Not that I am worried, but tomorrow I start Concerta. I'm newly diagnosed so I have no experience with these meds. My husband will be on a fishing trip, but I am in an area that is close to medical and/or family support if needed.

Is it wise to start this when I basically will not be around anyone except for my dogs? My dogs are pretty smart, but they would be useless if the Food Lady (me) has a problem.

My neighbors will be readily available, and one of them is ADHD by chance.

Not being paranoid, just want to make sure I'm being responsible.

you'll be OK..

Shouldn't really be any problem.

If you just started Concerta, you were told to start with a low dosage. I notice that in the states people are given 36mg daily, and 54mg as MAX. Only rarely did I hear people saying they got 90mg and above.

So you start your dosing with 18mg for atleast a week, and go up as needed. If anything happens at 18mg (which is the equivilant of about 4mg ritalin X 3 times) you'd be sober enough to call for help. I dont believe 18mg Concerta (aka 4mg methylphenidate) can do anything to a grown up person, aside from minor side effects.

Its the higher dosing you should be aware of, HOWEVER, as from experience, 90mg of Concerta was taken twice by me in the past 2 weeks and had NO effect (atleast, not like Ritalin does). Reason is the body has to adjust to the Concerta pill type.

Your husband is most likely to be back by the time you have to go up to 36mg - and even once you do, I doubt anything would happen.

Good luck!

Your husband is most likely to be back by the time you have to go up to 36mg - and even once you do, I doubt anything would happen.

Good luck!
Thanks, I did start at 18. Didn't mean to sound paranoid, but antidepressants were not my friends and that is my only experience with brain chemistry altering medications. And with the AD, I was glad to have somebody around.

I go to 36 next week.

Took the first dose around 2 hours ago and I'm a little bit sleepy.

Any difference at your concentration / attentiveness with the 18mg?

Easier reading a book? doing chores? Clearing the mind off running thoughts?

Were you tested with any other drug before the concerta?

Any difference at your concentration / attentiveness with the 18mg?

Easier reading a book? doing chores? Clearing the mind off running thoughts?

Were you tested with any other drug before the concerta?

Concerta is my first ADHD med.

It is a little easier to sit still. But I am sleepy? My pdoc wants me to email him and let him know each day of the beginning dose what I am feeling.

Pdoc wanted me to take Vyvvanse (sp) but I pay for medicaitons out of pocket, so Concerta he felt was a good starting place considering I don't have a full wallet at the moment.

I see. How about concentration? any change? reading a book turns easier?

I'd love to hear about your up coming experiences.

I see. How about concentration? any change? reading a book turns easier?

I'd love to hear about your up coming experiences.

My concentration is better. My neighbors are doing construction and it is noisy and it isn't keeping me from working/posting here.

Really sleepy????

Think I was REALLY sleepy the first time I took Concerta, yet I never connected the two. I also had a major event that day, and I can't tell whether it was concerta or the event.

You should see what happens the 3rd or 4th day you take concerta.

lis dexia,

the drugs are not THAT bad! ... You can start on it while hubby is gone. You're not going to completely freak out.

It actually might be a better thing to start while hubby is gone and NOT TELL HIM this. One benefit you attached folks have over us single folks is that you can get a spouse to help evaluate how your behavior and mood have or have not changed as a result of the med. Part of the disability of this condition is that our judgment on some matters isn't all that great.

So you can start taking it, don't tell hubby and then see if he comments on any changes a week or so into it. Or just sit him down and ask him.

In any case, you will be fine, taking the med alone! They're not THAT powerful and doctors almost always start us on a really low dose.

Keep in mind these meds often cause side effects, but these often go away after three or so weeks! ... also understand that if you get no effect at your starting dosage, it doesn't mean you won't get a good effect at a higher dosage!

Good luck.

lis dexia,

the drugs are not THAT bad! ... You can start on it while hubby is gone. You're not going to completely freak out.

It actually might be a better thing to start while hubby is gone and NOT TELL HIM this.
A Quiet Mind for the first time in what feels like forever is a great side effect. Things seem to be going well.

No previous experience with ADHD meds, so I had no idea what to expect.

Husband already knows and I wish that I had not told him, because he feels like if I just try harder, I could wish myself better. The only thing that I wish is that somebody would have told me this would help years ago. But I know now.

Am positive he will notice a change. I already feel like a load is lifted from my shoulders.

That's so great to hear, lis!
Maybe when your hubby notices the effect the meds have on you, he'll smarten up, I don't know. I hope so for both of your sakes. :)
Keep up the good fight!

I agree. If hubby sees good effects, hopefully he'll be more open to the meds.

The world is full of people who are anti-medicine until ... until a friend or spouse or child takes it and they see great results. I myself am in this category. I was anti-psychiatric medicine until Zoloft lifted my dear brother out of a horrible depression that made talking to him an absolutely miserable (and depressing) experience.

He had been depressed for years and had reached that point where he was almost committed to being depressed as he thought this meant he was living an "authentic" life. The rest of the us who experienced ups as well as downs, who could laugh and get through some days thinking happy thoughts--well we were all deluded.

My brother is extremely well educated and very smart. This is often NOT an advantage when it comes to psychiatric treatment as smart people are often good at coming up with seemingly convincing reasons for doing stupid things, like not gettting their depression treated.

Thank God, my brother got referred to a psychiatrist a prestigious medical school. This nullified the "I'm smarter" thing. The psychiatrist talked him into trying medication. And it worked. Big time! My brother who hadn't laughed for a decade all of a sudden could laugh at all kinds of things. I was amazed. He was amazed. (I know Zoloft doesn't work this way for everyone.)

Once the medicine worked, his tune changed, his wife's tune changed ("Zoloft saved our marriage," she says now). And my tune changed as well.
That one experience changed three people's views in a snap!

Good luck! ... So you've started it?

I agree. If hubby sees good effects, hopefully he'll be more open to the meds.

Once the medicine worked, his tune changed, his wife's tune changed ("Zoloft saved our marriage," she says now). And my tune changed as well.
That one experience changed three people's views in a snap!

Good luck! ... So you've started it?
Yes ToneTone, I started yesterday and was actually grateful for my solitude. Just me and the dogs.

The medicine thing, I did talk therapy in my 20s and most of my 30s to avoid medication, even though I always felt like something was "missing". Almost 5 years ago, several family/friend deaths lead me to seek out some help from a psychiatrist who put me on Cymbalta (yucky for me).

So when I worked through the issues and came off of Cymbalta - I knew I wasn't clinically depressed, but something was wrong in my head. That lead me on the long journey to find out I was ADHD - which ironically never occurred to me, even though people have "teased" me about it for years.

So my husband is very suspicious of medications because the Cymbalta was helping me a little with the ADHD (the norephinephrine part) so he saw the bad aspects of Cymbalta, with me on it and when I came off.

I feel very confident in this decision. And at peace with the fact that I probably have to take medication for the rest of my life. Because now that I have started, having a clear mind and being able to sit still are pretty awesome!

I'm glad to hear of your peace about all of this. I had known in the back of my mind that there were mornings when my brain simply wasn't working, wasn't turned on. I also knew for years that I had a noisy brain, and I used meditation for a while to deal with it.

But like you, adhd was not on my radar. The surprises that life brings! ... Glad to hear of the quieter brain. It really is a treat, isn't it?!