Hey to all.

If you saw from past post's, I started out at 25mg but had to stop due to S/E's either from the Strattera or Lexapro, or both.

I started over after a few weeks break and am now into day 3 at 18 mg. The first day I had the same S/E's as last time. Cotton Mouth, Hot Flashes and Fuzzy head. It was not a 24/4 type of thing, or unbearable, but when they hit, it was noticeable.

Day 2 it was really reduced. I didnt notice unless I tried to. I did notice it was a bit harder to go #1.

Day 3 was nothing to speak of, just a chill once and awhile. The #1 problem is lighter also.

I have 1 more day at 18 mg then I jump to 25mg. Im really not worried about the S/E's this time because I feel like it was right for me to start over at a lower dose. Im not saying my experience so far is typical or not, but it has been ALOT more pleasant this time around.

I expect (instead of dread or trying to invent) S/E's to pick up again for a day or 2 once I increase.

As far as if its working or not, I cant tell. Im not dissapointed by this, I actually think its good that I cant tell or feel any effects at such a low dose. It makes me think my body is getting used to the re-programming of the brain and not going into freak out mode :)

The reason Its such a long post is that during my first try I was scared and needed all the detail I could get.

I'm not an expert at all, but a word to anyone just starting. Dont read my S/E's and try to invent them in you. That was one of my problems the first time. I read something bad and talked myself into the same feeling. What I felt so far was VERY mild.

Ok,,Im off my soap box now. Just trying to pass it on.

"Edge"

Back at 25mg.

Some cotton mouth but not as bad as before. Some tingle on my skin and hot flashes. Not near as bad as when I started at 25mg the last time. All in all, less than what I expected.

Your body is getting used to it. Side effects usually diminish - the trick is getting past the initial effects!

3rd day @ 25mg. The cotton mouth has gone away, but a plus affect has happened. My sinus have dried up alot. When I lay down to sleep, I usually get kinda stuffy. Not anymore. I feel kinda dried out. I still get a hot flash once and awhile, but its no biggy. The foggy head feeling of being on a med is about gone.

I still cant tell an affect yet, but I really dont know what I am looking for. My first trip thru, I confused the disconnected feeling of starting a new drug with it working. I felt kinda like a zombie.

I have not had any stomach problems, sleep problems or eating problems this go round. I was taking it around 2 PM but today I started at 8 AM to see if it would make a difference at work.

For tho's who say you cant sleep, I took mine at 2 PM cause around 9 or 10 I would be real sleepy.


Oh, for anyone starting Lexapro. One of the draw backs of it is a loss of well, the happy ending during mating season.

Mine came back after week 4:bowl: Peace is at hand!

Film at 11

"Edge"

FWIW, the Lexapro has less sexual side effects than any of the other SSRI's. When I was on Celexa, er, um, sex? No thank you. With Lexapro, well, lets just say I had a good weekend. :D The first in a long long time.

4th day at 25mg. S/E's are all but gone again. No cotton mouth, hot flashes, etc. Eating and sleeping fine.

I go up to 40mg in the morning. I expect the same as last time. A day or 2 with the S/E's as my body adjusts to the new level.

I feel like maybe its staring to kick in. At times I catch myself really focused on things. It could just be my imagination or the slight fuzzy head drifiting in and out.

From what I have read here and other places, I expect 40mg will be a watershead barrier to break. It seems like this is enough concentration of the med for S/E's to really act up and a positive effect to start to take effect.

Once again, Im not worried about S/E's. My body seems to adjust after 2 days at each dose. The first day is not bad, its just the S/E's are more pronounced. I repeat, its not a 24/7 battle with them, they just drift in and out.

I hope I start to see more effect at 40mg. Did anyone else see it kick in at this level?


Thanks for letting me post!

"Edge"

Actually, I even felt some benefits from 25 mg! Only lasted for a couple days though.

At 40 mg I really felt the benefits kicking in. Unfortunately at 40 mg that is when the depression kicked in too but not until week 4. But I would say you will definitely start noticing benefits now.

