[munchkin]

I’ve been having serious appetite problems after taking Concerta for around 6 months. I don’t know if it has anything to do with the Concerta, but I started taking short acting Ritalin so I could eat meals around the times when it wears off.

Just an experiment, and I have no idea if Concerta is to blame. Just trying to muddle through…

Munch

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

I have been on Concerta about 8 months, and loved certain aspects of it. Unfortunately, my anxiety has started to get pretty unmanagable and I’m considering either lowering the dosage again, (I went fron to 54 to 36 awhile back) or taking a break from it completely, just to see if that’s the problem or not.

I would hate to stop having it. I feel that my ability to get things done, regulate emotions and – even drive my car – have hugely benefited, but I’m going to have to figure out what’s right for me.

Will have to work wtih the psychiatrist on it – which is scary. I hate the feeling that I am not in complete control… ugh

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

All my bath mats keep getting ruined. One of them got melted in the dryer, and the other got hung outside and forgotten and destroyed in sun & snow… now I’m just using an old towel on the floor. Pretty? Um, pretty functional…

Oh – it took me several hotel stays to understand why they had that one thicker towel, and no bath mat – haha Tiddler you crack me up

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

I never got fluent in 2 non-native languages I learned – I was OK and could communicate, but never “respectible.” I’m wondering if I can finally break that barrier now that I understand that ADD is a big part of the equation.

I can’t wait to give it another stab!!!

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Only.. like, every day! That’s what I hear right before i end the conversation and walk away. I’m so glad for them that their life is sooooo uncomplicated. Whoopdy doo!!!!

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

There’s a “web extra” video from after the show on the anderson cooper website that’s a pretty good debate.

It was difficult to listen to the mom who was talking about the evil conspiracy to drug up all the kids. But there was a mayo clinic guy who argued really well, and the parents that were pro-med were really normal and had gone to great lengths to find the right solution for their kid.

All in all, I hope people watched it. I think it was probably a lot more up to date information than your average tv watcher has seen – a step in the right direction?

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Hi lindarenee – looks like you’re new here – welcome!

We’re not really experts on this forum – just mainly here to support each other. Maybe you should go back to your doctor if you’re uncomfortable trying Vyvanse – see what he/she thinks about this other stuff you are considering.

Also, if you are new to adhd – check out the videos on this site – you can learn a lot and help to sort out the facts from myths.

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

I looove your descriptions ashockley – are you a writer or something? Oh yeah – you used to be a teacher right?

Hilarious, so accurate, so frustrating, but you have a sense of humour about it too.

There’s a super weird band called “Negativland” that has a song about “too many choices is no choice at all” – if I can find it anywhere I’ll post a link. My house clutter has a lot to do with total inability to find things I like along with total guilt over throwing things away.

But…. I just donated a carload to Goodwill – high 5 corner? At least I got one thing done this weekend.

Bad thing: I bought $50 worth of stuff to fix my bathroom, and left the bag behind at the store – they say they never found it, and I’m SOL… I guess that one less bag of stuff in my house – I’m just going to put an Out of Order sign on my bathroom

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

I couldn’t swallow pills until I was in my early 20’s, and my parents tried everything and got sooo frustrated.

Tricks I’ve learned:

-It’s much easier to swallow a pill with a carbonated drink

-swallow some soda, pop in the pill, swallow more soda – in as quick succession as possible

-anxiety about choking and/or failure is a huge issue – somehow deal with that… after several tries/failures of swallowing pill, the anxiety would increase to being unbearable. Don’t talk or worry about it ahead of time – just whip out the soda and pill and try to get them to take it quickly with no discussion or delay… don’t engage with the fearful comments, just be calm and reassuring that it’s going to be fine, and their not going to be in trouble if they “fail to perform” – what’s the harm in trying?

-Eventually give up if they just can’t do it – don’t threaten or deny your kid or allow them to get out if it because they can’t swallow the pill. It’s not their fault, and there are other options besides Concerta – things that can be broken up into food or drink. I got extremely ill because my parents decided I was “too old” to use liquide anti-biotics – my life was put in danger over their stubborn-ness…

Hope it helps…

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Funny story about “benefits” – For 2 years I lived in a non english speaking country. I couldn’t get fluent in the language for the life of me. I could only converse with very patient people who would talk slowly enough for me to process each word, one at a time.

