I love reading everyone's posts on this forum. I'm 40 and have recently been diagnosed with ADHD by a Psychiatrist. I am an educated woman, but have struggled in school and relationships my whole life, and have always felt it to be difficult to "contain" myself. I'm a substitute teacher (but in my state you need a master's degree to do my line of work. I have that and 2 bachelors-due to my indecisiveness in my younger years). I have 2 awesome kids, and and married 15 years. I hope to break my bad personality and neglected upbringing and not pass negative traits to my kids.
I reached out for help. I have generalized anxiety, feel like I over eat, and am constantly stressed. I eat more at night though, and TV seems to be the only mind-numbing thing that calms me at night to try to relax and go to sleep (the opposite of what docs and professionals say about sleep habits, but seems to be the only thing that helps me at night when in bed trying to doze off). I've heard many ADHD folks, such as myself, function the same way.
My doctor started me on 5 mg of Adderall. After only a day and a half (1 dose the 1st day and 2 doses the next), I felt horrible-hands went numb, heart pain, anxiety, sweating, arms tingly, ears ringing, head throbbing...I DID, however feel like my thinking was laser-sharp, and I was able to control my interrupting problem with people a bit better in the short period I took it. But apparently my body cannot handle the stimulant....UGHHH...
My doctor recommended me trying Gabapentin:
INFO:
Gabapentin is an anti-epileptic drug, also called an anticonvulsant. It affects chemicals and nerves in the body that are involved in the cause of seizures and some types of pain.
Gabapentin is used in adults to treat neuropathic pain (nerve pain) caused by herpes virus or shingles (herpes zoster).
The Horizant brand of gabapentin is also used to treat restless legs syndrome (RLS).
The Neurontin brand of gabapentin is also used to treat seizures in adults and children who are at least 3 years old.
This one makes you tired and I already have insomnia.
ALSO...
Wellbutrin and another depression med. One causes weight gain and one causes more anxiety. I'm already taking Buspar for generalized anxiety. I'm at the 3x per day 60mg (total) dose, which is the most one can take. I just started the 60 mg recently, but haven't noticed much difference. I'm scared to take anything extra for depression/anxiety (which she said if it worked, could help the ADHD). I tried Celexa in the past (the lowest dose you can take, and took it for a few years). I quit cold turkey one day, and for about 5 days my brain felt like I had a glitch in it. I was abrupt and would yell at my kids for small stuff. I felt awful and could not control my emotions. I never want to experience that again.
I also have a prescription for a low dose of Ambian, authorized to take 5mg 3x per week-which barely helps. I truly need a larger dose (like 10-15). AND Ambian is the ONLY thing that helps me with sleep, after years and years of trials and tribulations of trying everything. I could teach a class on the proper things to do to get sleep-as recommended by doctors. However, with me personally, I know what works for me, and that is truly the only thing. Kaiser PCP said they were only allowed to prescribe a low dose, as Kaiser steers away from prescribing Ambian. It's very irritating. I wish they would listen to their patients-or at least me. I had no harmful side effects, and I did not mix that with anything. Sorry to rant on that.
At any rate, I guess I was curious to know if anyone else my age has had problems with stimulant medications and is taking something else. I do take a ton of various vitamins as well. I always have. I have0 time to work out, being I wake up at 4:30am every day and get to bed after kids' activities at like 9pm.
I would love to hear people's shares and thoughts on their personal struggles.
Thanks a million!!!
