Stimulants Ritalin - ADHD suffers found this helpful?

[Jumprope85]

Hi all,

I have suffered from pretty severe ADHD since I was about 8-10yrs old. Possibly brought on by the death of my dad or possibly just genetic. I doubt I’ll ever know. The real impulse control side of it which caused aggressive outbursts and severe bad behaviour at school have massively mellowed as I’ve grown up but the real genuine struggle to concentrate and get neccesary work done has remained throughout my life: I have adapted somewhat by getting a challenging, often exciting non-desk jib career however the inevitable important administrative tasks remain not to mention the important task for my family life like you know cleaning, organising meals, budgeting. No matter the detrimental consequences and no matter how hard I try to focus I still can’t seem to get a grip on this. Sadly it has caughtuo with me and my workand home life are suffering due to my failings. This isn’t a simple case of procrastination or lazyness.. I’ve worked hard since I was 16 and often complete 80+hrs work a week. My IQ is fairly high and I function in a high level government job of sortw. I’ve done well for myself considering but I can’t help feel this constant sense of under achievement because no matter my accomplishments I can’t get the simple basic things in orders: worse still mind seems to work at a billion thoughts a second and I can’t keep head nor tail of it at times.The inky ‘positive’ i experience is when I really get in the zone at work and become almost obsessive about finding the best possible way of getting the job done and completing it to a high standard. Sadly though I can’t Pick and choose when this happens and I’m equally as likely to randomly obsess over a new musician or a newacademic subject until I burnout.

Waffle aside I was never diagnosed as a kid in part due to my own stigma about sPeaking to a MH professional and also due to a lack of awareness of the consition. I have now asked for help from my GP and am on a 75,000yr waiting list for general adult psychiatry and I have no idea what, if any help they might offer.

I guess the Crux of my question is this: are there any fellow adult ADHD/ADD sufferers out there in a similar boat and or any who have tried medication such as adderall / ritalin / concerts and if so, how did you find that experience? Did the medicine help at all / how did it make you feel? ..: or did you find it to just be a big pharma marketing ploy and find no relief from your symptoms?

Sorry for the long windedpost.. this isn’t stuff I’ve ever spoken to anyone about so i ended up just kind of verbal diarrhoeaing as I wrote..

any information would be greatly appreciated as I’m trying to focus my thoughts and make a list of symptoms and weigh up pros and cons of treatment options I’d like to ask the psychiatrist about if and when I ever get to see them.

Cheers

JR

 

[negrogesic]

Yes methylphenidate is helpful. Amphetamines, like dextroamphetamine, are even more helpful, but the price tag is higher (meaning more side-effects, mood disturbances, changes in personality).

I would try less impactful alternatives first than prescription stimulants. They are less of a hassle and less harmful. Rhodiola + taurine + caffeine + l-theanine works pretty well, and frankly no less effective than a lowish dose of methylphenidate (with the difference being, you can purchase all these ingredients right now).

Certain nootropics, like phenylpiracetam (which is also readily available online) are similarly effective, without the same hassles of obtaining or doctors appointments, with lower side effects, and importantly, with much lower abuse potential. Things like this won't having you fastidiously reorganizing your sock drawer as 20mg of dexedrine might, but will improve concentration significantly without making you a intensely serious, hyperfocused and irritable person with little appetite. Try it first before amphetamines/ritalin.

 

[Jumprope85]

Rhodiola + taurine + caffeine + l-theanine works pretty well, and frankly no less effective than a lowish dose of methylphenidate (with the difference being, you can purchase all these ingredients right now).

Certain nootropics, like phenylpiracetam (which is also readily available online) are similarly effective, without the same hassles of obtaining or doctors appointments, with lower side effects, and importantly, with much lower abuse potential.

Thank you so so much. I imagine I must come across as a total moron to you but this is the sort of helpful and responsible information I need yet have never been able to get previously. If I could figure out how to upvote your reply I would but rest assured I’m extremely greatful for the time you took to read and digest my nonsensical rambling and then the time you took to still offer the advice.

