Well, Adderall also has the potential to make anxiety worse. But for many people, the heightened anxiety is your mind and body interpreting the rebound and the onset as anxiety (because the physical symptoms are very similar and because the person's mind and body are already in anxiety mode). Adderall tends to have a smoother onset and rebound.
One thing to try would be combining strattera with ritalin. Strattera is a selective norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor while ritalin works primarily on your dopamine (norepinephrine actually carries some dopamine with it fyi, so you always get both with anything that targets it). Adderall works on both norepinephrine and dopamine (but don't be fooled, adderall still works primarily on dopamine), which is what your doctor was talking about. The benefit to taking strattera with the ritalin is that strattera will work on the norepinephrine system AND strattera has off-label uses for depression and anxiety (it was originally developed as an anti-depressant actually, but once they realized it helped ADHD they switched up their applications since there's more of a market for a non-stimulant ADHD drug than another anti-depressant).
Since ritalin is working well for the ADHD without bad side effects and since strattera has helped you in the past, it makes much more sense to try those two first before switching to a whole new stimulant. Though I will say that I am a huge fan of adderall and take 12.5mg of it 3-4 times a day.
Good luck!
Hello, would like some info if you know. I have been taking Ritalin LA for number of months now (I think 9). I take 50 mg in the morning. I love the stuff. No side effects except good ones.
I switched Dr. because mine moved away. The new Dr wants to try me on Adderall XR. He said he would like me to try it only if it was something I was interested in. I said sure.
His reasoning. He said that Adderall XR helps more with anxiety. I'm a very anxious person. I bite thumbs (like on the sides above my nail), chew the insides of my cheeks and jiggle my legs all the time. I take kalonipin (sp ck) in the morning.
He mentioned something about Adderall XR effecting two things (dop..awhatever and nuro...whatever. I'm not sure if my dops and nuros are correct) Said Ritalin only effects one. The second one that Adderall effects is the one that relieves anxiety.
I would love to hear from someone who knows about the above. Thanks for any replies.
PS, I'm nervous about not taking Ritalin LA because I love the way it helps me. BUT, I would love to get the anxiety under control.
If the Ritalin LA works, why not just add an antianxiety med?I don't want to take antidepressants. I also want to get off the kalonipin. The optimal choice is one drug that does both. This is what the Dr seems to think would be the case with my particular ADHD and anxiety.
I took strattera once. It calmed my mind and helped with anxiety. It didn't help with ADHD. The Ritalin does. I asked about taking both at the same time. He mentioned that the Adderall should have this effect I'm looking for.
Does anyone have experience or know why Adderall would treat both ADHD and anxiety?
It also depends on what is causing the anxiety. I had severe anxiety before meds, simply because I was on the verge of doing or forgetting something every minute of my life. In addition to the hyperactivity causing me to be continuously wound up.
I took ritalin initally, but I metabolize really fast, and after the first few doses it didn't give me much sustained ability to concentrate. So I switched to Adderall. The initial side effects of Adderall can be pretty unpleasant, but they go away quickly and it does work far better for me than ritalin did. I currently take Adderall XR with an Adderall IR in the afternoon, and Lexapro. The combo is the best I have experienced (for me). Lexapro is a an anti-depressant and anti-anxiety med. It also pretty much erases Adderall rebound.
Good luck! Let us know how it goes.
The Ritalin has actually helped some with anxiety. I take less kalonain then I use to. The anxiety is just a way that I am wired.
Again, it goes back to how each drug works on your brain. I can't find the information online that addresses HOW each drug works in the brain and how each effects different reuptakes/domawhatevers, etc. This is what I am curious about.
Reisa, I'm glad the Adderall worked better for you than Ritalin. I also metabolize fast. I have no rebound effects on Ritalin so I'm interested to see how the Adderall works. When I don't take Ritalin my anxiety is higher.
.IMac38947.3963773148As long as you notice changes each day, you probably want to stay on the med. After a while you will level out and the effect will be stable. Then you can decide if it is working for you. Adderall is generally prefered over ritalin in adults because it does last longer. The side effects, particularly appetite suppression are undesirable for treating kids.
Different people respond differently to all meds. Keep at it though, I am sure something will work for you. I found that once I knew how it felt to concentrate and not make all kinds of mistakes... I noticed when the meds weren't working fairly quickly. Before meds, I was not aware of my own lack of attention. Now, I get on my own nerves.
Hey, I know this is the wrong thread to talk about this but I thought it would be a good chance for me to say something that's not too off topic.