as a doctor-prescribed medicine. Instead, doctors prescribe Concerta or (rarely) Ritalin. Same in the rest of Scandinavia, concerta is where it's at.
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Nov 10, 2017 15:28
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Fusion Restaurant posted:Same here re: caffeine normally, but it's different when you're on stimulant ADHD meds. Using caffeine really screws with the ability of the medication to work in odd ways, and might be part of why effects aren't so noticeable as well as why there are side effects. Some psychiatrists seem better about mentioning this than others, but it pretty much seems like regardless of your normal caffeine tolerance you shouldn't have any while you're trying to figure out what dose works. Anecdote, but, yeah, one time I had a Mountain Dew while I was on my regular Adderall dose, not realizing the interaction, and I felt like my heart was going to explode for about an hour.
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Nov 10, 2017 17:03
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Laserface posted:Thanks. I used to drink caffeine like you. I eased up after getting on concerta but still had probably to much. I cut it out completely a few weeks ago. The first week sucked a lot. But now I'm much closer to 7 / 8 hours a night sleep. Which hadn't been the case since I was like 13. Also I found the meds didn't fix me. They just weaponized my hyperfocus. I could couldn't stick at something for too long without the feeling of needing to do something else becoming over whelming. Now I can stick at something as long as the meds are in effect. But that includes bad things like YouTube. (Though even in that you might be watching all of the videos rather than just the first 3 mins.) The meds are not a magic bullet. But lists and calenders are, and the meds will help you stick with them!
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Nov 10, 2017 17:52
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BoneMonkey posted:I used to drink caffeine like you. I eased up after getting on concerta but still had probably to much. For the record I have one coffee a day, and because that has never done much for me I never bother drinking heaps of caffeinated drinks - I just used that as an example of one the times I had noticed caffeine. But yes the lists and calendar stuff is what I am working on to assist me.
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Nov 10, 2017 23:30
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Ah got confused by the 4 energy drinks comment. Which I used to drink, just to feel awake.
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Nov 11, 2017 00:38
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Tab8715 posted:Is true adderall is banned outside the US? It is banned in a lot of countries. If you are traveling and from the US I'd be very careful about bringing Adderall with you. Your best bet is individually looking this up by country -- calling their consulate seems to work (or finding a research librarian on SA to help you lol). For example, in a lot of SE Asia it is totally banned and treated like an illegal drug, so you have to go with Ritalin instead. Laserface posted:For the record I have one coffee a day, ... Ah gotcha, might have been projecting my old habits :p
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Nov 11, 2017 01:23
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Welp, I don't like vyvanse. Gives me stomach cramps without fail every time I take it, and I don't feel it's adding anything or helping me focus. If anything, it just makes me feel more manic and excited (as it is a stimulant).
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Nov 11, 2017 15:51
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Weird how meds affect people differently. For me I don't really feel any different on Vyvanse, but have the ability to focus better, so long as there isn't an overwhelming amount of distraction going on (often true at home unfortunately).
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Nov 11, 2017 23:37
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Methylphenidate, 10mg x2 daily, I'm getting more things done but I'm also forgetting how to have emotions. I worked hard to have emotions again and I'd really like to keep them.
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Nov 17, 2017 14:37
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Freudian posted:Methylphenidate, 10mg x2 daily, I'm getting more things done but I'm also forgetting how to have emotions. I worked hard to have emotions again and I'd really like to keep them. How long have you been on it? I've been on Methylphenidate, 18mg once daily for the past few months. The first couple of weeks I definitely felt like a bit of a zombie in the afternoons, but now that side effect is totally gone. If you stick with it, the side effects will probably go away.
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Nov 17, 2017 16:24
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Also make sure you're eating throughout the day on stimulants, they suppress appetite so the "loss of personality" might just be because you're hungry and have low blood sugar but don't realize it. I had the same issue with Adderall but it went away completely when I realized I was basically skipping lunch and started eating at mealtimes + having a mid-morning and mid-afternoon snack.
Mechafunkzilla fucked around with this message at 16:28 on Nov 17, 2017 |
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Nov 17, 2017 16:26
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Ugh, my meds got messed up since the prior authorization for 2x daily switch. Been without anything for 3 days and it is a harsh reminder of how things were prior to getting on Vyvanse.
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Nov 17, 2017 16:28
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^^ Hello fellow not-haver! Hellmart's pharmacy seems determined to pretend I have never filled a prescription with them ever and in fact may actually be a sentient ball of noodles in a trenchcoat whenever I try to refill. For once I can AFFORD the meds I need but the damned pharma won't fill it.
