I’ve always been highly self distractable, I guess it’s one of the reasons I love the Straight Dope so much, it’s an atomic powered, rhodium plated distraction machine. Of late, however, I’ve really been having some serious focus issues to the point it’s impacting my ability to earn a living, and I’m wondering if a trip to the doctor to get one of the newer ADD meds might be worthwhile.
Anyone tried them? What do they do for you? Do they help you focus? Are there negative side effects?
Well, you can’t just go to the doctor and order up some meds (and if you can, find another doctor!) I had to fight for my diagnosis - my regular doctor knows very little about ADD, and had to find a specialist for me, but only did so after I convinced him I was completely falling to pieces.
The meds helped me, but would have been useless without the accompanying therapy. Since I was never diagnosed as a child, I’d had a good 25 years to work up a whole system of coping mechanisms that had to be unlearned. Three years of therapy helped me a LOT, and after another two years I stopped taking the meds - the new coping strategies I’d learned were much more effective and less destructive and made the drugs less crucial. The reason I stopped taking the Ritalin is that it made me shake and it had an adverse effect on my appetite - although; I want to go back to my doctor and talk to him about some of the newer meds (Concerta is one) and find out if something newer might be less “speedish”.
When I started taking the Ritalin, the effect was almost immediate - people who knew me well said they could SEE it kick in, in my eyes. It’s very difficult to describe the feeling, and remember too that everyone reacts differently to meds, but in my case there was an almost audible “snap” as things clicked into place for me. I found it much easier to focus on what was in front of me, and when I did get sidetracked, I found it easier to return to what I was doing first.
My darling Marcie swears by massive caffeine intake. Coffee and Diet Pepsi in almost unbelievable quantities. It amazes me, but her teeth are in excellent condition. YMMV
Interestingly, those precise beverages are my two main stimulants of choice, but I’m beginning to feel I need something more.
Both my dad and my brother have ADD. My brother takes Ritalin, and it works amazingly well for him. (His grades shot skyward after he was diagnosed and put on meds.) My dad was taking Stratera, and it worked really well for him, but unfortunately it put his blood pressure through the roof. He can’t take any of the other meds because they’re classified as stimulants, and he’s a long-haul truck driver.
I’d like to second the posters who said you should really talk to your doctor. Just because you feel like you’re easily distracted doesn’t mean you have ADD.
Just my .02 cents.
Self-medicating is not such a good idea, not for health risks, but because one really isn’t qualified to make those sorts of judgements. One might get “results” on caffeine; but, it is hard to say so if one hasn’t been properly medicated on, say, Ritalin.
I’m currently taking a mix of Straterra, Concerta, and Prozac. While Straterra is the first ADD drug tested on adults, I’m told that it is not effective in a lot of people. It doesn’t do squat for me in terms of focus per se, but the effect on mood & sleep is pretty amazing.
I’m planning on either going back to grown-up doses of Ritalin instead of Concerta, or upping my dose of Concerta, because I’m not focusing like I did when I was on Ritalin. Just so you, the OP, know, one often doesn’t see any difference in oneself when taking meds. Often, it is incumbent on co-workers or living-mates to notice the difference. I was on Ritalin for almost a year before I was aware that there was a difference. Not because there wasn’t—there was a huge difference—but because, for some reason, it is just difficult to make those sorts of self assessments. After some time I was able to tell when I had forgotten to take Ritalin, and now I can tell when I forget to take Concerta.
If distractibility is having enough effect to jeopardize your ability to make a living, then a trip to your doctor might not be such a bad idea.
I’ve been taking Adderall XR for about a year and a half. Yes, it helps me immensely and the changes came immediately. I can’t even list how much my life has changed for the better. My house is cleaner, I’m more focused, I’m losing weight, I went back to school, I can hold a thought for more than 2 seconds, etc. etc.
I should say that my darling Marcie was on Ritalin for a long, long time. Her doctor agreed with her decision to stop it and is monitoring her very carefully. She didn’t self medicate by any means, although I guess it sounded that way. She is taking several other medications for different reasons, and wanted to cut down on her drug intake. Up to now, the caffeine seems to be doing the trick, but time will tell.
js_afrocanus is entirely correct to remind us of the dangers of self-medicating.