May I ask regarding the combo of ingredients you described wether I am likely to find more info kn the search engine here or on google generally as to what amounts to use and how to administer?

Thanks again

JR

 

[FutureReference]

I have a friend who has ADHD worse than anybody I have ever known. When I met him over a decade ago, I thought he was an asshole because he would gaze in the distance and ignore me. He now runs one of the most successful landscaping companies in my State. Vyvanse changed his life and can do the same for you. Dextroamphetamine has a more complex method of metabolization than pure Amphetamine (Adderall) and is usually an alternative given to avoid abuse as Adderall is usually snorted. Vyvanse can be abused in this fashion with complications and less desired results.

I highly suggest seeing a Psychiatrist and explaining your issues with them. I truly believe any amp would be a Godsend for you. He was on Ritalin for maybe 2 years and never reached out and was more of a hermit. Some people have great results but from experience, as long as not abused, any form of amphetamine will change your life for the better and focus will never be an issue again. Best wishes

 

[Jumprope85]

Rhodiola + taurine + caffeine + l-theanine

Picked these all up today and tried them all together for first time. Are they supposed to make me sleepy??

 

[Jumprope85]

I highly suggest seeing a Psychiatrist and explaining your issues with them.

I’m on the three year waiting list for local adult psychiatry unit I’ve found a private ADHD specialist who charge £795 for initial consultation, assessment, diagnoses and treatment plan which isn’t cheap but in the scheme of some of the charges out there, it’s not too bad. They’re also happy to setup payment in instalments so I might give them a go

There is one other private place I found but they will apply for NHS funding for me because local waiting list exceeds 12 months. So I’m gonna give that a go - they said they will know In 3 days time. If I don’t get granted the nhs funding then I’ll have to go for the first place I mentioned and setup a short payment plan.

atleast that’s some progress I guess!

JR

 

[CFC]

Citicholine or Alpha GPC might also help.

Do they not have a specialist Adult ADHD Assessment and Treatment Service in your CCG area? That would be where I'd ask my GP to refer me to, rather than a general psychiatry service.

 

[negrogesic]

Picked these all up today and tried them all together for first time. Are they supposed to make me sleepy??

They can depending on the dose. What doses did you use?

 

[Jumprope85]

They can depending on the dose. What doses did you use?

500mg Rhodiola
600mg Taurine
200mg Caffeine
150mg L-Theanine

what doses should I aim for?

 

[negrogesic]

Yeah that seems good. Increase the 1000mg if it is tolerable and consider lowering the taurine and l-theanine if you are feeling tired. The biggest effect you'll notice from this mixture is increase in concentration.

If indeed you need a pharmaceutical agents, i would recommend phenylpiracetam as it can be obtained legally and easily online.

 

[Jumprope85]

Yeah that seems good. Increase the 1000mg if it is tolerable and consider lowering the taurine and l-theanine if you are feeling tired. The biggest effect you'll notice from this mixture is increase in concentration.

If indeed you need a pharmaceutical agents, i would recommend phenylpiracetam as it can be obtained legally and easily online.

sorry mate, increase which one to 1000mg?
I’m looking in to phenylpiracetam just now - will see how that goes when it gets delivered

 

[Jumprope85]

Citicholine

thanks for the tip, I’ll look in to those.
And sorry, my bad, it is an adult ADHD/ASD unit I’m referred to I’m just not great at the medial lingo. It’s this place

Improved mental health services for Merton residents

Trouble is, I was referred for the same thing in 2015.. was finally seen in mid 2016. Didn’t give me any of the tests or assessment forms. a woman spoke to me for10 mins and every time I described a symptom she had answer for it straight away.. for example,. I would say how I struggle to talk to people as when they talk to me, even if I’m interested my mind wanders in seconds and before I know it I’ve been in my own world for 5mins with a billion thoughts and suddenly realise I haven’t heard a single word the person said and I have to try and pretend like I have (never pull it off). Her reply was straight off the bag “oh well you’re probably just very intelligence and so unless its key information you switch off“

