Concerta is fantastic!

[teddyg]

All of my life I have not been able to carry on conversations easily because I was too busy processing what was being said to me. I often felt that the volume has been turned up on everything, and have always had problems finishing tasks. I have always felt disorganized, tired, and have lacked motivation and confidence. This caused me to not do well in school, has hurt relationships, and a lack of motivation turned me into a bit of a sloth.

I was diagnosed with severe ADD about 5 months ago. I was prescribed 18mg of Concerta. I tried it for about a month, and noticed significant results. I am able to focus on tasks, stay organized, and (a big deal for me) I am able to process what people were saying to me. I have received a lot of positive remarks on my job performance, and am being considered for a position that a year ago, would not have even been a possibility.

I was told that a side effect of Concerta was a loss of appetite, and I have noticed that, but it has turned out to be a positive side effect. I am not eating the junk food that I used to nibble on throughout the day, but instead have  3 healthy meals. I have lost almost sixty pounds since going on the drug. ( I was obese and had terrible eating and exercising habits). Due to the increased level of energy that I now have, I have started a rigorous training regiment, and have signed up for a Spartan obstacle race 9 months from now.

I did find that the 18mg dose was not lasting long enough, and I was crashing shortly after getting home. This did not bode well for my wife and two young sons, so I tried taking another dose mid-afternoon. This worked very well, and at the consultation with my doctor, he changed my prescription to the slow-release 27mg. It has been fantastic. I now get the full benefit throughout the day and evening, and my sleep has not been affected

I

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[blackdog]

Congratulations. I’m glad it has worked so well for you. 🙂

I am trying to convince my doctor to put me on Concerta, for exactly the same reasons, including the obesity.

I don’t overeat as a general rule, but I do eat too much junk. I am mostly over weight because of the lethargy. I just don’t have the energy to move much. Plus, I actually forget to exercise. The doctors and psychs and therapists all look at me like I’m weird when I say that, but that is what happens. I will decide to start an exercise routine and do it for a few days and then just forget.

Thanks for sharing this. It gives me hope and a better idea for how to approach the issue with my doctor.

 

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[munchkin]

Concerta was really great for me – I took it for quite a while when I was first diagnosed!

It was so helpful having something that would “dose itself” throughout the day. I only wish they would make it a little longer acting (which could be affected by what I ate, drank, amount of physical activity, etc.)

Now I take short acting, generic methylphenidate through the day and evening because it allows me to have more control over the dosage around meals and activities I am doing on a particular day.

After taking different types of meds over time, I think it gets easier and easier to use the meds as a tool, along with all the other changes that can be made in my lifestyle so things will run a little more downhill.

Hurray! I’m glad it’s helping you Teddy 🙂 I know how exciting it is to start getting help after struggling with symptoms for a long time!

Blackdog – Keep persisting to figure out what you need, and what doctor can help you. I went through numerous docs before getting help, but the effort was well worth it!

-Munch

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[blackdog]

Thanks Munch. I don’t have the option of trying different doctors, but if I pester him enough, my doc will eventually come around, I hope.

It would help if I was complying more with the current treatment. I am in a way, I start group therapy in a couple of days- oh joy. But I am going to have to lie about my meds next time I see him because I haven’t been taking my SSRI. I didn’t intentionally stop, but I forgot to take it for a couple of days and I felt so much better, like I could actually get things done. And there is so much to do, with Halloween coming up and everything, it’s hard to convince myself to start taking it again.

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[Scattybird]

teddyg  – thanks for sharing your experiences. You sound like the poster person for Concerta. 🙂

I am completely envious of you. I took it for about a month and had to stop. It increased my focus and was absolutely fantastic – for the first time in a long time I felt motivated.

Sadly it also gave me insomnia, dreadful headaches, a cough, tightness in my chest and extremely high blood pressure and to cap it all I became an anxious wreck prone to tears at work. So the side effects outweighed the good parts.

I am now back to the short release and I like the flexibility. I don’t get the same side effects despite the drug being the same.

If Concerta works for you that’s fantastic. I had a brief taste of its potential and then had to give it up and that sucks.

 

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[caper]

If you look at the release profile of Concerta, it has an initial plateau at ~2-4 hrs, with a bump at 6-8hrs to levels almost double the initial plateau. By 10-11hrs after taking it, levels drop to half of peak (referred to as T1/2 in pharmacology).
When I was taking MPH, I found taking generic (APO) Ritalin SR 20mg in the morning and again ~5hrs later lasted longer than Concerta, and had a more even effect through the day. An added bonus was it is a fraction of the cost (~25c for 20mg APO MPH SR vs ~$3 for 36mg Concerta).

