Hi,

From another forum it looks as though inattentive-ADDers react far better to dexedrine than we do to ritalin.

Are there any pure inattentive ADDers here (not ADHDers with hyperactivity past or present) that have tried Dexedrine and Ritalin, and that have found ritalin to be bearable or better than Dexedrine in taming their symptoms.

I can't even take 1/4 tablet of ritalin, but can comfortably take >40mg Dex in a day.

Thanks,
SB.

Some say there's more of a norepinephrine effect from amphetamines than methylphenidate (ritalin). I don't know whether this is true or not, but if it is, then motivation might be improved with amphetamine vs. methylphenidate.

I'm inattentive and am trying Adderall (contains dex) this past week, and ritalin before that.

I found the ritalin worked fine, but was very noticable when it was working. I was sensitive to R at first, but ended up on 60mgs a day as an optimum dosage.

The amphetamine is less noticable for me. I started at 30 mgs a day without the jitters or anxiety I had with ritalin early on. But focus and attention are good and dawdling is minimized.

As for motivation, I felt ritalin was more motivating. The amphetamine makes me much calmer than ritalin; not so sure I like that.

Also, I wondered about the effects of norepinephrine. I took Wellbutrin last year. WB supposedly provides a big norepinephrine boost and less dopamine effects. Well, that stuff (WB) made me much more hyper than did any of the stimulants. I was very motivated, but completely scattered and bouncing off the walls. It did nothing for my inattention or lack of focus. And I was on a low dose, go figure.

But that's me.

Thanks for that.
When I was on Dex - I fely great, calm, motivated ... but I don't think that I was more able to focus on a task requiring sustained mental effort.
When I took ritalin, rebound was hell.
The anxiety was unbearable.
How long did it take for that to disappear?
I gave up after a day or two --- maybe too soon!!
That's interesting about the WB -- not licensed over here though!

SB.

I started on 5 mgs of generic ritalin, twice a day. That worked well for the first week, then I crept up in dosage until I leveled out at between 50 and 60 mgs, a day, total. Took a little over two months before I stabilized (and I took days off from the drug during that time).

I occassionally felt anxiety the first couple of weeks, but that was telling me to go back to a lower dose --I didn't feel anxious on 5 mgs, though, I felt quite pleasant.

The crash was tolerable for me, but after a couple of weeks I was dosing several times a day. Figured I'd try an amphetamine because they last longer.

Sorry to hear dex isn't helping your focus. If small amounts of ritalin gave me anxiety, I wouldn't have stuck with it either.

Straterra is big here, in the US. That ups norepinephrine. Maybe available in the UK?

Or Adrafinil (similar to Provigil, but cheap!). Adrafinil is available in the UK (not available in the US), is effective for some people with ADD and isn't a narcotic.


Cheers,

Yeah monafidil and adrafinil appear promising as a second line defense for ADHD. We'll know more in a year or two.

People often prefer amphetamine over methylphenidate or vise versa. I don't think its a inattentive vs hyper thing, it's just how your brain is wired. I do think that most find the crash from Ritalin worse than for amphetamine - I'm guessing this is due to the fact that methylphenidate is far shorter acting, so it drops off faster.

Thanks guys,

The Dex > Ritalin for ADD-I types is only based on n=3, so I guess the theory wasn't ever water-proof :-)

SB.

Re: modafinil and adrafinil

An important difference I have read about regarding these two is that adrafinil causes some kind of liver enzyme issue when used on a prolonged basis, which sucks because the other important difference is that adrafinil is a small percentage of the price of modafinil!

Buy your modafinil in Canada for a bit more than $1/pill, if I recall correctly. Brand name is Alertec. You might have to actually travel there, however, to fill your script.

I have ADD-inattentive type and ritalin did nothing for me but give a great big headache. I am doing quite well on the dex 10 mg xr or something, I am also taking straterra. Dex makes me very irritable and straterra makes me very calm, both are helping with school
I am a mom of 3 and going to nursing school. its tough, but I honestly cant do it without my meds.

I'm inattentive and am trying Adderall (contains dex) this past week, and ritalin before that.

I found the ritalin worked fine, but was very noticable when it was working. I was sensitive to R at first, but ended up on 60mgs a day as an optimum dosage.

