After a disappointing month and one half on Strattera, I (on my doctor’s advice) am throwing in the towel. I am really disappointed that this medicine did not work out. My doctor said she has four patients currently taking Strattera and all have begun reporting negative side effects.

I started on a daily dose of 40mg and within 10 days began experiencing the following:

- insomnia at night
- fatigue during the day
- violent dreams
- irritability
- Decreased attention
- Increased blood pressure

My doctor lowered the dose to 20mg/day and the symptoms lessened but did not go away. I thought the fatigue and irritability could be due to allergies so I also started taking an Allergy medication. My symptoms did not improve. Today is my first day off Strattera and I feel less irritable and better able to focus. Go figure.

Echo,

Sorry to hear that Strattera has not worked for you. Unfortunately, not every medication will work for every person. What else have you tried?

I have some negative side effects on straterra but not like yours. My neg effects seem to be more physical and tolerable. A 4 out of 4 negative track record for his patients seems too high to overlook, unless he meant that all had some negative side-effects but some were continuing for the positive benefits anyways. One possibility for such a negative effect, with so many patients, without positive effects, might be misdiagnosis. I think all the reports I have read so far from people taking straterra listed at least some positive effects on concentration, while some also had negative effects as well. If you received absolutely no benefit on the straterra, maybe that is an important clue to your diagnosis and treatment, maybe you are in a subcatagory of ADD that won't respond to the increase in neuroepinephrine. I'd look at dr Annans brainplace.com and see if anything there. I'd also look under http://neuro-mancer.mgh.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/forumdisplay.cgi?action=topics&forum=ADHD&number=7&DaysPrune=1000&LastLogin= to see if anyone there has any thoughts on this. There are some very technically oriented people there. Another question I would wonder, is whether you have tried adderal or ritilinn before and if you responded wel to those? Most people with ADD respond in some positive way to those, whether they like the side effects or not. Good luck, and remember that it takes some time, patience, and several different trials to find what works for you. Sorry this one did not work, but the bright side is you eliminated one possibility.

Jon

healthwiz,

Just about everyone I've spoken to who's taken the Strattera has experienced SOME side effects (although for many that's limited to maybe dry mouth and a headache that goes away after a week or two). Seems like the kicker is whether or not it works or not...

I know it's all just variations in brain chemistry -- I mean, c'mon there are over 50 known neurotransmitters and imbalances/overproduction/shortages of ANY of these can cause problems. So it's definitely naive to expect that the same med would work the same for everyone (which is not what you were saying, but I run into a lot of people who think that "well, pill X worked for my friend Bob, so it's gotta work for me!")

I wish there was something like SPECT analysis that could show us not just dysfunctional areas of brain anatomy, but also neurotransmitter levels... then the docs could prescribe drugs tailored to the individual's brain chemistry, and not just sort of have to go "by guess and by golly" and hope the patient falls under the bell curve... Well, maybe in a few years :)

-- Tom

I was recently diagnosed with mild ADD (inattentitive type). For me, my biggest issues are inability to focus, disorganization, low productivity. This has caused mild problems with my personal life, major ones with my job. I am also a very anxious person.

My psych. started me on Strattera along with Buapar for the anxiety and I was very hopefull. After about a month, here is where I am:

difficulty sleeping
nervousness
sadness
more energy
less appetite
no improvement on focus

I am going to call him to see what is next. Now I am wondering if I am really ADD -- why didn't my symptoms improve? Any suggestions or comments on other meds? The doc did suggest Wellbutrin as an option.

Hi Cebdone: Wish to welcome you to the Forums..and say I'm sure the reason you didn't respond to the meds in terms of improvement in focus and the other improvements you were looking for (better organization, i.e.) -- wasn't because you're not ADD.....but probably more to do with Strattera and/or Buspar wasn't right med for you.....there's tons of meds out there and many combos and not every med nor combo of meds will be right for everyone.....

Unfortunately it really is a trial and error game....hopefully you do like your doctor....

Question: The sadness, difficulty sleeping -- were these there before you went on the meds or were they caused by the meds??

In any event, I would definitely try the Wellbutrin....perhaps in COMBO with the Strattera or in combo with the Buspar....many people here on Forums are on Wellbutrin either alone or in combo with something else, and find it to be a really great med.....It's used to treat depression and ADD symptoms.....and usually side effects are mild....not always but usually.....the effects at first are subtle....but it really can make a difference.....

What do others think?