I've noticed that I am completely scatterbrained when I am off meds...I can't stay on one thing for more than 10 minutes without having to distract myself. I take my meds and am able to concentrate better, but something strange happens...

It's almost like I'm so excited to be able to concentrate that I try to study as much as I can before the medication wears off...I don't know if this is the REAL reason, but this is all I can speculate...

What ends up happening is that I try to take notes and find that I leave out letters of words, switch around the word order, all kinds of stuff! Even if I try really hard not to do this, I still do! Has anyone noticed this?!?!?!

PS. I take 10 mg Adderall XR 2 times daily...although I've lowered it to one time daily because I've been having terrible side effects like dry-mouth, headaches, and neck pain...

Maybe 5mg XR is best for you?

Hmmn, I hate it when people on these boards say talk to your doctor (doctors are expensive if you are paying out of pocket as I am, and a lot of them have very superficial knowledge anyway), but here I think perhaps you should talk to your doctor. . . (assuming he/she is competent).

Unless you have just restarted on Adderall and the side effects you are having are transitory, something doesn't sound quite right. Adderall definitely doesn't make me dyslexic - quite the opposite -- and while I've had the dry mouth, I've never had headaches or neck pain (in fact, Adderall has helped tremendously with longstanding neck and shoulder pain issues, probably because I'm less tense on the drug).

You're not taking any sleeping pills or benzos are you? Those definitely induce dyslexia in me, even Ambien, which is allegedly short-acting.

Unless these are transient side effects that will go away as your body adjusts to the drug, I say you are either not on the right dose or not on the right drug.

Dr's may be expensive, however, you get what you pay for (as opposed to "free" on the internet from strangers).:)

My own doc is very knowlegable about ADHD. If he wasn't ,then I'd switch.

I know, the dyslexia thing definitely scares me! But again, it's so weird because I didn't experience it when I took the 10mg IR, only with the XR! I hate XR!

onemoreyear -
is there a reason you can't go back to Adderall IR?
It sounds like it works better for you (from reading some of your Adderall posts).

Main reason is that I'm away from my doc and can't go in to see him...Because of that he won't make an adjustment to my medication over the phone--he'll only give me what he originally prescribed...

Maybe your doctor could refer you to someone else where you are currently located? I know seeing a bunch of doctors can get expensive, but it's your brain that's at stake!

You also might want to try boosting the Aderall with l-tyrosine. My doctor just recommended this because I feel that my Adderall dose is starting to be less effective then when I first started on the medication. I haven't tried it yet because he recommended 250 mg, morning and afternoon, and my health food store only had 500 mg capsules. Apparently, the lowest dose that l-tyrosine comes in is 500 mg. I just found some 500 mg. tablets on line. When they arrive, I'll be able to split them with a pill splitter into two 250 mg. doses. L-tysosine is also dirt cheap, making it easy to experiement with from a financial perspective. I just ordered 100 tabs for $7.50 from iherb.com.

Anyway, maybe taking l-tyosine with the Adderall would bring back that punch you felt you got from the IR.

Maybe, but I'm actually starting to hate Adderall...I've tried Ritalin but it did nothing. Dex seemed to help as much as Adderall, but I noticed I was chewing on my tongue!!!!!!!!!!!!!! With Adderall, not only am I experiencing the dyslexia but also dry mouth, neckaches, and an extreme need to keep my brain occupied...I get EVIL if anyone tries to interrupt me when I'm in the zone...

the dry mouth is typical, but it will go away. I can't tell you anything about the other 2.
When I take adderall (IR) I feel very focused, but not to the point of being evil. Do you think you're taking too much?

Did you experience the same symptoms on Adderall IR?

I am actually happy to hear someone else has that experience. It's like I am used to thinking/writing/keyboarding/calculating, everything, so fast that moving in a focused manor makes me write letters backward, scramble syllables, and do strange things with simple math. I have trouble spelling words I can spell easily at full speed. What a strange thing, like being a half step off.

mctavish,

I do agree that med management is very complex and best left in the hands of trained professionals even if they're very expensive. Expertise is a valuable commodity. The better value is the guy that charges 500 bucks/hour and delivers more in a hour than the 100/hour guy does in 10 hours.

The other side of the coin is I had one heck of a time finding a shrink that knew what he is doing. Yep, I found him. But it was a long, frustrating, search.

Not my opinion, but my experience ... most MD's don't know squat about ADHD. A sizable number do not "believe in" adult ADHD. Vast majority have no idea which meds stand a chance not to mention how to tweak meds for optimal results. The result is an adult ADHD population that thinks all doctors are witch doctors.

Truth be told, I got more valuable "free" advise from this board than what I ever paid for. I'll blow your horn for you ... your scientific proof post is a good example. Too bad my old doc that I had to fire never read it. He had me thinking it was "all in my head" which of course is true but it is not imagined. You know it. I know it. Most MD's don't know it.

I'm on a roll. I am capable of being a real dufus when I put my mind to it. I said to my wife, "I do wonder why there is so much ADHD now but not when I was in school." She gave me that look that you know if you are married. That "what are freaking stupid" look. She says, "it wasn't diagnosed when we where in school." Trouble is, that is the problem many docs have. Why is there so much of it today? Must be over diagnosed. Geeeeeezzz, they can be dumber than me because they should know better.

All right. Let me get it out of my system. (most) Doctors SUCK.

Bob

Hmmn, ... [doctors] and a lot of them have very superficial knowledge anyway)
Dr's may be expensive, however, you get what you pay for (as opposed to "free" on the internet from strangers).
My own doc is very knowlegable about ADHD. If he wasn't ,then I'd switch.

Like any other subcluture, doctors can't be stereotyped. The problem we have is the whole health care system in the USA. Doctors actually make less money that 50 years ago but health care is much more expensive and less accessable then it was then. The health care system, being driven by the insurance lobbies, makes it difficult for practitioners to do their job.

I have a son who is 17 years old and bipolar, ADD, and LD. I had to quit my job and stay at home for several weeks to find him the help he needs. It took hours and hours on the phone and driving around the state to get him plugged into the system.

I decided then to do what I can to make that path a little easier for those who are coming behind me. But I don't know where to start. I always vote, but it's like throwing grass into the wind. I need a more active platform. I would love ideas, or sympathy.

I am also experiancing this.

Same here. Just started noticing this the last couple of months. Especially when writing, I tend to transpose letters. Been on XR 30 for almost 6 years and this is new. Anyone have any info on this?

Yep I get the same effect. I find myself reading numbers aloud and mixing the digits up, saying things backwards like 148 instead of 184.

I think it's just a side effect of being so in the zone that you forget about the little stuff and focus more on the bigger picture. In math I tend to focus more on the concept rather than the actual plugging of digits like most people, and in essence tend to miss the little stuff.

I wouldn't worry too much about it unless it is actually hindering your grades/work in a noticable way.