New Guy vs Ritalin

[ADD boy]

Not 30 min. into this thing and Im already making a mess. I just copied this post from the “wow, what a relevation” post which is where I wrote it. I forgot that it was kind of key to stay on topic. Especially on this site. Sorry people. Topher aka ADDboy

Hey everybody. I just became a member here a week or two ago. I been reading your posts and have found them to be both very helpfull and very overwelming. I went through the typical ” not living up to his potential” child hood but was not diagnosed with ADD until the age of 25. My brother who was studying to become a teacher noticed I was a literally a textbook case from the child behavior classes he was taking. Enter Ritalin. Its been 13 years and Ive been taking it on and off. Usually my prescription would run out and it would take me 3 months to book a Dr. appt. My question for any who might care to answer is…….am i on the right meds? Let me give you my thoughts on my go-go pills. I have found that they are very helpfull in keeping me on task, remembering to by milk on my way home and doing the little things I would normaly blow off until the next day. I remember to do nice things like buy flowers for my wife, remember someones name when Im talking to them and don’t find the couch as magnetic as usuall. These are all great things that have made my life better in many ways. Here are the things that have concerned me. An example is if I go away for the weekend, say camping, and I forget my meds at home, or I’m going to a boring as sin family party. Its hard not to feel like I don’t need my “high” to function and it worries me that I’m so dependent on medication to get through the day. Contrast that to right now (i’ve been off them for the whole winter) where I’m managing OK. If I look back at the last 6 months, I have accomplished absolutly nothing, but I could still go to a social gathering and not feel like it will be a total bust because I don’t have my drugs. Another thing I noticed is that while taking my go-go pills I do not put up with crap from anyone. My natural tendency in a confontation is to shut my brain down. I can to this up to a point and then I totaly snap and scare the crap out of people. When taking my ritalin I find myself more argumentative. This may be a good thing if it prevents me from going off like a preasure cooker but there have been many times when it canceled out the flowers I bought by wife. I should clarify that my medication has acually been methlephenidate. I have read in another discussion that although there is supose to be no difference, some found the generic brand to make them more edgy and aggressive. That could be my problem. The turbo charger comparason I read about was also great. You can almost count down to lift off. So long story short I’m not sure if ritalin is the drug for me and Im just as sure that my doctor won’t have a clue. Most of you people seem pretty knowlegable to me. I have an appt to get my prescription filled in a few days and would like to go in more informed than ever. A last thought. Im the kind of person who by nature hates preventative maintenace because you cant see or feel the results. Money I spent maintaining my car is money that I could have spent fixing it when It broke down for real. Yes yes yes I know that it won’t break down as often if I maintain it. Maybe a better example would be a car i use to have. I ripped out the little four cylider and put in a big v8. I put an aftermarket carb on it that could be adjusted. When it was ajusted right the acceleration was smooth and strong, but when it was a little out of wack (the secondaries kicked in a little late, for the car guys) you felt a kick in the pants when it they finally opened. This felt really cool, but at the end of the track (side street) the car was going slower. I still liked the slower runs with the kick in the pants better. I know there are medications available that are a slow release without the highs and lows through the day, but I kind of liked the kick in the pants with the regular ones because I knew they were working. I already sort of know that the “kick it the pants” is not what I should be holding out for but ………………..So heres where I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences. Please, be gentle. Ha.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

I can’t quite break into that wall of words today.

My eyes just bounce around the edges.

Try breaking it up into paragraphs.

Even if there are no obvious breaks.

REPORT ABUSE

[ADD boy]

Now that you mention it I guess that is a pretty intimidating run-on sentence up there. I’ll try to remember that for next time. If anyone has the time to read it I would appreciate some feed back.

REPORT ABUSE

[Rick Green – Founder of TotallyADD]

Yeah, that is one huge post.

Can you break it down? Give it to us a bit at a time?

One comment-Never cancel out flowers you bought your wife. Even if you don’t feel like it at that particular moment.

One thing I’ve learned is that if I honour my feelings too much, life becomes a roller coaster. Feelings change, based on what happens to us, what we know, what we’ve been told… They are real. But in a way, they aren’t real. Every spouse has had the thought flash through their head, “I should never have married him!” Or, “I’d be better off without her.” Or, “I should never had had kids.” If you listen to that voice and believe it, man, it’ll kill you.

As you alluded too in your massive posting, your feelings are a roller coaster of ups and downs. And anger is deadly man. Deadly. I have never ever regretted biting my tongue and taking the high road. Cause sure enough, two minutes later, I found out some additional information and I felt like a jerk. (Which is of course another feeling that I decided not to honour.)

