The ADD/ADHD Thread (cont'd from Peeves)

Auspice · Oct 31, 2020, 8:38 AM

As someone who has been barely keeping her apartment from getting worse let alone actually cleaning it lately... I needed these. Maybe you do too.

Wretched · Oct 31, 2020, 6:19 PM

@Auspice Stop posting my life online for all to see ugh!

Also and support.

Macha · Oct 31, 2020, 7:34 PM

I feel super called out by the water bottle graveyard in the backseat, the way too many tabs in a browser window, and the non-stop song stuck in my head.

I wake up with a song stuck in my head, and it will progress to another song, and another.. all day long.

Wretched · Oct 31, 2020, 7:42 PM

@Macha even better when you start randomly singing it at work in front of the public.

Macha · Oct 31, 2020, 7:55 PM

@Wretched Well for me, when I'm in a discord and gaming? Someone will say something that's part of a lyric - and off I go. My best gaming pals are so used to me just bursting into random bits of songs.

Auspice · Oct 31, 2020, 7:57 PM

'Loud and annoying quiet people' hits me hard.

I had a friend pressure me to prune my tabs recently. I resisted so hard but I honestly needed it.

Wretched · Oct 31, 2020, 10:07 PM

@Auspice Periodically I just close my eyes and start deleting tabs in a great rush, like apurge, it helps but.... i'm still looking at a ton

Wretched · Nov 1, 2020, 9:31 AM

Wretched · Nov 9, 2020, 6:33 AM

Wretched · Nov 9, 2020, 7:08 AM

Wretched · Nov 11, 2020, 4:54 AM

Wretched · Nov 13, 2020, 10:34 PM

Wretched · Nov 14, 2020, 9:56 AM

Wretched · Nov 16, 2020, 9:01 PM

RightMeow · Nov 18, 2020, 5:08 AM

Hello Friends. I have come to you for information.

I may have asked this before and forgot (oh the irony), what do meds for ADHD do? I mean, what is the purpose? What do they do for you? Do you have side effects? Does it help? How does it help? Is it the old 'zombie' reactions I've always heard of? How does it help in adulting?

Please give info if you take meds for this. I need legit info, not read it from a medical professional info.

insomniac7809 · Nov 18, 2020, 5:44 AM

The "zombie" thing is really, really overstated in general as far as psychiatric medication goes; the field isn't as old as you'd think, and the general understanding of "on medication" as meaning "zonked-out and numb" is kind of a legacy of the really early approaches. It's not entirely out of date, but it's not going to be something to worry about if you're on ADHD meds.
If you do get side effects, it's more likely to be the exact opposite.

ADHD meds are speed. They're designing some different approaches, and setting them as slow-release so you get more through the day instead of dosing all at once, but most all medication for ADHD is some kind of amphetamine. I haven't noticed anything much in the way of side effects, but you're more looking for reduced appetite, insomnia, general "you are taking stimulants" effects.

I've found that it helps with adulting in terms of... generally letting me keep track of what I'm doing and at least get started on a task. Or at least stick to it once I get over the insurmountable "start doing a thing instead of flitting between five things I should be doing" hurdle.

Full disclosure, first time around I thought it wasn't doing anything and was dumb so I stopped. It was the people around me who noticed that I'd gone off and needed to start again. (Only took like... three years?)

mietze · Nov 18, 2020, 6:50 AM

My eldest takes Adderall as a young adult and did not start until he was 17. No negative side effects and honestly the relief and transformation was pretty mind blowing. He was very reluctant to try medication and we did not want to push. It took a little while to figure out the dosing but it has been a life changer for him. And no, no zombie effects.

I took Wellbutrin for it as an off label (stimulant drugs do not sit well with my chemistry) until I wanted to start a family. I'm really the only person i personally know whose brain LOVES bupropion and I never have side effects from it (obv I'm not the only one though, its just that most folks I know have horrible side effects from it.) It is a wonder drug for me personally.

So I would say there are options. Not everyone will respond well to stimulants but I think the vast majority of people will. If stimulants are not something you want to try there are alternatives but uts like any other brain chemistry thing, you might have some trial and error for awhile. Having both seen and experienced the difference in quality of life though if you are suffering it's definitely worth a shot esp if non medication coping strategies aren't working to the level you need them at.

faraday · Nov 18, 2020, 7:04 AM

@RightMeow Here's a great video explaining it better than I could: Why Stimulant Medication Helps ADHD -- and How Stigma Can Hurt.

@insomniac7809 said in The ADD/ADHD Thread (cont'd from Peeves):

ADHD meds are speed.

Not really. They are amphetamines, but calling ADHD meds "speed" is like calling coedine "heroin". Equating the two perpetuates an unfair and inaccurate stigma.

There are also various non-stimulant medicines now that work for some folks.

Wretched · Nov 18, 2020, 8:51 AM

Since I have kaiser and was honest about my cannabis consumption, my doctors wont let me have Adderall or any other stimulants because kaiser.

I am however on a non stimulant Guanfacine(sp?) Which I have been on for about a year now with generic Prozac for that depression and things have been better than previous years by a bunch. I mean personally not out in the, you know, rest of the world.

Ifrit · Nov 18, 2020, 9:50 AM

@RightMeow So I am on my second week of ADHD medication - I'm taking Xaggatin XL (which is cheaper brand of Concerta XL, a stimulant). We're upping the dose a little every week and I've had to cut all caffeine and alcohol intake during the titration period (and probably going forwards)

For me, the first week didn't seem a lot to write home about, there was a little more 'can' in doing things, but still no way of directing my focus onto anything useful. This week has been a gear shift. I've managed to complete work tasks that have been on my plate for more than a year, with a laser-sharp focus that I've honestly not felt for a very long time. My partner and my mother both say I'm more engaged in conversations with them, and my physical fidgetiness has dropped massively. My mood has been up as well.

They last 12 hours and so I take them in the morning, with the intent that they will be fully out of my system by the time it's bedtime, and so far I've not had any sleep problems. In terms of side-effects I've had the following: minor headaches in the morning for the first 2-3 days of upping a dose, raised heart rate and blood pressure - these should go back down as your body gets used to it, but I'm still in the initial period - reduced appetite (leading to some minor weight loss). I've had a little nausea at times, though taking the meds with food helps massively, and I've noticed I can get a little irritable, more so than usual.

A little bit of a downside is that I find I get hyperfocused on everything at the moment, even things I don't necessarily want to, and breaking that can be a bit difficult, but it's going to be learning new habits.