Medication isn't addressing any ADD issues

[Anonymous]

I’ve been on generic concerta for a week. It makes me sleepy and unfocussed. I get butterflies like I’m nervous. Today I doubled my dosage in accordance with my schedule. Now I feel twice as bad. Anybody else? Could switching to Adderall be the solution? Can anyone relate to my situation? I’d really likr to hear from you. Thanks

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[Anonymous]

Hey Michael,

I personally have never been on generic concerta, but had many side effects while taking other meds. So don’t worry, it happened to me as well when I first started to take meds, they didn’t seem to work. I got very sick- lost my job from too many sick days, anxious, lost weight, paranoid, and many other side effects. But these are something that helped me you can try them as well.

Speak to your doctor and make sure s/he’s aware of your medical history.

After your doctor prescribes you something new make sure to speak to your family doctor and get a go ahead from him/her.

Speak to your pharmacist—i.e there are certain foods/ juices that can have affect on your meds. If you’re taking any other meds, minerals or vitamins, speak to the doctor/pharmacist about them.

Avoid drinking alcohol right after or within few hours of taking your meds

And last but not least if one thing doesn’t work try something else. Are you taking something else as well?? I take meds for depression as well and found that certain combos work better together than others.

Speak to your doctor, let her/him know that things are not working and you would like to try something else.

Hope that helps

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[Patte Rosebank]

Talk to your doctor about this.

Maybe it’s the dosage level and delivery system that are causing your problems. How high a dosage are you on? If you start too high, you’ll get the side effects you describe. Before trying a different drug, try a different dosage and delivery system of the same drug.

There is a HUGE difference between generic and branded Concerta. Branded Concerta uses a patented osmotic delivery system. Generic Concerta uses a simple slow-dissolving delivery system, which in NO WAY compares to the delivery system of branded Concerta. It’s explained here: http://totallyadd.com/generics-part-4/ complete with diagrams! Dr. Kenny Handelman also discusses the difference between generics and branded medications, on his blog: http://www.addadhdblog.com/adhd-medication-are-generics-the-same/#56545

Ask your doctor to prescribe Concerta, and HAND-WRITE “no substitutions” on the prescription. He must hand-write it, because pharmacists can ignore that instruction if it’s rubber-stamped or pre-printed on the prescription.

If you’re on a drug benefit plan like Trillium, which only covers the generic versions of drugs, you’ll have to pay the difference in cost. BUT! Janssen (the manufacturer of Concerta) has very thoughtfully set up its own drug assistance plan, which pays that difference for you. Ask your pharmacist about it, or, if you go to the official website (http://www.concerta.net ), you can register for a coupon good for a free 1-month supply, so you can see if it works for you. Of course, you’ll still need to get a prescription from your doctor.

As someone who’s tried both generic and branded, and learned about the differences between them, I now insist on only the branded.

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[Anonymous]

Thanks Rani and Larynxa. Nice of you to respond. I’ve sampled more than a few different stimulants over the years and none of them made me want to have a nap when they kicked in. And all of them made me more alert. This goes without saying but if a stimulant makes you sleepy and clouds your mind then it isn’t really stimulating. The delivery system won’t change that. I’m going to ask my doctor later this week for Adderall. I’ll report back. Thanks again

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[BAM123]

I am on generic Adderal X R – the concerta XR – that made a huge difference for me went I went to extended release.

They are both in the stimulant family. The adderal really works well for me – but everyone is different. I tried welbutrin for a week in conjunction with adderal and I had the same kind of reaction as you did on concerta. Ask your doctor – iof you aren’t feeling right it may be time for you to ask doctir about alternatives

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[Anonymous]

Hi there – just wanted to let you know that Rick has done some research into the generics issue. We created a video series that looks at the issue in Ontario with generic substitutions, but anyone on ADHD medication anywhere will find it useful as well.

Here’s the link to the latest, and the other 3 are listed right below:

http://totallyadd.com/generics-part-4/

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[Anonymous]

Part 4 is missing.

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[Patte Rosebank]

Uh, oh. Who ate the video?

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[Anonymous]

Fixed! ;]

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[Anonymous]

The videos are really funny, Rick, and you explain what takes me 1 1/2 hours to explain to doctors. That is what makes it so good.

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[Author]

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