Hi all.

I started taking ritalin last Saturday at 10mg 3x per day. My doctor upped that to 20mg starting today.

Since the first day I began taking my medicine, I have had tiny little bothersome headaches off and on. Nothing to bad, just annoying.

Have any of you experienced this, and did they eventually go away with continued use??

Thanks so much,

Jean

The slight headaches are pretty common side effects. These often occur especially when the dose first kicks in and when it drops off. I never experienced headaches, so much as I have a nice, almost comfortable "buzzing" when the stimulant first takes place, I describe it as "washing over" my brain.

The headaches will eventually go away as the brain becomes used to the stimulant being there. They will often be occuring when there is a peak in Ritalinic concentrations until the effect wears off. Ritalin is not a "smooth" drug, it tends to jerk in and out, kicking in suddenly and then dropping off suddenly. During these periods, headaches will be especially common at first.

The headaches are associated somewhat with the increase in blood pressure that the ritalin will cause. They ususally go away after a little while.

Thanks so much. When I talked to my doctor yesterday she told me that once she finds my right dose with Ritalin that she will probably move me to Concerta. That should be better for me as far as peaks and valleys. I will let ya'll know :).

Jean

oy im the opposite, i was having horrible headaches with concerta, along with other side effects. i tried 36, 54, and 72 of concerta to see which was best, but all of them gave me these headaches where a vein near my temple would just pound, and other places i could feel blood rushing. the only way to make the headache subside temporarily was to push down the side of my head by that vein. i just moved to ritalin and find that the headaches still come, but on a much lower scale, and never last for more than 15 minutes

Well, Concerta does cause less headache for me, compared with normal Ritalin. Please be noted that due to the different release system. Ritalin XR is more like taking two dose at once, one of them kicking in now and the other 4 hours later. The case is same with Adderall XR, but Adderall itself is supposed to be smoother than Ritalin...

yeah i get those to. one of the side effects