1st day @ 40mg

No S/E's to speak of. I felt a tad warm for about an hour, but that was it. I may have had a bit of cotton mouth. No problems eating and I feel nice and sleepy. I also take my first dose when I increase at 2 pm. For some reason im usually tired at bedtime when I do that.

Ok,, I did notice some effects at 40mg. I went to a minor league ball game tonight and I could notice that as I was watching the game, random thoughts were not running thru my head. I was able to recall what I had just watched a few innings earlier.

I think I was looking for some kind of euphoric or buzzed feeling when it started working. Instead, it looks like it does what they say. The channels in my head dont seem to flip as much as they used to and I was able to sit still thru the game. Its still only the first day at 40mg, so it could be the normal fuzzy head I get the first day. I will let you know for sure tommr night.

"Edge"

Day 2 @ 40mg.

Just a little dry mouth from time to time. Thats it. Eating & Sleeping fine. Bathroom work is fine :p

Positive Effects:
Someone asked me what was wrong today. I was like,,huh? They said a was quiet and not as yappy :) I can really feel the focus starting to get sharper. When I go to sleep, I dont have the million thoughts running thru my head. I didint seem to day dreams as much today. Maybe it starting to kick in.

All in all, I would give it a High B so far.


"Edge"

Good for you! That's great to hear. Keep us posted!

Day 3 40mg.

The hot flashes came back today, but it was no big deal cause Im used to them. Also, I noticed I was not as hungry, but again, I expected that so its no biggy. Or actually, I dont think I am hungry until I eat. The im hungry. I think the drug effects the sensory dept some way. Very neat how all this works :)

The S/E's today were no bad or unbearable at all, I just noticed them from time to time.

Pros:
I can really tell a the change from 25 to 40 mg's. No real plus effects to add since yesterday.

Hey,,when does the eating thing straighten out?

"edge"

I had a similar experience with Strattera the first time I started on it. I think the initial dose was 25 to 40 mgs and I had allot of heartburn with it. The doctor then suggested taking it at night, but then I couldn't sleep. I tried a second time at the lowest dose and titrated up without any side effects.

I also had the same effect of feeling like each new dose level it would work really well for a few days, then taper off. I mentioned this to my doctor and he said that was a sign of fast metabolism and an indicator that it was working, just needed to keep upping the dose till the positive effects were lasting.

I'm so glad we tried it a second time because it's really helping. I also found on the package insert that you should drink a full glass of water when you take it. That has taken care of any heartburn problems for me as well.

I think everybody is learning allot about the best way to use this since it's so new. Hope this helps. :)

Day 4 - 40mg

Eating back to normal. Seems like the S/E's have settled down. Looks like at a higer jump, it takes me about 4 days to get used to it. I will know for sure in the morning cause I will start taking it in the AM now that I feel back to normal. Eating and sleeping fine, sleeping great. I only have the pee'ing problem the first day I increase.

Pro's:
Im starting to really notice the improved concentration. I jump to 60mg in a day, so it should really kick in. So far im liking it fine. The S/E's are not as bad as I have read. Seems like it last for about 8 or 10 hrs tho. Maybe it will stretch out when I get closer to the right dose.

"Edge"

When I first started taking Strattera, one 18 mg capsule lasted all day, then within the first week, I was taking one in the morning, and another in the afternoon.

Am currently on 36 mgs (2 x 18) at around 11am and 40 mgs right before bed (usually around midnight).

Day 5 & 6 - 40mg

Everything back to normal. No S/E's.

I go up to 60 mg in the morning, so I expect them to pick up again.

So far so good :)


"Edge"

I kicked it up to 60mg today. The Doc wants me to stay here for 14 days, so we will see what happens.

My mileage at these upper doses has been about 9 or 10 hrs.

My question to you experienced people is.... Should I be looking for a point where I split doses?

Or will I land at a dose level that will carry me all day? My feeling is that he wants me to sit at 60mg, once a day. My weight is 140lb so by the book I guess I should wind up around 80mg.