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Nov 18, 2017 21:49
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Night and day! I feel much better today back on my 20mg twice a day. No more feeling like curling in a ball and sleeping all day long!
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Nov 18, 2017 22:25
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One med you all might want to consider is Wellbutrin. For me it has worked better than all the other stimulants at addressing my problems - motivation in the right ways, internal hyperactivity, forgetting things - while not doing any of the bad things other stimulants for me - anxiety, flat affect, sleep issues.I think Wellbutrin also works in a novel way for adhd by affecting the nicotine receptors.
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Nov 19, 2017 17:31
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From what I can tell I have no additional anxiety, freedom to choose to focus, and I sleep like a rock. I just need the effects to last from 630am till 8pm or so. 20 mg twice daily seems to help so far 6am and 3pm
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Nov 19, 2017 23:09
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Beastyfella posted:From what I can tell I have no additional anxiety, freedom to choose to focus, and I sleep like a rock. I just need the effects to last from 630am till 8pm or so. 20 mg twice daily seems to help so far 6am and 3pm Shire has a new 16 hour duration stim called Mydayis. Today was my third day on it and they really weren't kidding about the duration, I take it around 7 AM and still feel the sensation that things are satisfying my attention when I'm going to bed at 10 or 11. It's a mix of IR and ER beads, and I've felt a bit of anxiety around the onset of the first ER release, but that's mostly it as far as negative side effects go. Nowhere near as bad as dealing with Concerta comedown, and not as bad as Vyvanse's onset, either. Vyvanse used to last around 6 hours for me, so this stuff is great. loving expensive, though.
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Nov 20, 2017 04:56
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BoneMonkey posted:Guess it's to do with our history of loving up while watching everyone around us manage to do just fine. No, but my ex had it pretty bad. After that experience I pretty consciously avoided it afterwards.
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Nov 29, 2017 22:16
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Hey y'all. So I've posted in here a couple times before. Been struggling with my ADHD for a number of years. Fights with my wife have gotten worse and more frequent, and she's reaching the end of her patience with me. For the past 6 months or so, I've been taking Vyvance and seeing an adult ADHD specialist. My dosage has been bumped up to 50mg. I know meds aren't the be all for fixing things, so I'm trying to augment them with other positive ways to work on myself, like exercise, and keeping a consistent schedule. Unfortunately, I can only seem to keep things going for maybe 3-4 weeks before I start slipping into my bad habits and neglecting things. My wife is very supportive, and attends a support group with me, but she's only human, and can only take so much of the same battle. Over the summer, I found myself feeling much worse, not just physically but mentally. My specialist has gotten me to really try thinking and analyzing how I'm feeling, which has always been very difficult for me. I know that anger is a common issue in ADHD relationships, but I've always internalized mine, instead of directing it outwards. Whenever I would drop the ball and upset my wife, I would fall into a negative thought pattern of guilt, worthlessness, and depression, which had begun to sink deeper, and last longer. I never quite got to the point of being suicidal, but I did feel a hell of a lot less concern for my personal safety while driving or at work. My specialist has just started me on an antidepressant, which I'm almost a week in to. He said it could take a month at least to start seeing effects, so I'm trying to keep trucking along until that point. Exercising daily has been a big help, but I'm still feeling really emotionally fragile. I spent my entire life blaming myself for every problem and mistake, and it feels like such a crazy burden on me but I can't seem to drop it. It's been really difficult to try not to immediately fall into a trap of self-loathing whenever something goes wrong because of me. Still trying though. One thing that has really distressed me lately is my sense of direction getting hosed up. I've lived in my current area for over 5 years, and I still need reminding sometimes of where exactly a certain store is, even one I've been to dozens of times. A few months ago, wife and I were driving, and I was headed to the grocery store. I was absolutely positive that I was going the right way, and when I realized I had turned the wrong direction, I got super upset, and had a lovely crying jag in the car. I'm really hoping I can start to turn myself around for the long-term, because constantly ending up back at square one has been really depressing and disheartening. I'm trying to take it one day at a time, but I'm still feeling pretty low. Anyway, that's the current situation. Still stumbling along.
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Dec 5, 2017 23:16
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Sometimes ADHD and depression are so closely comorbid that treating one can directly help manage the other. Maybe ask your doc whether they think a modest dose of antidepressants as a supplement to ADHD medication would be worthwhile? Worked wonders for me.
