What to Expect of Medication/Treatment? | ADHD Information

[QUOTE=chjones]as an Adder you have a head start in that, you are fortunate that your brain already rejects part of the materialism of the world as a wrong perception --- you feel there is another way to view things [/QUOTE]

This to me is the root of much sadness in the world.

Anxiety, depression...............etc.

I mean that a LOT of the unhappiness occuring everywhere comes from the constant pressure on all of us, add or not, to knuckle under to the more souless, more greedy, more materialistic view of the world. Many of us who experience unhappiness are only this: undefeated!

I find it impossible to enjoy mindless aquisition as the goal of my life, I find no fulfillment in it. I resist it.

Our "culture" is absurd.
I agree with Glen. The meds help the best part of me. But, I also understand Jones - That is why I do not want to take a mood stabilizer. I am afraid it will make me not me. You have a point, Resistance, but Clinical Depression has been around for centuries. IMac38796.6800925926

I once read a story about this woman who had mirrors all over her house so that she would know she existed. She needed to see her reflection or she was constantly besieged by a feeling of invisibility. That was me before I was finally diagnosed correctly and started ADHD meds. Now, I wake up every day so grateful that I don't have to wander around as a phantom in my own life.

Some people feel that taking meds will make them into some other person. Or that there is something defective about being who we are. Those would be the wrong reasons to take meds, and the wrong meds if that is how it feels. After 10+ years of being misdiagnosed and on the wrong meds - I know that the wrong meds are worse than nothing. But the right meds ... The right meds were the best thing that ever happened to me.

[QUOTE=IMac] You have a point, Resistance, but Clinical Depression has been around for centuries. [/QUOTE]

So have materialism, greed, social pressures etc.

Let me make clear I am not a philosopher. Maybe I am philosophical but large original ideas in this realm, no. What I'm saying above is a point I have gathered from reading various great thinkers/philosophers - I just don't know how to say it clearly but it seems to have the ring of truth to me.

As young people most of us have ideals and goals for our lives that seem naieve now to us perhaps. But they were goals for ourselves, large goals. The pressure to fit into the materialistic competitive world beats these nobler goals from our heads and we miss having them.

Society calls us a failure if we don't have all the material things. We can pretend we aren't swayed by this but all of us are to some degree.

Television, media, the Jones next door call us mediocrities constantly - we are too poor, too fat, too old, our careers suck, our cell phone isn't fancy enough.

We sacrifice nearly all to this false ideal.

We mourn our lack of real life, real goals, OUR goals.

We are unhappy.

Something like that - I still don't know if I'm saying what I mean.

Kill your television, friends. Find your beauty, only you know what that is, and enjoy it.

~The Reverend Resistance

And I second that

That made sense to me, made me a little more depressed, but made sense.

Thanks and sorry.

Don't listen to me though, I am an isolated, failed and insane man.

Do I need to take a trip over to you and shake you out of this?

I think you're just seeing things from the negative at the moment. I have read your advice to others and it was not the words of an insane failure.

Rev. Res.,
One of the great things about getting older is being more comfortable in your own skin. This doesn't happen overnight and it takes work, if you do it right. First you talk the talk, just like you're doing now, and then you start walking. IMac38799.0305324074

Hey Taritec,

I am ADD combined type.. but I really think I'm inattentive.. but thats an argument for a different day

I was told that meds would make me more alert and aware or my surroundings and also help me to read mentally challenging material without going off into la la land

Pretty much that's what's happened. I am aware of my surroundings, my behaviors, and am also more intrinsically motivated ( not an effect the dr said would happen, but nevertheless, there for me.). Oh and I smile more, and can hear individual conversations in a crowded room.. I was so thrilled with that, that I had to start listening in to others talking just to see if I could transfer attention between one conversation and another.. and I COULD!! WOW!

umm yeah,, still get to post on the ADD is bad when... thread.. LOL Its just fewer occurences, and its easier for me to laugh at myself instead of beating myself over the head about it.

Life change? 10 + LIfe begins at 40 baby!!

Side effects? In the begining, Head rush when meds kicked in, appetite supression, aware of heartbeat at night ( umm thinking that was anxiety, I was a little scared of taking methylphenidate!) headache when meds wear off and a bit of insomnia... disappeared after 2 -3 weeks. Now, only one side effect,, massive heartburn.. had to switch to a stronger med for GERD ( had that before, it just got worse.) .

Therapy? Well, my only therapy is coming to forums, researching books and internet. I have been reading a lot from Rusell Barkely, Sari solden, and Lynn Weiss. I know that many benefit from therapy, but in my case it feels like I'm using a "paid best friend" --- that's only my experience possibly because it has only been talk therapy and not CBT.

Ok, that was my experience so far.. I'm still learning a lot

Sherry

you know what i think/fear will change??? (although i've never been on meds and everyone says this ISN'T the case)

that meds put intellect over intuition. that they emphasis the conventional self over the spiritual self.

