Ritalin

[Anonymous]

These posts are wonderful! When I read about other people’s experiences and feelings, I feel “normal” and not so isolated in my ADD world.

I’m in my early 50’s and have been on ritalin for about 15 years. I will never forget the first time I tried it. I was very nervous so I took it on my day off, sitting on my porch with tea and a book. Guess what! I could read with clarity for the first time ever!

I’m still learning about ADD and am so gratefull for ritalin and this website. Ritalin seems to smooth out my bumpy roads.

I take 5 mg, 3x at day (working 12 hour shifts). Every few years I’ll go off ritalin for a few months just to see how I cope. My red flags are that I forget to pay my bills, don’t ever seem to finish anything, and my moods jump around.

One thing I’ve found with 5 mg ritalin is that after a few months, it seems less effective (or maybe I get used to that nicer way of life) so I sometimes take 10 mg in the morning and afternoon then 5 to “come down” before evening. I personally like the low dose for 2 reasons:

1. the side effects are less

2. there isn’t such a huge difference in my behaviour. (the up and downs during the day are more moderate)

I tried SR for a few months but didn’t like it as well. I am very sensitive to changes and could feel medication releases throughout the day. The short acting pills make me feel more in control. Besides, what if it’s your day off and you want to have a productive morning followed by an afternoon nap?

The biggest thing I’ve learned about ADD is that it’s all about stimulation. My limit is 3 things at once no matter what. eg. digesting food, listening to that bird chirping outside and writing this. (I had to turn off the radio to concentrate.)

To sum up, ritalin has been a life-saver but only in combination with a supportive doctor, lots of self education and daily reminders that my behaviour is a disorder, not a chosen set of behaviours.

P.S. It may be a topic for another blog but right now I’m going through a time where my family and friends are not very supportive of my ADD. Thankfully my new Doctor is a “believer”.

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[Anonymous]

Hi, I have just recently been diagnosed as well. I started Ritalin LA 10 mg in September. I take every morning with yogurt. After 3 weeks ,the dosage was increased to 20 mg due to the terrible “crash” I would have in the afternoon. The 20 mg seems to be a good fit. I dont get the crash anymore. Im 32 female who saw numerous shrinks and was on anti depressants and xanex for years due to dystymia and anxiety issues. They never helped always made me worse. I went off of medication and seeing shrinks for about 7 years and just incorporated exercise but obviously it wasnt enough. i decided to go back to a shrink when I was 30 who suggested I take a NPT test. I did and the ADD was finally diagnosed and ritalin prescribed. For the first time it was wasy to get out of bed and start the day. Its like putting glasses on for the first time everything becomes so clear. I care again. I sleep 7-8 hrs every night. The only thing is I notice I dream now,and Ive lost my appetite. Also, I use the wrong word or get stuck in conversation sometimes,cant say I like that. im learning the effects of this type of med since my whole life I was used to downers. So So different. The ritalin hasnt made the dysthymia worse it is somewhat better and stable. The anxiety is completely gone. I continue seeing my therapist on a weekly basis as well.

My first mistake was sharing the news with friends as well. I was so excited that I felt somewhat better . I wanted to share the news thinking they would be supportive and happy for me. Instead I was judged and insulted. Thats when I started searching for forums to see if others had the same experiences. I have also started weeding the negativity out of my life. Funny how people dont want to see others do better than them….

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[caper]

@scattybird: glad I could help; it sure beats getting into arguments like I do sometimes on other forums.

I like Daniel Goleman too. It’s the first time I’ve heard BI is a left-cortex function; I’ve read it’s primarily a function of the dorsal anterior mid-cingulate cortex (daMCC).

For a more technical analysis of basic emotions check out Paul Ekman’s “Emotions Revealed”.

I like also Danel Siegel’s work on mindsight, which covers more practical things like mediation (there’s another forum thread on mediation).

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[Scattybird]

Hi olivelois and pretty – thank you for sharing your experiences with ritalin. I like the idea of a low dose but definitely the 10 mg is best for me compared to 5 mg. I found that as long as I take it exactly every 3 hours I don’t get the crash until the end of the day after my last dose. I also discovered that if I drink the occasional coffee during the day I don’t get an awful headache with the crash. I did at first and it would not budge. So either I am getting use to it, or I was getting caffeine withdrawal because before I started taking ritalin (I get the generic form) I used to drink a LOT of coffee and Red Bull but I don’t get the same craving when I take the med.

I was interested in what you said pretty about using the wrong words. I noticed that I sometimes get my words in the wrong order, e.g. the bus got on the boy instead of the boy got on the bus. It’s happened a few times and it’s odd because it’s not something I have ever done before. Maybe it is due to the MPH (ritalin)……and yes, I too dream more now and in colour too. That’s a first as well…unless I just didn’t remember my dreams before. It’s probably because I sleep better since taking the MPH and don’t wake up as many times during the night. Lovely!

Thanks caper for the heads up about Paul Ekman and Daniel Siegel. I have been trying to be mindful when I walk my dogs and it’s nice when it works. I just have to remember to do it. IThe brain and emotions is fascinating so I’m off to check out Paul Ekman right now.

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[bridge]

I find it interesting what you said a billion years ago, (obviously not prone to exaggeration AT ALL) about hearing. I’ve previously been prescribed with audiological equipment and the Dr said I might just not need it. Let’s see …

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