Ritalin & Dexamphetamine combination

[jellybean14fun]

Hi all, my Psych doctor has prescribed me Dexamphetamine ( I think its called Adderall in the US?) instead of my usual Ritalin. She advised me to drop 1 Ritalin & increase it with 1 Dex... anyway...now a week later...I am taking 2 Dex...but finding that the Dex is making me all dopey & puts me in lala land. (Or - its not actually doing a thing)

Is there, or can there be a reaction with the 2 combinations together? I know they are both different in chemical compounds & have different mechanisms. I am still on the Ritalin which I have decreased now by 2. I'm not taking them at the same time either.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Eagleman]

Bring this to your doctors' attention.
There are too many variables for us to tell you what's up.

 

[sarsXdave]

Some with ADD/ADHD find that Ritalin, Adderall and other mixed-isomer formulations work better for getting them motivated (a big problem with inattentive-type). I've been moved on to 10mg Dexedrine Spansules (1-2x per day, depending on how busy I am) off of 40mg Vyvanse and 30mg Vyvanse + 5-10mg Adderall IR before that.

I definitely noticed that Adderall was better for motivation and getting me to be more responsible, as compared to Vyvanse taken in the same period. I ended up going with the purely d-isomer amphetamines (Vyvanse and Dexedrine) because they allow me to maintain weight better and don't cause as much sweating, which is embarassing in college. I took a 37mg Concerta (racemic methylphenidate, like Ritalin, but it releases at a gradually faster concentration over time to combat short-term tolerance) yesterday and noticed much more "up" feelings and motivation, similar to Adderall, but with less euphoria (which may only be because of some tolerance increase in the last year).

Dexedrine is considered on of the best ADD prescriptions for recreation and for increasing focus and follow-through therapeutically without as much adrenaline-type effects. But, everyone is different and you may just be a methylphenidate person. I also know people who got put on Vyvanse and found it the opposite of Adderall - kind of "stoning" and they focused on those things they were using to procrastinate. You just have to tell your doc.

Why was the change initiated? If it was because of adrenergic side effects (anorexia, muscle tension, too awake, high blood pressure, etc.) they do also make a dextro-isomer-only formulation for methylphenidate called Focalin. This would also produce less of the physical kick and motivation, but d-methylphenidate still may work better for you than d-amphetamine. Only problem is both Ritalin and Dexedrine are super-old and are VERY reasonably priced, while Focalin is new and has no generics.

 

[jellybean14fun]

Some with ADD/ADHD find that Ritalin, Adderall and other mixed-isomer formulations work better for getting them motivated (a big problem with inattentive-type). I've been moved on to 10mg Dexedrine Spansules (1-2x per day, depending on how busy I am) off of 40mg Vyvanse and 30mg Vyvanse + 5-10mg Adderall IR before that.

I definitely noticed that Adderall was better for motivation and getting me to be more responsible, as compared to Vyvanse taken in the same period. I ended up going with the purely d-isomer amphetamines (Vyvanse and Dexedrine) because they allow me to maintain weight better and don't cause as much sweating, which is embarassing in college. I took a 37mg Concerta (racemic methylphenidate, like Ritalin, but it releases at a gradually faster concentration over time to combat short-term tolerance) yesterday and noticed much more "up" feelings and motivation, similar to Adderall, but with less euphoria (which may only be because of some tolerance increase in the last year).

Dexedrine is considered on of the best ADD prescriptions for recreation and for increasing focus and follow-through therapeutically without as much adrenaline-type effects. But, everyone is different and you may just be a methylphenidate person. I also know people who got put on Vyvanse and found it the opposite of Adderall - kind of "stoning" and they focused on those things they were using to procrastinate. You just have to tell your doc.

Why was the change initiated? If it was because of adrenergic side effects (anorexia, muscle tension, too awake, high blood pressure, etc.) they do also make a dextro-isomer-only formulation for methylphenidate called Focalin. This would also produce less of the physical kick and motivation, but d-methylphenidate still may work better for you than d-amphetamine. Only problem is both Ritalin and Dexedrine are super-old and are VERY reasonably priced, while Focalin is new and has no generics.

