HOLY CRAP | ADHD Information
Yesterday, I went to my college and got readmitted to the 2 classes I had been dropped from 2 weeks ago for non-payment. I got out of work and really really wanted to head straight to the Gym before it was crowded. The "me" of last week did just that. Yesterday, I did the boring task of standing in line and showing the cashier the forms showing my company would pay for the classes. It took all of 25 minutes. I wouldnt of done that till the day classes started in the past. I also didnt want to go shopping after I got out of the gym. I needed to buy real food. I had crap in the house that I have been told not to eat( foodbank to be gifted because I can actually take the time to do it!). I went to the store. I don't know if folks can relate but that is not me. I don't do the mundane tasks at work till bothered too, I don't take care of regular everyday life stuff till I am forced too, I don't put things away at work when I am done.... but, I have been for 2 days lol. That may seem ridiculous but I NEVER did that stuff.
This AM I was a bit to talkative at work and it took me a bit to settle in and i had to tell myself to slow down( in my thinking) several times. I caught myself wandering from what I was doing a bit. I stopped several times and had to think what I was doing. I think that in itself was different. I don't normally stop and think what I am doing when i get off track i just follow what off tracked me to the next crossroads of thought. Is this the experience the rest of you had been you began treatment? I can't get over the signifigance of the change. I know my medication schedule neeeds work but for about 4ish hours after I take 10mg of ritalin it really seems to effect my disorder in a very positive manner.
seriously ... it is totally amazing. i'm 34 wish that i would have done this many, many years ago.
my doctor told me that i'd ultimatley go up to 20MG twice a day. is that a normal dose?
I started Ritalin 10 MG two days ago and am having very similar experience. I'm also worried that it's a placibo thing.
Does anyone know how long it takes for your body to see a response (at least from a medical practioners standpoint)?
I've also heard dosage is related to weight. Can you tell me how much you weigh?
I'm having trouble believing this is med is this real ... really really good.
Ritialin doesnt need ot work up in your bloodstream lik eother types of medication my dr told me that for my son we would see the difference moments later he took it.
Bobel-you will feel it wear off atleastmy son use to come off and crash after his dose wore off..this happened a few weeks and then wore off (he is body got use to it wearing off) of course he is 6 so it is hard for him to understand the rebound effect so it was hard for him to adjust the first few weeks and then the rebounds went away.
The response is immediate accordiong to my DR. There is no titration period. THat is why we went with it over Straterra. I have had AFIB in the past so heart rythm changes were/are a concern. With the Straterra if I got it I'd be stuck till it cycled out of me in days...With the Ritalin if I am sensitive to it we can stop right away. I took my second dose at 2:10 and feel it already. The drug is a wonder drug for ADHD. It is simply amazing how much calmer my thoughts are 40 minutes later and as a result more organized and focused. It's too bad I didnt have this as a kid but I so looking forward to getting the doasage timing sown so most of my days are like now not the last 43 yrs of wac a mole thinkingI don't think it's effectiveness is related to weight necessarily. There are two reasons I think this.
The first is that my daugher (half my size) takes 1.5 times as much Ritalin as I do. (I take 10mg 3 times a day. She takes 15mg.) We used to take the same amount but she's had to increase hers over time.
Now, I know that could be due to the differences in our conditions, but the second reason I think it's unrelated to your weight is that my weight has varied by about 50 lbs (185 up to 235 and back to around 210) during the years I've been taking Ritalin, and I've never changed my dose or noticed a change in its effectiveness.
I also think each person's reaction is different to Ritalin. From the first time I took it, I could feel the effect after 20 minutes (exactly! Not 18 mins, not 21 mins!) and it lasts 4 hours. I don't have a big let down after either.
I think everyone should experiment to learn how it affects them. Knowing how it works on me, I'm in much greater control. I can take a pill early if I don't want it to wear off, or I can delay it if I'm not doing anything that requires concentration now but will be later, for example. My doctor recommended this type of experimentation with times, before meals, after meals, etc. until I found what works for me.
As for the dosage, I wouldn't take any more than I need. If you've noticed the results already, maybe that's all you need. Why take more than you need to get what you want out of life?
Another super thread. Excellent info. Thanks.
It is very good of you to share all this Bobel. At least for me it has been very good.
I love your 'wack-a-mole' thoughts. I am going to have to use that one. LOL That was the way that ritilin was great for me as well. The first day I took the stuff, I remember wanting to organize every damn thing in my house and shop. And I did....and it did not hurt. I had organized thoughts, not 'streaming through space' thoughts....it was bloody wonderful.
WiteKnite, good stuff.
