Well, guys. It's time to see if this stuff will help me. Already take Zoloft which has been helping tremendously. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to take 10mgs in the morning and maybe one in the evening.

I'll report my status on this thread. Wish me luck!

Well, I could not wait until tomorrow. I took 10mgs tonight and don't feel too much different. Just a tad bit more focused, more patient, and not obsessing over what I usually obsess over. I might need to take two at a time to notice some "real effects".

Take it slow when you're first starting out. Don't go doubling your dose after the first day. Take it as your doc prescribed. I would advise you to stick to the lowest dose possible for at least a week and see how you go. If you do increase to 2 capsules a day, you probably shouldn't take the second one at night if you want to get any sleep.

Yeah, you're right. I took one at 5:00 PM today. I'm kind of sleepy right now (11:00 PM), so I guess I'll find out if I can get to seep. My prescription says to take 1-2 pills a day. Each pill being 10mg. I was planning on taking two of the Adderall XR pills together, tomorrow morning. Would that be a mistake? :confused: I didn't feel too much from the one pill. Just a little more focused and a lot less bored.

I don't believe I've seen you in the Adderall forum before, so welcome! :)

Just be aware that you may experience a certain amount of euphoria by upping your dosage so quickly and that it DOESN'T mean the medication is working, just that you haven't really gotten used to the medication. At first, it was hard for me to differentiate between the euphoria and the medication working. It's easy to assume you're feeling so happy because the meds are doing their job.

For me, and a lot of others, the effects are much more subtle. When I first started, I didn't realize that the medication was working until my husband started pointing some things out to me.

For instance, I am now able to very smoothly work from one thing to another without a problem. He was amazed that I was able to get so much done in such a short amount of time. Usually I would have to stand there and really think about what I was doing. It took an enormous amount of conscious effort to do multiple things in a row.

Another benefit is my ability to quickly understand and comprehend new things. I like to dabble in home projects with my husband and it used to be hard for me to learn some of the more complicated carpentry work, but now I catch on very quickly and have a more in depth understanding.

Not everyone sees a HUGE difference in their behavior when starting meds. Give yourself time to adjust and maybe ask someone close to you (girlfriend, close friend, family member) to monitor your behavior and let you know if they notice a difference. We ADDers are famous for poor self-perception. :rolleyes:

I think that I may benefit more from a different medication but I'm sort of scared to try something else. The side effects can be terrible for some meds and going back to the old me if another med doesn't work isn't exactly something I'm dying to do, so I'm sticking with the small benefits I've had with the Adderall so far.

Good luck and hopefully the Adderall works out well for you.

Thanks tlhengel for your response. I went ahead and increased my dosage to 20 mg today and still can only report subtle changes in my persona. One difference is my patience. I'm not sitting waiting for the day to be over like I used to. I played my video game (Mario on Wii) for an hour without getting bored. And I'm a better gamer on Adderall. My anxiety has been shot dead on the street with a chalk outline around it, which is like SO COOL.

Um, let me see. I'm a lot less paranoid, which stemmed from irrational ideas and thoughts.

I slept like a baby last night, even after taking the one pill in the evening. I even scored with this chubby chick in my dreams, so no longer "not even in my dreams". :) We'll see if the positives continue without the negatives.

I'm glad to hear you're seeing at least some positive results.

I just wanted to add that I notice my medication works best when I stay physically busy. The minute I sit down to watch tv or play video games, it's out. In fact with video games I get really tired. I think I forget to blink too because my eyes are so dry and grainy when I get done. Ugh. I always make a point to stay as busy as possible

Which reminds me, I should be cleaning my house right now, but here I am in front of this dam computer! :rolleyes: stupid distractions

Doubling up on the XR doesn't seem like a good idea. When your prescription says to take 1-2 per day, I would think it meant throughout the day. If it were regular adderall, not XR, that would be different.

I took one an hour after the other, so I'm good. I just have to take both before noon, so it'll wear off before I go to bed. Today has been great. Everything I've done today, I've done contently. I'm glad to be finished with clock watching. The following phrase is the only way to describe how I felt.

Mom! How long is it before I die? It's taking too long! :D

Welcome to the forum, Hobbledehoy. And to the world of amphetamine salts ^_-

Geesh, I crashed hard last night. Felt like total crap. The Benadryl took the edge off though.

I'm angry as hell today. Gotta calm down.

Are you still taking them (essentially) two at a time? Even though it isextended release, its not a extended enough to last most people more than 8 hours max. You're probably crashing due to taking both dosages at once, and it losing its effectiveness somewhere around 8 hours later. Try spacing them out MORE than an hour.

Okay. Will do.

Welcome to the forums! I am new here too, but I've been lurking long enough to have learned quite a bit!

Adderall XR is designed to release have the medicine immediately and the other half a few hours later. Your doc started you out at 10mg deliberately, but you will likely be given an increase, so take it slow and see how this dose works for you. The first couple of days on Adderall feel so great that you just want to keep that "high" going, thinking that taking more will give you better results, but if you keep reading on these boards you'll find lots of posts about "chasing the high" (the euphoria) that you'll never really get back again.

The good news is, Adderall will continue to have many practical benefits for you. Talk to your doctor about the "crash" (feeling irritable and generally like crap) when the meds wear off and see what he recommends. Lots of people on these boards reach for alcohol, coffee or whatever else makes them feel better, but that's not necessarily healthy. Coffee, for instance, will give you a rush that takes the edge off the crash, but will make it impossible to sleep. Lots of folks here also take seratonin or other sleep aids. I found that 5htp worked for me--I took 50 mg an hour before the meds started to wear off and another 50 mg about an hour later. This prevented the crash altogether, but I stopped that now because I've been Rx'd and SSRI. Common sense tells me that I don't need both because that could lead to seratonin syndrome...a term I first saw on these boards.

So basically, my advice is to take it slow...don't waste your time chasing the initial "high", and talk to your doctor in a week or two about increasing your dose. 10mg XR is not very high, but it's an excellent starting point. I'm currently on 30 mg XR. Today is my first day back on after being off for 2 weeks, and also my first time dosing along with the SSRI.

Good luck!