Thank you for your response. My Psych doctor suggested a change to see if this would encourage more motivation to do daily mundane activities. I also really thought it would work better than the Ritalin...but yes, the describing way of 'stoning' feel is exactly that...& indeed less motivation. A totally different effect than the Ritalin. The Ritalin seems to be a 100 times better than the Dex. My body seems to be rather sensitive to drugs & even tried Wellbutrin - but had a bad reaction of really high blood pressure.

I took another 2 Dex this morning...although I didn't feel 'as stoned' , the lack of motivation & ability to focus was really hard. Think I must be a 'meth' girl!

 

[djsim]

My Psych doctor suggested a change to see if this would encourage more motivation to do daily mundane activities.

I took another 2 Dex this morning...although I didn't feel 'as stoned' , the lack of motivation & ability to focus was really hard. Think I must be a 'meth' girl!

Your doctor is an idiot if he is RXing you amphetamine so you can do mundane daily tasks... you'll end up addicted and not able to do anything without them. This is absolutely doomed to failure IMO

 

[djsim]

When's the last time you've seen anyone (especially someone with ADHD) addicted to amphetamine? It's almost impossible. Taking them for like 4-days results in a dysphoria feeling at which point it feels much better not taking them.

Well when did that ever stop anyone taking more? I've got ADD and in the past have taken way too much Dexamphetamine and crystal meth (when I ran out of Dexedrine many weeks too early), so the assumption that ADD people cannot get addicted to amphetamine is plain wrong.
Amphetamine is hugely psychologically addictive to anyone. The 2 benchmarks points for amphetamine addiction: 1) you cannot do anything (chores or even brushing teeth) without the drug and 2) you continue using the drug even though it's not doing you any good. So any doc RXing amphetamines to help with daily chores is out of their fucking mind.

The fact that OP says she "must be a meth girl" makes me think the doc is RXing the meds to get her off methamphetamine (occassionally dexamphetamine is used to do this) rather than treating AD(H)D. Is this right jellybean?

 

[jellybean14fun]

Well when did that ever stop anyone taking more? I've got ADD and in the past have taken way too much Dexamphetamine and crystal meth (when I ran out of Dexedrine many weeks too early), so the assumption that ADD people cannot get addicted to amphetamine is plain wrong.
Amphetamine is hugely psychologically addictive to anyone. The 2 benchmarks points for amphetamine addiction: 1) you cannot do anything (chores or even brushing teeth) without the drug and 2) you continue using the drug even though it's not doing you any good. So any doc RXing amphetamines to help with daily chores is out of their fucking mind.

The fact that OP says she "must be a meth girl" makes me think the doc is RXing the meds to get her off methamphetamine (occassionally dexamphetamine is used to do this) rather than treating AD(H)D. Is this right jellybean?

Thank you djsim....actually I only referenced 'meth girl' to the ingredient of Ritalin which as we all know is Methylphenidate. And no, I'm not addicted to any stimulant...& I even have days where I dont take any just purposely so I dont get addicted. Each to their own right...you may not agree. Yesterday, I only took the Dex - & there is no way I'm taking it again...it sends me to bed & I sleep - so obviously it doesn't work the way it should & I certainly will be addressing my Psych doctor about this.

You should also know being an ADD sufferer, that we can be focused well on tasks or activities that are really stimulating for us....it's the normal things I dont complete or follow through & get 'antsy-pantsy' & cant keep still. Anyway there is no need for me to go on...we all know about this.

Thank you for your comment - we all have a right to voice

 

[edarrin]

you continue using the drug even though it's not doing you any good.

I've been off opiates for 12 days. This is the second 'upper' binge I've been on since then. First was coke and methylphenidate. This time dexedrine and methylphenidate. Both self limiting at 3ays but sure seems to point to a pattern developing. Anyway I'm not even really getting high from them anyway unless I IV. Obvious attempt at substitution but it doesn't work. Sets up a dangerous precident.

Trying to avoid the blaaws of opiate w/d. No way around it. Stoping and going to suffer through the next while. Try to get reconnected with AA/NA.

 

[Nexius]

Two things that work very well with opiate withdrawal is amphetamines and copius amounts of benzos

 

[swisscurrie]

I took dexamphetamine and ritalin together one day and it has caused permanent neurotoxicity with me. So I know where you are coming from with the "stoned" feeling. Hope youre feeling better now