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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 16 of 16. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by tecknohed on September 27, 2005, at 13:49:26
If you've taken modafinil (Alertec, Provigil, etc) then I'd love to know your personal experiences with it. How long did it take to work, dosage, side effects and anything else.
I will be trying it soon, carefully adding it to my Nardil so want to be as prepared as possible. I know there's lots of info on the web but personal experience is my prefered method of guidence.
Thanks. Kev.
Posted by Tom Twilight on September 27, 2005, at 15:21:20
In reply to Whos tried modafinil?, posted by tecknohed on September 27, 2005, at 13:49:26
Hey Kev
Hows it going?
I'm sorry to say that I did not have a good experience with Provigil, although a lot of people seem to like it.
It just made me jittery, and gave me insomnia without improving my mood or motivation.
I think its fairly safe with MAOIs though.I had better results with a related drug, called Adrafanil.
Adrafanil is the pairent drug of Provigil, its now old and off patent, so its also cheap!It was never aproved in the UK, but can easily be purchased online.
I found Adrafanil improved my mood and motivation, although it also gave me insomnia.
Its been years since I took it though, so I don't know how reliable my memory is
I don't know if its safe with MAOIs though....Its so cheap that it might be worth a try.
Posted by Tom Twilight on September 27, 2005, at 16:14:23
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by Tom Twilight on September 27, 2005, at 15:21:20
Actually seeing as your suffering from hypersomnia Modafinil might be a good choice.
If it gave me insomnia perhapse it will help with oversleeping
Posted by blueberry on September 27, 2005, at 18:12:24
In reply to Whos tried modafinil?, posted by tecknohed on September 27, 2005, at 13:49:26
Like Tom said, I liked adrafinil a lot better than modafinil. But there are plenty of folks who like modafinil. We're all so different.
What I didn't like about modafinil was that it made me super motivated and energized for a few hours and then dropped me like a bomb to where I felt intensely fatigued. It nauseated my tummy bad too. And in trying it for just 3 days, I swear I felt like I was addicted to it when I tried to quit...not in a pleasurable way but a physical way.
Adrafinil seemed so much cleaner and smoother. But it really takes a few weeks for its real benefits to show, whereas if modafinil is going to be good, you should know a lot sooner than that.
Adrafinil is so cheap. And when it breaks down in your body, part of it converts to modafinil. There are some studies that claim adrafinil has more antidepressant properties than modafinil, and in my own experience I would agree. But others here have tried it and found it worthless. I guess only a personal trial will tell.
Posted by Racer on September 27, 2005, at 21:04:31
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by blueberry on September 27, 2005, at 18:12:24
I've been on Provigil on and off for about two years now, and it brightens my mood a great deal. It's one of the few drugs I'm on now that I want to keep taking.
For me, there were some headaches at first, although they were different from other headaches -- more like pressure on my head, as though I were wearing a swimming cap that was too tight. Nothing that caused any limits on functioning, that is. I could still do anything I wanted to -- it was just as if I were doing these things with a tight swim cap on.
Otherwise, no problems, no effects other than the ones I wanted: more focus and motivation, and a brighter mood.
Posted by tecknohed on September 28, 2005, at 1:26:41
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by Racer on September 27, 2005, at 21:04:31
Thanks guys! A nice mixture of responses!
I think I would have gone for Adrafinil as it does seem to have more of a history and is better studied, but because I'm 'getting the modafinil myself', if it works then I need to convince my pdoc to prescribe it (I'm pretty poor, but get free prescriptions because of diabetes). Something I cant do with Adrafinil because its not available in UK as Tom says.
Posted by Bill LL on September 28, 2005, at 9:44:00
In reply to Whos tried modafinil?, posted by tecknohed on September 27, 2005, at 13:49:26
I have been on modafinil (400 mg) every morning for about the past 2 months. Previously I tried Concerta (long acting Ritalin) and Dexedrine. I personally like modafinil the best. It lasts pretty much all day and does not interfere with my sleep. The down side is that it is the most expensive of the 3, but I have a good drug insurance plan. I have never tried adrafinil so I can't compare the 2.
Modafinil also helps with my mood, anxiety, concentration, and most important, with my impulsivness. But it is not enough by itself for the first 2 symptoms. I also take Lexapro and Lamictal for anxiety and depression. So far, this combo is working pretty good.
In studies with children for ADD, Modafinil was effective at 400 mg.
My next step will probably be to try to lower my current dose of Lexapro (40 mg) in order to reduce sexual side effects. Hopefully I can do that when I increase the dose of Lamictal. But if I can't, then I might add Seroquel in order to lower the Lexapro.
> If you've taken modafinil (Alertec, Provigil, etc) then I'd love to know your personal experiences with it. How long did it take to work, dosage, side effects and anything else.
>
> I will be trying it soon, carefully adding it to my Nardil so want to be as prepared as possible. I know there's lots of info on the web but personal experience is my prefered method of guidence.
>
> Thanks. Kev.
Posted by tecknohed on September 28, 2005, at 10:24:45
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by Bill LL on September 28, 2005, at 9:44:00
Thanks Bill LL!
One question - how long did it take to work & what dose did you start at? (oops, that two)
Thanx!
