Switched from Adderall XR to Strattera

[Anonymous]

Hi, I am 41 year old wife and mother to 3 beautiful daughters. Very very happy I was referred to this site!…….Been a life saver

Recently diagnosed with ADD and first med was Adderall XR 20 mg. once a day. After 2 weeks I noticed that tightening in my chest I’ve heard others talk about. Called the doc and said to go off of it immediately! I really did like the Adderall and had no other bad side effects. I have no high blood pressure and no heart problems. Anyones opinion on being taken off so quickly? Should it have been given a go for at least a month to see if symptoms subsided? Or is that too serious of a side effect to mess with? He’s putting me on Strattera 80mg a day (which I haven’t started yet). I’m wondering what the difference will be going from a stimulant drug to a non stimulant drug will be. I know everyone is different. Doc told me if this doesn’t work then there’s prob nothing else he can do?….Think I will talk to my phychologist about that one……

Thanks for reading

REPORT ABUSE

[billd]

The family doctor put me on 4 x40mg Strattera a day (two pills, one time a day) and it’s been 3 weeks now.

Side effects- I take the pills just before bed time as they make me want to SLEEP ALL THE TIME.

Dry mouth in the AM – when I wake I’ve got to have a glass of something cold and wet but then I crave flavored drinks anyway – this just makes is a MUST in the AM more than a craving. I can’t do anything else until I’ve taken care of the “dry mouth”.

I now tend to sleep my weekends away. I’ve not been out to my shop for a week, I get little done.

If I sit, I sleep, doesn’t matter what time of day or how long I slept at night. I get up say at 7 am Saturday, and by 9 or 10, it’s down for a nap. Then another in the afternoon.

I don’t completely blame the Stratterra drug as in a normal day any excuse and I’d take a nap, but now it’s hard, almost impossible to fight it. We took a trip for work yesterday am – 90 minutes from work to the destination. My co-worker was driving. We chatted most of the way but it was all I could do to keep from falling asleep. I don’t drive much any more due to the risks of falling asleep.

All this week I’ve nearly fallen asleep at my desk each afternoon (and hope the boss doesn’t walk in to see my head nodding….)

The kicker – I’m only 54, but doc says he will NOT under any circumstances prescribe any “uppers” for a person my age due to possible heart health risks. He says the risks of those drugs outweigh any benefits for a person “in my 5th decade” as he calls it.

I’d like to smack him and say then YOU live with this crap and then tell me – what’s worth the risks?

When I nearly kill myself in car accidents every few years, nearly cut my fingers off in a table saw, fall from ladders, have trouble keeping jobs – you name it – what’s the risks?

My heart is strong as a horse, low blood pressure, as a doc years ago said my “heart just idles along”

I’d rather have a shorter happier life than a long miserable one full of failures.

REPORT ABUSE

[BAM123]

I started with adderall 10 milligrams and had blood pressure issues. I then went to Adderal XR 10 mill. My B P was elevated but not as high and wore off during the day. Adderall XR definetly helps me to focus and with symptoms, but I still get concerned with Lomng term use. I gerally take it once or twice a week – either 10 mills or 15 mills. Sometime my concentration and focus suffers when I do not take it, but that is the trade off I accept for trying not tpo develop HBP.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

My phych think the Adderall XR has nothing to do with the chest tightening I’m experiencing. Even though it never bothered me until I started the meds???…..Whatever!….From what I’ve read on this site….it seems like a pretty common side effect from the Adderall XR……..I too liked the Adderall XR except for just that one side effect…….it really worked for me. My family phys. took me off immediatly because of the side effect I was having and won’t prescribe anything even close the meds in the Adderall family!……Strattera was going to cost me $50 a month (Adderall was $10)……..I just can’t afford that every month so he said there’s nothing else he can do for me!……My phych isn’t giving up though……She is willing to help me find something and someone else that works!…..

billd………The side effects from the Strattera suck for you and I’m sorry ……..It sounds kind of like a dangerous combonation, I mean with all the sleep probs and all!……I hope you find something that works for you…….Sounds miserable ;(

BAM123…..I think they should have given me more time with the Adderall XR…….I mean I was only on it for 2 weeks and he pulled it from me!…….Couldn’t giving it more time, give it a chance for side effects to subside…….like alot of other meds do???……So glad you found a schedule that works for you though……but the in between days?…….Don’t you think you need something for the in between days?

