I don't know about this medication, but I was totally afraid of all the negative talk about drugs and was shocked when the doctor talked about ritilin. Hell since my oldest boy started taking this 4 weeks ago he has if I can describe it like "waking from a sleep while being a wake". He is less aggressive in his answers to my questions and normal every day requests.. He can even think straight to do stuff without me nagging him.. He has had the usually side effects of stomach aches etc, but quote "hell mom if I can get the meds up to double strength there is a chance I can think straight all day", this would be gold in the bank for me . Rilitin has a quick acting time and wears off again to, so it has almost being entertaining seeing how he reacts.. It is like having a suddenly lazy kid being key driven at normal speed. Some ADHD'er are over quiet.. If Rilitin is not the drug for my son, we are definitely trying other stuff, my son is in for the long haul, because quoting my son "having ADHD/Asperges is like the life from hell". Then I have to face the sharks (teachers and other students) at school. My son now can cook a pizza without phasing out and asking me to finish it.. He also now appreciate how hard it has been for his little brother and his ADD/Autism. He wanted to kill his little brother because he was so abnoxious and would bite him, me and hurt his invalid dad all the time, he now can see the internal chaos his little brother has and the huge sorrow of not being medication treatable. He told me "I can hide my chaos except in the classroom and at home with with you, my brother can't even if he wanted to.

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Rena Thank you for your reply. Having to go on drugs is scary, yet it is also a relief to know that there is something that can make you feel "normal" and focused. My Therapist wants to try me on Vyvanse, she didn't feel that the Adderall was the right drug for me. I see her today to get the perscription and we will see how this one works for me.

It is good to hear that your son has responded positively to his medication, it seems to be a weight lifted off both your shoulders. I wish you the best of luck.

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The Wanderer said: I took my first pill for my AD/HD on Saturday Allderal, The questions I have is: Will the meds be somthing I will stay on the rest of my life of does the brain retrain itself so to speak? I was started on 20mg daily how will I know if I need to go up or down on the strength? thanks for your help

Hi Rick. I also take ADDerall XR, I have been diagnosed with AD/HD since i was about 8 or 9 years old. I've been re diagnosed as an Adult in the Millitary, and they out me on ADDerall. I started out at 20 mg once a day. You will notice a change but it will take several weeks, it took me about 3 weeks before I started noticing anything diffrent. it is pretty tough for you to notice changes, but others around you will undoubtedly notice, so my best advice is if you ahve a significant other or close friend around that you feel comfortable talking to about your symptoms, ask them to note changes in your behavior and such. After about 6 weeks if you havent allready done so, schedule an appointment with the doctor who prescribed it for you and bring along any notes from the person who you asked to note changes. You will know, if you want to increase dossage or not by then most likley. Also, I am not sure if this is your first time taking Medication for AD/HD, but, when i first got back on medication as an adult, the adderall, I had trouble sleeping the first few nights, just know it goes away and it is one of the side affects. As for if you will always be on it your whole life, that is diffrent for everyone, I have been on and off Medication for AD/HD for a ling time, It helps and theres no denying that fact, I dont know if there is enough scientific research done on it to tell us wether the brain can or cannot "retrain itself" but there are things like cognative therapy that we can all do, to help us help retrain our brains. These are just my oppinions based on my own personal experience. I hope i have helped you some,

Parker

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Parker Thank you for your reply. I was on the Adderall for a few months but it gave me heart palpitations so my therapist put me on Vyvanse I used that up until a couple of weeks ago, but stopped until I can get into see my therapist to see about switching to something else. It seemed the longer that I was on the Vyvanse the more irritable I became, to the point were the smallest thing would piss me off. Now that I have stopped taking it my personality is back to normal and I laugh and joke around. I generally don't like taking medications anyways, being a redhead I seem to be more sensitive to their effects and side effects. I was diagnosed with ADHD, I'm not so concerned with the Hyperactivity portion as I am in finding something that would help me to focus and concetrate. They hyperactivity allows me to multitask which I seem to be quite good at. I was in the Army also and the structure was good for me, looking back now I can see where my ADHD did get me in trouble a few times LOL, but its all good and I gon't reget the experience at all.

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Hi, Just read through your message and the replies. I've been on Concerta, and Adderall XR. I now take Adderall XR 25mg (started at 5mg and worked my way up to the perfect dosage).

You mentioned before if taking meds is a lifetime commitment, or if you "eventually" get better and can stop taking them. The interesting thing is I now skip my meds on weekends or certain days and I'm actually more focused and less impulsive then I have ever been. Many of the symptoms of ADD become established habits, and now that I've taken a stimulant that made me feel I could sit still, I feel more able to sit still off medication than before. But, realistically you will always have the focus/impulse problem for the rest of your life. It's a big challenge, but even without medication if you setup a rigorous schedule and organizing system for your life - you can prevent it from taking quality away from your life.

Another thing which I can relate to, is the side effect equation of the drugs. I want to tell you, because I've been in that state of mind too - if you are "looking" for side effects, you will find them. I decided one day I was done looking for side effects, and they disappeared. All stimulants have some side effects, but you need to look at how many they take away.

If your moved off Vyvanse, you will then most likely be placed on Concerta or something Methylphenidate-based (Ritalin, etc.) I've tried them, and I prefer the focus amphetamines give any day over them. But, everything works differently for each person. If you're more hyperactive - it will probably be better. I found they made too much of a zombie.

For the irritability you are talking about, try exercising. I find it really helps, especially at the end of day "wearoff" period. Just make sure you tell the people around you what mood your experiencing, and that you want some time alone. Otherwise, you can end up with saying a bunch of stuff and people taking it far too personal (experience I speak from!)

Good luck!

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Brad Thank you for your reply, I was started on a 75mg dose of Adderall XR and than mover to the Vyvanse. I do have some issue with hyperactivity, But I think my biggest issue is the attention deficit. In reading your post it may be worth discussing with my therapist about giving Adderall XR another try but starting on a low dose and increase strength and see if that will work for me. From reading other post on this site it seems that when I get the right med and the right dose I will notice the difference in my focus and that is my hope. Thank you again for your post.

Rick

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I've been on anti-depression medication since 1990. My family and I think I've had ADD-like behavior since childhood. Currently,I am on Zoloft (since1995) and Wellbutrin for about a month ,and I can tell I am feeling better. Even if it is the placebo effect I don't care ,it works for me. Also,I can relate to many of the feelings and thoughts from many of you. Theses messages have helped me feel better about myself ,too. Thanks for reading.

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I've been on anti-depression medication since 1990. My family and I think I've had ADD-like behavior since childhood. Currently,I am on Zoloft (since1995) and Wellbutrin for about a month ,and I can tell I am feeling better. Even if it is the placebo effect I don't care ,it works for me. Also,I can relate to many of the feelings and thoughts from many of you. Theses messages have helped me feel better about myself ,too. Thanks for reading. Do many of you feel (what I have been told to me by others in my life) as being easily flustered , excitable, spacey, impulsive-acting ( I now write thoughts or important things to do so, as not to take up too much time)in order to feel better about doing or feeling productive with a task or goal? that could possibly get done with less frustration? Bye for now.I

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hi, im a 14 year old girl who has been on concerta 54mg since the 3rd grade and out of know where the doc wabts me to go on vyvanse but im worried does it work? will it be just like concerta for me? or really diffrent....? like i said im 14 and scared about trying vyvanse

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