What does successful med feel like? | ADHD Information

I've just started meds and I am wondering what a success feels like. I am 40 and have accumulated a lot of bad habits and frankly don't know how I am going to measure the impact of my meds.
I have inattentive adhd and take Ritalin (now up to 30mg 2x) and still have trouble remembering the second dose, especially when I have a very non-structured day.

My 13 y.o. son has the same issue (which is how I came to my diagnosis) and with his Concerta, I can see a change. The teachers report a change too. I wish I had that structure to evaluate me.
Meds alone will not make you successful. Along with modifying your behavior, the meds will allow you to bring out your personal best. The meds clear the fog and allow you to make choices rather than act on impulse but you may make the wrong choices if you don't eliminate or modify your bad habits. Perhaps you should look into getting into counseling in combination with meds. That is the protocal that works best for ADHD and in your case, getting into counseling could help you with self discipline so that you can work on breaking your bad habits. Welcome to the board and please feel free to post questions and vent and if you need emotional support, thats what we are here forLet me ask this another way. I'm looking for an indicator that I am having effective medication levels so that I can bring out my personal best.

I am looking for what other's have found to be indicators that they have left the fog.
My son and I both have inattentive adhd. He just has 30 less years of bad habits and a constant system of grading. His teacher and I have noticed a difference in his behaviour and his ability to complete items. He comes home with notes in a planner now and has all his stuff that he needs to finish his work which is all I wanted him to learn this year. Next year we'll work on thinking more than 1 or 2 days ahead :).
I think I am getting somewhat better but then I've always been good at starting a self improvement plan. We'll see where I am next month.
Well this can be really hard to tell. I don't think it is something that
someone who hasn't taken ADHD medication can answer, however, it
does effect
everyone different. It seems like everyone has one type of medicine that
work best for them and hard part is always finding that. I have tried
almost every ADHD medicine it seems like(adderall, adderal xr, concerta,
ritalin, ritalin la, wellbutrin, straterra, focalin and focalin xr). I know some
people can tell a huge difference but I have not been able to see a huge
difference, well a black and white difference that is. I am quieter for one.
I think the way I have been able to tell the most is through the results and
other people. I will take a medication and look at my grades, how much i
have procrasinated, how much time it takes me to do my work etc. and
compare it to before the medicine. I will also ask my family and close
friends if they notice a difference and if so for better or worse. Sometimes
people seem to switch medicine a lot thinking the right one would make
this huge magical difference, but I've learned that it is not always like
that. musicfanatic39909.9204976852I am totally struggling with this.  I tried generic Ritalin SR for just over a week and while it did slow me down, it gave me such a headache and fatigue.  So, now I'm on 10mg of generic Adderall a day and it doesn't seem to do much.  It does make me a bit more calm but I want help with the impulsiveness.

I think I was expecting this huge change to just come over me with a single pill.  I was expecting "magic".  I know that my behaviors took a lifetime to develop and they can't be changed or fixed or altered with just one pill or even overnight.  I still have to work at them.  I think the medication is designed to ASSIST with behavior modification.  I think I'm on the right track with taking medication but I just have such ingrained behaviors - it will take some time.  I do like the slower pace the ritalin gave me.  I wasn't rushing through everything.  I can now actually SEE the mistakes I make.  I still am impulsive and don't always fix them but before, the mistakes came and went unseen.

Dear CanU,

There must be some daily tasks or settings or situations which can be particularly problematic -- where your ADHD traits are noticeable and predictable.  I suggest you monitor how you do with these tasks, settings or situations over the course of several weeks to a couple months.  Some changes are evident early on, other changes gradually settle in over time.

For example, I noticed the first day I started taking meds (Adderall), I packed up the car and took my daughter and our dog on a two-hour car drive to visit "Grammie and Grampy."   I couldn't believe the difference I felt the meds made in my attentiveness to driving!!  My eyes, remarkably, stayed fixed directly ahead of my car in the lane I was traveling in...no torqueing my head left or right to catch a glimpse of something or other on the side of the road, no lingering glances at signs or on-coming cars... all the usual distractions I'm used to.  Driving seemed so much simpler and easy on meds, simply by being able, without any extra effort, to keep my eyes and attention on what was directly in front of me!  Mind you, I have a pretty spotless dirving record, pretty good I thing for someone over 50. 

