Told dr. 20 mg. every 4 hours she said not ok

[jensters1205]

I was diagnosed (officially) at age 25 (17 years ago). Went to Psychiatrist for treatment. Was prescribed Ritalin, started in low doses and as time went on the dose increased as needed. Went to him for 9 years. Then I moved out of state and was without insurance for awhile so decided to live life w/o.

Cut to now: current dr. My general practitioner has been prescribing Ritalin ( ins. Won’t cover a.d.d. Meds cuz I am to old) 20 Mgs. 2x a day for awhile. I am finally on a set sched. At work & work 10-12 hours a day. I found later in my day I was having trouble focusing so I started taking 1 more dose, it helped. I take the generic methylphenidate To help w/cost, as it is all out of pocket.

I take: 1 tab. 1 hour b4 I leave for work when I take my vitamins, 1 tab. @ lunch which is 4 hours from when I took 1st. Tab, I noticed 4-5 hours later focus was lost so I started adding another.

I went to dr. & told her how I switched & added 1pill to my regiment & why. She told me that this was not how they are designed to be dosed and upped my script, But only Slightly. She added 10 20 mg pills to my scrip. Which means I am “allowed ” an extra 1/2 a tab on work days and only 20 working days, if I need more I have to save pills from my days off to make up difference. Sure some days off I forget to take a pill but sometimes if I have a project going I take reg. dose or add 1. Like I can keep track and not take a pill today cuz next weds. I will need a end of shift pill.

1. Am I crazy? Is the medication not supposed to be used to help an individual stay focused and is it effective for longer than 4or 5 hours for anyone who is on it? I am overweight too, I assume that would affect dosing a bit.

2. Should I spend more $ for Ritalin instead of generic?

3. Should I find a psychiatrist instead of using this dr?

I appreciate any thoughts. Thanks fr reading, hope it makes sense.

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[Scattybird]

Hi jensters1205 – suspect this might be one for Dr J.

However, I take fast release Ritalin and my psych was OK with me taking 10mg four times a day because I needed to get through the evening. But she suggested I increase the dose last time I saw her. But she didn’t specify how many times a day I could take 20mg and I forgot to ask – but guessing I shouldn’t exceed the max of 60mg.

According to the advisory leaflet that comes with my Ritalin, the max dose per day (24h) is 60mg. But I have read on other forums that it can be more for adults – but unless a medic tells me that, I’d not want to increase it. So now I take 20mg in the morning, 20mg lunch time, 10mg mid afternoon and 10mg to get me through the evening if I need to focus on something. But if it’s a weekend and I just want to stay calm rather than foussed I go back to my 10mg dose.

I assumed that was OK for me. However, I read an article on the ADDA website – it’s an interview with a psych and that confused me because it inferred to me that chasing the optimum is bad? But perhaps I should re-read it.

Regarding Ritalin vs generics – I personally prefer to pay more for Ritalin because the side effects are less – but everyone is different.

I would be worried about exceeding 60mg per day. But my psych seems to think I should take it when I need it most and she’s an ADHD expert ratjer than a general GP.

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[Anonymous]

I take Concerta in the morning, which is essentially the same as Ritalin, except it’s extended release. For my part (everybody’s different), it lasts more than 10-12 hours, sometimes 18 hours++. Concentration is steady, especially in front of the computer! I will have to work at shutting it down at a decent hour and going to bed earlier…

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[Scattybird]

quiscale – from what you and Tiddler and others say about Concerta I am beginning to wonder if it would be better for me than fast release. Problem is even on meds my hours are a bit erratic and at least I can adjust the fast release accordingly. On the other hand, Concerta might make me be more structured. Oh…..decisions….

Sorry – this is more of an ‘out loud’ thought than anything else.

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[Robbo]

Rats,

It’s rough being an adult with ADHD, most of the medical community still does not accept that adults need treatment as much as kids. I know that the big insurance companies are fighting the option of having to pay for medication for adults.

It’s also true that so much of our solution is education education education. look up every definition of education and it does indeed apply. The act of learning helps us to learn to live a better life with our new companion. That being said, and true. The medication makes the sometimes impossible education possible.

a nasty dang can of worms dilemma. A catch 22 from hell. (I hope some of you guys remember that movie) It’s the best analogy I can come up with. And it fits perfect because learning to live with ADHD is very much like war. Just as traumatic.

The worst part is the thing about being late!. if we’re late too many times, we don’t get treatment. many of us need medication/education in order to not be late!!!!! AAARRRGGGGGHHHH CAN’T WIN DITTO DITTO DITTO.

I’m so grateful my doctor trusted me. Fortunately I’ve had the same GP doc for a very long time. So he’s been with me through the long strange trip of my health care. I almost feel something similar to survivors guilt because my diagnosis wasn’t as much like pulling teeth as so many I’ve read about. I had 3 molars taken out one time, all same visit. IT WAS A CAKE WALK!!!! seriously. not one of them broke into pieces, the dentiist had expert aim with the Novocain. And seriously, it sorta felt good, I could feel just enough to feel the pressure decrease as he slid each tooth out. I’ve heard some awful stories about dentist nightmares. Again. It’s kinda like survivors guilt.

jensters1205,

I take wellbutrin as well as methylphenidate. That might be an option you can ask about. I’m pretty sure it’s the wellbutrin along with the generic ritalin “cocktail” that makes the difference for me. I’m not crazy about the way methylphenidate mellows me out. It takes a little bit away from my curiously funny/quirky sense of humor. But I’m “me” much more consistently, so it’s absolutely worth it to not always be “mrfunnybone” (that’s part of my email address) I remember the music of my daughters snicker when I told her that email address when I first got it. none of the people that really know me are comnfuzed by my choice for my email address. And I can still enjoy my creative way around not being able to spel rite. Hek, not everyone gets my jokes. but I bust my own gut all the time when I’m writing. I think that could be why I’m still in front of my computer instead of being at church almost an hour ago. I got to 3 churches right now, so even if I miss a little here n there, I still get my spiritual nourishment. In fact, I can still show up late for the Sat night services and be able to visit/fellowship with some very cool folks. N probly crack a few jokes. Corny Christian jokes are a little more difficult. I’m much better at nasty, gross and tasteless jokes. Hypocrisy is a stubborn foe. foe sure.

You’ve got options. Stick around and remember you can search this site for medication answers in many ways. Like using google to search this site.

example

if you want to search totallyadd.com for info on ritalin, methylphenidate. type the subject you’re lookin for info on, then put a colon… hmmm. I couldn’t find billd’s post on the DEAR JIMI (wish list) forum, he wrote an example of exactly how to use google to search a particular site. is he missing? that’s really freakin me out!

I hope I remember this correctly.

type this

ritalin, methyphenidate dosages : site totallyadd.com

in the google thingy. I’m not sure if I got the code right. here’s the result of my 1st try

http://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=ritalin,+methyphenidate+dosages+:+site+totallyadd.com&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8 I hope I don’t shut down this thread

Good luck,

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