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Dec 6, 2017 01:24
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Angry Diplomat posted:Sometimes ADHD and depression are so closely comorbid that treating one can directly help manage the other. Maybe ask your doc whether they think a modest dose of antidepressants as a supplement to ADHD medication would be worthwhile? Worked wonders for me. Yes, I just started on a low dose antidepressant last week. Hoping it helps. I'm going back to see him in another month and we'll re-evaluate from there.
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Dec 6, 2017 02:44
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The Zombie Guy posted:Hey y'all. The ADHD specialist is a psychiatrist? How often do you see them?
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Dec 6, 2017 02:50
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Mechafunkzilla posted:The ADHD specialist is a psychiatrist? How often do you see them? Yes he is. I was seeing him every 4-6 weeks, adjusting dosages, and just catching up a bit to see how I was doing. Lately I've seen him a bit more often, since I had a bit of a "crisis point" a few weeks back. My last visit was last week, and I'll see him again in 5 weeks, barring any further incidents. It took me a long time to get in to see this guy. He works out of a clinic that specializes in ADHD treatment, and his focus is on adults, which is drat hard to find.
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Dec 6, 2017 03:06
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The Zombie Guy posted:Yes he is. It's great you found a psychiatrist who specializes in ADHD. Have him refer you to a therapist you can see weekly -- if it's someone in the same clinic who has experience working with ADHD and who can communicate with him for coordinated care, even better. Mechafunkzilla fucked around with this message at 03:20 on Dec 6, 2017 |
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Dec 6, 2017 03:15
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So It's been about a year since I posted I might as well give an update. I finally got in to see the a psychiatrist, not the one I was schedule to see as that one left the practice but was refereed to a new one who I guess took the other one's place. He initially put me on Adderall XR starting at 10mg and left it up to me to determined to increase dosage up to 30mg. Which I did and for what I think had no effect whatsoever. My Psychologist remarked that my slow cognitive tempo seemed to have improved as it wasn't taking me as long to stop, think, and then answer his questions. I felt the Adderall didn't work and so my psychologist put me on Ritalin @ 20mg again leaving me to determine if I need to increase the dosage. First couple days on it @ 20 mg I didn't feel anything. I bumped it up to 30 mg, again nothing, so then I went to 40 mg. Around an hour after taking 40mg I noticed it felt like I was winded. Thankfully being immediate release it only last a short while. I decided to stop Ritalin and try something else. So I am now just taken my 2nd dose of Stratera 40mg in which if I don't feel anything I bump it up to 40mg in 5 days. Hindsight being 20/20 and all I realize I didn't give Ritalin a fair chance. If the Stratera doesn't work I'm going to consider retrying Ritalin again. 
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Dec 11, 2017 00:50
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To give you some perspective I have been in a similar situation to you over the last 2-3 months. Co-workers and GF both god fed up (independently of each other) of my forgetfulness, blase' attitude and inability to focus on things that werent exactly what I wanted to be doing, suggested I see a doctor. saw doctor, did some questionnaires, doc read my school report cards and got diagnosed as ADHD (inattentive/distracted). got prescribed Ritalin IR 10mg, twice daily, with instructions to titrate my dosage higher until I start to 'notice' it, up to a total of 30mg twice daily. did this for a few days at the low dosages and was getting all the side effects and not really anything else. turns out it was making me caffeine sensitive, so cut out coffee, and ended up doing a 30mg dose and feeling no side effects. From what I have gathered from the doctor and discussion with others who use it, its not accurate to expect a 'noticeable' change or feeling. Its not like Speed or MDMA or cocaine that will have your brain hardwired for focus and amazing ideas or whatever, it is a much more subtle, almost sub-conscious thing. Not only that, the advice here and from others is that you still need to train your actual ability to focus, whether thats CBT or whatever I dont know. ALL THAT SAID, my experience has been that while I am not 'feeling' my brain work properly, it actually does work properly. I am able to recall things and remember things better, I am actually getting more work done (although a lot of my work is small tasks, so while I may still get distracted by the onslaught of social media/information era, I am still completing these things rather than ignoring them to pursue every micro-interest that flies past my eyes). this is leading to more motivation to attempt long-term projects at work and more confidence in myself that I am *not* inept at my job and I *CAN* do things and I am reasonably good at it, which is a huge plus. on the negative side it does introduce some distractions of its own. The come up can be sometimes too much fun, and it does make me more aroused, psychologically. I dont get unwanted hard-ons but my mind definitely starts racing with sexual thoughts far more easily. This is supposed to subside over time Im told, but Its been a few months now and Im still jackin' it multiple times a day (at home, not at work, because wtf) Thats my frank experience with it so far. TLDR dont expect it to feel like your brain has had a turbo boost applied to it, coerce your brain into starting a task and you *should* be able to stick to it better. I too was going to give up because the psychiatry bills are big and I cant keep going to see him every time I want to try a new drug or dosage, but the results are there, just not the ones I was really expecting. Im still going to my psych next week to see if I can try some Dex-amphetamines instead as they are supposedly a little less Rushy with the onset. The strategy for my psychiatrists seems to be "start them titrating on IRs of either drug, find what works, then switch to Extended release for convenience and reduced risk of abuse". (wall of text because I had my morning dose not too long ago, see it does work!)
