If I had read all the side effects before I had started Stratterra, I would never have taken it. It would have scared the heck out of me. Personally, the only bad side effect I had was that it made me incredibly sleepy. It was ok for me. I'm not on it anymore, doc changed me to Adderall. For me, a better choice.
It made you very angry, the way you described it sounds an aweful a[QUOTE=cuda503]Yes, this is the 1st medication I'm trying for ADHD.
My doctor said he said this is the best choice for me because of the
ADHD and anxiety. He didn't want to put me on a stimulant med.[/QUOTE]
You know, the anxiety and someones reaction varies from person to person. I have struggled with anxiety for over 10+ years, with anti-depressants giving me a band-aid effect for my anxiety (helping a little, but never relief), and I tried many. I have panic attacks so I was worried about stimulants. My doctor said many people have co-morbid anxiety and once the ADHD is under control, the anxiety is as well. Sometimes though stimulants do aggravate anxiety and make it worse. My doctor wanted me try the Ritalin family of drugs first to see if helped my anxiety. To my surprise it did (I take Concerta). My anxiety is more under control now then it has ever been.
Yet I tried Adderall and my anxiety went completely out of control. It was like having an all day panic attack. Anyway, my point is, it really varies from person to person, and from medicine to medicine. It's all trial and error. Try things out, if it doesn't work, move to something else. Ask your doctor for samples of Strattera. It's not a controlled substance and doctors can get samples of it. That is one positive thing about Strattera :)
Please keep in mind too that the percentage of people on ADHD forums is extremely small compared the number of people that are actually on ADHD meds. So you aren't hearing about the broad spectrum of experiences on medication. I also think you are more likely to hear of the bad experiences from meds on the internet since people generally come to forums looking for help because things aren't going great. You just don't hear as much about good experiences, but people do have them. Also keep in mind that while one medication can be heaven sent for one person, it may be absolutely terrible for the next person. You just never know until you try them.
Good luck!
Strattera was the first medication I tried for my ADHD. Other than the nausea in the morning, I had few side effects, but I do remember when I start it, I have a few evenings where I am tired when coming off of the morning dose. I take 80mg per day, so about average.
I changed insurance back in January and the new insurance stated that I had to try another medication before they would pay for my strattera. I was put on dexopedrine, (sp? name may be off a bit, but I've seen it in other threads...)
Wow, I had horrible heart palpatations, panic attacks, migraines, almost passed out a couple times... I took it for three days, that was as much as I could stand. I went into the doctor's again and this time, saw someone who had treated me in the past. She was alarmed to see someone like me, a past stroke victim, on stimulants and called the insurance company immediately to get me back on strattera.
For me it's the only thing I feel safe using. I went to my neurologist after the incident and he was furious with the insurance company for making decisions about what medications a patient should be on when a doctor has prescribed another, at times like for me, for a very, very good reason.
DT
I've been trying Strattera for about a week now. It's the first medication I've been on for my ADHD. I did four days of 25mg and am now in the middle of my 40mg week, which is to be followed by two weeks of 80mg (trial month). At 25, I was still pretty spacey and impulsive, and between then and now, the drowsiness side effect has gone way up. I slept 11 hours last night, took a light two-hour nap not long after waking up, and just woke up from yet another nap of about 2-3 hours. My boyfriend is quite worried about me; I'm not depressed or anything, I'm just very very sleepy all the time.Cuda,
Straterra is also the first thing I tried, that was about a year and a half ago.
First, let me tell you how it worked for me: I started off at 25mg a day and gradually was bumped up to 125mg daily in 25mg increments. At the lower doses, it helped a lot with my social interactions. I was able to relate with people more than I ever have in my entire life. The effects increased up until I was at 75 mg a day at which point the benifits leveled out and did not increase.
As for the core ADD symptoms (attention, procrastination, etc) I noticed a differance for the first couple of weeks but it gradually wore off. Eventually it was no help at all, excpet for the social aspects which it worked wonders for.
After about 3 months I stopped taking Straterra due to the side effects. At lower doses it wasn't so bad. When I first started taking it, I had the standard anti-depressant symptoms: upset stomach and nausea, headache, extreme tiredness, and some pretty bad consitpation as the medication kicked in . After 2 or 3 days I got used to the medication and the side effects disapeared until I increased the dose. At that point the side effects kicked back in for another couple of days until I was once again used to the dosage.
Once I got to 100 and 125 mg a day, the side effects failed to disapear. I stuck with it for an entire month because I loved the way the drug worked for me but eventually the side effects outweighed the benifits and I discontinued use.
That was about a year ago and it has taken me that long to go back to the doctor and try something else (damn ADD!). I just started on Adderall yesterday. I am seriously considering combining the Adderall and the Straterra (at no more than 75mg daily) as I believe the Adderal will take care of the core ADD symptoms while the Straterra will allow me to better funciton socially.
My advice to you would be to start slowly on the Straterra and try to ride out any side effects you may experiance since they should go away once you are used to the medication. If at higher doses the side effects do not subside, I would consider dropping to a lower dose or switching to a differant or a combination of medications. Good luck!
hockeygoalie2938903.4386226852I did GREAT on Straterra. I had no side effects-I focused, no sexual effects, lost 10 pounds. After 3 years, I was taking the 80 mgs daily and my doc thought maybe I was building up a tolerance and switched me to adderall. It has been a disaster-so, I am weaning off of adderall and going back to Straterra. i have had a 3 month break from it and will try it again now. I can tell you honestly that it saved my marriage and I just did soooo much better on it. I can't think of any negative side effects that I had. Hope you find the right med for you. It will make all the difference in the world. It feels so good to feel good and think and remember and enjoy things!Wow...I thought strattera would be the drug for me. I've had add for my entire life, and I've finally decided to do something about it.
I started Strattera about 2 weeks ago. Two pills a day. I can't remember the dosage, but I think it was 20mg per dose.
The very first thing that I noticed with it was a feeling of fatigue. Not drowsy like Benedryl or a muscle relaxer, but just totally lacking energy. That said, I also noticed that I was considerably less impulsive...a MAJOR plus in my book. After the first full day, I had a feeling of increased iritability...little things might get me into a pissy mood. Not as bad as some have said, but it definitely put me in a bad mood.
The first night on Strattera was NOT FUN. I was unable to sleep peacefully. I had extremely vivid dreams, then would wake up. This happenned nearly every 2 hours in the night. I never could get into a deep sleep.
More of the same the next day. The second evening was when I discovered the dark side of Strattera when it came to sexuality. When I reached orgasm with my wife, the pain in my penis was overwhelming. Nearly enough to make me never want to reach climax again. I'm talking PAIN. Bad Pain.
Over the next few days, these side effects continued. After a week on the drug, having not gotten a single solid night of sleep, I stopped taking it. After 2 days all the side effects were gone. Sleep returned, energy returned, and love making wasn't painful any more.
My doctor has started me on a low dosage of Concerta. We'll see how that goes.