I see the Dr next Monday and will tlak to him. yesterday i had a "dead zone" from 11ish till 230ish. It's happening today too. If it's a pattern then maybe i need a liitle more middya to keep blood serum levels high enough to get an effect all day. Regardless, I will tlak to the Dr. and follow the "plan" till then.When I started medication I told one close friend at work. His reaction had pretty much been "you are just figuiring that out?". Yesterday, he looked at my clean work space with no que of almost finished projects and said who are you and what did you with to Bob? I feel so centered and so good. I was prejudiced against Psch Drs my whole life because of traumatic experiences in group therapy with my severely mentally ill brother in the 60s/ early 70s and their abject failure to help him...I am so glad I got past that and asked for help
I need to get some happy medium with my meds. But with the gas story, sometimes they don't quick release. My gandfather owns one and a man drove off with the nozzle in the tank. It didn't quick disconnect like it was supposed to and ended up almost yanking the pump out of the ground. It was messy and the insurance company had to be called. The poor guy who did it felt so bad.Now what I originally had to say. Congrats BOBEL, I hope I can be that lucky. Even on my meds my mind race a mile a minute. Thats not even an accurate statement, lets just say a particle accelerator has got nothing on me.Good to hear... I recently went through the same thing. You now feel like the smart dude in class
I went and got gas yesterday. I paid put the Nozzle in then reached for some snow for my windshield since I was out of wiper fluid. I stopped turned around and spent the 2 minutes in the LINE in the gas station to get fluid. I sometimes walk in the grocery store and leave if there are lines more than 2 or 3 people deep at registers. I walked out feeling good, saw my gas was finished pumping continued to the hood of my car and added the fluid. A simple task like that felt good to do( I know some amy thingk that nuts) because I didnt put it off to avoid a line . I then got into the car pulled out and heard a crash. It was the nozzle ripping out of my gas tank. I stooped walked back and put it back on the pump. I guess I am not cured. When i saw the gas was pumped I should of stopped and taken care of it. I have done this more than twice less than a dozen times so have endured enough humilation behind it that my gas strategy is to either pay at the pump or walk in and prepay and keep my hand on the nozzle. I was trying to be constructive but I still broke the routine.
At least this time the hose didnt rip off the pump and no one was yelling at me to stop while waving their hands at me as I got ready to pull into traffic thinking of 4 other things and laughing at the silly man waving his hands LALALALA. Oh, the good thing is if you ever do it and go in and tell they may look at you like you are retarded but they dont want money for the broken line and they are quick release and only leak the gas in the hose. you won't be the first person to do it I am sure I wasnt...hopefully it will be my last time for a long time
I'm done adding to this... It's been 4 days and I feel like I have been trying to function my whole life with the sun in my eyes and the DR gave me some Raybans( Ritalin) I could write for an hour on the behavior changes and calming of thought I have experienced...I already feel better about my life just from the bit a self created crap I have cut out in 4 days. It's been great to actually have a little chemical push that allows me to do the things I need to do when they need to be done not when my life is on fire. Hell, I am spelling and typing far better which I am sure has to do with me slowing down a smidge.
Inspirational.I started on ritalin today. God, I hope this isnt some placebo effect the changes in my thinking have been dramatic and it's only been 3 hours. It's like there isnt a stampede of thoughts anymore. I don't mean crazy stuff just stuff I need to do or am thinking about whipping in and out of focus. I am at me desk mt leg iant shaling constantly, it did start a few times though. I remebered to re order checks form my credit Union something I have been forgetting to take care of for 3 weeks. I finished 20 minutes worth of follow up work that allowed me to process a weeks worth of work out of my area. The Dr. said for my weight I was on the a very low dose and would probably need but felt with my other health history it was best to go slow.
I can't remeber the last time I felt so hjopeful for the future.
If the low dose is working that maybe enough for now...maybe later you may need a higher dose. Your leg shaking (i do it all the time) my husband says going somewhere... it can also flare up out of habit
Great news I am so happy for you!!!!
I took 10 mg at 530 Am It's petering out( the tedium of my job is rising) and I napped through my Lunch( 11-1130) which isnt that unusual . The DR wants me to wait till 230 to take the second dose. I will wait because I am dreadfully scared of abuse( If I abuse it it's dead to me as an aid ) but am already thinking I may need a little higher dose or one in between I am not sure how it works and will talk to the DR. I am sure 10 mg of ritalin was responsible for the easiest, most productive morning I have had at work in ages. My head is still not going 200 mi/Ki an hr though
. As I understand it 10mg at a clip is pretty much the lowest possible therapuetic dose for a grown man so maybe I will need a little more but. it had an effect at that dose. Knowing I am going to have a medication that blunts the symptoms of my disorder once dosage is set feels like winning the lottery.
What a great month for me. I faced something i knew I had but was unwilling to get help for because I didnt really think anything would help. I got a diagnosis and found a medication that is working albeit their are a few wrinkles to work out still. The Dr says my life will be different in a month if this works...I believe him a bit more today than last night. Thanks for listening to my rambling