My doctor recently started me on Adderall XR. I’ve been taking 20 mg for the past 4 days and haven’t noticed any improvement in my concentration. In fact, I’m sleepy during the day which strikes me as very odd. I have an appointment on Wednesday but in the meantime am interested in any Dopers’ experiences with it or similar drugs.
My daughter is on Adderall. It took a bit of tweaking to find the right dosage and the right drug, but the teacher’s report that her attention span is notably improved on it. Ritalin was a disaster as she felt jittery all day, FWIW.
Just keep communicating with your doctor and you’ll figure it out.
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IANAD. If it makes you sleepy (a paradoxical effect), it may be too high a dose. Ask your prescriber.
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Do the people around you notice a difference, even if you don’t?
I am taking Adderall. 30 mg in the morning and another 10 around noon. I fnd it very helpful.
I have tried a number of ADHD meds in recent years and have found this one most useful.
Nope, no one has noticed anything. FWIW, the only other side effect I’ve noticed (besides the sleepiness) is a noticeable decrease in appetite - which in my case is a good thing!
Talk to your doctor.
Different people respond differently to medications. I can go on and on about how much I love Adderall XR, but that isn’t going to mean anything to you, because we have different brains.
Something to ask your doc about would be regular adderall. I never did well with the XR stuff (including Dexadrine), but regular old Adderall made a world of difference for me.
When I first took Adderall, it was like a light going on in my head. Other medications take a long time–days, weeks, months–before really taking effect. With Adderall, it took maybe an hour or two. I don’t know if that response is typical at all, but if it is, and you’re not “feeling anything” after 4 days, then maybe it’s not working right for you.
The slow release form (XR) may not be right for you. When I was on ADD meds, I found the quicker release form a lot more effective. The dose wore off faster, but I found it more potent than the slow release.
It does take tweaking. Also, if you are going through a particularly stressful or demanding time, you may find you need more to stay on track.
One thing I’ve noticed is that I’ve all but lost my taste for alcohol. This is paradoxical because I still like the drinks themselves, including the way alcohol tastes in those drinks. I just don’t enjoy the effects of it anymore, and have all but cut it out by sheer neglect.