(in sufi terms, the conventional self is that which is created by your culture/parents/education/nationality/experiences etc. etc. as opposed to the spiritual self which is your soul and for those who are weirdly religious i guess the side of you one would prefer to emphasise despite the fact that it makes the rest of the world think your perception is a little skewed/screwed up)

i think apart from that - it will probably be fantastic. you will be able to think and function like normals in a society that caters pre-eminently for normals. your addled way of seeing things will be altered. you will have a functioning brain rather than a dysfunctional/fighting one - which once you learn how best to use it you will never want to go back!

you will have the best of both worlds. compassion gained from being addled - combined with the ability to help others from being no longer addled. how great is that????

but to me (the reason i don't take meds) you will lose everything.

for me, the point in life is to know god - and i believe as an Adder you have a head start in that, you are fortunate that your brain already rejects part of the materialism of the world as a wrong perception --- you feel there is another way to view things/another way to be. and one should struggle to get to that perception, to develop that above all, even though it seems selfish and stupid to do so, even though common sense will dictate that this is not the right way to think ---- although it is hard in a world that seems so solidly materialistic. i only hope that if one can develop that - then one is automatically NOT selfish, one becomes giving and loving and helpful toward others as an automatic consequence...

which probably sounds (is) crazy. but that would be the reason i stay away from the meds.

I am ADD inattentive,

Adderal helped me to finish projects, organize things, and think in an organized way. It also helped me to keep track of time.

It wore off for me in about 6 months and then I had to increase my dose. After increasing my dose, the side effects started to bug me. Dry mouth was the big one for me. I didn't like the biting my tongue and cheeks at all. I also would clench my teeth together to talk sometimes.

After a while, it didn't seem like the meds were helping me very much, even the higher doses. So, I tried herbal supplements. They helped great for a while, and then wore off.

I am trying crawling exercises from the book Stopping ADHD I found at Barnes and Noble. These are helping me the most. You can check out the "crawlers unite" thread on the alternative part of the board if you want to learn more about it.

But, getting back to your question, I asked my doctor what I should expect from medication. He said, "You should be able for finish projects." And he was right. I could stay focused long enough to finish projects. I also don't start new ones that are massive. I wait until a better time. I can judge time and the amount of energy I need better. It is a whole new world once you start to get treatment and you don't want to go back. AT least that is how it was for me. And I think it is very frustrating when my meds started to not work.

Good luck to you. It is a very interesting and fulfilling adventure you are about to embark on!!! I know it was for me and still is!

I've finally been diagnosed, but have been dragging my feet about making that appointment with my GP to get meds or treatment. Part of the reason is, well, I've got ADD and doing crap like that takes a while to get around to. The other is that I have no idea what to expect from medication or therapy or life coaching or whatever else you all are doing to make your ADD selves fit into this ADD-unfriendly world.

I know that various threads have discussed these issues, but it would be helpful to have this discussion in one thread. So, please help me:
What will change if I am medicated?What WON'T change if I am medicated? Do you still have to post in the "You know you are having a bad ADD day when . . ." thread?
How much did your life change? Also, rate the change: 1 for "my life got worse", 5 "my life didn't change much", up to 10 for "my life got GREAT!!!"
What side effects have you experienced?How did you handle those side effects? Were they so bad, you stopped taking medication all together?What about therapy? Life coaching? How did these things help or hinder you? What were they like?By the way, I'm ADD Inattentive, with no other co-morbidities. I'd especially appreciate responses from people like me, though all are welcome-- I'm sure there are people who can benefit.

taritac38795.7436921296Everyone's experience is different. I can share my experiences with you. doc 1st put me on Strattera and Lexapro. People have noted on this board horrible side effects about Strattera. If I had read those first, probably wouldn't have taken it, but, for me, Strattera was not bad. I didt suffer any of the side effects that people complained about. Just soooo sleepy on it. So, Doc changed me to Adderall and Wellbutrin - both time released. Again, I have had no bad side effects. I sleep ok and they do not make me aggitated or nervous. Perhaps I am lucky with meds.
None of these medications changed my personality.
I am more focused and more aware. Some of the things I became aware of were/are very painful. They were always there, I just sometimes didn't notice or got so distracted so easily - I didn't deal with these issues.
My meds wear off about 4 in the afternoon and I am my old space cadette self again. I routinly miss my turn coming home from work and all the other "normal" ad/hd things we do. With all the pain of self awareness and more, I would never go back to the way it was before meds and therapy. Yes therapy helps me. I tried coaching at first, but coach told me to come back when my meds were working. I couldn't stay focused. I hope this helps even though I am not add inattentive
dx ADHD/BP/LDLife coaching?
Does anyone actuallu do this? I never hear it mentioned.

Yes to each their own. I saw "brother son sister moon" in high school and all I could think was "what an insane stupid man - somebody should have locked him up the first sign of this madness". But one man's insane individual is another's saint so it seems. C'est la vie!

