Anybody on ADHD meds?

My daughter has ADHD. I used to be extremely skeptical of medicating kids for this, but she can barely function in school without Ritalin or Concerta.

 

Just picked up and took my first dextroamphetamine pill. 10mg with the option to up it to 20mg if not effective. Let the experiment begin!!!

 

My wife, who has taken ADHD meds before but had bad reactions to them, is allergic to Acetaminophen. Wonder if there is some correlation there.

Anyway I've noticed a difference. A lot less 'noise' in my normal brain operations. I haven't really tested my focus yet, but am happier with the less noisy thinking.

I also kicked ass in the gym last night. Squatted 405 for 5 pretty soundly. Energy levels stayed high enough to finish the workout without having to drag ass home.

My blood pressure has been pretty good, and my heart rate is only up a few bps. I charted my BP a few times yesterday after taking the pill. Forgot to this morning, but I'll cut myself some slack there, and just do it at lunch time.

 

I'm on Wellbutrin XL 300mg time-release caplets. I'm in the military and I imagine I'm probably somewhere on the spectrum of adult ADD (not severe enough to be a major problem or warrant discharge, but enough that getting things done is kind of a pain in the ass and also gets you yelled at a lot in the military), and possibly mild chronic depression. The shrink said Wellbutrin is often used as a sort of the basic low-level cure-all for non-specific symptoms, often used a first-line attempt to remedy or reduce ailing symptoms before moving on to more specific meds that target specific issues like Adderall for ADHD or Zoloft for depression. It works for me, but I'm not that bad off to begin with. The only bad part is that alcohol interacts unfavorably with it, and so a night out drinking with friends can leave you in a significant fog of pseudo-functional sorta-depression for 2-4 days afterwards.

 

I'm finding that I'm still lacking focus after three days. My BP which has been normal spiked last night, which is not unusual for me, but I'm going to see if it comes down before I up my meds ( as per instructions ).

My heart rate has been normal throughout, which is good.

 

From what my doctor told me, a spike in blood pressure after a few days on amphetamines isn't uncommon and if it's sustained you may be better off with another medication. Seems like you're observing everything and have it all under control, just don't neglect to mention it to your doctor.

 

I'm keeping a journal. I had a better day today. BP near normal, a couple of spikes, but not like yesterday. I also didn't have any caffeine today. I had read that I probably should nix the extra stims for a while, but I didn't pay attention until today.

Considering I visited my parents, and ended up stuck all day trying to fix one of my dad's pcs, I think a couple of spikes would be considered normal...

 

After a weekend of high blood pressure I decided not to take the pill this morning. It was 140/80 going to bed. I woke up at 3am and it was 143/77. It was the same this morning... I think it was high all day yesterday too. Oddly my heart rate went back to the normal range of 72ish the whole time my BP was up.

 

Started Strattera yesterday. Hope it works.