I don’t officially have ADD, but it would explain a lot of things about my life. I’ve been prescribed Wellbutrin for depression, and I find it greatly helps the scatterbrainedness, the clutterblindness and I can can make myself pay attention to things that I don’t find very interesting (this was a big hindrance in college, and a big contributor to me not finishing my degree). I have a lot more energy, which is important since the worst part of my depression is total lack of energy. The only problem I had was insomnia at first, but I seemed to adjust over time.
Just my .02 - I have severe ADD, diagnosed since I was six (i’m 24 now). I haven’t taken anything for it since age 18 or so, and I’ve just learned to live with it. I understand that this is not possible for many people, especially with ADD of the severity that mine is, but I somehow learned to manage and work around it.
Part of this was that I hated how I felt when I was on Adderall and Ritalin. It was great for when I needed to buckle down and do something alone, like writing a paper or studying, but terrible for daily use, as it turned normally super-outgoing me into a personality-less zombie.
I have a case of ADD that didn’t phase me much in high school or college, but hit me like a hammer when I entered the work force. I was completely scatterbrained, couldn’t remember phone conversations I’d had ten minutes before, and could not force myself to get anything productive done. At one point in time I was in serious danger of losing my job, and I was performing very poorly in my graduate studies.
As soon as I started taking Ritalin, my world changed. I was able to sit down and read in two hours a book that I’d been unable to make any headway in for over two weeks. I discovered what it was like to concentrate, to focus, to be freed from the near-constant impulses that had been plaguing me mercilessly. What’s more, the cost is low (I pay $10/month), it’s non-addictive, and I only take it when I need it.
Naturally, there were some negative aspects involved. Ritalin is a controlled substance, and (on my insurance, at least) one may only purchase a month’s supply at a time, with a new prescription required each time (no refills). The prescription cannot be called in to the pharmacy by the doctor, either, so getting the medication each month can be a real hassle. Secondly, I can only take Ritalin in the morning or early afternoon, because taking it after 3:00 or so will prevent me from getting any sleep. Thirdly, it raises my blood pressure and can make me tense and irritable. Fourthly, and most importantly, it is only a treatment for the symptoms of ADD, and not a cure. Since I haven’t pursued any kind of therapy, I still (after 10 years) have to take doses each morning and at lunchtime if I am to be at all productive.
Under my doctor’s supervision, I have tried other ADD medications, but have always ended up coming back to Ritalin. Concerta is nothing more that Ritalin in a time-release form, but didn’t work well enough for me to justify paying the exorbitant cost. Strattera, though, is an inhibitor rather than a stimulant – it works to block certain chemical reactions in the brain that cause the scatterbrained and impulsive behavior of ADD. For two glorious weeks it worked perfectly for me, but I quickly became immune to it and had to switch back to Ritalin once again.
I have discovered a really good analogy that puts into some perspective the daily ordeal of living with ADD and how Ritalin and Strattera help people cope. Imaging that for the “normal” person, the daily routine is like swimming laps in a pool. Those with ADD, however, have to swim against a strong current. Which means that it takes just that much more energy to reach the same goal as everyone else. Taking Ritalin makes you a stronger swimmer. Strattera, however, slows the current.
I don’t know who you’re kidding. Ritalin and Adderall are both very strong stimulants, and both very addicting. Adderall is basically methamphetamine. Only take those meds if you want to wear down your heart very quickly.
IANAD, so I won’t try to argue the point except by my own experience. I can stop taking Ritalin at any time and suffer no ill effects, or at least none that I’ve noticed. During vacations, for example, I completely stop using the medication unless I’m going to be balancing my checkbook or doing something else that requires extended concentration.
I know of other people whose experiences with Ritalin have not been nearly as positive as mine, so I’m not a blind advocate of medicating all ADD sufferers. In short, talk to your doctor.
Adderall is addictive? I don’t see it, at least in myself
I started taking Adderall about six months ago, after watching my son go through the effects of ADHD and noticing a lot of similar characteristics in myself. I saw a psychaitrist who did some testing and pronounced me ADD.
Adderall’s been great for me. Its been great for my career. I used to have big issues with details. While its still a challenge, its now a possibility that I can complete tasks, and I really appreciate that. So does my boss.
I like the way Adderall makes me think on the job, but when I’m not working, I don’t take it, and I don’t miss it at all.