Please advise

"Edge"

I can comment on that having been on Strattera for eight months now.............almost everything I read says it is OK to just take it once in the morning. This drug apparently releases fairly slowly and steadily so it doesn't help all that much to split it up into two daily doses.

I found it easier to remember as just a once a day thing.

I was on 80 per day for a couple of months then went up to 100 to try to "get back" the good results that faded for me after a few months at 80.

Sure enough things improved but then the same thing happened and I went up to 120 per day (the max I believe). I was only about 175 pounds at that time. Side effects got worse and same "wearing off" occurred.

I am now back down to 80 mg per day and my doctor has added in Wellbutrin XL. for more on that see the Wellbutrin forum.

Net, net I am still a fan of Strattera but it is not the be all end all miracle drug. But three people in my family still take it every day if that tells you something.

Good luck.

Ed:bowl:

I took Strattera 40 mg for 2 week trial. The fatigue was way too much. For first 3 days all I did was sleep. Then, tried Wellbutrin xl 150. The side effects were way too much (posted results on Wellbutrin board).

Now, back to Strattera again. There were some things I really liked and missed about it, mostly the "calm" "smooth" feeling. This time I started with a lower dose. 25 mg in the morning for one week. 40 mg for week two, but divided dose, 20 in the am, 20 at lunch. What a difference a smaller dose at a time has made for me. I go back to Dr. next week, so we'll see what he wants to do next.

This time around, I want to give it the full 6 weeks before I give up.....I will be able to continue on it for 6 weeks simply because I started at a lower dose than last time. I don't know why the samples don't come in 10's or 20's.....seems like starting most people on 40 mg really knocks them out with fatigue, etc. so they give up on it too soon.

Day 2 @ 60mg.

The hot flashes were off and on a few times today, thats about it.

Its funny, but it seems like I could tell a bigger difference at 40 mg but Im pretty sure its just my body getting used to the higher dose. So far, Im still liking it.


"Edge"

Day 3 at 60mg.

I noticed I was not as hungry today and felt just a tad "off". Im not tied in knots about it cause it was only the third day at a new dose and has taken an extra day or 2 to level out at the higher dose.

It still seems like I was more focused at 40, but who knows.


Is anyone getting tired of my post? Now that I look back on all this it seems kinda silly.

"Edge"

Been at 60 mg for several days now. No S/E's now to speak of.

I take it in the morning around 8 or 9. Everything is made for love untill 7 or 8 at night and it wears off. I think Im going to get the doc to bump me up to 80mg and split it in 2 doses.

I think Im going to get the doc to bump me up to 80mg and split it in 2 doses.

That's essentially what I did.

Went to 80 mg today.

Im taking 40mg in the AM and 40mg about 2 hrs before bed.

When I was at 60 mg at one time, the last few days I felt kinda grouchy, angry and down in general. Maybe it was to much at one time. Who knows. This last week I was not eating as much as I used to and that bothered me.

I did notice that the plus effects had wore off some.

I will sit here for a few weeks and see what happens.

To answer your question from 2 posts back i appreciate reading your info so thanks.

Good luck to you. I am hopeful you find a stabilizing effect after a few days.

Please keep us posted.

Ed

I have been at 80 mg for several days now. 40 in the am / 40 in the pm.

I still have hot flashes from time to time and my appatite? is still off so I went to GNC and added some weight gainer 1850 to my diet. I find I can always drink something sweet even when I dont "feel" hungry. That seems to have helped the weight loss (About 8 lbs this last month). I really didnt notice the eating slipping till I stepped on the scales. I have no cotton mouth, sleeping problems or bathroom issues. Seems that for me, its just the eating and hot flashes.

Pro's:
I almost pulled the plug last week. I was down in the dumps, moody, easy to anger. Just in an all around bad mood. I remembered Kimo's post about her being at this stage and thought it was gonna happen to me to. Like her, I have anxiety problems and the Doc has me on 10 mg of Lexapro. Wellll, Friday I had an appt. and told the Doc what I was feeling and he said I was on to low of a dose and up'ed my Lexapro to 20 mg. I went home, added the extra pill and presto! black cloud was gone. I have felt like the old me since saturady, thank god.

