Posted by 8 Miles on January 16, 2004, at 20:10:35
In reply to Re: RITALIN, ADDERALL or CONCERTA: pls share your, posted by TropicalGirl12 on January 15, 2004, at 18:02:39
Yes, obviuosly Ritalin and it's cousins are of extremely different chemical structures than the true amphetamines. They work in similar modes, but each "type" works better for certain people in differnt age groups depanding upon their DX. The DX is a very difficult thing to demonstrate, and it takes time for a doctor to really be sure. I have been seeing a Pdoc since late 1996 for depression and anxiety. In the first year or so, while trying differnt meds, my Pdoc first brought up the possibility of ADD with me. He did not start me on the true stimulants (Ritalin and Adderall), but began with Wellbutrin. That worked for quite a few years until the past year or so. I have complained to him that I am suffering at work because I cannot concentrate enough on one task at a time, and I am not able to set order to my tasks. I often am tossing up 4-5 tasks at one time, and never really doing quality work on any of them. I felt great pressure to complete these tasks, and felt badly when (at least in my own eyes) I was not completing all my jobs. Some life-situations perhaps exacerbated my condition, and clearly increased my stess level to the degree that I began lashing out at people, and was becoming angry and upset for "little" reason. So, after my Pdoc tried supplementing my WB 150 SR with 100mg immediate release twice daily, and I did not show much if any improvement,he finally brought back out the ADD. I do not have (so much) the impulsivity and "acting out" hyperactivity part of the illness, but mostly the attention deficit disorder. Two weeks ago today, I dropped the 100mg IR WB, and began on 20mg Adderall (amphetamine salts) twice daily. It has taken a little while to adjust to this new med, but I have seen some potential for really positve improvements in my attention and ability to complete tasks. Is it strange to DX a man in his 40's with ADD? Not really, because I had a lot of the symptoms while I was a kid. However, mainstream medicine has some issues with it. My insurance company would not even pay for the meds until my Pdoc personally contacted them on the phone to say "yes" he had DXed me properly accordingly to DSM IV diagnostics, and yes, he had tried other treatments other than pure stimulants to treat me. I felt like some sort of criminal or drug addict the way they treated me. Well, enough of my rant. The meds ARE different, they take differnt amounts of time to work, they come in differnt time-released doses and not everyone responds the same way to either of them. A competent doc will try the one that should help you, but be willing to go with the other if the first doesn't work. From what I have read, heard and seen about the ritalin-class meds, they cause more side effects like headaches than the amphetamine class meds do. As usual, mileage varies widely with the individual. My advice is to try what you are given, but don't settle for it if the other might work better for you. I DO know that the amphetamines are much more easily and widely abused and sold into the illicit drug market, so that is clearly a driving factor as to which your doc scripts for you. Keep us informed.
8
poster:8 Miles
thread:128049
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040114/msgs/301837.html