Stimulants Ritalin Methylphenidate questions, experience, facts welcome....

[phatass]

Ritalin, not an amphetamine as such but a stimulant. (Prefix chosen...)

Those of you on Ritalin for adult ADD , not AD(H)D, what dose do you take, mg? IR? or ER? Route of administration, how it helps you with work/studies?
The "crash" severe or not? does it get worse over time?
Best to combine 1 ER pill in the mornig, and have low dose IR pill(s) for specific moments...?
Its effect on your sleep pattern?


I am Rx 40mg Ritalin ER/morning, however with my experience, experiments, self medication with ethylphenidate sublingualed and 10mg ritalin, crushed and sublingualled, i notice 40mg LP is not at all the same stable A-D effect, increased concentration and attention span than IR sublingualled (m)ethylphenidate.

Will try to get 2x 10 mg Ritalin IR for focus ADD etc, mood lift (not euphoria also helps) dont want to self medicate and "complete" my dosage with EPH.

Would like to hear your experiences, for therapeutic use of Ritalin (ADD) right dose for you (your weight) IR more stable? ER more in waves of effect...

Usefull? worthwhile for work? In my case on benzos and a neuroleptic too?

Risks, common side-effects, dangers?

YOUR EXPERIENCES will help me stabalise, follow a regular schedual as i have just started working after 5-6 years of bassicly, mostly drug abuse of one form or another!

Thank you for reading (MXE is creeping up atm....) hope it is clear enough....

 

[littlepenguin]

ADD and ADHD are treated with the same drugs. ADD is one of the 3 sub-types of ADHD; all have the same basic symptom: impaired ability to stay focused on everyday activities.

Weight is not a factor in the amount of Ritalin it takes to alleviate one's symptoms. Dosing range applies to three-year-olds weighing only forty pounds as well as to full-grown men weighing six times that amount. It is likely that the response to Ritalin has more to do with the number of brain cells one possesses, which doesn't change that much as young children become adults.

In reference to Ritalin IR, it's often beneficial for people to split their dose through the day (once before breakfast and once after lunch, or depending upon how late in the day one needs the effects of the medication.) Ritalin IR is almost completely out of your system after 4 hours.

I started off with Ritalin ER, but I wasn't liking it. Made me feel crappy, too edgy, confused. Switched to IR, took 10mg in the morning and 10mg around 2pm or later, depending upon that evening's plans.
After about 2 months, I no longer felt any relief from symptoms. My doctor said that if someone is not finding relief from 20mg, it is unlikely a higher dose would have a better effect.
I switched to Vyvanse. Started at 20mg, went up to 40mg, then 50mg and went back down to 40mg/day, that seems to be the 'sweet spot' for me.

A higher dose does not always equal more relief when it comes to these types of medications.

I wasn't fond of the 'crash' from Ritalin, personally. I noticed I had a very sore neck every evening and a ridiculous buzzing in my head/ears. With Vyvanse, I don't get a crash or the muscle aches.

These medications have helped me with completing tasks. However, it has not helped with my "scatterbrained-ness." I can complete tasks, but I am still easily distracted/forgetful. But before medication, I would start many tasks but would generally be unable to complete them. As an aside, I believe that my bad scatterbrain/bad short term memory could be attributed to a different medication that I am currently prescribed.

I am also prescribed a benzo for sleep (temazepam, 60mg at bedtime). Sometimes it helps me sleep and relax, and other nights it seems that it does nothing. Sometimes the same thing happens with the ADHD meds as well - one day I'll feel all sorts of jazzed up and other days I feel like I didn't take my medicine.

In reference to ROA, *technically* it is illegal to take any of these medications in such a way that they are not prescribed. The only way I know of them prescribed is orally - whether it's swallowing the whole pill or mixing it in a glass of water. Some of these medications are only effective when taken orally, therefore reducing the inclination to abuse the drug.

If you are truly seeking "stabilization" like you said, I suggest being honest with your doctor, yourself, and taking the drugs exactly as they are prescribed.

