[Hans]

I will try to explain What I believe is correct…It might shed some light and lower your anxiety..

I had a long talk with my Dr about side effects. His explanation was more or less like this as I rememmmmmmber it.LOL. Our medicines stimulate different areas of our brain. So let say we are talking about areas A,B,C,D,E, You need areas A,B,C,D stimulated all is good. But area E is also stimulated….BAD.the side effect.

This is were the DR has to work with you to get the delivery system right- time release ot fast acting- and the dosage amount. In all it a balancing act and a trial that will take time to get it right. Some persons get lucky- I did. With some other it might take more time.

In some ways the medicine is massaging the Brain muscle. Do it right it gets stronger-over do it and me get, muscle strain, knots torn ligaments. PROPER DOSAGE isa personal trait and one size does not fit all.

My Dr had me slowly get started increasing my dossage and evaluating my response…The analogy would be taking a sip of wine or drinking whole bottle. If you stat by drinking the whole bottle of wine the conclusion might be “Boy this stuff can mess you up”

We are changing our brain chemistry–dopamine-etc.

For me there is no choice–With unexplainable anxiety ever afternoon.I started drinking way to much to compensate.

Remember alchohol affects the brain function.

My medication is not a choice…without it I would be severly impaired. With my medicine I have my Golden Years back

Good Luck—I was recently diagnosed–I’m 67

Posted 4 minutes ago Edit

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[Hans]

pearljam1997

I had a long talk with my Dr about side effects. His explanation was more or less like this as I rememmmmmmber it.LOL. Our medicines stimulate different areas of our brain. So let say we are talking about areas A,B,C,D,E, You need areas A,B,C,D stimulated all is good. But area E is also stimulated….BAD.the side effect.

This is were the DR has to work with you to get the delivery system right- time release ot fast acting- and the dosage amount. In all it a balancing act and a trial that will take time to get it right. Some persons get lucky- I did. With some other it might take more time.

Good Luck and don’t give up. THE LIGHT AT THE END TUNNEL IS BRILLIANT

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[Hans]

That sounds about right.. The length can vary due to the delivery system. 6-7 hours is not bad. Try to start when you get the energy burst. I try to pace myself and continue working. If I get sloppy I know that it has worn off. Part of the beauty of this for me is the ability to recognize the state of the medicine. I don’t want to over medicate due to over energizing and causing problems in good areas.

I have become very aware of the metal awareness differences. Clutter bothers me now I can see it. I can act on it. I start every morning now making the bed..yes Im a man and married. I clean up the kitchen, the living room. etc.

I will straighten up again at night before going to bed.

I feel much better going to bed at night and I feel better in the mornings.

Things still slip my mind when effects are lowered. I promissed to take a shower before going to bed-needed it- been working hard. Got tied in this forum and at 3 AM I start to go to bed- My wife said “MMMMM”. Ok Ill take my shower sorry forgot. My wife understands and I no longder beat myself up.

Good luck. Medicine is not a cure -For me it brings the awareness to get things organized and done. I still have to do the work…

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[Hans]

JayBird

I call it the mental freeze. If I was taking a test and had dificulty with the first question my mind would freeze up. I had no access to any of the sublect matter. I learned to skipp every question I had a doubt about. When I fould two or three that I could easily answer the stress would be gone-the freeze would melt – and I could now answer the questions I had skipped over earlier.

My next door neighbors taught special-ed.. I admired them. They had great hearts and treated each student as their own child.

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[Hans]

grettaerobinson

Just an added note. A lot of cold medicine has Psudo-ephedrine in it.

Psuedo-ephedrine is used to make “Metm”.

Taking too much cold medicine with the spuedo -ephedrine car realy screw the heart up- palpatations etc. It happened with my wife.. just be carefull.

I only have plain guavesen in my home to loosen up the chest mucus. If the head gets bad I take a hot shower and try to help things drain.

Good luck with your son.

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[Hans]

My Dr.(psychaitrist) has a theory that many people with ADHD also have heart issues

I have a right Bundle Branch Block and a pre-trigger My blood pressure is higher in my right arm then my left..

ADHD medicines can affect the heart in very different ways. In normal people it can speed things up. In ADHD it can slow them down.

Mr Dr had me monitor my blood pressure for two weeks before giving me medicine.. He wanted to know my baseline and see if there were negative effects. I purchased a very nice monitor on the internet ($50) that recorded the readings by time and then would average them out also if needed.

Before my medication i had a slow heart beat 45-60 beats per minute. Blood pressure -High – 117-125 low 79-85 . My ex-father in Law a Dr once asked how I was standing with the low heart beat.

