Questions about Ritalin & Adderall | ADHD Information

My psychiatrist switched me to Concerta as of yesterday and so far I'm loving it.  Much smoother!  I do wish it was a tad longer acting but she told me I can take a Ritalin after it wears off if I feel the need.  Thanks for all the advice! I feel a bit lost.  Perhaps someone here can offer their 2 cents?

I'm a 30 year old woman who was just diagnosed with Inattentive ADD.  I suffer from anxiety and 10 years ago I had a grand mal seizure, so I'm scared of taking medication that may increase anxiety and/or lower the seizure threshold.  Nevertheless, my psychiatrist prescribed me Ritalin and Adderall for a trial period to see which one does the trick.

Ritalin (20mg, 2-3 times per day) relaxed and focused me BUT it also made me sweat like crazy (along with milder side effects) so she told me to switch to Adderall (20mg, 2-3 times per day).  The first dose was obviously too high so I cut the pills in half but it makes me more sensitive to outside stimulus and therefore, more irritable than ever.

She gave me the impression that those were my only medication options but I see that's not the case.  Should I ask for something else entirely or should I cut the Ritalin in half and try it again?  My pharmacist told me that the sweating wasn't normal (which is why I phoned my psychiatrist) but I don't know if it's something I should be concerned about or not... there are many, many options. A lot of adults seem to do well on Concerta, or Adderall XR. both are extended release and IMO the extended releases seem to be smoother. The only thing I can see is that they may not give you as much coverage. Concerta is a 12 hour med, fine for most children, but may not last long enough for an adult. To answer your question Joy, she is indeed a psychiatrist and actually has ADD herself!  Now that I'm a little more educated on the meds, it does seem like an awfully high dose to start out with.  I ended up going back to the Ritalin today (cut in half) and the sweating is barely noticeable.  Whew.  I had been taking Clonazepam throughout the day for anxiety but since I started the stimulants, I found that I only need to take one at night...so I must be headed in the right direction!  So I guess the next step is trying an extended release Methylphenidate.  I tend to be on the paranoid side so I'll likely opt for a drug that's been on the market for a while...or does it even matter since the main ingredient is the same?  Oh the hours of googling ahead of me! Adderall and Ritalin are both in the stimulant "family"--others here have all the fine details of those differences memorized and will offer more I'm sure.  Wow, your Doc suggesting that you take up to three 20 mg Adderall per day starting out seems really high to me!  I think you did the correct thing to cut back, and slowly work up.  Adderall does trigger some anxiety in me from time to time --which I never had before-- but there's a lot more going on in my life right now anyway sorting all this neuro stuff out... I have some lorazepam handy if I do fall into feeling anxious and that does the trick for me...so far!Hi Panic,

Is your doctor a psychiatrist?  Doesn't sound like it.  You might want to go that route since they know the meds and dosages much better (not all, but in general).  The same family can act very different depending on how it goes into the body, so don't give up.

Good luck!
Thanks Diane.  After looking through my notes, I realized that once I decided which one did the trick that we would then discuss the longer acting medications.  So as I now understand it, these are the only two families of stimulants.  Correct me if I'm wrong. Just to put in my 2cents, Focalin XR is a cleaner form of Ritalin and longer acting. You only need to take 1/2 the dosage compared to the Ritalin and it has a lower side effect profile. Same thing though, they just take out the most active ingrediant and use that. Alot of people swear by it. Some hate it. Everyone is different.I agree that those seem like high starting dosages.

My dr started me out with 10 mg adderall IR twice a day and said to cut it in
half if it seemed like too much.

I would suggest trying something like that... 5 or 10 mg of adderall twice a
day. See how that goes.

But yes, there are so many options. When I first started on Adderall XR she prescribed me 20 mg to start. A week went by and I was waking up between 1 and 3 am bounicing off the walls. I took my dose then and went back to sleep. But then the next night same problem. So I called her and asked to add a second dose of med which might extend my dose a couple of hours. She agreed and added adderall 10 mg in the pm before 6pm. When I remembered to take it I was fine all day and night. But with my work I am not able to take meds on a time schedule. So she asked if I wanted to try Ritalin which I said I would try it and see and if it doesn't work would up the dose of the adderall. Anyhow I seem to be doing ok taking 20mg of Ritalin 3 times a day. I might see if I can up the dose a tad and see but I have to agree the starting dose you were prescribed was a bit high. Smart thinking to cut it in half. Good luck with your trial. Im off to google some too

JoshGrobanFan