I'm wondering if you can help me. I am diagnosed with Adult ADHD, but due to minor Congenital Heart Disease, the doctors are not happy to prescribe stimulant meds, which I understand.
I was on Ritalin up until the age of 16, but when I became an adult and have a heart condition, the doctors wouldn't give me stimulant meds. Your heart isn't as strong as it is when you're a child they say.
I have an appointment on Monday with a Psychiatrist, and I'm desperately trying to find a non-stimulant ADHD med that does not affect the heart. I would love to be able to go in and give a couple of meds to the doctor. I know it's their job but they seem to not be doing it great at the moment and there is a six-month wait between appointments so would like to get a result on Monday.
I am at the end of my tether with my ADHD. I have tried everything to control the symptoms without medication, but it's not working. There must be something out there pill-wise that can help.
If you know of anything, please come back to me. I would be most grateful.
Thanks.
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Wight1210
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Be sure you read the Prescribing Information from the manufacturers website before you take a new medication. One of my daughters has been taking Straterra (Atomoxetine) for several years and she still has nausea and sometimes throws up. Another daughter of mine had to stop taking it due to the side effects. Unfortunately, most doctors do not discuss side effects with patients before they prescribe a medication
Oh believe me I'm very big on checking for the side affects of medication. After taking 23 different types of medication for different mental and physical diagnoses I'm now a pro. That's how I knew that some non stimulant meds can cause problems with the heart. They gave me Straterra a few months ago and then read the side effects before I started and it said do not take if you have Bipolar as it can cause your suicidal thoughts to get worse or Heart Condition as it can cause sudden death, I live with both conditions. Could of been devastating. Thank you anyway for your advice. I will keep doing it.
Side effects are really tricky to understand. Because so often a large number of people have no side effects. Sometimes an overwhelming number of users have no side effects. But then a small number does suffer significant side effects. What's a doctor to say?
And then ... often of those people who suffer serious effects, those lessen over time ... so I get why doctors don't go long on side effects because they would have to spend half their day discussing side effects. And we patients would be bored to death. We've seen those warnings in tiny print that med companies print out. Ridiculous.
And sometimes side effects don't cancel out the importance of the med. The relevant equation can be side effects vs. symptoms of the condition without the medication. Sometimes doctors can add another medication to limit the negative side effects. Sometimes lifestyle changes can limit the side effects.
The bottom line is all medications--OTC and prescriptions-- all supplements, heck tons of foods--they all can have side effects.
So basically the doctors just want to know that the med won't kill us and that there is no obvious dangerous conflict with another med.
I only know of Atomoxetine as the licenced non stimulant for ADHD in the UK. I have paroxysmal arrhythmia so it’s all my psychiatrist could prescribe for my ADHD. We started at 10mg, increasing by 10mg each week until we settled at 40mg. They’ve helped my ADHD enormously. I did have a racing, slightly unhappy heart for a couple of weeks which greatly unnerved me but it settled. My heart now beats about 10 bpm faster and my blood pressure has increased a little but that’s ok as both were very low (I also have bradycardia ). In fact my instances of arrhythmia have greatly reduced since taking them. I started taking them in February this year.
I do recall my psychiatrist said if they didn’t help she could prescribe something for my ptsd and see if that helped but that’s because my ptsd causes me to permanently tense (armour) my muscles which is really why I’m trying to calm my head down.
I find if I don’t take the Atomoxetine with protein I feel very sick but with a protein heavy breakfast I’m fine.
I hope you find something that helps. It’s tricky when we have heart issues.
Hi, a non-stimulant medication that works for some is Strattera. Also, a natural supplement that is also good for the heart is Phosphatydil Choline, Phosphatydil Serine is recently noted for mental acuity improvements . But, historically Ph Ch was and took it for cognitive issues secondary to CFIDS. You can take a combination supplement Ph S/Ch which you can get at Vitamin Shoppe. And the Ph Ch has been used to clear heart blockages add an injection in Europe. Very best wishes! Please don’t make my mistake, ignore and end up with other health issues
Do your own research. I'd suggest talking to a pharmacist than a doctor/psychiatriat. My son was on adderal for about 7-8 years. Kept telling his psych doc it wasn't working so instead of trying something else he just kept raising the dosage until he was at the highest of 65mg ER- then he started to have anxiety, lets add a med for that- huge rage issuses, lets add an anti psychotic ...until one day last year he had a mental breakdown. Ended up with 2 felony's- fighting with a police officer and security guard in the hospital.First thing they did on the psych floor was take him off the adderal- cold turkey. It's been a year since hes been off 3 med combos this jerk put him on. And shame on me for not even reading the perscription insert that right in plain english says may cause anger/violence in some people. So much for trusting this doctor over the years.
Pharmacists know more about the interactions of certain drugs than doctors do I believe. At least talk to both.
I don't know if this counts as non-stimulant or not, but I also am restricted from many ADHD drugs due to high blood pressure. I am on Concerta and it has helped me greatly. I started with the lowest dose, 18 mg, and have worked my way up to 54 mg. I've honestly never really noticed any side affects, except having difficulty sleeping if I take it too close to bedtime. So if I am having a really short day, I just skip taking it that day. I've discussed this with my doctor, and he agreed that was a reasonable solution.
Good luck! I sympathize with needing the meds - so do I!
Hello and sending compassionate thoughts your way towards a healing shift in your life. I just started with a new psych provider last week and will be back to therapy again next week. I am paying partly OOP as my insurance is very restrictive so I delayed.
The prescriber felt she wanted to treat my racing thoughts, impulsiveness and high anxiety level initially. I was not happy at first, but can't deny my symptoms and willing to try a new approach.
No denying stimulants were helping but I also suffer from insomnia and thinking a calmer , better restedme may not need stimulants over time. Esp if I am talking to a therapist and utilizing sound therapy and meditation specifically for neurodivergent brain and investigating
mind mapping
body doubling
along with trying different cost effective herbs and supplements.
It takes lots of time and energy but I feel it will be worth it. The pills are not magic either. Nor are they sufficient alone.
If investigating a mood stabilizer such as mine, is an option, I would try it.
See what your psychiatrist recommends. I would let them guide you because your heart condition may be different from what others here have. They will know the most up to date medical information about what is safe in your specific case. For non-medicine strategies, I’ve also found some podcasts useful & am trying to get myself to start meditating to slow myself down and learn to accept circumstances easier. Hope this helps!
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