short
has anyone here any experience taking an IR pill sublingually?

original long post
(after my first post im going to try to make these shorter, not like a novel every time i post so this is the first version with my all thoughts and at the top
Hola posting this here because I think a lot of the ADHD meds are absorbed sublingually not just dexedrine, but I was curious if anyone here ever takes their dose sublingually instead of swollowing it? Ive done it a couple times because some mornings even on an empty stomache it takes 3 hours for the dexedrine (10mg 2x/day) to start working and if i eat breakfast it always takes that long. I don't want to get up at 5 am and take it because usually on a totally empty stomache it works after about an hour and i dont' want to be woken up at 6 am!

Anywho I just take the pill and stick it under my toungue and after 5-10 mins swallow whatever is left. Kinda annoying because of the spit you generate. I was scared about this a bit because I thought maybe it would work too fast (like when people abuse by snortting smoking or injecting a pill) but I was happy to find that it didn't do that though I don't usually need quite as much i would take orally, so I usually subling 7.5 mg and swollow the remaining part. Ieveo nly done this a couple times and it worked well and it doesn't taste that bad at least not the dexedrine, some pills are disgusting and really bitter and i can't imagine having it in my mouth for 10 mins.

basically the same idea as one of those ritalin patches, so I think the same thing would work with ritalin because if it can go in through yout skin it can work under your toungue. it's come in handy on days where i can't sit around @ home for 3 hours waiting for the dexedrine to start working thats for sure.

This wouln't work with any sort of extended release pill I dont' think but also trying to circumvent extended is a bad idea and could easily be considered abuse by a doc.

basically the same idea as one of those ritalin patchesThese tablets were not designed to be used sublingually. If your Dr approves you to use them in that way, then you should follow your Dr's advice, but I would not recommend anyone try any prescription medication sublingually until they talk to their Dr about it first.

The patches are a similar idea, but since they are transdermal the absorbtion through the skin is a much slower mechanism of delivery than anything that could be ingested sublingually. A transdermal administration of a drug does not go straight to the brain like a sublingual administration of a drug is capable of doing.

It has been my experience that drugs administered sublingually more often than not don't seem to last nearly as long as drugs that are absorbed through the G.I. tract, or transdermally. If dextroamphetamine is taking 3 hours to kick in, perhaps you should consider what you might be eating or drinking with, or before you take your medication. Often high acid foods and drinks have a tendency to work against the effectiveness of many prescription stimulant drugs.

Ericmh, I wake up an hour early so I can my medication and eat breakfast an hour later. I've done it for years because it's easier for me to get organized in the morning and to work on time if meds are in my system. I also didn't like starting work before my meds had kicked in. I also get up earlier than I need to so I have time to walk to work.

One quick preface: Anyone seeking to maximize their med's effect shouldn't snort this stuff (not just because it's associated with abuse and a foolish practice). I've read info on this type of med that states it can really burn out tissues/areas within your nostrils. I feel that sublingual administration is a more acceptable way to go (I have no clinical training/education within any medical field, it's just my opinion from the research that I've done).

I asked my doc if I could take my generic 10mg IR methylphenidate sublingually and he said that if it works, go for it. My problem is that the industry basically "capped" the daily allowances of the drug at 60mg, but made that decision off of studies with children; humans that weigh much less than I do. I'm a 200lb+ male, much more dense, and 60mg per day for me is almost like throwing water on a house fire; if I swallow them in the conventional manner that is. Sublingually things seem to be a bit better. Too bad there hasn't been an adjustment made for adults on this medication yet but I hear that there may be something in the works (perhaps some long-term study's on adults are still on-going?). I think that, due to our law-suit-crazy world, the industry has adopted a "better safe than sorry" stance.

However, someone's makin money on my script but I am not getting the intended benefits of the medication.