Actuall chjones the meds keep the best part of me - the insightful empathic person who sees the world slightly askew - while giving me the view of everyone else. It's like having bifocals - I can just look slightly above my normal view and the old one is still there. But now it's me chosing not the ADHD.

I no longer have to make believe I'm an adult guy in a world of other adults. Now I am. Sometimes that bites as I want to stomp my feet and scream at the sky. But I suppose I still could if I desired that. Nah.

and and and --- i DO comprehend what you are saying about becoming more aware, less selfish, more able to please people, help people, be there for people.

really i understand that. and value that. and think it is a brilliant thing and it almost persuades me (almost)...

i just have a feeling that i want to go through my ADD and out the other side. i don't know! it's just an intuition - it could be entirely wrong and it could be my dysfunctional brain slyly working against me yet again. but, for once, i am going to listen to my intuition and not my intellect. i have just decided to do that and so until i feel that my intuition changes --- then i am going to stay off meds and stay trying to go down the path of full-blown ADDledness!

i am sure, you see, it is a gift. i don't recognise the material, solid world as something true somewhere - or rather i do but i think there are two equally valid, equally existing worlds (oh no, this is not coming out right!). i think love is everything and (weirdly enough) i think the world is perfect as it is - but we just can't SEE it that way. or something like that. i find it impossible to explain anyway - so won't bother anymore...

but ADDledness almost gives you a chance, a way of seeing it differently. the clarity that you get by using just ones intellect means it would be hard to walk away from that view. i may be in a fog --- i may be unable to see either viewpoint but at least i have a desire to see the one that i would consider more real - rather than being overwhelmed by the clarity of (what i would consider) the false one. not the false world - because the world isn't false it absolutely exists as a solid entity and we live in it. but the false perception of that world.

urghhh! i don't make sense. i never make sense anyway. so that's fine!

chjones38796.2062847222

Oh, my jaded jonesy!

NO NO NO!! It doesn't emphasize the material over the ephemeral!! Hardly!

Actually it brought out the part of me that is loving, sincere and cares about others. Pre med I was selfish, self-centered and concerned with self-pleasure. Now I can't collect anything, I can't enjoy things like video games or closing myself up in my own world. I must talk and interact!!

If anything the meds will pull out the real you - the you that was there being suppressed by the ADHD. But you must work at it - you've gained a lifetime of really bad habits and that takes therapy to change. Otherwise you're pissing away expensive meds after a few months.

I take dexedrine every day. I do therapy every month when possible. I'd do more if I could be in the same town as my therapist and could afford it.

And as to rating the change - most months 10 - sometimes 3 - it depends just like every person on earth.

And remember - people closest to their spirituality were often nutters - Jean D'arc (schizo for sure) St. Francis of Asissi (ooh a certain nutter), etc. Think of it - a little lithium and they'd have been a bit less holier-than-thou and most likely happier!

st francis of assissi - is my role model. in my head - if not in my actions. i only wish i could be a st francis of assissi!

ah well, there we go glen. vive la difference, as they say! it takes all sorts to make the world go round....

Yeah I am waaaaay stressed out. In many ways though, I AM an insane failure. I don't want to sound depressed again but if most of what I see is sanity and success........................you know, ..........I'm NOT sane or successful.

If you're not angry

then you're just stupid, you don't care

how else can you react

when you know something's so unfair

--Ani Difranco

I spend all day, every day reading about other people's lives. I can say with absolute certainty that success is an illusion and sanity is a lie. Every human on this planet has a skeleton in the closet and some aspect of life where they are a complete idiot. At least we have a name for our brand of idiocy.

It isn't sanity or success that you see everywhere, it's mass stupidity. Quit trying to measure up to the monumental fantasy, it's good for the soul.

Wierd and proud! over and out *grin* ok meds are out - hope I made at least a little sense.

[QUOTE=Peita Pan]

Do I need to take a trip over to you and shake you out of this?

[/QUOTE]

Oh yes. Decidedly so, the ONLY answer.

[QUOTE=Peita Pan]

I think you're just seeing things from the negative at the moment. I have read your advice to others and it was not the words of an insane failure.[/QUOTE]

[QUOTE=IMac] Rev. Res.,
One of the great things about getting older is being more comfortable in your own skin. This doesn't happen overnight and it takes work, if you do it right. First you talk the talk, just like you're doing now, and then you start walking. [/QUOTE]

Well said. although I AM older :-)
I am frustrated most about walking my talk alone I think.
[QUOTE=The Resistance!]
[QUOTE=IMac]
Rev. Res.,
One of the great things about getting older is being more comfortable
in your own skin. This doesn't happen overnight and it takes work, if
you do it right. First you talk the talk, just like you're doing now,
and then you start walking.
[/QUOTE]
Well said. although I AM older :-)I am frustrated most about walking my talk alone I think. [/QUOTE]
But not THAT much 'old.'

And you'll never walk your talk alone here, TR!