After medication heart beat 72-78. beats per minute, Blood pressure -high 102-109 Low 72-79. So in my case heart rate up but both presures down. The heart and mind are funny things. They don’t always react according to the text book.

I intend to continue takes my ADHD medicine and occasional monitor my plood pressure. If my pulse rate is mid 50’s then my medication has worn off..

Keep looking and searching. I knew when I took the first pill there might be a risk. But my Dr gave me a very small dose for my age and weight. Everything worked out and I’m glad to have the medication. It has really helped me.

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[Hans]

Marriage problems with my ADHD mind.

I have a wonderfull wife yet we almost got divorced due to the undiagnosed ADHD. Micro focus can lead to inattention.-hyper-focus.preaching-.depression and anxiety on my part. My obsession with finances became my world. I would watch the economic progras-the banks etc…….. I sat in a chair for 3 years day in day out worried about everything and how I would survive the future. We stopped communicating. -depression.

My wife and I went to a marriage counceler.

Her major comnplaint–addiction to Worlds of Warcraft.

World of Warcraft became my stress release. I could play the game 18 hours a day. I received instant gratification. I forgot my problems. It was a moment of peace, the only peace I had. I could not believe my wife wanted to give up the only stress relief I had.

So the choice – Stress relief or marriage. I was ready for the stress release and the single life.

The major complaint–I had no interest in anything but the game- The house needed maintenance. It didn’t seem I cared. for her. etc…..the “WE was gone.

The counceler said my brain was just wired differently. Boy was she right on that.

Luckily my caught a part of ADDand loving it. She sugested I tape the program so we could both watch it together. We discussed it and I went to a psychiatris to be checked.

With the diagnosis and medicine everything has chainged

The program has saved my marriage. I now say thank you to my wife for putting up with me all those years

The marriage relationship was restored because she now understood my handicaped. mind I din’t ignore her I never heard her.. If I was not interested my mind drifted of into my own world. I was incapable of sitting and listening.

The medications have helped me. I no longer need the TV on in the background and I enjoy just sitting and talking to my wife. I ask her how her day went. I can listen without interupting. And we laugh when the ADHD screws me up.

Of the many joys and sorrows we both talk how the ADHD has hurt my relatonship with my own children. Dad was distant., Dad preached, , Al I wanted with DAD was a conversation. Dad would never let me explain. Dad only sees things his way. Dad is not realy interested in me. The water has passed over the dam They are in the 30’s and forties.

So many missed opportunities as I worked in my roomby myself trying to improve the design a metal detector from scratch.

actor #1 k.

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[Hans]

I think a great program could be A hiper Brain Science Special. It could be a 30 min show in 10 minutes. We can all follow along and only one third of the words would have to be spoken. To make sure no one got bored actors could interupt each others lines randomly. At the end of the program anyone who got it was automatically ADHD.

Until now I never realized how slow and long it takes others to processing information or ideas. Been there and done that.

Seriously From my own experience..I excelled in some subjects. Entered and remembered no problem. Working in one’s easy learning field helps success. Great calculations and design.but hated writing letters. engineering was easy – passing English my nightmare.

I have a passion for design/creativity. I have the same sense of accomplishment from a industrial computer application as a Storm sewer design. If you find your passion the rest should fall into place.

Good Luck

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[Hans]

mneighbour

Please no bitterness. I kissed my secretary’s feet everyday. I made sure she was taken care off. I knew how important a good secretay was. I normaly work very good with others in my own quirkey ways. I had a complete open door policy. I have promoted high school graduates over college graduates. My mind races and can be vefy finely focused and see the finest detail and tie the information together. I always took care of the emplyees who worked under me.

Employees who could not do their job –the corporate politicians/foxes were terrified since I saw things so clearly. I had a target on my back the whole time. I cannot begin to say how many lies have been told about me. Being ADHD and gifted in the technical the there was no manner to fire me for those reasons. So I was constantly attacked in the “social” area.

ADD’rs don’t become CEO’s normally. There are too many holes in our personalities. We get hired to solve very detailed problems and often after the work is done we are back unemployed. Corps put up with us because they need us not because they like us.

Please don’t confuse me with the SOCIOPATHS. ADHD traits are completely different. A Sociopath has little no social empathy. He can eat a full meal while others starve. I often felt most personell directors had to have this trait to do their job. It’s sad to me that there seems to be so many of them in the financial sector and the stock market at the expense of the US middle class.

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[Hans]

MyInattentiveADHD

I have struggled with ADHD my whole life. I have learned to live with it and make the many adjustments for daily life the best that I could. After the diagnosis I had the “The Ah Ha Moment”. It was clear to me. But the Ah Ha is personal in many cases.