Anyway, sublingual administration does role right into the blood stream so more of the med hits the system and doesn't get hindered via the liver 1st. I think that the downside, though, is that it is out of your system a bit quicker. So it's more like a spike effect. I have set the countdown alarm on my watch for 30 min. When it goes off, I put another 10mg under the tongue. This seems to keep things at a constant effect for the first part of the day. Then I'm on my own for the 2nd half once I've hit my 60mg limit. On one hand I find it unacceptable that a one size fits all dose cap has been adopted so widely. On the other hand, things are a lot better now with the medication than they were without it; then I used to drink two pots of coffee a day so I shouldn't complain. I may try to take one 10mg into the stomach and one 10mg under the tongue. That may further help to keep a steady stream in the system. My doc said that he would give me more but his hands are tied. The organization that he works for won't allow more than 60mg per day. Better than 0mg a day though. Hope this info helps in some way.

The only SL pill I know of is ZYDIS.

(A form of SL Zyprexa for folks who like to 'cheek their pills'.)

I agree with IMNAPL.

I've been known to keep my pills on the bed table and lie in bed after taking it, waiting for it to work in the AMs.

LOL

My problem is that the industry basically "capped" the daily allowances of the drug at 60mg, but made that decision off of studies with children; humans that weigh much less than I do.The industry has not capped the dose your Dr is allowed to prescribe. The FDA has suggested a 60mg daily max, but that is just a suggestion. Dr's are free to prescribe the dose according to each individual patient. Most Dr's do not go outside the recommended prescribing guidelines due to issues surrounding malpractice insurance, however that is usually just seen with Dr's who are not specialist when it comes to ADHD. Most specialist are well aware of the fact that each patient is different, and as such each patient very well may need a different dose.




My doc said that he would give me more but his hands are tied. The organization that he works for won't allow more than 60mg per day. Better than 0mg a day though. Hope this info helps in some way.It's unfortunate that the organization he works for will not allow him to treat his patients as he sees fit. If I was a Dr who had taken a Hippocratic oath ensuring that I practice medicine as ethically as I could, I would be outraged if someone was ever to prevent me from helping my patients in any way. In fact, I have even heard of Dr's who have chosen to not take patients with insurance due to the fact that many insurance companies dictate what will and what will not be covered for treatment, and also due to the fact that some insurance companies take way to long to pay the Dr's.

Here's a brief example of what I am referring to: http://thehealthinsurancemyth.blogspot.com/2007/12/some-orange-county-docs-not-accepting.html

When I initially responded to this thread last summer, I did not share my experience due to my misunderstanding at that time concerning the rules of the medications forum.

I wrongfully assumed that any use of these medications in a way in which they were not designed to be used was not allowed in this forum, however I have since come to learn that this kind of use is allowed in this forum as long as a persons Dr agrees them using it that way.

That being said, I asked my Dr several years ago if I could try the sublingual route of administration in an attempt to give me a small boost while studying late at night when a full dose would have simply been a waste of medication, and a waste of my time due the likelyhood of me not being able to sleep that night after taking a full dose. He agreed, and he allowed me to experiment with small doses. I have only done this with Dexedrine IR, and it was the only stimulant medication that I have ever had my Dr's permission to use sublingually.

My normal dose that I normally take is 20mg of Dexedrine taken three times a day for a total of 60mg per day. The sublingual dose I have taken ranges from a maximum of 5mg or 2.5mg.

I have found that 5mg or 2.5mg of the Dexedrine IR tablet absorbed sublingually will typically be felt in less than two minutes, and the effects seldom last longer than 30 to 45 minutes. This has been a real blessing for me when it comes to situations where I need to keep studying an extra hour or so after spending a very long night studying. I would say that I probably employ this technique 10 times a year or less.

Initially I was concerned that the Dexedrine IR tablet would be too bitter to crush it up with my teeth & allow it to rest under my tongue, but surprisingly I found it to not be as bitter as expected. In fact, I have found those chew-able baby aspirin to be more bitter than I find the Dexedrine IR tablets. However, I think that most people would probably find the Dexedrine IR tablet to be something that does taste bitter.

All this being said, I am in no way suggesting the use of a prescription medication ever be to used sublingually without first getting the approval of your Dr. This is not for everyone, and the only reason I even asked my Dr if I could try it was because my Dr had suggested this technique to me several years ago when I was taking a benzodiazepine at the time that he was prescribing me for panic attacks which I used to experience periodically for about a year or so.

taking pills sublingually

In a word yuck -

why would I?