The great thing was – people were chattering away, and I couldn’t understand them, and it was the most peaceful, non-distracting time of my life! I never realized until I returned to the States that I can’t stop myself from paying attention to every conversation in the room.

I dream of spending time in a foreign land again – the wonderful feeling of not being barraged with everyone’s mundane thoughts and conversations every waking hour of the day!

Is that the strangest thing or what?

stardate: 123443.3

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Welcome newcomers

I found this website last year, and really got a lot of support through the whole process of wondering what was wrong, to trying to get a diagnosis, to finally getting a diagnosis and trying out Concerta. I hope you’ll find this to be the supportive safe place I did. It was such a relief to find understanding people who actually understood what I was going through for 40 years since I was a child.

-Munch

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

I just started with a coach – I have my second session tomorrow. I’m brimming with excitement because he really seems to know his stuff, but my anxiety’s all in an uproar as well.

I keep putting the problem-solving on the back burner because looking at an overview of all the problems overwhelms me. I hope I can get help with some kind of a regimen for my life without turning into a nervous pile of mush. It’s going to have to be “baby steps” methinks…

My homework is to bring some of the problem areas i want to work on – I just keep thinking about the million and one problem areas and it puts me in a state of panic. I guess I’ll just have to find some kind of starting point and try to breathe. It was hard enough just to figure out whether or not I have the money to pay the guy.

Can I get coaching on how to pay for the coaching? Ha!

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Hi PaulF – Out of curiosity – how long have you been diagnosed? I’ve only just been diagnosed about 7 months ago, and am still learning about the possible treatments, but Concerta is helping me a lot. I think there are a wide variety of people on this forum, some who are doing well on prescription stimulant medications, others who couldn’t deal with the side effects and are on a journey to find other solutions.

With Concerta, I do experience some side effects, but the “side effects” of not being on meds are so much more dire. Since I’m not pregnant or under the age of 3, I’m hoping the warnings and side effects can be tolerated. It’s a whole lot better than dying in a car wreck or having my husband walk out for good.

From what I’ve read, the Methylphenidate products (like Concerta) and the Dextroamphetamines (like Adderal) have been used for many decades and their long term effects are very well known and studied. As for an exit strategy, I’ve never heard of major problems going off these meds – but I’m sorry to hear if that has happened to you.

Still – we are all unique, and what is a good solution for one person may not be for someone else, and I wouldn’t judge them for that. I wouldn’t doubt that some of these over the counter stimulants could have some small benefit – which would be better than nothing if prescription drugs aren’t your thing.

From what I’ve read from other people on this site – it seems like there are people who are using diet and excercise, as well as omega 3’s (like krill oil) as part of their strategy. I would suggest investing some time in viewing the videos, webinars and blogs on this site. They were carefully put together by the creators of this site and reviewed by professionals.

This forum is fine for discussion and support, but there are large gaps in our knowledge, and a lot of us are newbie’s to this diagnosis. We are just lay people dealing with ADHD and muddling through our own unique situations the best we can.

If you would like to share your story, I welcome you – get to know us better, we don’t bite (too hard). The forum is here as a community more than a resource for answering specific drug questions. If you’re looking for fellowship, humour and acknowlegment that this is a real condition and not some made up excuse to be lazy, you’ve found the right place.

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Apparently, when I was a young kid, I used to scream and cry and point somewhere across the room saying “It”, “It” over and over. The whole family would have to play 20 questions to figure out what I wanted and why I was so upset about it!

Adult version: Darn thingamajig, what’s his name from, you know that movie from the 80’s with that girl with the funny hairdo? Aw forget about it…

Maybe whatever chemical that is lacking to make the retrieval work just gets further depleted by continuing to try… Later, I have no problem remembering the piece of info…

REPORT ABUSE

[munchkin]

Wow – that doesn’t sound like much of an ADHD assessment to me… are you a minor or adult? (testing would vary based on that)

@kc5jk 😆 you just made my night!

REPORT ABUSE

[Author]

Posts