Do you use ritalin?

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yes, that was the case with me and it ruined my health quite a bit. that's why I'm totally pro the relatively safe meds as opposed to street stuff.

funnily enough, back in high school I wasn't diagnosed at all and just instinctively knew that without external stimulation I will never make it through exams.

I've seen speculation that many of the people incarcerated in U.S. prisons would have benefitted more from assessment for things like AD(H)D and then proper treatment, rather than just locking them up.
I can agree with that, especially since I have had people tell me all my life, "Well, if you'd just _____!", as if it was that easy.
While I agree with penalizing someone who does some egregious thing, I do not believe it's just enough to lock them up.
Especially in cases of drug use/abuse, I believe that person needs to be able to understand what the drug is doing for them.. such as alleviating symptoms of something like AD(H)D. Then help them learn to deal with the issue without resorting to self-medicating.
I think society, in general, is too quick to take the easy way out and just offer up reprimands and wagging fingers instead of something more substantive.

i use it for my meltdowns

I realised a combination of hyperactivity and compulsivity can be a problem even when you're older regarding what others people think of you. I don't know about inattentiveness and impulsiveness.

If I'm all busy trying to not bounce around like a mad rabbit, it takes a second to make me get up and walk around without being aware of it until I already did it. Or touching other people's stuff or starting talking about a topic I decided to not talk about.

I think if I just had this need to move around without actually doing so spontaneously and impulsive, people wouldn't notice so much and react badly to it.

A-men!

I'm on both Concerta and Resperidone, and I don't know what I'd do without them..... well thats a lie, I know what I'd do, and it isn't pretty..... wow being any kind of disabled sucks...

Everyone I knew when I was younger, that took ritalin, was a zombie! I was PRESCRIBED ritalin a LONG time ago for ADHD, but never got to take any. My mother knew I wasn't hyper.

I was forced to take it at six until it gave me brain damage which is still evident today at 21. It did not help with the hyperactivity either.

2ukenkerl, To my knowledge, stimulants mainly or only act on dopamine. Many pharmecueticals that are stimulants I beleive have other affinities towards other neurotransmitter systems but I think that these are mostly weak insignificant affinities. So there may be increased noradrenalin and adrenalin as well if stimulants stimulate the release of those neurotransmitters too and since the brain changes its endocrine function etc when its arousal system has been simulated a sense of alarm.. This is what caffiene does but caffiene does not directly act on dopamine nor is it related to amphetamines(I assume you knew that.)

There has been research done dating a few years back showing an increase in expression some kind of stimulant induced gene that alters the function of the brain related to addiction: (perhaps its good news that there is recovery over the years from this but where is it?)

http://www.biopsychiatry.com/methylphen ... talin.html

Heres' a new research I got from going on google-news again, looking for articles to read: http://www.sacbee.com/273/story/1467515.html

Its about research being done on a neurotransmitter I told you about called "noradrenalin" / norepinephrine.

So theres' still being research done that has to do with neurotransmitters and ADHD / A.D.D.

Atypical antipsychotics "can suppress" the symptoms of hyperactivity as an off-lable use but antipsychotics also have unknown effects and there is a probability or perhaps really unlikely one that the atypical antipsychotics can cause tardive dyskinesia in some people. But it has happened.

Last edited by earthdweller on 14 Dec 2008, 6:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I have used it. Make sure you are regularly around people when you first go on it as Ritalin can cause paranoia, mood changes, mood swings, and personality changes. It is hard to notice this in yourself so you would need other people to tell you if they are noticing any changes and then you might have to switch to a different medication. That happened to me and now I am on Adderall which provides a similar service but without the side effects.

before I took Ritalin/Adderall I would consume extreme amounts of stimulants, sugar/caffeine, energy stuff. At one point I drank 6 24oz bottle of Mountain Dew, had a few coffees and an energy drink or two.... regularly (daily)

Stimulants can also reduce the risk of drug use in ADHD individuals whose brains either crave stimulant drugs to focus or depressant drugs to stop focusing on everything. My brother (who hasn't been diagnosed with ADHD even though I push him to be because as a child he was the stereotypical ADHD hyperactive kid and used to drink coffee to "calm down and sleep") was an alcoholic and prescription pain medication abuser and was put on a rehab drug that functions similar to ADHD meds and it has helped him immensely.

"Researchers believe ADHD symptoms occur when certain brain chemicals, also called neurotransmitters, are not working properly. The two neurotransmitters that are thought to be affected in people with ADHD are called norepinephrine and dopamine. These brain chemicals are important for concentration, impulse control, and control of mood and behaviour.

ADHD medications are used to improve symptoms of poor attention, poor concentration, poor impulse control, and hyperactivity. It is thought that they do this by helping these neurotransmitters work properly."
http://bodyandhealth.canada.com/channel ... n_id=10862

it does not. I suppose it might if you didn't need it.

It is like antidepressants. I did not have chemical depression as a kid but they gave my antidepressants (Zoloft) and it wipe out my mind. I would sit on the floor and stare at the wall for days on end.
But you give the same meds to someone who HAS a chemical imbalance and it works.

you can switch meds. I took Ritalin and my husband didn't like the side effects so I went off it and the psychiatrist was very unhappy when he found that out. He said I should have tested different meds instead. So I tested Adderall and it worked much better, hardly any side effects.

To be honest, I wish I was more aggressive, and I wish I had a smaller appetite. I am too timid, unable to focus, and I have gained weight over the last 8 years. I think all of these things have hindered me significantly in my employment and social life.

Yes, all it did was make me yawn constantly.

Psych Doc put me on Dexamphetamine(Similar to Dexedrine) and noticed a significant change for about 4 months. Their impact is less significant at present.

Seem to respond more positve to antiepileptic medication. The adverse side effects are the problem. Insomnia and increased appetite stop me from continuing the medication.

Will be trying Topomax after Xmas and hoping there are no side effects.

Medication is a personal thing and we all react differently.

You need to take Testosterone!
And plenty of it... increased muscle mass, heightened sense of aggression, hair growth, eat like a teenage boy and burn up those same calories by running around punching everyone you meet on the street.....

sorry, couldn't resist...