Alright, let me start out with a little background information, I am 20 years old, male with a slim build, and I went to my doctor to get help with my ADHD.

First off he decided to start me on 5mg of RITALIN(IR) and take it 2 time daily, and also instructed to start taking 10mg of it 2 times daily after 5 days of the 5mg. So when i first started taking the 10mg 2 times daily, I really noticed a positive effect on my concentration it was amazing!

So after 6 days of the 10mg 2x daily, it just stooped working one day, it was like I was all of a sudden immune to the 10mg. So I waited it out for a week with no new results and then went to my check up. When I told the doctor what had happened he decided to move me up to 20mg 2x daily, which I agreed to and went home. The first day i took this was just as amazing as the first day i took 10mg with similar effects, although after a week it just stopped like the last time.

When I went into see him and tell him this he decided to put me on CONCERTA 54mg once daily. So I took this and did not notice any effects at all just like the other time. So I went back in and he said we should try a new drug called ADDERALL XR, and started me on 10mg then 20mg and so on, and it did not have any effects at all not even for a minute the entire time I was on it.

So I am going to see him in a week, and want to maybe try FOCALIN(IR) so my question is, would it be possible to get the same effects for FOCALIN(IR) that I got from the RITALIN(IR) but have it last longer, rather then having to raise the dose every 6 days until it cannot go any higher?

Anyone have experience with this? Any advice? Any other medication you suggest me to look into, besides CONCERTA, RITALIN, STRATHERA and ADDERALL XR?

Thanks

i was taking focalin xr and hated - it made me feel weird and i had almost every side effect possible. i couldn't stay on it more than 3 days at a time. so now i am taking concerta and it's not doing a thing. didn't really have any side effects but it doesn't seem to work. i want to try adderall i've heard it's a lot better.

I am trying ADDERALL XR right now, and I thought it was going to be REALLY GOOD because when I was 16 my friend brought some to school and we all snorted one 20mg and we were LIT...

So I thought it would definitely help my ADD, but I do not get any effects from it, the only thing that tells me I am on it is shaky hands and chest pains, don't get any improvement in any of my ADD symptoms... I guess dextroamphetamines do not get along with my body chemistry...

I have no side effects from the RITALIN unless I take like double my recommended dose... which I do not do.. but it just seems to work really good until after 4 - 5 days of taking the same dose, then my tolerance is up I guess and then it doesn't feel like anything, just feels like I drank a cup of coffee...

20 mg of IR ritalin is not the ceiling; it can be dosed higher. If your doctor is telling you that 20mg is as high as you can go I would suggest finding a specialist. The simple fact that you had a positive response to MPH versus adderall indicates that you should at least be titrated up even higher.

Current literature suggest that AMP stimulants can be dosed much higher than the 60mg a day the FDA recommends. Just using the 60mg as a reference for the AMP, which is twice as strong as MPH, shows that with ritalin/MPH one can go to at least 120mg a day.

So in your case you had a positive response for a few days at 40mg (20 x 2 doses). The next move, in my opinion, would be to go to 25mg (and realistically with the IR it should be given at least three times a day). If this works great, if not go to 30mg (Obviously with your doctor's orders).

My advice to you would be to give the focalin a try. Start low and if it works so so then be patient and ask to be titrated up to the next level. Remember the best dose is the one that best manages your adhd symptoms with the least amount or no side effects. And if there are some side effects they often will go away within a few days.

Check out Dr. Joseph Biederman (google his name along with Harvard, adhd specialist, etc.). Also, Ask Dr. Jones is another good one for great information.

I will look into it, but I might as well just go on Focalin and start titrating higher rather then just starting over on the MPH, because Focalin is basically the same except it is better, with less side effects...