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BusyMomTeacher
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BusyMomTeacher - Have you done one of those DNA tests to see which ADHD medications will work best for you? I’m sorry for what you’re going through. I’m currently dealing with a similar issue. Thankfully, I think I have a good combination of daytime meds, which is Vyvanse and as of 2 days ago I added Nuvigil to my morning regimen, and they seem to be working quite well together. The next thing I need to work on is something to help me sleep. Literally nothing seems to help me sleep. Ambien helped me but my dr doesn’t want me to be on it for some reason. I just ordered L-Tryptophan, Melatonin and some night time tea with Chamomile and Lavender that should arrive tomorrow. I’ll try the combination of the natural stuff I mentioned above and let you know if it works. ***side note, seroquel, trazadone, Xanax, Benadryl etc don’t phase me at all so I am skeptical but also extremely hopeful the natural stuff will work. Either way, I let you know in a few days
You sound like having the same issues as me. My doc will not give me any more stimulants because I had a bad reaction. I havent heard of Nuvigil. Ill google that. The sleep thing is hard. Ive tried literally everything. The natural route does 0 for me. I do try to take benedryl with melatonin and magnesium, along with my evening dose of buspar. Thats what I have to do on the days I am out of my minuscule prescription of Ambian. I took a larger dose for years with no side affects. It truly was the only thing that helped. I was so irritated with my pcp for lowering my dose. I just dont understand what the reasoning is. It worked. I was happy. I had sleep. Problem solved. I haven't found 1 long term study that states any reasoning as to "why" someone who takes it responsibly would die. The only articles I have found are ones that say people who mix various drugs with that, or take way too much. Additionally, there us concern of sleep driving, which Ive never done. Anyhoo, I do believe Ambian is truly effective for ADHD patients. Its just frustrating. I hope you find a solution to your sleep. Maybe try a new doctor?? Cheers for now
I’ve been to countless Dr’s in Houston, I’ve seen Kathleen Nadau in Maryland, Ned Hallowell in Boston, a few Dr’s in Malibu, and I’ve been to a few of the CHADD and ADDA conferences where I met a lot of great Dr’s. My psychiatrist in Houston is literally just a pill dispenser and I do as much research as I can on my own then discuss the options I’ve found with him. I wish I could blindly trust a physician the way I used to with all Dr’s but I’ve had too many bad experiences with psychiatrists putting me on medications I don’t need to be on. Btw, the L Tryptophan and Melatonin worked well for me. There’s a guy on here who created a list of supplements that help him with various ADHD related issues and I’m adding one supplement from the list at a time to make sure I don’t have any negative side effects before I try to add another one. So far I’ve added 3 on his list to my daily regimen and I’ve had positive results so I’m going to add another one as soon as it arrives in the mail. I’ll look for the link to his post and post it after this one.
Awesome. Im going to try that Tyrosene (sp,). By the way, I am from Houston as well. Although I live in Oregon now. This weather here doesn't help any of my issues Im glad hear you are finding things that work for sleep.
For some reason my heart felt as thought it was going to explode on Adderall but Ritalin worked for me. To control my anxiety, I have been listening to meditation videos on youtube. Some of my favorites come from Lisa Romano a certified life coach but there are literally hundreds of people to choose from.
My biggest problem is shutting my brain off at night. By walking around the block and listening to guided meditation videos I can get to sleep. Hope this helps.
Thank you. Yes, night time is hard. My doctor said she wont prescribe aby more stimulants because I had such a bad reaction. I like the walkingidea, but Im in Oregon and it's always rainy i work and get up at 4:30 every day, and get kids to activities at night, so working out us impossible for me. Thank you for your reply
Bupropion (Wellbutrin) and methylphenidate (Ritalin, Concerta, etc.) may be dopamine and norepinephrine reptake inhibitors, whereas amphetamine (Adderall, Vyvanse, etc.) seem to be releasing agents, as well: this may or may not account for differences in adverse effects.
Regardless, you are dealing with a multiple-medication cocktail that will need careful balancing: don't hesitate to insist your practitioner(s) review the entire combination versus viewing this as simply an augmentation to existing treatment.
Can't technically call it “advice”, since I'm not a doctor; but it's a reality that we need to manage our doctors with care: they're human beings who couldn't possibly devote the time to any patient's case, that the patient could—but many are also very helpful educators when it comes to learning where to start studying.
I hope you are able to find something that works well for you! I had 2 adverse reactions to different generic forms of concerta, I am able to take the brand name without problems and it works great!
Its hard with multiple diagnoses because symptoms overlap. I found with concerta my anxiety decreased, but I also have OCD, and OCD exacerbations cause me anxiety, left untreated it lead to depression, so adding Effexor helped me. It takes time and trial and error to sort it out, and specialists have the most experience with that. I took buspar for a short time when I went off of the concerta and found it didn't give me much relief.
What are your most bothersome symptoms and have you/will you try any therapy? A lot of anxiety can come from a difficult childhood, I am using attachment focused EMDR to sort through some of these issues and have found it helps and gives me a great deal of peace to be guided by a caring professional. I too have struggled with relationship issues and don't want to pass on bad habits to my kids. YouTube has been great too, especially learning about narcissism, scapegoating and codependency.
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Im glad hear you are finding things that work for sleep. 
I can’t wake up! Mirtazapine and Elvanse 
Adderall
ADHD Specialists Through Kaiser?
Finally diagnosed, but finding actual treatment feels impossible.
