XR Ritalin and Personality Changes?

[MelissaTex]

My boyfriend started methylphenidate SR, 20 mg, on Mar 19, 2011. He had been on my generic Adderall (amphetamine salts, 15mg, 2.5 times a day) for a tad over a month; after having been on regular Ritalin for over a year. Regular Ritalin was getting him nowhere, which is why I offered him my prescription. He did well on it: Improvement in memory, ability to control extreme emotions and addictive impulses. But his “health” provider (which is govt sponsored) will neither provide nor prescribe Adderall, so – based upon his success with it – they gave him the generic version of extended-release Ritalin.

Today he made scrambled eggs in a skillet and the washed the pan [versus just putting it in the sink – a big improvement over past behavior, in and of itself]. However, he washed it with a brush that we reserve for dishes that are already “mostly” clean; i.e., dishes that don’t have a lot of cooked-on gunk that needs to be scraped off. We have a, separate, single brush reserved for scraping gunk. There are only 3 of us in the house, and only ONE of us made eggs today; furthermore, at the time I had noticed the gunked-up brush, it was a physical impossibility for anyone but my ADD boyfriend to have dirtied a scrub brush.

Yet he not only denied it – completely – he got pretty damn angry about it; to the point of cussing and calling me names. (“F*&$ you, believe what you want; *I* know the TRUTH, b*&%h.”) Which is very much not like him. He is usually passive-aggressive, preferring to take the side-door when delivering blows.

This one incident is interesting all by itself. . . but after he had cussed me out and gotten *verbally* violent, he then handed me a book on ADD I had bought for him a few months ago – a book that had neon-colored Post-It note tabs sticking out from beginning to end – and asked me if I had bought the book for myself, or if I had meant for him to read it, because he had run out of ADD reading material.

I had never read the book, let alone stuck neon-colored tabs on any pages – yet there were tabs on pages from the very first page until the last. But here he was, handing the book to me with an honest question about whether or not I thought he should read it.

When he already had.

I get that ADD can warp time and reality for ADDers. But I haven’t experienced such complete disconnects from Reality from my boyfriend prior to the last week or so. Is this normal? Or is this something folks have experienced on certain medications? Could this be a side effect of XR generic Ritalin?

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[Anonymous]

I am on 20mg SR (slow release) and it lasts for about 6 hours so I take it twice a day. It has helped a lot and I use it to plan my moments and life better. It is like getting new brakes on your bicycle; now I can slow down but I have to learn how to ride with more care. I guess it allows me to take more responsibility for my day to day routine. Nothing is better but my life and that is more than enough. The closest thing I have found to a cure is ‘laughing at myself’ and accepting that I am what I am and I also understand other members of my family who are/where copying with AD(H)D as well. I am a counsellor and that has helped me a lot because I had to work through all of this with my family doctor. It has taken some time but that’s okay, time well invested yields interest.. Cheers! jwl

Oh, did you check with UBC?

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[Carrie]

I know Ritalin SR, and Ritalin itself made me very cranky. I didnt notice it at all until my husband said its like I PMS everyday, not just once a month anymore. Only happened while the med was wearing off for about an hour. I too would yell, scream and be abusive when normally im not like that. EVERY little thing got to me, sounds, colours, the sun! EVERYTHING!

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[sdwa]

Maybe he should get a new doctor?

Ritalin was among the first drugs I tried, and it made me feel like I was swimming through toxic syrup – just a real slow, dopey, poisoned feeling with stuff bending around me in slow motion. It was vile.

Everyone’s different.

Your boyfriend and everyone else has a right to a doctor who is willing to try all the meds and keep trying until they find the right one and the right dosage.

I don’t know if what you describe is a side-effect, but a drug shouldn’t make his symptoms worse.

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