Quote:
Originally posted by tedrlord
In other areas, I'm working on getting more exercise, since that's said to help with ADD, and I'm taking fish oil and ginkgo biloba, which I hear good things about but don't seem to help me much. Next, I'm going to look into changing my diet, since some think certain foods have an effect on ADD. I'm also looking into Zen meditation, which can increase focus and help keep the mind on track.
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Fish oil is good for your cholesterol, and not good for anything else really. Ginko as said above has done nothing for people in standardized trials, and any befefit you get from it is probably coincidental. Exercise is one of the best things you can do. It's been proven that people get much less exercise nowadays as compared to what they used to, and incidence of conditions like this has risen exponentially.
For anyone who doesn't know Concerta (often misspelled in this topic) is an extended release form of Ritalin, so you don't have to take it as often. Adderall (also repeatedly misspelled) is an amphetamine combo that is similar, but not the same. They are all stimulants. Sleep loss and maybe some nervousness is common, amongst a bunch of other side effects. Imagine how a cup of coffee helps a lot of people focus on their work in the mornings. Now take someone who has a much bigger problem focusing, and greatly increasing the stimulant potency of that coffee.
Every pharmacist I have ever spoken with (including myself, albeit i am only a student but not for to much longer) has agreed that Ritalin and its counterparts are the most over-prescribed drugs in the country. Now I'm not saying any of you or your children shouldn't be on it, but that in fact there are a lot of people out there, mostly children who shouldn't be. Many parents just won't take the time to work with their children and instead take them to the doc and demand ritalin because the kids are wild. People also often have the misconception that it's nonaddictive. To those who would say that I encourage to go to your local pharmacy and ask where they keep it. There is a reason it's locked up in a safe with the morphine and percocet etc...
We are breeding a generation of meth addicts.
Eating a healthy diet, working hard at discliplining yourself and exercise can all help, then go medications. To everyone who is on it I also highly suggest you discuss with your doctor the potential for taking drug holidays, and even trying to ween yourself from it over time. This can be beaten with work and effort, but it will never go away if you just pop a pill and forget about it.