Mental Health Stimulants for ADHD causing anxiety

[MadAboutSafrole]

Hi all, I have undiagnosed possible ADHD, but in any case I certainly benefit from the stimulants talked about here in keeping my life in order. I've tried a fair few of the research chemical stimulants (eg 3FPM, 4MPH) and non-controlled pharmaceuticals (eg modafinil, wellbutrin) with varying levels of success. However one issue I consistently have is that the effect of the stimulant starts relatively quickly, say within 30 minutes with oral dosing, there is a creeping anxiety that then sneaks up a few hours later. The stimulant is still working well at this point, so I don't think it's a comedown issue, and the effect occurs well within the normal expected duration of the substance in question.

Is there a known general mechanism for anxiety with stimulants? Something that I could counteract, maybe even just with the right vitamin or supplement? Obviously there are other substances that specifically target anxiety, but (i) they're generally habit forming or at least have tolerance build-up, and (ii) they would cause sleepiness, presumably negating the original advantage of the stimulant I took.

Incidentally, 3FPM was probably the best for me in providing useful stimulation without unwanted side effects, but I hear horror stories from other people. It also seems hard to get in the UK now, on the clearnet at least.

 

[plumbus-nine]

Do you get physical (tachycardia, sweating, tremor etc) or mental anxiety? Did you check your pulse and pressure while trying the various drugs? In my experiences were amphetamines superior to methylphenidate in this regard and some of the research phenidates are quite anxiogenic. Isopropyl was the best (specially in combination with emoxypine which abolishes rebound and possibly toxicity) and ethyl the worst, on that I had panic attacks at just slightly over threshold dosage. 2-Fluoro(meth)amphetamine is a calm one and heard good things about 3-FPM but as you say it begins to get outlawed.

Probably you want to find a doc and get a legitimate script, depending on where you live, when you get legitimate and lasting benefits from stims, it should be achieveable. I just told them that I benefit from stims and want to stay legal, did a bunch of multiple choices and an interview, they fed it into the PC and came out with a script but I realize that I was lucky.

First you could try adding propranolol. This beta blocker also works, in opposition to the newer ones, also in the brain and if you have tachycardia (imo everything above resting bpm of 80), it does calm you down. Stimulants exacerbate tachycardia, it's also better for your heart to stay relaxed.

Then, dosage. You don't write about how much you take. Anxiety is common when stims are dosed too high and sometimes the therapeutic window is tiny. My bet is that with an amphetamine or Vyvanse and propranolol you'll feel better.

Last resort would be Xanax. This needs to be carefully thought because it can mean a long term dependency and by all means try other things first but the doc told me he gives Xanax retard to quite a few people as companion to methylphenidate.

Good luck

 

[Jabberwocky]

I’d strongly suggest getting a proper assessment by an ADHD specialist psychiatrist. He or she would then roll you through the legitimates treatments one at a time to see where you get beset effects and least side effects.

As for your anxiety, it depends a bit on whether it is a psychological or s purely physical anxiety. That is, do the stims start you ruminating on certain ideas that cause you distress if you think about them. Ot is it just tachycardia, sweat, and blood pressure increases?

If it’s the former you may have a different or co-morbid condition rather than just ADHD. If it’s the latter it might be a question of dosage and the right stim. I reacted badly to methylphenidate and got jittery but found dex really smooth and anti-anxiety.

When I was taking 4 doses of dex a day with the last one at about 5 pm i found it hard to relax and sleep so my doctor added Clonidine in the evenings, Clonidine reduces blood pressure and will lower anxiety and make you sleepy - but it also relieves many ADHD symptoms for some people as a stand alone treatment. So it might be better than Xanax or propanolol which may work as described above but are not a recommended part of ADHD treatment in most countries with advanced medical systems.

 

[AlphaMethylPhenyl]

Honestly, imo, the negatives begin to overtake the benefits in aggregate if used every day. I think that breaks are crucial to stimulants actually working. It could be just one day a month even, but it will sure as heck be a restful one. It's worth it. Otherwise, in my case, I'd say that taking Xanax to reduce the anxiety is a really bad idea. Xanax can carry an extreme amount of dependency. Being honest is the best thing you can do. Keep striving!