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[caper]

@Scattybird: I got the tightness in my chest too (and often a similar tightness in my throat). I noticed it coincided with the afternoon bolus of the Concerta release profile.

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[Scattybird]

@caper – thanks for the info about the release curve – useful information to have. Interesting that you got similar symptoms with Concerta.  I agree the SR is more even…and cheaper!

When I get my SR from the pharmacy they always have to order it so I usually have to wait a week after taking my script in.   In contrast they gave me the Concerta immediately, so it’s obviously the med of choice  in the UK for them to have it in stock. I guess it’s given to children so the drug lasts all day.

I saw a programme on UK TV where they interviewed two children -in their very early teens – and they took Concerta. The boy said it made him very emotional but he knew he had to take it. Knowing how it made me feel, made me a bit concerned for that boy and other children who might be told to take it. If your kid complains about Concerta listen to the complaints and decipher if they are valid. Other drugs are out there and might suit better.  I realise the benefits of a slow release for kids, but if Concerta doesn’t agree with you the side effects are more miserable than the ADHD and maybe children can’t communicate that well enough?

If it suits you then it’s a fantastic thing.

 

 

 

 

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[Procrastina-Tron]

EDIT: I meant to post this in the Concerta Review post, I don’t mean to diminish your positive experience!!!

I’ve been on Concerta for a month as of tomorrow. I was on 18mg for the first week, 36mg for the following two weeks and my doctor has prescribed me 54mg for this past week. I’ve noticed no positive changes whatsoever. My appetite has gone down, but more importantly my diet has suffered (my wife is vegan, so my diet lacks in some departments, when I do eat lately it ends up not being very nutritious).

Nothing in my head has perked up and I’m a little concerned – have I been misdiagnosed, do I need a higher dosage? I am suffering from depression (or at least feeling completely miserable 24/7, however you want to quantify it) I start a dosage of 150mg of Wellbutrin tomorrow, they seem to think that if I do suffer from ADHD, the focus enhancing effect of Concerta may indeed be effective, but I am simply focusing on my habitual routine as I suffer through depression – the things I love to do I don’t do, the things I need to do I don’t do… and unfortunately the flame under my butt (Concerta) may only have me focusing intently on absolutely nothing at all J My understanding is that the Concerta is the boat engine, and the anti-depressant may act (temporarily until I can take over) as the steering wheel.

Metaphors make depressing things seem more interesting. 😛

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[jancave]

I’m on the generic version on Concerta, spelling it is always an issue.. Methylphenidate  54mg, 2 in the morning.  I was diagnosed at age 55 so getting the meds was an issue.  My doctor has to get authorization from the insurance, only a 30-day supply, no refills, must have a written prescription, etc.   I was a bit snarly in the beginning but it’s made such a positive difference for me.  The impulsive spending/eating has stopped.  I’ve lost about 70 pounds without a whole lot of effort.  I still tend to babble but at least I know it’s happening.  The co-pay jumped to $92 and I ran out and realized how much it was helping and called around until is found out I could do mail order for a $20 co-pay.  A real pain but worth the $70 savings.  I get chronic migraines that are unrelated to the ADHD but do feed my anxiety so I’m not leaving the house very much these days.   I don’t have any friends and separated from my family long ago,  but find I’m pretty comfortable being alone.  Gives me time to figure out what ADHD is and getting order in in my life; physically, financially and emotionally.   With the migraines I don’t feel well a lot so that takes time.  When I first got the diagnoses I dove in and got very overwhelmed with all the input.  Too many book, webinars and input.  I discovered I had blocked out a lot of abuse and floodgates were opening and rage was pouring out.  I wasn’t sure if it was the meds or me or both.  So I backed off from this website, the books and webinars and processed some things.  Unfortunately there are no support groups in my area, nor have I been able to find a therapist who works with adults with ADHD.   I was really angry about the diagnosis, 20 years of seeing a psychiatrist and therapists and asking what is wrong with me and the best answer they had was you’re fat.  Lose weight and all your problems will be gone.  Well except for the first therapist who said after five years of therapy that if I would just accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior my life would be fine…oh, and lose weight.  Excuse me?  Finally accepting I can’t change the past, I only have now and I really like my generic Concerta.  😉

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