Another change (improvement) I immediately noticed: patience on the "home-front."  I found myself standing, listening to my wife's story about this or that and realizing that, were I not on meds, I'd have lost interest minutes earlier and would have found some way to dis-engage from the conversation or switch topics (with my dearth of tact, the switch succeeds at annoying my dear, ever-loving and patient wife.

Those were two immediate effects I noticed.  Later "blooming" changes I noticed, were, for example, my taking up reading books.  That didn't start to happen until I'd been taking medicine for a little over a year.  That delay is not surprising to me, seeing that I'd probably read all of three books cover-to-cover, total, in the past 25 years!   Talk about ingrained habits!!

I agree as others here have advised you, that the meds are not the panacea we all hoped they'd be when we first tried them.  Instead, they're an aid...a crutch so to speak, and we still have a lot of "rehab" work to do, along with taking the meds.  My doc pooh-poohed the idea of "maximizing" the med type and dosage "to bring out your personal best."  At first when he said this, I was quite disappointed.  But I've come to see the wisdom in not putting too much stock in seeking that "holy grail"...the best med for you with the optimum dosing.  It all changes and fluctuates anyway.... If I'm bummed out or having an anxious day, the ADHD meds seem to have absolutely no effect...other days, I get great help from the meds...some days (most of the days these days) I just take 'em and go on with life as usual--unconscious of any specific effect the medicine is having but knowing, based on the years I've been usiing it, that life is better with than without.  that's good enough for me...

I've been on generic Adderall for about two weeks and I guess I'm still a bit confused if it's working for me.  I mean, we went out of town this weekend and I still forgot something there.  But, my demeanor was more subdued.  I was less talkative than normal (but this could have been because I was around people I didn't know) and I was more patient with my photo-op (but not by much).  I still had to make a conscious effort to not say anything stupid or blurt out something or to interrupt.

I've noticed that it makes me drowsy a bit.  Saturday, we were doing a bit of walking and all I wanted to do was sit down.  Not like me. I've also found that if I really wanted to, I can push through the medication and do something impulsive.  I still have to make a whole hearted effort to not do something impulsive.  I have noticed that I'm more aware of any mistakes.  As I mentioned before, I used to just make them and not even know it.

I also want to say that even though the people I met this weekend were very nice and inquired about me and my life, I don't like talking about myself.  I used to thrive on the center of attention and now I don't like it.  I'm not sure why.
I have recently been diagnosed with ADHD and depression. Thank God, the insanity finally has a name and an explanation. I have been on Concerta and Lexapro for about (3) weeks. I am now taking 54 mg. of Concerta and 20mg. of Lexapro. I see a couple improvements, however, many of the symptoms still exist. My doctor says it is fast acting, but that it may take a few weeks to fully see the benefits. I, too, had high expectations regarding the medications miraculous abilities. And, I was hoping to be able to tell in black and white whether or not the medication was going to be successful. I realize, this too, is in and of itself a symptom of ADHD. I like instant gratification, I am sure you know what I mean. Unfortunately, in reality that is rarely a guarantee. Looking at the big picture, I am confident that God, my doctors, and I are on the right track. The relief that comes from that is providing me more peace than I have felt in years. I am, also, greatful for this forum. It is nice to be able to connect with others who can relate. My prayers go out for each and every one of us. May grace and peace be ours.  Can only say John D, yes that is what I think too. I would try to look for changes in behaviour or the possiblity to change behaviour. I mean I still hyperfocus, spend too long on the computer, get distracted, act impulsively but I have more peace of mind to try to not do it. I also found myself early on listening to my children, something which I had never done before!
It isnt like a feeling it is just the behaviour world you live in changes. I did feel different too. my med is Strattera. At first 60 in one dose and now 40 twice a day.
This 'learning' thing is only coming up now, one year on.
At my wedding there was that bit in the bible that talks about a clashing symbol being empty and not loving. I think clashing symbols are the biblical reference to ADDers. I feel that over one year down the line I am learning to love - it is the bibles way of saying - live. I just feel now that I can listen to people, watch more attentatively, I am more in tune with my world. I am sure it was all the therapy I had before the meds which have helped me since I have had the meds.
Have to go to bed. Glad to be here.
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