Anyone switch fro Adderall to Concerta? | ADHD Information

I am currently taking 20mgs of adderallxr daily around 7amish.  It works good for focus and wears off around 1:00.  So, I get about six hours out of it.  I have, however, noticed side effects such as headaches and a little bit of paranoia/overthinking things?  My question is, has anyone else had these symptoms of adderall xr and if so, have you switched to concerta and noticed a change with these side effects?

I'm no expert by here's my experience with Adderall xr so far.... my script is for 2-20mg xr/day.  I take one around 7 a.m. and one around 1 p.m. (I start feeling the rebound at 6 hours, so the doc upped the script from one to two a day).  I've been on this dosage all summer.  I get a mild headache usually, but not all the time, when the stuff is mostly out of my system.  And, like you, I get grumpy and my ADD kicks in big-time on the rebound starting around 7 hours after taking the last dose. 

I find with the xr it gives me a chance to experiment some....I experiment in when and how I administer the xr, but leave the daily dose at 40mg.  For example, I might take 30 mg at 7 a.m. (open up a capsule, pour out half the itty bitty beads and toss them down my throat, chased with a whole capsule).  Then at 1 p.m (or 2 or whenever) I take the remaining 10 mg. xr left in the capsule (which I've pinched at one end so I can tell it from the others).  Or, some afternoons I'll take a half dose rather than a whole dose when I know I won't be in a high-output situation.  btw...if find taking half a dose in the afternoon also eliminates any rebound effect in me, which is mild anyway because it is xr, not ir.

If I'm faced with a time of day when I really don't want a lot of adderall in my system (say I'm taking a late afternoon 15 mile bike ride (with hills!), when it's time for my second dose at 1 p.m. I'll minimize the "extended release" feature of the xr by chomping down on a capsule that has a half dose inside, so I get the equivalent of 10 mg. IR instead of 10 mg xr.

These "variations" are exceptions -- I find keeping things simple and not trying to use the medication for (as my psyc says) "performance demand management" is the way to go.  Just get in the habit of taking the same dose that works the same way every day...trick is finding the right dose! 

I found that the side effects on Adderall are very noticeable and very changeable during the first couple months, so yeah...you may see things settle down with time...I did!

 

I am also going to the Dr. on tuesday to see about switching from adderall xr to concerta.  I am have noticed the benifical effects of the drug wearing decreasing and my husband says i act like "a hyperfocused non-emotional zombie"

We will see how it goes....
hegmom, too funny!  do you get headaches while taking adderall?  do you take XR or IR?  I do see benefits, but the side effects are sort of weird.  i think i may try to take a smaller dosage two times a day, rather than so much at once. i really don't want to have to re-adjust to another med.  how long have you been taking adderall?  maybe it will take more time for me to adjust????  i don't know!? I started with the IR, but would have trouble remmbering to take second dose.  I would all of a sudden be in an add moment and have to think did I take my afternoon dose?
I then switched to the XR.  I have liked the adderall, but it seems about every three weeks I have had to up my dose.  I have not had problems with headaches, but I take inderall for migraines so that may have kept them at bay.  I have had problems with hyperfocusing without any prioritizing...if that makes sense.  Also my husband has really disliked the fact that I have become very non-emotional and it has killed not just my sex drive, but any type of conncetion/contact.  The XR seems to wear off right about dinner time(when I need it most) and I have a bad rebound irritable effect at that time. 
We will see what the dr. says tommarow.   My husband is so concerned he is coming to the appointment with me : )
JohnD, my Doctor just changed my dose.  He prescribed 4 10mg xrs per day.  This is perfect because I can take this month to adjust.  I am taking two around 7am.  Then one at 1:00pm and another around say 4.  This helps with the rebound. 

Also, I like this because some days I only need to take 30 mg.  (i.e. lazy Sundays, etc.) 

For now, this is the perfect dose for me!!!!

Thanks for everyone's input.