this post was submitted on 10 May 2024
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ADHD

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Hi !

Just to go straight to the point, my doctor is thinking of trying Strattera in me, since it was recently made available as a generic and I tend to have prevailing side effects with stimulant medication (ritalin, Rubifen, elvanse).

I have some questions that would like to hear from people that are/were on this medication to share:

  1. I understand this is non-stimulating and seems to work akin to an antidepressant. Therefore, do I have to take it every day? Even on days I do not need ? With stimulant medication I only take it when doing theoretical work, and skip it when on the laboratory or other minor tasks and would never take it in days I'm not working, because I can't just interact with people and gives me a baseline anxiety the whole day.

  2. What benefits did it gave you ?

  3. Any prevailing side effects?

  4. How does it compare with stimulant medication (after taking it for some weeks)?

For a bit of context:

I've been diagnosed for about 6 years now, and started with Ritalin XR. However, I could only keep using it for some months since it gave seriously side effects that persisted 3-5 months after stopping it. I later switched to Ritalin IR, which worked for some time and gave me less side effects. But it started to be ineffective after some months.

Then my doctor tried Elvanse (Vyvanse), it worked on keeping me focused, but the anxiety and the huge time frame of action of the drug led to me only taking it once or twice a week.

I'm now back on Ritalin IR, but always feel the anxiety and aversion to interact with people that I always feel with these 3 stimulants.

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[–] [email protected] 14 points 5 months ago (2 children)

It works great for some but for me it's one of the worst drugs I've ever tried. I made it a few weeks before I gave up on it. The side effects were terrible, I felt like shit until it cleared my system. I didn't notice any benefits from it.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 5 months ago

Yeah, I tried it for a few months before the horrible side effects made me stop. Never saw a noticeable difference in my ADHD.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago (1 children)

I'm sorry for your bad experience. Could you share how long you tried to take it (I assume everyday also?) and what side effects you experienced?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 months ago

It's been awhile but from what I remember I must have made it more than a month but less than three months. Side effects were I felt bloated, pissed off, sweaty, regularly thought I needed to piss but then didn't/couldn't, had terrible insomnia and nightmares, nausea, erectile dysfunction, and generally felt like I was being poisoned. Of all the drugs my shrink had me try it was the absolute worst.