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Dec 11, 2017 01:34
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Robzilla posted:So It's been about a year since I posted I might as well give an update. Strattera takes 2-4 weeks of daily use to start working, but you'd really have to give it a couple of months to know if it's for you
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Dec 11, 2017 01:56
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Laserface posted:
This has been my experience on Vyvanse, as well. The effects are subtle and don't solve all my ADD problems (and they even cause some mild problems of their own, like making it harder for me to multitask), but they make me function like a normal person -- I still get bored, but less easily; I still hyperfocus on some tasks, but I can switch gears when it's called for, etc. Being diagnosed with ADD/ADHD as an adult means we've had a lifetime of developing behaviors and thinking patterns to cope, avoid struggling with, or as a negative consequence of the disorder, and medication can't undo those things -- that takes a conscious change on our part, whether in therapy or in a self-directed method. The medication just makes your brain work more efficiently. Maybe an analogy could be like if you've spent years forced to go on a triathalon every day but you've been eating nothing but potato chips the whole time, and then suddenly you switch to eating a balanced diet. Your body will now have the fuel to get you through the race, but you're still out of shape and used to feeling too tired to lift the rifle when you get to that portion of the race, so you never developed your aim....you get the idea. The food/medication gives you the foundation for being able to complete the race/daily tasks, but now you've got to train your behavior to cope, too. (And like Laserface, I tend to over-ruminate in the morning after my medication kicks in, too. See, if only I set to actually doing my work instead of checking the boards when I get to my desk in the morning! That's my own fault.)
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Dec 11, 2017 15:12
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I've been taking concerta for a while, and it barely keeps me awake during the day and otherwise doesn't do anything. If I don't take it, all I want to do is eat and sleep. So my doctor prescribed me provigil, and Vyvanse in case they wouldn't give me the provigil without a narcolepsy diagnosis (which has not been ruled out). Vyvanse works better than concerta but i can't sleep for the first few days of taking it even if I only take a couple days' break. So i took the provigil today and it's doing jack and poo poo. I have so much I want to do before my vacation and was so hopeful after reading all the glowing provigil reviews but it's clearly going to be another poo poo day of barely accomplishing anything. The bullshit meetings I have to attend don't help either. Anyway, add sucks.
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Dec 14, 2017 19:44
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opie posted:I've been taking concerta for a while, and it barely keeps me awake during the day and otherwise doesn't do anything. If I don't take it, all I want to do is eat and sleep. So my doctor prescribed me provigil, and Vyvanse in case they wouldn't give me the provigil without a narcolepsy diagnosis (which has not been ruled out). Vyvanse works better than concerta but i can't sleep for the first few days of taking it even if I only take a couple days' break. Talk to a sleep specialist about your daytime sleepiness, ADHD has genetic polymorphism with some circadian rhythm disorders. My DSPD diagnosis and treatment was life-changing.
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Dec 14, 2017 20:12
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I did an overnight sleep study and ruled out sleep apnea, but they never followed up with the daytime test. It was basically "welp, you're already being treated for add and it's the same as narcolepsy so" I got a Fitbit Alta to track my sleep and it shows very little deep sleep. My plan was to go off the stimulants while I'm on vacation and try to get a baseline but I may end up needing to work.
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Dec 14, 2017 20:27
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I tried various doses of Concerta last spring and it didn't do anything for me, and now I'm getting back on the wagon for getting my ADD treated. I just started my prescription of Adderall XR on Tuesday, one 20mg capsule a day. The first day was incredible, I could feel a mental clarity that I hadn't felt in ages and I could focus on things without even trying. Then second day hit and I barely felt anything at all. Today's the third day and I feel the effects more than I did yesterday, but it's not as strong as the first day and I'm in a weird spot where I can feel the physical effects without any of the mental clarity or focus. Is it normal for the first "high" to be more effective than usual? How will I know when I'm at the right dose? I'm really wary of upping my dose because I don't want to accidentally take too much.
