Posted by Peter on November 3, 2001, at 16:31:31
In reply to Re: Adderall help » Peter, posted by JohnX2 on November 3, 2001, at 15:53:23
> Thanks for the input, John. As a matter of fact, raising the depakote back up to my normal level (750mg) is exactly what my pdoc had me do for a few days before I even started the Adderall, so I would be as calm as possible. I'm sure the klonopin is taking the edge off; I just don't like the depressed, 'crash' feeling when the Adderall wears off, 'cause it reminds me off my former days with drug abuse. Oh, and yes, my doctor did try me on Wellbutrin first, but I had bad side-effects. I guess it's sort of a psychological thing; I have to remind myself that I'm not ravaging my body with illicit drugs, but that I'm taking a prescribed drug for a corresponding diagnosis. Besides, when the Adderall is working, and I'm not crashing, it's fine - it does the job; and I know it's only been one day and it takes a while to find the right dosing for each individual. Thanks alot for your feedback, though, it encouraged me to know I'm on the right track (I hope).
Peter
> Let's see.
> The 1st time I took Adderall it made me severly
> manic and I was nauseaus as all heck. This was
> before I got a bipolar diagnosis. On Subsequent
> dosing, the Adderall had less of an effect on
> me (the nausea and spaciness went away). After
> 3 days, it had no effect. It just sounds like
> on your 1st experience it went a little
> balistic on you, which seems reasonable given
> you lowered your depakote, and Adderall can be
> pretty powerful for a bipolar. My dosing was
> in the 20-40mg range when it stabilized, and
> I only got a smooth Adderall response while
> also taking klonopin.
>
> I was depressed when I took the adderall so when
> it wore off i just returned to being about the
> same depressed.
>
> Suppose you took your standard dose of depakote
> with the adderall? I found that klonopin
> substantially smoothed out my adderall response
> and others have reported success with neurontin.
> Both are anti-convulsants. Maybe the older dose
> of depakote + the adderall would work out?
> You are already familiar with depakote so
> raising the dose a little to counter the adderall
> may balance things out and would be a quicky
> experiment.
>
> Just a suggestion.
>
> BTW, if you don't want to take an addictive
> med for ADD, then Wellbutrin is the obvious
> choice to augment your depakote (if you
> haven't already tried). Effexor would be 2nd.
> Plus if they worked they would have the same
> mood elevating effect. I'm guessing you've
> maybe tried these meds in the past though,
> because usually the doctor would give wellbutrin
> before trying adderall for the obvious
> addiction concern.
>
> -john
>
>
> > Hello all:
> > I've been diagnosed over the years with mild bipolar/SP. I've been on many mood stabilizers, finally settling on depakote, and have tried many SSRI's, which resulted in problems. I'm also on daily klonopin for SP/panic. It wasn't until I decreased the depakote as a test over a few months (my pdoc monitered me closely) that alot of other things about my mood rose to the surface (I think the years of depakote might have masked these new mood tendencies instead of targeting them). All of these newly apparent mood problems fall under the catagory of ADD, especially since I began to remember I had the same tendencies when I was a little kid. So, my pdoc told me at our last session that I have a combo bipolar/SP/ possible ADD diagnosis, and he just prescribed Adderall. I just took my first 2.5mg dose about 4 hours ago, and I noticed that I started feeling pretty good when it kicked in. I was calmer, more focused, and mildly euphoric. But I've also experienced a bit of nausea and spaciness. Now I feel sort of 'crashy' - low energy, low mood, and I feel like taking my second dose. My questions are: 1) Anyone experience these feelings (both the good and the side-effects)? 2) I don't want to be on this drug if I don't have ADD, especially since I had a past drug abuse problem. Are the effects the same for someone who has ADD and for someone who doesn't? I mean, I would think that either way anyone would feel good on it. Is it possible to tell if you have ADD by how you respond to the first few doses? I'd really like some input. Thanks.
poster:Peter
thread:83085
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011025/msgs/83099.html