Adult ADHD Advice

dbas wrote: »

I lasted around 3 days on the strattera. It made me feel really anxious in a physical way. I felt these horrible waves passing through my head which is really hard to explain properly but worried me enough to not take the remaining drugs. Think i went on concerta then which i lasted on for a few months. Started on ritalin afterwards and took those for over 6 months but I stopped as they effected my sleep too much. I don't take anything now bar cod liver oil and vitamin B. I use bose noise cancelling headphones in work as they help me concentrate in a noisy office. I have been thinking of trying out the ritalin again though

Did you find all the stims gave you anxiety? I have the same problem with sleep and I think it just drains you after awhile without noticing.

I suffer from Anxiety myself and therefore I am on Lexapro with the Ritalin LA.

Strattera can actual treat anxiety also so was thinking of going back for an appointment to request a change.

It can take 2 - 8 weeks to take affect same as many SSRI / SNRI. The side effects of those can be very nasty the first few weeks also so I am hoping most of the horror stories online are due to people trying for a few days and then stopping.

Either this or going from Ritalin LA to Concerta in the hope it causes less anxiety but thats probably a long short.

I know of someone on this thread being treated with Vyvanse which is amphétamine based which I would love to try, but I think it would be difficult to get a prescription for that in Ireland, although apparently possible.

DrWu wrote: »

Hi guys, just a word of caution.

I was checking out counsellors on the website of Ireland's leading counselling body and was shocked to see so many counsellors listing ADHD as something the specialize in but with no specialized training.

Worse still, I contacted one such counsellor and asked her about ADHD and her lack of knowledge (even at the most basic level) was staggering. Another counsellor I spoke to (who also lists ADHD therapy in her bio) had no knowledge of adult ADHD and viewed the condition as a "motivational" problem.

Please be careful. The wrong kind of counselling can do more damage than no counselling. If in doubt, attend a psychologist.

This is part of the reason I'm iffy about CBT. I'm definitely willing to give it a try but the requirements for someone to call themselves a counsellor or psychotherapist are quiet low. Some will have BAs or PhDs but I don't think you need them to say you're a counsellor, so there's probably a lot of dodgy ones out there.

DrWu wrote: »

viewed the condition as a "motivational" problem

Alert HADD, they can have the person in question taken off the list

DrWu wrote: »

It's a profession in disarray - in this country at least. I got out of it in 2017 and things have got worse since then. The vast majority are woefully underqualified (IACP require only a diploma) and most of the courses out there have zero training in working with conditions like ADHD, eating disorders (which counsellors shouldn't be dealing with on their own anyway!), Bipolar, OCD, etc, etc.

CBT is seen as a cure all within counselling and is more importantly an "easy" modality to work within - i.e. it takes little emotional/mental strain on the counsellor. However I question it's long term benefits for adults with ADHD. It may be able to help out with some of the secondary symptoms of ADHD (low self-esteem, poor self-image etc) but beware of counsellors making grandiose claims!

Please, please please quiz your counsellor about ADHD. Test them if you have to. If they don't know what they're talking about DO NOT go to them. And better still make this known to CORU (no point telling the professional body they are accredited with as nothing will be done).

I'd actually go further and suggest that people avoid counsellors entirely regarding ADHD. The vast majority of counsellors just don't have the education or training to deal with a serious neurodevelopmental condition such as ADHD and are likely to do more harm then good in my opinion. It's vital to get help from someone who understands the condition.

The vast majority of psychologists in Ireland have little to no knowledge of ADHD either. Unfortunately, I think there's really only a very small number of psychologists that have adequate training in this area.

I share your skepticism about the benefits of CBT in ADHD to some extent. However there is a great deal of evidence now for it's efficacy which is difficult to argue with. Multiple randomised trials have shown this and the benefits were maintained at follow up months later. The trouble is that all the evidence of benefit is for a limited number of CBT programs developed specifically for adult ADHD. I suspect very few psychologists in Ireland are even aware of those programs, never mind providing them.

So, Strattera is sh*te. I don't mean that it doesn't work for symptoms because it's too early to tell but the side effects are fecking annoying. Even if it improves my concentration in the long term, I don't see the point if I'm half asleep all the time. I know it can take as much as a couple months to work properly but I feel like I'll be counting down the days until it's appropriate for me to ask to try another medication.

Pique wrote: »

I'm 3 days in. First day I felt practically stoned till lunch, but took them on an empty stomach. Had a kinda headache and felt woozy for 4-5 hours. After that I was still in slow motion. Second day more of the same. I actually wanted to sleep after taking it. today was different. Had healthy breakfast (normally don't have breakfast) of fruit, yoghurt and a coffee before taking it and felt a lot better. Based off that, I'm thinking not to take on an empty stomach, at least for me. This is only the 18mg though, and I'm supposed to ramp up to 80mg so who knows what the incremental jumps will be like. I'll probably need a steak for breakfast on 80mg!!

Yeah, I read to try and take it with a large breakfast. Been trying to eat as much as I can with it but it's destroyed my appetite. Think today just knocked me because it's my first day upping from 18 to 25 mg. Not looking forward to another increase! I'm going up to 80 mg too.