REPORT ABUSE

[billd]

I had an appointment last Friday for a “check-up” on the drugs, and me.

The doc was gone, I never got the message, so I insisted I see someone and ended up with a PA.

She took me OFF the Strattera due to the side-effects – and said “it should have been helping by now”.

They now want another opinion on my ADHD and the meds – so I’m scheduled for a psych. in late August.

Been off the Strattera for 2 days now and am wide awake. But I’m back at square one.

The doc and the PA agree and will not prescribe anything else at all due to my age.

So I guess the over 50 crowd is SOL if Strattera doesn’t help or has nasty side effects.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

20 mg is a high amount to start with imho. I weigh 230 lbs and I started at 10 mg.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

I found that starting with the lowest sample dosage, 25 mg, of Strattera, was perfect. I felt very foggy the day after I started this med, and was ready to quit taking it, but the fog only lasted that one day.

Most doctors seem to start their patients on higher doses of Strattera, and the side effects are too unbearable, so people quit taking it. I recommend starting at the lowest dose. My doctor gave me the sample pack of 25, 40 and 60 mg, increasing each week to 60 mg, if necessary. I was told to only take it before noon, so that it didn’t keep me awake at night.

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

amy you were soo lucky to get a free sample pack

i kept having to pay full price .. BC doesnt cover Strattera

damned expensive .. goes up to 80 .. doesage by body weight but

any good druggist know that so not a big deal .. wish drugs were affordable though

REPORT ABUSE

[Anonymous]

Adderall XR has been a savior as i was just diagnosed about 10 months ago. Helping run a startup company and must produce a ton every day. I definitely feel the chest tightening and it’s accentuated by caffeine, even decaf coffee has a noticeable effect. I just had a full physical and EKG and all is fine. I have great trust in my doc as he is a cellular biologist by background and has been accurate with each move. I started on 20’s, then down to 10’s (the 20’s left me impatient at the end of the day). Then i split the 10’s between morning and noon. You can open the capsule and split it into two equal doses no problem.

all the best…

REPORT ABUSE

[Jimi]

Please check out our “Read This First” post for a full explanation of these medications.

Adderall: http://totallyaddconnect.com/forums/topic/read-first-for-information-on-adderall-xr/

Strattera: http://totallyaddconnect.com/forums/topic/read-first-for-information-on-strattera/

 

Also, be sure to register for our upcoming Webinars about medication!
Dr. David Pomeroy with be taking questions on September 2!
Dr. Chuck Parker will be joining us for 3 webinars in October!
Register for Dr. Pomeroy’s webinar now: http://totallyadd.com/webinars/
(Dr. Chuck Parker’s webinar registration will open in September.  Sign up for webinar reminders here: http://totallyadd.com/register/)

 

 

 

REPORT ABUSE

[seabassd]

Anytime I read a post where someone is being denied a medication that might help them I get a little hot under the collar. I mean as soon as “chest pains” were mentioned the general practitioner pulled you off. I wonder if they investigated what was creating the chest pains, or did they just jump to the conclusion that it was heart related. Oh, and the comment they made about being in your 50s and too old to take stimulants just seems ridiculous to me.

Maybe it’s just me but I always since a bit of prejudice towards stimulants from doctors or psychs when I hear stories like this. I also wonder if there is some fear of legal repercussions or some pressure on docs by administrators  that make them risk adverse when it comes to prescribing stimulants.

I’m going to check out the webinar….all doctors, insurance representatives and administrators are welcome to attend as well.

REPORT ABUSE

[maclimber]

I was 62 when I was first diagnosed (now 64) and have been taking Adderall XR 20 mg for most of that time after starting out with a lower dose.  I have had no problems with blood pressure or any heart issues.  I also understand that the size of a person is unrelated to correct dose for most add meds.  I am a woman 5’2″ and 115 pounds.  So, billd, I’m sorry your Dr. won’t consider giving stimulate medication to anyone over 50 unless there is a pre-existing condition that could make it unwise.  My psychiatrist did ask me to see my regular Dr. to make sure the meds were not causing any problems, which I did.

REPORT ABUSE

[Author]

Posts