The medication taste bad enough when it gets stuck on my tongue briefly - why would I want to have this taste in my mouth any longer than necessary for me to get it from mouth to stomach?


Some answers in life really aren't that hard this would be one of them - taste buds rule as do the directions on the bottle - it says swallow with a full glass of water. I can handle that -

why would I?
The only reason that I know of is that it allows a person to fine tune their dose. However, I think that it is completely inappropriate without a Dr's approval.

I can't imagine anyone enjoying the taste. It's not pleasant, however, for a person in a full blown panic attack to be able to get an almost instant response from their medication, taking it subligually is a very viable option, with their Dr's approval.

The same could be said in my case with my sublingual dex dose. My Dr informed me that is was OK to try, and it allowed me the ability to feel the effects of my medication, but for less than 45 minutes instead of feeling it for 4 hours.

I can't imagine many people needing to do this, but some of us have needed to. For me it boiled down to studying late for several hours (10 or more hours), and yet I still needed to study another half hour, or hour, or hour and a half, etc., after my normal doses had worn off.

Sublingual is actually rather similar to insufflating: in either case, the drug is absorbed directly through mucous membrane into the bloodstream, and straight to the brain. Snorting is generally considered abuse, so I doubt sublingual would be doctor-recommended. You would get more (esp. if you chewed it at all), and faster, with a much shorter duration as it's not metabolized slowly. If you need a higher dose, get a higher dose, and take it normally. If you don't need it that high, sublingual could be considered abuse, too.

has anyone here any experience taking an IR pill sublingually?My mom told me this is never a good idea because it can affect your ability to take nitroglycerin under the tongue.

I doubt sublingual would be doctor-recommended. My Dr did.





If you need a higher dose, get a higher dose, and take it normally. If you don't need it that high, sublingual could be considered abuse, too.If I was to take a dose normally, its effects would last for 4 hours.

When its 2:00 am, and I have been studying for the last 8 hours or more, and I need to study for an extra hour of so, a normal dose would interfere with my sleep that I will be needing. Especially if I am going to have an exam at 8:00 am the following morning.

Like I said in my post above, this is not for everyone. My Dr, who happened to go to medical school (which is what I am studying for), knows what its like to spend as much time as I spend studying. If my Dr told me that it was not safe to do this, or that he did not agree, then I would have never tried it. Furthermore, I do this less than once a month, if that much.

My mom told me this is never a good idea because it can affect your ability to take nitroglycerin under the tongue.
Good point. That's why it's important to discuss this with a Dr first, and to only do it when needed. I have never done this more than once every 5 weeks or so, in fact maybe less than that.

I have seen it suggested on another forum that sublingual may or may not be damaging to one's teeth due to acidity.

The only SL pill I know of is ZYDIS.

(A form of SL Zyprexa for folks who like to 'cheek their pills'.)

I take Subutex which is also a sublingual tablet. I think buprenorphine has a very low bioavailability when taken orally so they tend to give it SL,IM or IV. Also - A friend of mine who has cancer got some clonazapam syrup which is intended for SL use (i think).

Taking your amphetamines sublingualy is a big no no as others have said above me. The effective dose in your bloodstream could be much higher than if you were to take it normally. Just ask your doctor about it. If you're noticing your regular dose isn't covering you taking your medication under the tongue might be a decent idea instead of increasing your dose.

TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR.

Taking your amphetamines sublingualy is a big no no as others have said above me. The effective dose in your bloodstream could be much higher than if you were to take it normally. That's correct. That is why my Dr told me to only use a very small dose (small for me that is). My normal dose is 20mg. The most my Dr agreed for me to attempt subligually was 5mg or less. I found that between 2.5mg to 5mg was the best dose for me.





TALK TO YOUR DOCTOR.
I couldn't agree more. This is something that should never be attempted without a Dr's approval.

That is taking medications that weren't meant to be sublingual might be damaging to one's teeth due to acidity. It is possible that the damage may be cumulative and the consequences hidden until later. I don't mean to spread FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt). However this is probably something which should not be taken lightly.

I have seen it suggested on another forum that sublingual may or may not be damaging to one's teeth due to acidity.