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Dec 15, 2017 03:20
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HorseRenoir posted:I tried various doses of Concerta last spring and it didn't do anything for me, and now I'm getting back on the wagon for getting my ADD treated. These are all great questions to ask your psychiatrist.
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Dec 15, 2017 03:26
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saw mine today and got a script for long release ritalin at my current 60mg daily dose. he said it should iron out the peaky nature of it and reduce side effects and hes happy that I am getting objective results (getting poo poo done) even if im not feeling mentally 'focused' (which I think I am just expecting coke/mdma-like stimulation). and yeah my current workload is also quite short-term stuff that dont take a long time to do and are not complex tasks, so my bad habits from the past of jumping around between things are I guess at least keeping me on task for those short bursts, rather than slacking off on the forums like i usually do. i guess I need to start some CBT to get that long-focus ability in check so i can do bigger things. I want to try and study and get some IT certs I should probably have done years ago but lacked discipline for.
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Dec 15, 2017 04:42
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So after all these years, I had a neurologic check up. The neurologist send me to a psychologist who concluded that I might be 'on the spectrum' and instead of looking into ADHD, she gave me a basic test which confirmed her suspicions. I'll now have to do 8 hours of in depth tests to see where exactly my brain is floating, and what kind of therapy and/or medication might help. It's 'funny' that 15 years ago I kinda floated the idea of having some autistic tendencies myself to my then psychologist, which he quickly brushed aside. Oh well...
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Feb 15, 2018 20:00
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mrfart posted:So after all these years, I had a neurologic check up. The neurologist send me to a psychologist who concluded that I might be 'on the spectrum' and instead of looking into ADHD, she gave me a basic test which confirmed her suspicions. I have ADD and work with a lot of autistic kids. It's surprising how similar some of our issues are.
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Feb 16, 2018 08:27
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I went for a first consultation to a psychiatrist 2 weeks ago, and he recommended 5mg ritalin, one per day. Been taking it every weekday, and although I did get some slight improvements (I don't daydream or doze off at work anymore), I still lose my focus all the time while working. Is gradually changing the dosage to find one that is suitable normal? My next visit to the psychiatrist is this weekend so I'm curious, as the three weeks of slight improvement didn't really help me in catching up to my workload.
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Feb 20, 2018 05:46
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Eeepies posted:I went for a first consultation to a psychiatrist 2 weeks ago, and he recommended 5mg ritalin, one per day. Been taking it every weekday, and although I did get some slight improvements (I don't daydream or doze off at work anymore), I still lose my focus all the time while working. Is gradually changing the dosage to find one that is suitable normal? My next visit to the psychiatrist is this weekend so I'm curious, as the three weeks of slight improvement didn't really help me in catching up to my workload. Oh yes. Think of it as a glasses perscription, you gotta get the right strength for you.
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Feb 20, 2018 08:58
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Eeepies posted:I went for a first consultation to a psychiatrist 2 weeks ago, and he recommended 5mg ritalin, one per day. Been taking it every weekday, and although I did get some slight improvements (I don't daydream or doze off at work anymore), I still lose my focus all the time while working. Is gradually changing the dosage to find one that is suitable normal? My next visit to the psychiatrist is this weekend so I'm curious, as the three weeks of slight improvement didn't really help me in catching up to my workload. That's a microscopic dose (like it's 1/6th of what I was taking when I was 8 years old), so titrating upwards is probably on the cards
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Feb 20, 2018 09:02
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I'm currently going through the motions of getting my diagnosis. I'm 35 years old now. Not surprisingly I have a variety of former issues in my life including very severe depression and complete alienation for a few years. I did manage to complete a master's degree in philosophy after the depression, but now when I need to actually get to adult life things started to be way too tricky. Hopefully, I will get the diagnosis and some extra help. I can't afford therapy without government support due to being unemployed. I have no idea what I want to do with my life as I know that PhD is beyond me in my current condition. Apparently the waiting time for the research is over an year at the moment and it's of course not guaranteed diagnosis due to no earlier suspicions of ADD. I managed to sail through elementary school due to knowing how to read since being five years old and having a good memory for trivia. I skipped a lot of classes, but as I was a good student it was ignored. I manage most things in life, because I have a very strict structure and routines. But it is very exhausting to uphold and eventually it just starts to be too much. But at least I finally managed to seek help!
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Feb 20, 2018 10:04
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