Maybe that is a bad example but literally every symptom that bothers me her immediate reply was that it was just my personality - I just don’t suffer fools which is why I shout at people at work. I just don’t like boring work which is why I never get my paperwork done.. anyway you get my drift. She just didn’t want to listen to me and I felt like she had made her mind up before I walked in. Start to finish it lasted 10 minutes and I got a letter discharging me the next morning saying “you do show some signs of adhd but not severe enough to warrant diagnose and treatment as you seem able to hold down employment”. And that was that.

now it’s got so much worse and I’m back on the list but now it’s 3yrs instead of 1uear, I don’t like being melodramatic but at this rate I won’t bloody be here in 3years. I’ll end up sacked, homeless and probably taking my chances with street drugs which is so so unlike me that the fact I would even half joke about it is a worry.

I don’t blame the NHS or the CCG, it is what it is. Too much demand, too few resources. I am losses of at the psychiatrist that saw me though.

 

[negrogesic]

Sorry, i meant to say, increase the rhodiola to 1000mg

 

[CFC]

thanks for the tip, I’ll look in to those.
And sorry, my bad, it is an adult ADHD/ASD unit I’m referred to I’m just not great at the medial lingo. It’s this place

Improved mental health services for Merton residents

Trouble is, I was referred for the same thing in 2015.. was finally seen in mid 2016. Didn’t give me any of the tests or assessment forms. a woman spoke to me for10 mins and every time I described a symptom she had answer for it straight away.. for example,. I would say how I struggle to talk to people as when they talk to me, even if I’m interested my mind wanders in seconds and before I know it I’ve been in my own world for 5mins with a billion thoughts and suddenly realise I haven’t heard a single word the person said and I have to try and pretend like I have (never pull it off). Her reply was straight off the bag “oh well you’re probably just very intelligence and so unless its key information you switch off“

Maybe that is a bad example but literally every symptom that bothers me her immediate reply was that it was just my personality - I just don’t suffer fools which is why I shout at people at work. I just don’t like boring work which is why I never get my paperwork done.. anyway you get my drift. She just didn’t want to listen to me and I felt like she had made her mind up before I walked in. Start to finish it lasted 10 minutes and I got a letter discharging me the next morning saying “you do show some signs of adhd but not severe enough to warrant diagnose and treatment as you seem able to hold down employment”. And that was that.

now it’s got so much worse and I’m back on the list but now it’s 3yrs instead of 1uear, I don’t like being melodramatic but at this rate I won’t bloody be here in 3years. I’ll end up sacked, homeless and probably taking my chances with street drugs which is so so unlike me that the fact I would even half joke about it is a worry.

I don’t blame the NHS or the CCG, it is what it is. Too much demand, too few resources. I am losses of at the psychiatrist that saw me though.

I sympathise - I had both helpful and unhelpful people on the road to getting my adult diagnosis. It does partly depend upon who you see and how much sympathy they have with your plight. In my case, I was already under the care of an excellent and perceptive psychiatrist, and he made the request to my GP, who then had a nice case to forward on to adult ADHD services for an official diagnosis.

But if you do have a difficult specialist, it helps enormously if you've read up on the kinds of answers they might be expecting. This helps you focus more clearly without getting too sidetracked, so that you can bring the key red-button symptoms up during your consultation (crucially, with examples you experienced in your life right back to childhood) in order to get the right boxes ticked.

It would obviously be great if this level of preparation wasn't required, but unfortunately that's the reality in the UK and taking these kinds of steps can be very helpful.

Alternatively, the private route is more likely to go your way - at a cost - but even there, sometimes, they can throw a spanner in the works, especially if they think you're potentially drug-seeking.

On the plus side, if you're in the Merton area, you should be covered by the Maudsley, which has one of the better adult ADHD centres in the UK. Sorry scratch that, I see they've set up their own service in that area now.

 

[Jumprope85]

I sympathise - I had both helpful and unhelpful people on the road to getting my adult diagnosis. It does partly depend upon who you see and how much sympathy they have with your plight. In my case, I was already under the care of an excellent and perceptive psychiatrist, and he made the request to my GP, who then had a nice case to forward on to adult ADHD services for an official diagnosis.