Hope this helped a tiny tad. Best of luck to you.

 

[phatass]

^^Thanks lots of insight, and info, i personnally feel 40mg ER and 2x10mg IR would be right for me, given my other medications, and changing situation, ie. starting work after 5-6 years of bassically no"work" or insertion to work etc.

The ER gave me at the same time focus and concentration, abilitiy to complete tastks, but there was a "brain fog" and slight headache (the latter alllready present before ritalin due to side effects of other meds combined, but easilly calmed by a gram of paracetamol).... When i had the 10mg ER which had i had no difficulty to transform into IR, the duration was short(ish) 3 hours max, but very clean and stable and no noticeable side effects, apart from a desire to redose, but since i have benzos for anxiety and sleep, im trying to find a good equilibrium. I needed minimum 30-40mg to feel the minimum effect i am after to cope with working, and you know the rest....

Unfortunately vyvanse is not an option here (not marketed, we only have Ritalin and Modafinil....) but i'll make the best use of what i can aquire, and use it wisely, as i have learnt to do with benzos on a day to day basis... i stil love my psychs and stim/empathogens from time to time, and will therefore use more benzos for "come-downs" or having to cut a trip short due to work next day, hence need to sleep... But Mostly keep those trips for friday or saturday evening....

thanks again friend for the advice and help/confidence it provides me!

 

[phatass]

Sorry, bump, would love to hear more experiences if anyone can share....
thanks!

 

[Kbrad2222]

Vyvanse

Okay so I'm getting two 30mg vyvanse pills tomorrow and I wanna know what it will do to me? Like what will the high be like? Should I take both pills? Should I take it during school? I've never taken any pills like that, so I have 0 tolerance. I'm also a 5'11" male about 135-140 lbs if that has any effect on it...

 

[Kilfer]

Okay so I'm getting two 30mg vyvanse pills tomorrow and I wanna know what it will do to me? Like what will the high be like? Should I take both pills? Should I take it during school? I've never taken any pills like that, so I have 0 tolerance. I'm also a 5'11" male about 135-140 lbs if that has any effect on it...

Even both pills remain within therapeutic dosage. FWIW this drug is considered more similar to Wellbutrin than other ADHD drugs so I wouldn't expect stellar results at that dose...

 

[adrenalinerushes]

they're similar to adderall minus one of the salts, last i recall. i take vyvanse daily. it's delivery mechanism is much smoother than any other stimulants i've tried. it will last a good amount of time and you probably won't have much of a comedown.

 

[Changa707]

Ok so first off I would like to say I am rather inexperienced with stimulants, though I have tried them all...just never amassed a tolerance of any significance. My first experience with Ritalin was at the age of 17 and then I was maybe 160 lbs...I would get mild stimulation from 5 mg Methylphenidate IR, 10 mg would have me feeling stimulated and positively motivated. Anything more than 10 mg IR wouldn't seem to increase my high positively, just increased negative size effects (the tweaking).
Then we have mixed amphetamine salts ^ which include all the various amphetamines....quite different from Ritalin IMO. First time I took mixed amphetamine salts it was 20 - 30 mg IR (orange ones that taste like oranges). At 20-30 mg I would feel very energetic, yet focused if I needed to be. The euphoria wasn't quite present, but I felt good! Then again, the side effects at this dose almost overpowered the positive effects!

Speed up a year, when I was 18 maybe I experienced my first high dose of mixed amphetamine salts....50 mg IR at once (no tolerance). Now that's where the magic is! I'm telling you, don't even bother with low doses if you are gonna do this drug...the high is one like you will never get on Ritalin, you feel on top of the world...capable of anything...with total control and mental clarity..superhuman.....

BUT..expect a dirty nasty comedown unless you have ativan/opiates on hand.

Since then I have dabbled with Methamphetamine and Dex/Dextro-amphetamine...but never in such high doses since then. I don't think it's good on your body and wouldn't be surprised if a single exposure to large doses of amphetamines can permanently alter one's brain chemistry.