Posted by tmalicia on July 28, 2006, at 3:27:03
In reply to Re: adderall/suicide...please help, posted by Myrk on July 28, 2006, at 0:37:21
> Hey, just started myself on the XR about 2 weeks ago. No personal experience with the immediate release, but it really sounds like there is a lot going on there in terms of medications.
>
> I wasn't personally farmiliar with Elavil, Wellbutrin, or Lamictal so I pulled them up and started reading a bit about them. Noticed a side-effect that shows up in either "Common Side Effects" or "Somewhat Rare Side Effects" - Anxiety. Mix that in with real life problems, such as not being able to pay the rent, constant headaches from getting off and sustaining drug levels, and Adderall is gonna throw you mind into hyper-"OHSH*T"-mode. I've found that after I take my Adderall, I am much more effective as a person, however I worry about stuff a lot more (which is better for me, because I was told that impulsivity is messing me up - Side note, I shaved my head last night *tear* I miss my hair!).
>
> I'm really not sure why you were proscribed Adderall for fatigue when something like Provigal can do the job (Provigal kept me up and going, but didn't mess with my mind too bad - I wasn't constantly thinking of my "next chore" and stuff), but then again, I'm not doctor nor do I pretend to be one. If anything, next trip to the doc explain the situation and how you're feeling. It might not feel like high-tension, but depression is commonly a way for people to block out that feeling of axiety.
>
> As for right now... Are you effective in your daily living without the adderall? If so, I'd kinda be adverse to adding another pill to the cocktail if you're generally feeling scattered and depressed. Adderall, for me, has been a pill that acts pretty quickly (1-3 hours). If stopping it was a bad idea, you can take one.
> ---
>
> On your second post, there's actually a very wholistic approach to your motivation problem =)
>
> Make a list. I can't stress this enough. There would be days at the beggining of my Adderall that I'd be like "Wow, I got a buncha stuff done today! Awesome!" and others that I'd just cause myself to mull in my head over descions, conflicts, etc that I really couldn't do anything about (currently). If you make that list, you'll at least have a plan of action, some way to attack a problem. Use paper. Get one of those sticky whiteboards for your fridge. Hell, write directly ON your fridge. It's awesome to look at a list of things you did today and go "Hah. Suck it, deppression."
>
> -Myrk
Oh, I'm all about lists. I'll even write something down that I'm just about to do just to cross it off! And now I have a pile of jumbled lists with everything but the harder stuff crossed off on them, so I can go through them and make sure everything gets done.I found one interaction that would have made a significant difference, rather than just the migraine and pms or adderall itself -- adderall increases the dosage of elavil, and every time I've stepped up or down on elavil I'd be nuts for a day or two.
My neuro prescribed it for me because he thought I might have a mild case of narcolepsy...I'm *always* dragging during the day, no matter how many hours of sleep I get. And I'm guessing that since my concentration is blown when I get a migraine, he figured that would help me, too. I was really looking forward to this, because I need to get serious about looking for more work, but obviously that's hard when you're tired and scattered and unmotivated.
I saw on his instruction sheet that I could call if I had any weird side effects, so that was a relief. But today ended up being a lot better for me, and I realized that being careful about the dose/time is important.
So hopefully it will work out, because for general mood, energy, and motivation (this has all been clinical for the past year -- the money thing is only a recent setback) the antidepressants alone weren't making a huge difference. Even though I could usually function when I had to (I'm a freelance writer...and usually missed a lot of deadlines because of insomnia/migraines) but on my days off I wouldn't do anything -- not cleaning, laundry, going out, or even talking to my friends.
I hated feeling like I was wasting my life away, and every single night for I don't know how long I've been going to bed resolved to jump up the minute I woke up the next day (because otherwise I'd be back asleep before I knew it) and I'd exercise and be productive. But every day I'd fail, and it's been soooo frustrating that I can't do something as simple as get out of bed a little earlier than usual no matter how resolved I am.
Geez, sorry about the long post. The whole point is that I'm very happy that I felt better today, and I hope the adderall does work out because now it's crucial for me to get my butt in gear.
Thanks for everyone's responses, I'd welcome any more input as well!
poster:tmalicia
thread:671084
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20060724/msgs/671340.html