Heartburn?

[E-Dubs]

I'm curious if anyone else gets heartburn when they take their Ritalin? I can't decide if it's the Ritalin or if it's just that I'm an aged lady who get heartburn often. Thanks!

[STEM_Dad]

Welcome back E-Dubs !

I haven't tried Ritalin, yet. So, I read what the Mayo Clinic listed as side effects.

Heartburn is a possible side effect of Ritalin, but the prevalence was not noted. More common side effects seem to be cardiovascular and neurological, so digestive side effects are apparently less common...but they are noted, so they do occur to some people.

Check with your doctor, but a simple test might be to stop taking Ritalin for a few days to see if the heartburn goes away. (Not a guaranteed way to determine if it was the cause, though, since sometimes a medication might have long-lasting or even permanent side effects.)

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It could also simply be a change due to age (as you implied) or other health issues.

I saw that the first time you posted here, you had just had COVID. One of the things that I find most concerning about COVID is how different the infection can affect a person from one time to another.

I definitely tested positive for COVID two times (and probably had it at least one other time). The first time was the worst for me, because it developed into pneumonia. I also lost about 20% of my sense of smell, about 5% of my sense of taste, and I became more prone to indigestion.

• It took over a year, but I recovered almost all of my sense of smell and taste. (I'm still missing about 5% of my sense of smell.) I am still slightly more prone to indigestion than I was pre-COVID, but I don't know how much that has to do with COVID itself, aging (I'm now 49...I was 46 when I first came down with COVID), or other issues.

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Consider other possible factors: dietary or lifestyle changes, other medications, other illnesses, stress or anxiety, sleep issues, etc.

[4everLearning]

I did and my Dr switched me Concerta which is a lot softer on my stomach. I’ve been on the same dose for almost three years now with few problems.

[Mamamichl]

I know if people take stimulants on an empty stomach (without food), they can get an upset stomach. I also know tummy troubles happen with stimulants in general.

[STEM_Dad]

Well, I know that in my early 40s, when I was going through a lot of stress, I started experiencing more heartburn. At that time, caffeine became a heartburn trigger for me.

Since that was before my ADHD diagnosis, I relied on caffeine a lot more then. (Since I started on ADHD meds, my caffeine use has dropped to half of what it once was.)

Caffeine and Ritalin are both stimulants, though I think they work very differently.

[Lilwonder]

I don’t take Ritalin, but definitely get heartburn from Adderall. No mistaking it.

[Steph99]

I get heartburn from stress and dietary choices. If off my medicine heartburn is worse because I get increased anxiety and depression and may deviate from my routine and diet that doesn’t trigger gastrointestinal distress. Do you keep a journal? You could identify if some foods and stress levels are also contributing to the symptoms before requesting a dosage change or change in medication to your doctor. Taking a break from medicine if it won’t affect your relationships or work may also be helpful. You could take a break from a medicine and eat the same foods to identify which ones with and without the Ritalin may be causing symptoms of heartburn to worsen.