But if you do have a difficult specialist, it helps enormously if you've read up on the kinds of answers they might be expecting. This helps you focus more clearly without getting too sidetracked, so that you can bring the key red-button symptoms up during your consultation (crucially, with examples you experienced in your life right back to childhood) in order to get the right boxes ticked.

It would obviously be great if this level of preparation wasn't required, but unfortunately that's the reality in the UK and taking these kinds of steps can be very helpful.

Alternatively, the private route is more likely to go your way - at a cost - but even there, sometimes, they can throw a spanner in the works, especially if they think you're potentially drug-seeking.

On the plus side, if you're in the Merton area, you should be covered by the Maudsley, which has one of the better adult ADHD centres in the UK. Sorry scratch that, I see they've set up their own service in that area now.

thanks for the advic- and sympathy.
I totally get that they must get loads ofpeople going in who just want to get their hands on an amphetamine then the funny thing is that’s sort of a last resort for me. I’ve paid for counsellors, psychotherapists, been to support groups. I’ve done CBT etc etc - I’m just running out of options. I’m actually hoping that a psychiatrist might have more up his sleeve than just medication straight way. Im actually quite scared of pharmaceuticals. I’ll take them when I have to but for example not took me near 3 years for my neurologist to talk me in to starting up on a benzo for my RLS and even then i was bricking it but had tried every other option from talking therapies and excercise, to dopamine agonists, then gaba’s and carbamazepine. It was kinda like.. try a Benzo or never have a restful sleep again. It’s sort of getting to that point for me with this adhd/add/ASD or whatever it is. I feel like I’ve carried it well and worked around it for 30 years but now it’s just getting a bit out of hand

 

[Jumprope85]

Sorry, i meant to say, increase the rhodiola to 1000mg

thanks for the advice. It’s lucky to have a few pharma geniuses on her because I wouldn’t have a clue. Only things I’ve ever tried are pro plus, many coffees a day and the odd red bull

 

[CFC]

thanks for the advic- and sympathy.
I totally get that they must get loads ofpeople going in who just want to get their hands on an amphetamine then the funny thing is that’s sort of a last resort for me. I’ve paid for counsellors, psychotherapists, been to support groups. I’ve done CBT etc etc - I’m just running out of options. I’m actually hoping that a psychiatrist might have more up his sleeve than just medication straight way. Im actually quite scared of pharmaceuticals. I’ll take them when I have to but for example not took me near 3 years for my neurologist to talk me in to starting up on a benzo for my RLS and even then i was bricking it but had tried every other option from talking therapies and excercise, to dopamine agonists, then gaba’s and carbamazepine. It was kinda like.. try a Benzo or never have a restful sleep again. It’s sort of getting to that point for me with this adhd/add/ASD or whatever it is. I feel like I’ve carried it well and worked around it for 30 years but now it’s just getting a bit out of hand

If you go for an adult diagnosis, that's about all you'll get I'm afraid. ADHD treatment is still pretty much in its infacy here, unfortunately. A 'regular' psychiatrist might be more helpful for general coping strategies, though it sounds like you've already been there.

As for the drugs, I've been on vyvanse (d-amphetamine) for a year now. Honestly, it hasn't really helped my ADHD symptoms very much so far, and I feel it's actually been more useful for my co-morbid depression.

I definitely support trying out the supplements route first and seeing whether they help any. There are dozens and dozens that people with ADHD try (you might also include 5-htp or tryptophan and l-tyrosine precursors in your cocktail), but I think it best to do a fair bit of research first, as people are so different in the ways they respond to things.

 

[Jumprope85]

If you go for an adult diagnosis, that's about all you'll get I'm afraid. ADHD treatment is still pretty much in its infacy here, unfortunately. A 'regular' psychiatrist might be more helpful for general coping strategies, though it sounds like you've already been there.

As for the drugs, I've been on vyvanse (d-amphetamine) for a year now. Honestly, it hasn't really helped my ADHD symptoms very much so far, and I feel it's actually been more useful for my co-morbid depression.

