Dexedrine & Ritalin work well together | ADHD Information

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Hey everyone,

This is my first post on this forum.

I am an adult with ADD and was diagnosed in 1994 or '95. I was first put on Dexedrine which worked ok for me. Then we tried Ritalin but it didn't seem to work as well but it was less of a roller coaster because you could get it in SR (sustained release) format.

I read somewhere that Dexedrine and Ritalin act a little differently. The article said that one helps you produce more dopamine and the other apparently works by helping you make better use of available dopamine but doesn't help you make more. I forget now which drug was supposed to do what. This may be an over simplification but suffice it to say the two drugs work in different ways.

Upon reading this I postulated that taking the two medications in combination with one another might work much better than taking either of them on their own. I had some 5 mg Dexedrines leftover from an old prescription so I took one with a Ritalin SR 20. Right off the bat I noticed a HUGE difference.

The two drugs definately worked better for me when taken together than either of them did on their own. So for a week I kept taking the two together but I didn't tell anyone what I was doing. I wanted to see if anyone noticed a difference. After just 2 or 3 days two people who are very close to me and know me very well commented that they had noticed a very positive difference in how I was functioning and acting over the last few days. For me, the affect of being on the two meds together was night and day different than taking either of them by themselves, especially Ritalin. The unsolicited and independent feedback I got from two people who were very familiar with me but didn't know I had "tweaked" my meds a little, was just the proof in the pudding.

I discussed the matter with my Doctor and she didn't see any reason why I shouldn't take the two meds together so for the last 8 or 9 years that's what I've been doing. I've been on the same dosages the entire time and the regimen has continued to work extremely well for me. I highly recommend that anyone who takes either of those drugs or have children who take either of them speak to their Doctor about doing a little experiment to see if the combining the two meds will will work as well for you or your child as it did for me.

If people are interested I will post the dosages I took of each med and at what times I took them. My routine and doseages may not be appropriate for everyone but it will at least give you something to work with and use as a guideline.

-Roj-

(Calgary, AB, Canada)

-Roj-38425.7703703704

I would definietly be interested...  I am now on Ritalin but it doesn't last long and I still feel like I need another 25% or something.  I have been doing some research on different meds and I keep going back to Dexedrine as a potential, but don't want to go off the Rit...  because it does work wonders. 

Glad you found the perfect solution!  The more info I have to make a case to my doc in 2 weeks the better!

My Danger bell is ringing.

I appreciate that this combo might work for Roj. For anybody reading his formula, I have to add my two cents.

Roj is a mature adult who can properly monitor from the inside of his head the occurences caused by these drugs. I caution parents experimenting with children.

Ritalin and Dexedrine are two of the strongest forms of stimulant used to treat AD/HD, and as such two of the most dangerous. Increased blood pressure, anxiety and twitching is closely monitored when taking either drug, I can only imagine the possible combination of the two.

BE CAREFUL. Little hearts can only take so much. Both of these drugs (Dex in particular) are highly addictive and cause withdrawal when they wear off.

My experiences taking the two led to a lot of mood swings, depression and dependance.
While I don't necessarily recommend it, I have also tried using a couple of meds together and found that it worked quite well...Although I only did it a few times and haven't done so in a long time. I mixed concerta and adderall/adderall xr. The smart thing would definitely be to talk to a physician before trying any such thing!

Jenny was recently diagnosed with ADHD and had no improvement on her starting dose of Concerta 18. As per AAP guidelines, the dose was slowly increased, first to 27, then 36 and finally 54mg. At the higher dose, she still couldn't pay attention and began having headaches and trouble sleeping. She was changed to Adderall XR and had the same problems. She was finally changed to Strattera and did great.

In cases like this, it is important to remember than only about 80% of kids will respond to a stimulant. Strattera, a non-stimulant medication, may be a good choice for these children in whom stimulants don't work or cause too many side effects.

[QUOTE=shellr]I wonder if the combination of Dexedrine and Conceta might be okay to try? Maybe 1 18 mg. Concerta and a 1/2 of  or whole 5mg. dexedrine.  I was on Adderall RX for a month when it was banned.  That drug was a miracle to me and I'm not getting the same results from anything else. Right now I am just taking dextetrine, about 3x5mg a day.  [/QUOTE]

I wonder if the combination of Dexedrine and Conceta might be okay to try? Maybe 1 18 mg. Concerta and a 1/2 of  or whole 5mg. dexedrine.  I was on Adderall RX for a month when it was banned.  That drug was a miracle to me and I'm not getting the same results from anything else. Right now I am just taking dextetrine, about 3x5mg a day.