The amphetamine is less noticable for me. I started at 30 mgs a day without the jitters or anxiety I had with ritalin early on. But focus and attention are good and dawdling is minimized.

As for motivation, I felt ritalin was more motivating. The amphetamine makes me much calmer than ritalin; not so sure I like that.

Also, I wondered about the effects of norepinephrine. I took Wellbutrin last year. WB supposedly provides a big norepinephrine boost and less dopamine effects. Well, that stuff (WB) made me much more hyper than did any of the stimulants. I was very motivated, but completely scattered and bouncing off the walls. It did nothing for my inattention or lack of focus. And I was on a low dose, go figure.

But that's me.
This pretty much sums me up to a T! I'm inattentive as well.....At one point before the ADD diagnosis, I was on Wellbutrin for depression and I was bouncing off the walls....to the point of panic attacks, horrible experience with that drug.

I felt the Ritalin (Concerta)....a little zippy at first, then calmed down.

Adderall I don't "feel" differently, but I get things done. And I'm calm, very calm. As far as motivation, I got things done on Concerta and on Adderall,
but on the Adderall, I feel calmer doing it. In hindsight, I think I was a little anxious and it was nervous energy getting me to do things while taking Concerta...on Adderall I do things and am very relaxed doing it if that makes sense.

Very much inattentive here.

Ive heard this said in the past, and it VERY much describes exactly the diff between the meds is for me.

Ritalin is more of a helping hand, sitting on your shoulder when you need to focus, but if you want to relax, you can. Dex, is more of a monkey on your back, driving you to work on whatevers on your plate at the moment.

As far as my education scedule goes, dex is much better for me, but I could see me using ritalin after school. Im my case, it lets me ponder a bit more, and is generaly a much more mellow me.

Daven,
I had the same experience. Should we take both,ritalin and adderall, depending on what we intend to do? Ritalin in the AM and, say Adderall later on to go to class or study...

I just saw my doc, but it is impossible to finish a conversation in less than an hour!

Daven,
I had the same experience. Should we take both,ritalin and adderall, depending on what we intend to do? Ritalin in the AM and, say Adderall later on to go to class or study...

I just saw my doc, but it is impossible to finish a conversation in less than an hour!
Well, I would like that in a perfect world, but I don't think I could talk my doctor into that regime, shes pretty picky. But I would make sure to disscuss it with your doctor if you get the chance.

Interesting, folks responses to Rit and Adderall.

I am scripted 80mgs methylphenidate daily, but usually take less, (It bewilders me how Rit and say, Desoxyn-Methylamphetamine can both be sch11 meds/) and find it often caffeine like in effect.

Is Dexedrine REALLY a caffeineless Ritalin? is it smoother? more thought straightening?

Thanks

Anyone taken Dexedrine and Ritalin and found differences?

Thanks

I am ADD Inatentive and I can't take ritalin short or long acting b/c of the tremendous depression and withdrawl I get from it (even in low doses). Adderall is a little better in short acting form but still had a huge downswing to it with long acting versions. Dexadrine (short acting) is the only thing that's seemed to work for me, but I have to take low doses 5 - 7.5 mg/day at most. I am viciously sensitive to depression/bad moods coming off this stuff. I've never really heard anyone decribe probalems similar to mine, but maybe I'm just "special" ?

I am ADD inattentive. Amphetamine gives me much better results than methylphenidate. I have tried methylphenidate (IR), Concerta, and Adderall XR. I feel no comedown or withdrawal on Adderall XR, the comedown on MPH and even Concerta produced fatigue, difficulty thinking, and sometimes depression. When I first took MPH I noticed it made me feel somewhat dulled and slow though this passed with time. I never noticed that with AMP.

Additionally AMP does not impact my libido, MPH destroyed it. AMP suppresses my appetite more, does not increase my blood pressure / pulse as much, and gives me superior mental effects and I feel more motivation to start tasks in the first place.

So from my perspective I find AMP to be superior to MPH, at least in the form of Adderall XR.

I cannot directly compare AMP to any other drug. It is similar to MPH and ephedrine to me but not exactly. Caffeine is not at all similar.

I'm hyperactive and I take dexedrine, it's better than ritalin for me.