Recent Ritalin experiences

Therapeutic Efforts Pharmaceutical
#1

I was wondering if people with who’ve used Ritalin could chime in with their experiences. I’ve seen a few accounts scattered across the forum, but wanted to make this post to get the experiences of those who haven’t posted on it yet. My doctor write me a prescription for this today as he believes it might be worth a shot to help improve my attention. It has in recent months been better compared to the previous years but I still have to say things out loud for them to stick in my head or for me to comprehend what i’m reading sometimes, i.e. i can’t often really think about conceptually difficult things. For example, when I’m programming and trying to problem solve, linking together all the relevant variables isn’t often easy. I’m not sure how to communicate this properly, it’s as if I can’t give anything 100% attention. It could be worse but it definitely could be a lot better (like pre fin I didn’t struggle with this so much)

Anyway, if anyone who has used Ritalin (methylphenidate) could chime in with:

  • Did it help? If so, what symptoms did it help with and what side effects did it cause, if any?
  • Did it make things worse? If so, what symptoms did it make worse, and how long before you returned to baseline?
#2

I have taken dextroamphetamine for adhd for years prior to fin, started around 19/20 because parents didn’t want me on medication when i was young. It pretty much effects me in the same way now as it did. Basically improves my ability to stay on task (less inattentive/distractible) doesn’t necessarily improve my cognition in the sense of understanding concepts or solving problems but that was never my issue. It helps with motivation in the face of dealing with depressive PFS symptoms but i don’t suffer from cognitive sides per say. Only differences is that it makes my sexual dysfunction significantly worse because of vasoconstriction. It didn’t have this effect pre pfs, but it goes back to normal once the meds ware off. It also makes sleep more difficult at first but you get used to it as long as you keep to a regular dosing schedule.

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#3

I was prescribed and took Ritalin in university and for several years after. Sometimes I wonder if it might be related to our possible dopamine dysfunction. It’s a short acting amphetamine that works for getting in zone to focus on work but otherwise is unpleasant to be on. It’s a lot of ups and downs. I dislike being on it a lot. Provigil, on the other hand, is much better.

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#4

I have tried both ritalin and adderall.

Ritalin felt too speedy. I would get jitters and anxiety, become “hyperfocused” on irrelevant things, and it definitely worsened ED while I was under the effect. The effect was also very short-lived. Lots of ups-and-downs, like vkg1 mentioned.

I convinced a psych to prescribe Adderall to see if it would help with fatigue and alertness. It did, but I had the same problem with becoming hyperfocused on irrelevant tasks. Several occasions of staying up late at night cleaning things that didn’t need to be cleaned, organizing CD collections repeatedly, spent a week building a brick burn-pit to absolute perfection, when it was just a burn-pit, etc…
It did; however, help me tremendously to stay alert in social situations. Since Accutane, I have had a hard time dealing with more that a one-on-one conversation in a quiet room. On Adderall, I could be in a crowd and be part of the conversation. It didn’t seem to cause the jitters and anxiety, like ritalin, and didn’t negatively impact sexual function. I eventually quit because I wasn’t fond of the idea of being on prescription speed forever.

I think your best bet is to use an absolute minimal dose of any stimulant.

#5

How exactly does it (Provigil) benefit you? Do you have any sleep issues from PFS? If so, are they exarcerbated by it? Thanks for your contribution.

#6

Were you able to direct this hyperfocus though? Also was the anxiety/jitters severely unpleasant or was it just a sense of having too much energy and needing to direct it somewhere?

For better or worse, the only options we have here are Concerta and Ritalin. If Adderall/Dexedrine was available I think those would’ve been my first options to try.

Thank you for your contribution.

#7

I suppose so, if you’re self-conscious of abnormal behavior. I stopped soon after noticing this.

It was actually unpleasant for me. Some people like that speedy feeling, I don’t.

Why isn’t it an option? Adderall seems to be prescribed over most other stimulants these days, I think because it’s small doses of multiple amphetamines rather that a large dose of one.

You’re welcome.

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#8

By the time the duration of the Medikinet or concerta was coming to an end, I got a little bit of sex drive and orgasm. But your hands and feet get cold and your genitals get smaller. and go on difficult erection.

#9

It’s just not available here unfortunately. I believe it’s because the regulatory body here feels the need to have some ADHD/ADD medication available (so there’s Ritalin, Concerta, and Straterra), but they don’t want any amphetamines. Hence no Adderall, Dexedrine, Vyvanse, etc.

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#10

Thank you for your contribution Synetic.

Do you feel any improvements in mental side effects while on it? Also, do the negative effects wear off for you when the medication leaves your system?

#11

Yes. While the medicine was working, I gained a strong concentration. It also makes me feel confident and positive. as well gained a strong resistance to depression. All of these effects disappeared along with negative effects about seven hours after the drug was done.

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#12

Provigil seems to give me a mild mood lift without all the speed of all the amphetamines. I generally like it. That said, I’m not bothered to take it anymore. I don’t have sleep issues, no. I’ve never been a person to fall asleep super quickly but I don’t particularly have insomnia.

I’ve done the pill merry go round and found it all very counterproductive. There isn’t a pill to help us. Any one that might temporarily always comes back to bite in ass down the line one way or another. I say that not as a skeptic of pharmaceuticals but as someone who has come to terms with the fact that he has tried everything there is out there without any benefit.

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#13

I took ritalin while I was taking saw palmetto. I wonder if it made my susceptibility to pfs higher. Coincidentally, I stopped taking it the same time i stopped sp (after exam period). Since then I took it once, didn’t notice anything different except that maybe the comedown was a little bit worse.

#14

back when I just had minor PSSD adderall and ritalin would shut my genitals down completely, couldn’t get a erection. Obviously when the drugs wore off I was back to baseline. Haven’t tried ritalin since my crash almost 3 months ago

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#15

I have a really interesting experience regarding adderall. So basically what happened to me was that I was experimenting with adderall microdosing (2.5 mg of adderall) in order to see if it would increase my dopamine receptor density; unfortunately it had an effect but it wasnt the effect I was hoping for. I think that by overly upregulating my (insensitive) dopamine receptors via adderall microdosing it caused my flaccid to become smaller and it also made my erections weaker as well. This condition was “permanent” too. It lasted that way for at least a week or two. The only way that I was able to make the condition reverse was by taking a mega dose of adderall (50 mg). I think that by taking the megadose of adderall it basically overwhelmed my dopamine receptors and caused them to downregulate again which reversed the negative effects I was experiencing and restored my old baseline.

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#16

:man_facepalming:

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#17

Haha no mms