I definitely support trying out the supplements route first and seeing whether they help any. There are dozens and dozens that people with ADHD try (you might also include 5-htp or tryptophan and l-tyrosine precursors in your cocktail), but I think it best to do a fair bit of research first, as people are so different in the ways they respond to things.

yesh fair enough. It does seem prudent to try out the herbal/supplement stuff first. Nothing to lose and everything to gain. I have to be a little carefully of the 5-HTP I think as although I’ve discontinued it I think there might still be some sertraline in my system leftover drom PTSD treatment or at the least some increased levels of serotonin in my head. Don’t want to make myself sick

 

[Meth novice 79]

Don’t know where you are but you’ll prob find it hard to get a doc to prescribe anything worthwhile as an adult.
(Well that’s the case here in Aus)

Anyhow I just dropped in to say ADHD doesn’t tend to be ‘triggered’ your born with it, it’s caused by the wiring of your brain being a little different

To me, you sound like you have PTSD.
Try downers to help calm the rages and maybe see a psych if you can handle the babble.

I have ptsd and have found Valium is the only thing that helps, all the ranges of anti anxiety meds have been worthless but if I feel the rage coming on I just take 5mg Val and it passes in 20 minutes, and for sleep I just pop 10mg instead

 

[Jumprope85]

Don’t know where you are but you’ll prob find it hard to get a doc to prescribe anything worthwhile as an adult.
(Well that’s the case here in Aus)

Anyhow I just dropped in to say ADHD doesn’t tend to be ‘triggered’ your born with it, it’s caused by the wiring of your brain being a little different

To me, you sound like you have PTSD.
Try downers to help calm the rages and maybe see a psych if you can handle the babble.

I have ptsd and have found Valium is the only thing that helps, all the ranges of anti anxiety meds have been worthless but if I feel the rage coming on I just take 5mg Val and it passes in 20 minutes, and for sleep I just pop 10mg instead

Thanks for the advice mate, but as I said I’ve had the ADHD since I was around 8/9. Likely had it before then but don’t have any memories before that age and I don’t have any school reports from primary school. Only started getting them in middle school (yr5-8 which I think is roughly ages 9-13 if memory serves.

In any case I DO have PTSD thanks to my wonderful day job but I know all too well what symptoms I get from that and they are absolutely nothing alike the adhd-like symptoms. It’s also as a result of something that happened only a few years back so doesn’t account for the the other lifelong symptoms. Also I was on Daily Diazepam due to my back injury in high doses and that did absolutely nothing for ADHD symptoms, for that matter nor did Lorazepam, Clonazepam or Temazepam all of which I’ve been prescribed at some stage.

Funnily enough I think Tramadol did help them and helped me to focus more /. I have no idea why that Is

now, I’m no psychiatrist but I do know something has been just a bit wrong my entire life and I’ve always been a bit different. And almost every family member, teacher, friend, employer have commented that I seem to have ADHD/ASD - never intended as an insult to me but just as an observation as the way i think and work is just very different to most other people. Without sounding arrogant because conversely I have very little self confidence, I have achieved a great deal in my work life but still know that I’m underachieving and could be doing much more if I get myself sorted. I could sit here and list all the individual symptoms I struggle with and explain why I think it might be ADHD but ultimately I didn’t come to a drugs forum for a medical diagnosis- I’m going to leave that in the hands of a specialist MH professional come what may. Rather I came here to ask the question about wether people who do have confirmed ADHD find ritalin to be helpful as frankly I was/am considering using it to find out if it helps me. I don’t fancy just waiting another 3-5yrs on a list while my life continues to fall to shit.

Also just for info, whilst it doesn’t apply to me, it has been recognised within the medical community that whilst less common ADHD can develop as an adult and the NHS do licence the use of Ritalin etc in treatment of adult ADHD. Of course that will be a judgement call for the specialist , I imagine, based on his/her experience, assessment of the condition and it’s severity and assessment on what the most effective treatment would be.

JR