REPORT ABUSE

[ADD boy]

Thanks for the reply Rick. You will should probably notice a lot more spaces in anything I post from now on.

space space

I should also mention I just celebrated my 14th anniversary with my wife today. I did remember to buy flowers. Also, when I made mention of flowers and cancelling I was actually refering to the “good boy” points from buying flowers being cancelled out by the “bad boy” points earned from arguing.

I’m happy to say that the score right now is good boy 1 , bad boy 0.

I also agree with the danger of shooting your mouth off. Almost every single time I’ve done it I regretted it. Eg. The crabby customer who’s wife is going in for by-pass surgery, or the crabby customer who’s son just died of brain cancer, or the person who cut in line but was just getting there order that they were already waiting for. I hate it when that happens.

Well I have to go play Mario Cart with my kid. Bye.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Really though, Wall of Text vs. Forum of ADD’ers = A Bad Thing ™

But in all seriousness, Medication is truly one of those ‘work in progress’ type processes. When I was re-diagnosed with ADD back in the late 90’s (I was born in the generation that thought you would ‘outgrow’ ADD when you hit your Teens) I right away went back to Ritalin, given that I had used it as a child in Primary school.

Is it possible that another drug might be more effective for me? I have no clue, since I never felt the need to ‘fix’ something that wasn’t ‘broken’. I am self-aware enough to realize when my Ritalin has worn off (I recognize the symptoms of my disorder rearing their whirly selves), and that tells me that my medications are having an effect.

The best suggestion I can render is to keep trying different meds (under a doctors supervision) until you find the right balance. That may be more or less difficult, depending on your medical system, insurance, etc, but once you find the sweet-spot, It just comes down to remembering to take your meds, and remembering to re-order them in time

Important thing: do not give up! You wouldn’t expect someone who has lost the use of their legs to be able to move around without their wheelchair, so why should we be expected to function without the tools we need? Don’t let anyone tell you (or cause you to feel) different.

REPORT ABUSE

[ADD boy]

Thanks turkeyspit. Thanks for setting me straight on the “wall of text” thing. I didn’t quite understand the four hundred other people who told me the same thing in a different way. In case you didn’t read my reply to others comments on the same thing,….. I get the point. “Really though”.

Well, alrighty then. All my misplaced sarcasm aside, I do appriciate the time you took to reply. I do not have any insurance that covers any medication so the low cost of ritalin is a big consideration.

As far a being self aware I know that It takes about 15 min. for things to kick into gear and one dose only lasts about 2 to 2 1/2 hrs. Im not sure if its the physical aspect of my work but I seem to burn up any goodness of ritalin faster than some.

Because I have been off my meds. for the winter ( sort of as a “do I really need these chemicals running through my veins” thing ) my family doctor has set me back up on half my regular dose of 20mg x 3 to 10 mg x 3. (Thats because I found I really to need those chemicals.)

I have found they make a big difference when I take 10mg, but only when I take it twice as often as I’m supose to.

Does anyone find that a lower dose more frequently is more effective than a heavy dose less often? Is that even an option? Other than the incovinience of having to take medication 6 times a day it is kind of the same thing as slow release if you think about it.

Oh, and turkeyspit., one could also say constructive critisizm vs. overly sensitive add boy = a bad thing, but thats not at all your problem, its mine…………….so my bad. I’m working on it and I bit my tonge the last bunch of times. Did I mention that when my medication wears off I sometimes have a kind of edgy feeling? Thats one of the reasons why I stopped taking them. I felt like a drugie having a bad come down off of a high. I’ve heard some say that the generic version can have that effect on people. ???

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Ok…..so you guys seem like you have quite a bit of experience with medications. I am 40 years old and have just been diagnosed and have started taking Ritalin (10mg x 3). The doc told me to come back in a month and let him know how it is going. I am considering going back early because of the anxious, weird person I have become. I guess that I have been more productive, less forgetful, slightly less impulsive…….good things……….but am worried about the thump thump in my chest………and honestly, I was expecting a bit more of an improvement………What should I do? Give it a couple more weeks? Go see the doc and change meds? Start a journal to try and more accurately capture reactions………advice anyone?

REPORT ABUSE

[Patte Rosebank]

Whenever you start a new medication or treatment, you should be keeping a journal of how you’re feeling, how much medication you took and at what times (since taking it at the same time each day is best), and the effects (good & bad) that you noticed. Also note any external factors that may have affected your mood—for example, a fight with your spouse; a looming deadline at work, etc.

Since most of us can’t remember what we ate for lunch two days ago, there’s no way we can remember a month’s worth of details of how we felt when taking ___mg of ________ each day. You and your doctor will need these details to determine what changes, if any, are needed, in your medication.