Posted by Bill LL on September 29, 2005, at 15:48:41
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil? » Bill LL, posted by tecknohed on September 28, 2005, at 10:24:45
I think it pretty much started to work right away to combat the tiredness that I had with Lexapro. It also seemed to work quickly to reduce both my impulsivness and anxiety. I can now pay attention better.
I started with 100 mg for the first week, then 200 for a week, then 400. I was hoping that it would also reduce the sexual side effects from the 40 mg of Lexapro, but it did not. So that's why I added Lamictal a couple of weeks ago in order to try to reduce the Lexapro to a lower dose.
> Thanks Bill LL!
>
> One question - how long did it take to work & what dose did you start at? (oops, that two)
>
> Thanx!
Posted by alohashirt on September 29, 2005, at 22:28:10
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by Bill LL on September 29, 2005, at 15:48:41
Both helped my daytime sleepiness w/o any change to symptoms of distraction, procrastination
Posted by Maxime on October 1, 2005, at 7:21:05
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by Racer on September 27, 2005, at 21:04:31
Hey Racer, I am just wondering what dosage you take. I tried it myself, but I worried about the headaches since I am on an MAOI. I only took 100 mg. Actually that's all it did was give me a headache, it didn't help with the fatigue.
Maxime
Posted by Racer on October 1, 2005, at 14:59:53
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil? » Racer, posted by Maxime on October 1, 2005, at 7:21:05
> Hey Racer, I am just wondering what dosage you take. I tried it myself, but I worried about the headaches since I am on an MAOI. I only took 100 mg. Actually that's all it did was give me a headache, it didn't help with the fatigue.
>
> Maxime
>
>I take 100mg. 200mg didn't do any more for me, at least, it didn't do any more good for me.
The best I did on it, though, was probably when I was taking 100mg at breakfast, and an additional 50mg about noon. That stopped the afternoon crash for me -- mood crash, more than 'wakefullness' crash. The headaches did go away for me, though, after about two months or so. (They're back a bit, but Dr CattleProd says that they're from being on two NE activating drugs.)
Hope that helps.
Posted by Bill LL on October 3, 2005, at 12:34:41
In reply to I have tried modafiniladrafinil, posted by alohashirt on September 29, 2005, at 22:28:10
I have taken modafinil for about 4 months. I take 400 mg per day. But even on 200 mg/day, it helped a lot with keeping me awake without causing jitteriness. I used to put my head on my desk everyday, even when I got a good night's sleep. On modafinil I have not done this at all.
> Both helped my daytime sleepiness w/o any change to symptoms of distraction, procrastination
Posted by florence on October 3, 2005, at 19:32:01
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil? » Maxime, posted by Racer on October 1, 2005, at 14:59:53
> > Racer,
are you implying that one of the NE drugs is Provigil? I am trying to find out why it is suddenly giving me sinus headaches (tightness) and also pressure pain in my earsI just found out that NE is a vasoconstrictor which is why I get headache and ear problems from Wellbutrin, Ritalin, and Adderall.....
Any link you can give me stating that Provigil acts on the NE somehow? Or did your dr. just tell you that?? Thanks. I need info on this bad!
(Provigil gets me out of bed but I have a daily "crash" of depression, crying, everyday and I then have to take Xanax to help prevent this...I wonder if Adrafinal also causes headaches. Help anyone? depresssion is so unrelenting.............florence
> >
> >
>
> I take 100mg. 200mg didn't do any more for me, at least, it didn't do any more good for me.
>
> The best I did on it, though, was probably when I was taking 100mg at breakfast, and an additional 50mg about noon. That stopped the afternoon crash for me -- mood crash, more than 'wakefullness' crash. The headaches did go away for me, though, after about two months or so. (They're back a bit, but Dr CattleProd says that they're from being on two NE activating drugs.)
>
> Hope that helps.
Posted by alohashirt on October 3, 2005, at 20:57:06
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by florence on October 3, 2005, at 19:32:01
> > > Racer,
> are you implying that one of the NE drugs is Provigil? I am trying to find out why it is suddenly giving me sinus headaches (tightness) and also pressure pain in my ears
>
> I just found out that NE is a vasoconstrictor which is why I get headache and ear problems from Wellbutrin, Ritalin, and Adderall.....
>
> Any link you can give me stating that Provigil acts on the NE somehow? Or did your dr. just tell you that?? Thanks. I need info on this bad!
>
>
> (Provigil gets me out of bed but I have a daily "crash" of depression, crying, everyday and I then have to take Xanax to help prevent this...I wonder if Adrafinal also causes headaches. Help anyone? depresssion is so unrelenting.............florence
> > >
> > >
> >
> > I take 100mg. 200mg didn't do any more for me, at least, it didn't do any more good for me.
> >
> > The best I did on it, though, was probably when I was taking 100mg at breakfast, and an additional 50mg about noon. That stopped the afternoon crash for me -- mood crash, more than 'wakefullness' crash. The headaches did go away for me, though, after about two months or so. (They're back a bit, but Dr CattleProd says that they're from being on two NE activating drugs.)
> >Provigil gave me killer headaches. Adrafinil didn't. Don't know why.
Posted by tecknohed on October 4, 2005, at 6:02:37
In reply to Re: Whos tried modafinil?, posted by florence on October 3, 2005, at 19:32:01
Hi florence.
Many sources report that it does effect the re-uptake of noradrenaline. Here's a link to try:
Many reports seem to refere to the same study.
This is the end of the thread.
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