How is concerta going to be different for me?

[Wonderful.Cheese]

Isn't concerta just XR version of Ritalin? Would I be better off trying adderal? Sleep dr really wants me on something so I'm not sleeping my life away anymore. I am a bit leery.

[Flash]

Yeah, it's ritalin in an extended release form. Concerta lasted about 7 hours for me.

[San]

It is the same active ingredient, it just is an extended release.

 

I found Concerta gentler than Ritalin. It came on slowly and faded away, rather than Ritalin, where it comes on fast and then crashes later in the day. I found Concerta worked for about 12 hours for me, but I prefer plain ol' Ritalin.

[Wonderful.Cheese]

I don't know what to do I guess! Ugh. Thanks for your replies.

Edited May 27, 2015 by Wonderful.Cheese

[Rabbit37]

I know, this is a first person website, BUT, my son is on adderall. It works wonders for him, however, when he crashes it's not always so pretty. At the time we considered concerta for him, it wasn't on the approved list with insurance. Hmm. Don't know where I was going with this.

Good luck with it.

[Wonderful.Cheese]

I know, this is a first person website, BUT, my son is on adderall. It works wonders for him, however, when he crashes it's not always so pretty. At the time we considered concerta for him, it wasn't on the approved list with insurance. Hmm. Don't know where I was going with this.

Good luck with it.

 

Hmm. Crashes as in "gets super tired again and needs to sleep like NOW". Or what does crash mean? Sorry. Maybe he is on it for ADHD? I am going to be on it for hypersomnia and narcolepsy. I don't know if concerta is even going to be on my insurance list. I guess I will try the adderall. I hope she gets back to me today. She of course has to approve this with my shitty pdoc. I don't know if he will go with it or not. 

Does your son need tons of EKG tests and a cardiologist for taking the adderall? My sleep dr wants me to do this. It is very spendy.

[Rabbit37]

I'm sorry, Cheese, I should have explained better. Yes, he's ADHD. We've been through a ton of meds, the difficult part of a stimulant is the appetite suppression. He's already a skinny kid, so,weight was a concern for a long time. With the adderall, he takes it early in the morning, and it wears off by lunchtime so he can eat. Then he takes another after lunch for the rest of the school day. He's 15, btw, I don't know if that makes a difference.

When I say he crashes, sometimes he's okay, he's lower key and is ready to just chill and play games. Those are the good days. The bad days are when he gets extremely irritable and angry, and tends to lash out at everything and everyone. Usually food helps him, although he gets frustrated because his appetite hasn't always come back.

He really likes it though, really helps him focus. It's the first med he hasn't complained about. 15mg x 2.

I hope you can find the proper stimulant that will work for you. Fingers crossed.

[Wonderful.Cheese]

I'm sorry, Cheese, I should have explained better. Yes, he's ADHD. We've been through a ton of meds, the difficult part of a stimulant is the appetite suppression. He's already a skinny kid, so,weight was a concern for a long time. With the adderall, he takes it early in the morning, and it wears off by lunchtime so he can eat. Then he takes another after lunch for the rest of the school day. He's 15, btw, I don't know if that makes a difference.

When I say he crashes, sometimes he's okay, he's lower key and is ready to just chill and play games. Those are the good days. The bad days are when he gets extremely irritable and angry, and tends to lash out at everything and everyone. Usually food helps him, although he gets frustrated because his appetite hasn't always come back.

He really likes it though, really helps him focus. It's the first med he hasn't complained about. 15mg x 2.

I hope you can find the proper stimulant that will work for you. Fingers crossed.

 

 

Don't be sorry! Thank you for the reply. That helps a lot. I will be hoping it works for me too!

[snarkygirl]

I take 30mg Adderall XR in the morning and 20mg Adderall IR in the afternoon. Mine was prescribed for a few reasons. I do have adhd, but also I'm usually stuck feeling tired with low motivation even after having sleep studies saying everything is fine. So it kills two birds with one stone for me. I get a clearer head so I can think and focus and I'm not so sleepy all the time.

[jt07]

For me, when I crash, I get very anxious and am gripped with a horrible sense of doom, and I feel very dysphoric. I have for the most part adjusted to the Ritalin that I take, and I only rarely get crashes anymore. But when they happen, they are terrible.

[Rabbit37]

I should add that some (but not all) of my son's bad crashes could be due to not eating enough at lunch. He refuses to eat breakfast, so might go most of the day without food. It's a constant battle.

Moral of the story: eat a good breakfast first!

[Velvet Elvis]

I should add that some (but not all) of my son's bad crashes could be due to not eating enough at lunch. He refuses to eat breakfast, so might go most of the day without food. It's a constant battle.

Moral of the story: eat a good breakfast first!

 

This.

 

It gets better after a decade or so, but you really have to force yourself to eat at first or else your blood sugar will bottom out and you won't notice until the stimulant wears off.  

[Teagan]

Cheese, I take Dexedrine ER but have tried Concerta and Adderall. Dexedrine just happens to work best for me. I noticed that you are taking Wellbutrin XL (I am too). Just a note.... The stim/welly combo is fine during the day for me but makes it more difficult to fall asleep. I make sure to eat breakfast and I cut out my afternoon dose of Dexedrine to help with the sleep issues. Balanced meals are very important even if you aren't hungry.