As for the thumping in your chest, it could signify dangerously elevated blood pressure. Get your blood pressure checked, even if you just use the “test it yourself” thing at the drugstore. It could also be a sign of anxiety, since a pounding heartbeat is often a symptom of a panic attack (as well as a heart condition). Either one could be a side effect of the Ritalin, which acts as a stimulant on the central nervous system. Talk to your pharmacist about this. S/he can answer your immediate questions, but you will need to see your doctor before making any changes to your medication or dosage.

One tip: Both Ritalin and Concerta are the same drug, but Concerta is long-acting. Evidence suggests that long-acting, slow-release medications are more effective in controlling ADHD, because they release a controlled amount, over a long period of time. This eliminates the roller-coaster effect you get as each short-acting dose wears off and you take your next dose.

Discuss all this with your doctor, and ask him/her to check your blood pressure and heart rate, since, if they’re too high, then stimulant medications can be dangerous for you. If that’s the case, then you’d need to try one of the non-stimulant ones.

REPORT ABUSE

[ADD boy]

Hi Dianew. Part of the reason I stopped taking ritalin (the genereic brand of ritalin acutally -methylphenidate) was because at times I felt edgy and well, just edgy. I have heard some say that the generic brand of ritalin can cause this.

I started taking methylphenidate again this spring because, un-edgy as I was, I was acomplishing absolutly nothing without my medication.

One thing I have discovered is that the 20mg I was taking each time was part of the problem. I now am taking 10mg each time, just a lot more often. Kind of a manual slow release. My doctor is fine with this and it seems to have solved that edgy thing.

Talk to your doctor about the thump thump.

Good luck.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Just found you all! Yea! Regarding Ritalin, I’m 53 – 20 mg Ritalin 4 x per day. I have tried almost every brand of Generic out there! I do keep journals. OCD note taker…. Brand = Cyba only. I dumped my health insurance to afford my “brand” rather than generic. Why? Anxiety, panic, depression, heart racing, gastro… Brand name Ritalin costs me 178.00 US dollars per month (Sam’s Club business discount). Insurance companies have attempted to force the Generic. Believe me! If I could – I would! Everyone’s chemistry is unique. Some may fair well on Generics. Not me! Now – I’m in the catch 22 situation. Unemployed and If I can’t afford the Brand Ritalin, can’t work – can’t work – Can’t afford the Ritalin. I tried dexidrine and others. On dexidrine I was alert but felt like a “test pattern”. Based on my research – lots of it. Ritalin is the front line, first choice in ADD meds. My opinion – WATCH GENERIC – they are dangerous! Pardon my spelling – normally use spell ck but feel you all understand! Hey I also take Xanax for anxiety. (Generic Xanzax works ok for me). With the Sandoz brand Ritalin that my insurance suggested (demanded) I had to increase my Xanax to deal with the anxiety! I went from 1 or 1 and 1/2 per day to more. In regard to timed release Ritalin: I like the ability to regulate the short acting Ritalin vs Sustained Release. More freedom, besides you could wind up with Generic Sustained release = Major nightmare!

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Titration of medications requires you to adjust the doses according to attentional load. Not all the days are the same. Sometimes adding a short acting psychostimulant during a boring meeting keeps you focused but if the dose is too high, you will feel sleepy, zoned out, OCD, or even anxious. The withdrawal symptoms may lead to emotional lability or aggression. Remember, meds are there to make your habits happen. Hopefully, you won’t need the meds if you change your lifestyle. Sometimes, you have to keep on the meds because you keep sliding back. Just make sure someone is always following you.

Always speak to your doctor before making any changes to medications. Dr. Jain provides advice generically and not for any one person. Advice does not constitute a therapeutic relationship or promise of care. Please consult the privacy policy for more information.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

I’ve really learned a great deal here by reading these posts. Its important not to judge anyone too quickly for many reasons, this being one of them. Thanks again for all the great insight.

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Hi new-guy topher – you sound gear-heady cool I write too-long posts also, so don’t feel bad. I’m a recovering wall of text-er myself!

Have you tried long acting meds at all? It takes some of the micro management out of the whole process which is better, but you still have to figure out how it’s deciding to dose you through the day – depending on food, water, caffeine, what time you take it, dosage, etc.

I just figured out the too high dose thing – it’s counter intuitive ’cause you start to feel blah and it seems like it’s wearing off – but it’s actually peaking too high! I just realized eating lunch really helps that mid-day overpeaking thing. (Eating lunch??? what a crazy concept!)

space space space space

-munch

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Just got great service from http://www.qualityfirstac.com today.

Check them out if you need to repair an HVAC unit.

REPORT ABUSE

[Author]

Posts