Years back, probably 23 or so, my parents gave me Benadryl. Not that I can remember it, but my parents tell me that it got me wired. That I couldnt even stay in bed for an hour on it.
I have heard that Ritalin is a stimulant, but can not say much more beyond the OP annecdote.
But then again, I am a bit leery of medication, as I was on Ritalin and Prozac – at the same time, for a few years. I got off both in my early college years, and haven’t looked back since.
In fact, in response to “Regular” students usin Ritalin to cram, I had friends who would ask me if I had any Ritalin left to give them.
On the Caffeine angle :
I love Vault [Surge 2.0, Coca-cola’s answer to Mountain Dew, and then some.]
But, only a rare rare handful of times, probably 3 times at most, did I feel that Vault sent me up the wall. Don’t get me wrong, I loved that rush, and occasionally will buy a 20 oz Vault to see if I can get again. 3% of the time seems to be it for me.
Diet Rite [A drink brand from Royal Crown / RC Cola] has Pure Zero, with no caffeine, sugar, or carbs. In a way that Vault can’t, Diet Rite seems to “” center “” me in a way I find hard to explain. I notice the effect is at it’s peak if the 2 liter bottle is at room temperature. I usually go with the standard cola flavor here.
Caffeinated or not, I drink a LOT of soft drinks. I doubt that this is related to my ADHD.
Generally, yes. I’ve seen non ADD/ADHD people on amphetamine, for example, and their primary outward behavioral symptom is a tendency to chatter on and on. I often saw people using cocaine in the 1980s, and noticed the same thing. From my own experience with adult ADHD, I’ve found that it actually relaxes me. On mornings when I don’t have to go anywhere, I often go back to bed and sleep for a couple of hours after taking my morning dose. And it doesn’t turn me into a chatterbox at any time of day.
Only if you’re taking it as coffee. There’s caffeine pills, or even sodas, which are dosage-constant (I won a bet once on CocaCola having more caffeine than Pepsi, which I’d guessed based on their different effects on me).
Agreed with this. Purely anecdotal, but I have/had friends prescribed Ritalin for ADD and there was a noticeable behavior change in that they were far more focused and able to concentrate. I had one friend who was unbeatable in chess when he took his prescribed medication, not so much if he didn’t take it.
This was in direct contrast to friends who used to take Ritalin for recreational purposes. In those instances, they would exhibit the same twitchiness you see when you snort coke. That said, I’m sure the fact that they were snorting the Ritalin and taking more than the prescribed dose also had something to do with the difference in their behavior vs. those who were prescribed it.
Wow. You know, here I was thinking that I just totally started sucking at chess one day. NEVER thought to attribute it to Ritalin.
Lose his Queen near the end of the Opening ? Screwed from there on out, but always manages to eke out a stalemate? Insufficient material for check?
Hrm.
You just opened a can of worms for me on this. Not so much chess, but on all things that I thought I had lost and or forgotten how to do.
Caffeine has its own drawbacks and simply isn’t as effective. At least, based on my own experience, which was that I could drink coffee like a fiend and not have it really help my concentration despite its ability to keep me awake. Caffeine occurs in many drinks and chocolate based food products, and it may be difficult monitor one’s intake, as opposed to taking the same pill at the same time every day. Another consideration with kids in particular is that it’s often best to give them an extended release version of Ritalin or Adderall (mixed amphetamine salts); that way they can take it when they leave for school and not need a midday dose.
As for the way stimulants work on ADD/ADHD people generally, I meant to say earlier that it’s almost like homeopathic medicine in a bizarre way–“like cures like”, as they say.
I remember the effects of stimulants on ADHD kids being referred to as “paradoxical”, but again, the results are generally the same for those identified witht the “disorder” as those not so identified.
And unlike the homeopaths, who deal in placebo, these drugs are real and powerful which is why they are so striclty controlled.
Anecdotal stories aside, you give any individual enough amphetimine, and the physiological effects will be the same for everyone.