The “normals” don’t get it. I don’t expect them to. Most of them have never had a mind freeze while taking a test. In college Its “A+” or “D-F”. If I knew the first question the “A”…if not the mind freeze “D-F”. I had no way to retrieve the knowledge that was in there.

I could remember and correct high mathematical equations written on a blackboard on sight but don’t ask me to spell mom. Also don’t ask me to read the word I wrote cause I have difficulty reading my own writing. And yes I can go from cursive to print in the same word.

Cancer everyone understands. ADHD is a mystery still. There is light and it is brighter everyday. MRI’s have helped, The Gene mapping has help and Forums like this help.

We get it here on this forum. I will talk to anyone and everyone about my AH HA moment. I don’t do it to impress someone else. I don’t do it for pitty. I do it with the hope that the person I talk to has his own personnal Ah Ha moment and says Yes I finally understand I am not alone.

Cancer everyone understands.

Everyone on this forum “get’s it.”

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[Hans]

mrsm2003

My Dr gave me the 5Mg Ritalin on a trial basis. He told me to take the first pill when I got up and the next one four hours later. Three days later on the folow up visit he asked me relate my experience. I could start to feel the medicine start to act about 30-45 minutes after taking it. The lights were on and I began to notice all the articles around me.–I would call it Spacial Awareness. If I needed an object I could go straight to it. I also knew where an object should not be….

I took the second pill 4 hours later… I can feel the energy and the awareness improve.. four hours later back to the old me trying to rush the project and can’t rememer where I left objects.

I might be wrong and if so someone please comment. There are two major parts to fix the ADD. The first is the DIAGNOSIS..The DR gave me the medicine. The second part is just as dificult as the first one, PROPER DOSSAGE. There are many perscriptions..some generics.Basically the same active ingredient but different delivery systems and dosage. It might take time for the Dr to find what works best for you. As you read thru the comments/Forum you become aware of the one size does not fit all. Work with the DR tell him what takes place and when as you try the medicine. This will aid him help him and you reach your goal.

Thank God for my wife and DR. My anxieties/wories are no longer crippling me.

Don’t give up THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL IS BRILLIANT

Good luck on your journey

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[Hans]

If you have not watched Add and loving it do so. Yes Adults have and have had it their whole life. We learn to compensate for it in small ways.

The compesation can leads others to think there is no problem.–GROW UP WE ARE TOLD

Its genetic- it has nothing to do with age. I compensated for ADD by learning thru experience and the school of hard knocks.

By all means get checked its nothing to be afraid of.

If you have it GREAT in can be treated. You won’t have to suffer by youreself.

The main problem is this…No one can actually see the channel surfing in my Brain -no one can see why I dont have the ability to remember names- No one could understand why I could look at the same paragraph for over an hour and not comprehend it -Why I had such difficulty in spelling. My greatest fear in college was the two years of english I had to take. I did not worry about Physics or Chemistry

REMEMBER “that”s a oxymoron for us with ADD” ADD affects everyone differently. I can remember certain project details for years.

but dont ask me the name of the person I was just intoduced to.

Good Luck. ADD has many strengths. I became a professional engineer and I had my secretay write my letters

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[Hans]

Beignet

Thanks for your advice. Shared knowledge is wonderful. It is sad how many persons do not understand the compassion involved in giving it.

I love unsolicited advice if given in the right spirit. Since I give it out so easily also and can’t stop myself from trying to help people.

On the heart issues

I have gone to a cardialogist and had everything checked out. The right arm blood pressure thing I have know about for 35 years. My ex father in law was a doctor.

The pre trigger had me worried – I thought my heart was skipping a beat and it could just stop. I was stressed out and worried- tied in knots.

I asked the DR what happens if the rear bundle branch gets blocked. His Reply –your heart goes to 60 beats a minute and you get a pacemaker…anxiety gone.

One again thankyou for sharing your knowledge Beignet

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[Hans]

I had sleeping problems my whole life. Before medication I could lay awake for hours with my mind racing.

I read Lord of the Rings 7 times while I was in working in Nigeria. I would get involved in the storey. My mind would stop running. I would get sleepy and put the book down. When I finished I started all over again.

It was a very close call. If I put the book down to early my mind would start up again, I would then pick up the book again and try again.

Good Luck..

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[Hans]

Gryffindork

Before my Dr would prescribe medication he had me monitor my blood pressure. After medication (Focalin Xr 20mgs) my highs went down from mid 120’s to 105’s or less. My lows went down- mid 80’s to mid 70’s and my heart rate went up from 50-60’s to mid 70’s.

As an added note I have a Right Bundle Branch Block, a pre trigger and my blood pressure is higher on my right arm than my left..

Sort a think my pump is faster so I don’t need the pressure.

Goog luck in your journey.

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