Posted by manowar on November 28, 2001, at 9:36:23
In reply to Re: adderall update neuropsychological tests, posted by Peter on November 24, 2001, at 2:20:49
Hi Peter,
I’m sorry it took me so long to get back with you. I found that it is very useful to use this website as a way for us to share information, hope, and encouragement. It also forces me clarify ideas in my mind, which takes time.I wouldn’t worry about obsessing over your problems. We all do. That’s why I really like this forum, it allows for us to obsess together as a group. But I think it’s a very constructive way to obsess. I have learned a lot here, mainly by doing searches of the archives. But it’s a lot more fun to get involved in ongoing dialog. Anyway, I just wanted to tell you that you have a great attitude. Keep digging and asking questions, you’ll find hope, comfort, support and helpful info along the way.
To be honest, I’m pretty new at taking the psychostimulants myself, but don’t worry, I’ll be happy to give my opinion. ADD was added to my diagnosis of cyclothymia just three months ago. Along with Wellbutrin for my depression, my pdoc prescribed 10 mg of Ritalin twice a day. I really found that it was helping me concentrate, not obsess, and get more work done, but the Ritalin would only last me for three or four hours at a time and I came down from it pretty hard. After a few weeks on that regimen, I got more used to it, and the ups and downs were not as bad as when I started taking it. I found a doctor that specialized in ADD and he started me on Concerta then Medadate which are both just sustained release versions of Ritalin (methylphenidate). They both worked pretty well, but the doctor wanted me to try the new Adderal XR and compare it with the others. I never have had regular Adderal prescribed to me in the past, but the Adderal XR to me worked better and smoother than the Concerta or Medadate. The drug is so new that my insurance doesn’t cover it. I think it’s about $2 a pill, but to me it’s well worth it. You will be amazed at how well the XR form of Adderal works. Yes, it does last for 12 hours, and it works very well.
Unfortunately it can be very difficult to find a doctor that uses SPECT. I decided to go to the Amen clinic in California. That clinic is the only one that I knew of that specializes in using SPECT to help diagnose and to evaluate mental disorders. I read Amen’s book a couple years ago called “Change your Brain, Change your Life”. He shows images of patients’ scans along with their case histories. What he has found is that mental disorders are fairly predictable depending on how certain parts of the brain appear to be functioning. To me it makes perfect sense. A lot more sense than the idea that the brain is a just a sack of chemicals that need to be balanced. In depression, what he refers to as the “deep limbic” area of the brain (which contains the thalamus, amygdala, cingulate gyrus and deep temporal lobes) tend to over function and the left prefrontal cortex tends to under function. With ADD, during concentration the left prefrontal cortex shuts down, which explains why that when people with ADD try to concentrate they often can’t. He has a good site – www.brainplace.com. I also found that I had other functioning problems too, that I never even suspected. But that is exactly why I went to the clinic anyway, was to see if there were other underlining problems that explained why I have been so “treatment resistant” over the past several years. I noticed that there have been a few people in Psychobabble in the past that have talked about him, and they were pretty skeptical of his work. I also suspected that his work was “junk science”, until I went to his clinic and had the procedure done. Now I would be his poster boy if he wanted. The scans really clarified what my problems were and a good game plan for treating them, not only with drugs, but aerobic exercise, better diet along with a couple dozen more ideas.
When I told my pdoc about Dr. Amen, I was surprised to find out that his work was pretty well known. My doctor encouraged me to go there for an evaluation. I did a little research, enough to find out that SPECT is not used that often. The only clinics I could find were in major cities. So I decided to bite the bullet, go to Cali to have the scans done. I did this over three days in August. It cost me $2750 out of pocket (My insurance later reimbursed me $2300!) to have two scans done, someone to record my history, a doctor to read over my history, evaluate the scans and to meet with me for two hours. The two scans had to be done over two separate days. One scan was done at rest and the other scan was done while I was concentrating. The scans were very revealing, and more than anything, by having this done it gave me comfort in knowing that it was not my fault why I was feeling the way I did. I also think that with a person like me that has several overlapping problems, it helps a pdoc pinpoint where the problems are as to give an accurate diagnosis so that the right meds can be prescribed and so forth. Unfortunately the scans did not make my problems go away, but I’m glad that I had it done. Hopefully it won’t be long until we find the right medication mix to help me with my problems. Anyway, good luck and I hope I have been helpful--- Tim
poster:manowar
thread:84890
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011123/msgs/85389.html