New to ADHD and new to this Forum

[harmonch]

At 61 years of age, I took a long look at some of my personality characteristics and decided to take a more serious look at the possibility, long joked about, that I may in fact have ADHD. I did a bit of digging for reference material and found "Taking Charge of Adult ADHD" by Russell Barkley, PhD to be a well received book. I consumed it over the course of a day and found that I was, in my opinion, somewhat of a poster child of the diagnosis.

I sought out a medical doctor, ultimately finding one who really seemed to connect with me; and, was also diagnosed late in life with ADHD. My wife ordered a companion book and found many of my symptoms to be perfectly described as they pertained to the one or two minor flaws in my character. All right, maybe they were more than a few and not all of them so minor.

At present, I am on a 2x 30mg dose of generic Adderall, one tablet in the morning and one after lunch. To be completely honest, I don't feel much difference. I have been prone to mandatory naps going all the way back to college days. The Adderall has helped that; but, the occasional nap is still necessary. Sleeping at night is almost never a problem. I'm usually comatose within 5 minutes of hitting the pillow, even with the adderall.

I have long heard of the almost tunnel like focus Adderall is supposed to provide. That has not been my experience at all. Is this common? Do changes in the medication, going to Ritalin for instances, make a difference?

On a different matter, I used to have major headaches every month or two; and, they would last for days. I used to go through large quantities of Excedrin, taking usually 3 tablets every three or four hours to relieve the hideous throbbing pain. On one occasion, while visiting friends, such a headache was coming on. There was no Excedrin or even aspirin to be found; but, the hostess said to try her Advil. With out any other choice, I did. AND WOW, the Advil worked and worded fast. My headache was completely gone within 1/2 hour. I have never had to go through the prolonged agony of headaches for the last 20 years. Three Advil... GONE!

Have any of you had a similar experience with an ADHD medication where one worked and another did not? I've never been on any prescription medication before, other than a very occasional antibiotic.

Chuck

[Lisimac]

Hi Chuck- I was diagnosed with ADD as an adult after my 8 yr old son was diagnosed, I was 42. My son is now 22 & has been taking Concerta XR (extended release) since the beginning, with slight increases in dosage as he grew. It made a huge difference when he started, and is still working for him. Extended release means, the medication is released slowly over the course of the day, so you take one pill a day & the medication is released at a consistent rate.

After my son was on the Concerta for a long time, a friend with ADD said, Concerta is not good, he should try Adderall. I talked to our doctor and he told me each individual is different and what works for one, might not work for another. If the Concerta is working for him, don't mess with it.

When I decided to try meds, I tried about 5 different types (none seemed to help me) before deciding to stay with Adderall XR (20mg/day) also an extended release. Apparently the meds affect children & adults differently, and I think they didn't help me as much starting at 42 as they did for my son at 9.

I do think they help me, but I still have to write down everything so I won't forget. Have to really work to be on time, and "keep all the balls in my life in the air." Sometimes I still drop a ball or two.

To be honest, meds do not cure ADD/ADHD, but they can help with many symptoms. I find I have tunnel-like focus, but usually for things that I am really interested in anyway. For things that I do not enjoy, I still need to force myself to focus sometimes. If you are on a medication that doesn't seem to be helping you, definitely talk to your doctor and try a different one.

[harmonch in reply to Lisimac]

Lisimac,

Thank you so much for your reply. Sorry for the over long delay in getting back to your detailed and very helpful post!

I think your experience closely matched my own. Years of disorganized behavior will not be changed by meds alone. Old habits die hard!

But, while not being the end all experience I'd hoped, the meds do help a little. I'm trying Focalin now. I think the Adderall was better.

You're right, laser focus only on things I'm passionate about at the moment... like responding to a number of the posts on this site right now.

Many thanks,

Chuck