Hi everyone, I have been going through some different medications for ADD (ABILIFY and most recently INVEGA) and I gave those AP's a fair try but couldn't tolerate the side effects.

My Dr. wants to try either Wellbutrin XL or Strattera next..Does anyone know which one may be the better chioce? I've done some reading but was hoping someone would chime in with some personal experience or advice on these meds. I was thinking that WB XL may be the better first chioce becasue it hits dopamine, norephinephrine (sp?) and seritonin (sp?) giving more of a stimulant like effect for energy and focus. Strattera seems to be a safe chioce too but only works on norephinephrine and people have said it poops out after about 4-6 hours (being a non-stimulant)? I'm going to the pDr. tomorrow so any input would be greatly appreciated! Thanks again.

I've only taken Strattera. From what I've heard, Wellbutrin is a better antidepressant than an ADD drug-- my doc would only consider it for people who had tried everything else. You'll still want to talk to someone who has tried it though.

Strattera works pretty well for me. And it doesn't poop out after 6 hours-- there must be some mistake about that. Actually you can't feel it kick in or out at all. It takes a couple of weeks to build up in your system, then you keep taking it and you feel the same all the time. Even if you miss a pill, you wouldn't notice the feeling. I've never missed more than one, so I don't know how many you'd have to miss before you started feeling different.

It helps me concentrate better and be more diligent about cleaning things up, following through on work, and getting projects finished. It also helps me deal with long, stressful days and still feel human at the end of them. I work about 11-12 hours a day but I'm not mentally exhausted at the end anymore. It won't give you extra mental or physical energy though. You'd probably want to try a stimulant for that.

Good luck finding the right prescription!

Thanks for the input Miriam...
Thats how I thought strattera worked? I wonder if I should go with the Wellbutrin instead since he offered it as the next alternative? They both seem to be very 'different' except they both work on Norepeniphrine? maybe I'll post over in the WB area for some feedback on it? Thanks again!

For me, strattera made my agitation/irritability worse, so I had to stop it after 7 days. Wellbutrin I've never taken. Good luck namaste'

Andy...

Thanks Andy...
Your always so prompt with information and I appreciate it very much!
Also, your information is very informative .... Thanks again!

Did you stay away from WB for any certain reason(s) (if I may ask)?

No problem. Happy to help. That's what we're here for...

I've tried Wellbutrin XL and Strattera. Wellbutrin XL was ineffective and produced intolerable side effects, however my experience with Strattera was limited. I was only on it for a period of a few days at dosages of 50-75mg. By itself, it was sedating with a few uncomfortable but quite tolerable side effects.

Some learned folks on this forum, and experts in the field seem to believe that ADD-I and ADHD are wholly or partially distinct disorders. Should Strattera prove more effective for the former type (of which I fall into to), then perhaps I may give it another shot. I'm not fond of psychostimulants (not having used them yet), because I find the stimulant effect uncomfortable (based on my experience with caffeine, perhaps a poor model for all psychostimulants). Anyway, I'm also somewhat relunctant to use Strattera because it may take 6-8 weeks to determine it's full effect and it's a relatively costly medication. So despite my inhibitions, I think that I may have to begin with traditional psychostimulant treatments because I can quickly discern most of their effects (including side effects) and they're generally cheaper than these newer non-stimulant alternatives.

Based on the anecdotal reporting on this forum (and possibly studies done on the subject), was Strattera found to be most effective primarily in inattentive type individuals? Would it be worth investigating once more, and if so, before or after psychostimulant treatments are tried?