My appetite disappeared on day 1. Will try to force some Flahavans in tomorrow. It's not a bad idea. Have been going for bran flakes since... well, around day 4-5 the constipation symptoms reared their ugly head. For a smoker with a caffeine addiction, I'm not used to it at all! I didn't actually get the stoned feeling the first couple days until around 6pm. Has been getting worse as time goes on. Feel like my eyeballs are floating half the time. Not a massive drinker but I know I can't touch the stuff now because I'm light-headed enough as is.

Sorry! Meds aren't the worst I've taken. If the concentration improves in a couple weeks I can live with the side effects, so they're not too bad. I'd just say that some spicy food in your future might not be a bad idea! I might start experimenting with taking them at a different time of day eventually if the tiredness doesn't go away. I've read some stuff about people having a better time with taking them at night.

MrSzyslak wrote: »

Cheers guys - be helpful if ye could keep updating here regarding the Strattera as its a good alternative to stimulant medications and I'm very interested in switching over.

Best of luck with it :-)

I'm happy to give updates but there isn't much to tell at this point. I'm on my last day of 25 mg before I switch to 40 mg. I'll be up to 80 mg by the end of the month. I'm not getting much of a bang off the meds as of yet. Still have the tiredness and dizziness during the day but it's gotten a little bit better. The other symptoms like low appetite and constipation have mostly sorted themselves out. I've noticed I'm a bit more irritable. Nothing extreme but if someone gets in my way or if it's too noisy, I'm more prone to getting a bit angry about that. I'm basically a bit more snappy. Unless I see a marked improvement by the start of next month, I can't see myself staying on the meds. So far, they're more of a hindrance with no improvement in concentration and motivation.

To be honest, I think the Strattera is making me worse. I'm tempted to go back and ask to switch to Ritalin already. I just haven't because I want to at least been seen to give Strattera a shot. It's early days still so I'm open to the possibility that I might see an improvement in another week or two. Strattera is just making my brain fog worse. I keep losing things more often than I did before and my motivation is worse because I'm more tired than I used to be. It's not like the medication has truly awful side effects but I don't think it's for me at all. I'm mostly just continuing to take it because I know that it would be a fight to get a doctor to switch to Ritalin so I might as well keep trying Strattera in the meantime.

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

The effect of the meds, even the medium does of Conserta and Ritalin I'm on is quite subtle. I've dabbled in taking larger does of Ritalin and all it did was keep me up all night.

I find motivation a real problem.

Are you taking omega 3 fish oil and vitamin B
http://untappedbrilliance.com/cod-liver-oil-vs-omega-3-fish-oil/

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

Thanks dbas, great link also - I'll try adding these in.

definitely worth adding it in. I've tried the three main meds and they dont work for me. The best omega 3 i can afford ( it can be surprisingly expensive- just wait for the holland and barrett sales) does help me, especially around 1-2 hours after I've taken it.
Now, if only I could remember to take it every day lol.
And round and round we go

http://www.drhallowell.com/add-adhd/add-adhd-treatment/ is another good source

Seanachai wrote: »

It's a pity that the substance that a lot of ADD/ADHD patients find to be effective where other medications don't work has such stigma attached to it. People have reported that Desoxyn which is pharmaceutical methamphetamine is much more effective than Ritalin, Strattera etc with less side effects.

It is prescribed for narcolepsy also, but I'm not sure if it's even prescribed for that in Ireland.

https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/5w9m4v/after_one_week_of_desoxyn/

https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/62ia6r/i_was_recently_prescribed_desoxyn/

I'd never even heard of this medication before. It is a crying shame that we don't have more medication options over here. I understand why but it's still a shame. I do think it's funny that there's a Teva plant in my town and they're one of the biggest manufacturers of generic Adderall as well as the original manufacturers, Shire, having their HQ in Ireland. I've wondered if any of these meds are manufactured in Ireland but not allowed to be sold. I'd be mighty annoyed if we did but I wouldn't be surprised.

Generics should be available. In fact, I thought the HSE switched everything to generics a while back. I've only just realised that my Strattera isn't generic. A quick google says that generics are available in the US. Maybe it's not available here yet? Teva seems to make generic Ritalin though, which is the most common provider of generic medication in Ireland, so far as I've seen. I'd say they'd probably have that available here. No hope of Adderall being prescribed here but there's also Concerta and Vyvanse. I don't know much about them though.

From r/ADHD a few people have posted recently that Strattera prices are a bit steep. Probably less so for Irish people compared to Americans but I'd assume if it's expensive there, then it'll be expensive here too. Seems that stimulants aren't as expensive in the states so maybe that carries over to here too.

Out of curiousity, is that cost for Strattera with a drug payment scheme card?

MrSzyslak wrote: »

Cheers sounds promising from my initial research.

Can Desoxyn it be got in Ireland?

Not a hope of getting it here. Though therapeutic, it's still a methamphetamine which is highly illegal here. From the wiki page about legal status of methamphetamine, it seems that it's prescribed on a federal level in America. Basically, the same deal as weed. It's up to whatever state you live in and it's probably a last resort after the usually American ADHD meds.