I split my Stratta into 2 doses cause I "Felt" like it gave out in the PM. I really dont know if this has helped or not. Its still less than a week since I went to 80mg so I will give it a few days. I do notice in the AM when I take my 1st dose that things seem calmer and less hetic. I may switch back to once a day next week and see what that does.

All in All, I have not had a sudden , euphoric, this is a wonder drug reaction.

I AM more calm, less distracted, and not subject to saying the first thing that pops into my head. Its working, but I dont know what I was expecting. Like super human powers of concentration or something. Anyway, thats all for now.

"Edge"

Glad to hear you are feeling better Edge! I'm glad you got over your hump. With me, it was also the addition of the other side effects that totally made up my mind. But I'll tell you, for those few days that I did feel good on the drug it was a great feeling.

I'm now on Wellbutrin and 10 mg Adderall XR plus my 10 mg Lexapro and this combo seems to be working pretty well for me. I feel like a walking pharmacy but, hey, whatever it takes! :D

I taken strattrea 80 mgs in the am for 3 mos. I told my doc i thought it was wearing off in the evening. He told me to continue taking it in the am.

Has anybody tried taking it in the evening? I haven't yet...because i don't want it wearing off during the day.

I've thought about spliting doses but i don't want diminished effects. Has anyone tried this?

All in all it works great...I have better concentration, people tell me i make more sense when I talk to them. I feel more coordinated, less fatigued.

The only side effects are some neasua, if i don't eat enough before i take it and some difficulty with urination.

Irish Guy what you wrote yesterday is exactly what I would have written after 3 mos............exactly the same nausea and urination side effects.

FYI, I did try the 80 mg split 40 in the morning and 40 after lunch. It did not seem to change things for the better so I went back to the easier-to-remember once in the morning AFTER breakfast )to eliminate the nausea.) I use one of those weekly pill-minder things with compartments for each day so I can verify if I have or haven't taken it.

I also found that I am helped by a good multi-vitamin taken daily and a diet that emphasizes lean protein, veggies, and less sugar. This seems to help my energy stay up at the end of the day.

Aside from that I just started going to bed a bit earlier and trying to get a little more sleep each night.

Keep us posted. I am still on 80 mg and I started Strattera in August 2003.

Ed

Since I've been on straterra I seemed to have developed a stutter. I don't know if this is an unusal side effect or my ADD was just masking it.

Just curious if this has happened to anyone?

Well, I dont think to split dose is for me. I went back to the full 80mg in the AM and it seems to work best during the day.

No S/E's to speak of except the decreased appatite.
Im still using the weight gain drink and it seems to have stemmed the weight loss. Taste good to!


Its been a little over a month since I started and I will wait a few more weeks at this dose before I make my mind up about it. It seems to be working better everyday but its hard to tell sometimes.

Just a quick update.

Eating seems to be back to normal. Im keeping my fingers crossed. Looks like it took my brain a little longer to get adjusted to the higer dose and Im sure I didnt help it by starting at all 80mg then the 40/40 split now back to the full 80mg. I still have hot flashes a few times of the day and some light sweating. Not running, just damp and muggy kinda? If you have ever been to Alabama, then it just may be the heat. Who knows.

This has been a very good week for me. I feel good and the Strattera has really helped. The best way to describe my experience at the full dose has been everything slowing down. Not in a time, tick tock way, or in a drunk feeling way, but just more relaxed, easier to think, not having 100 things at a time running thru my head way. I hope that makes sense.

I have noticed this week that its been harder to get to sleep. Not from being wide awake, but I used to go to sleep with that movie projector running on my eye lids,,thinking thinking thinking. Fastasies (like day dreams at night with your eyes closed) new ideas for work, yadda yadda yadda, you get the picture..... Well, I lay down, and I feel bored cause I dont have all that stuff running thru my head, if that makes sense. So I try to make stuff up. I know that sounds silly but im not used to just laying there. Anyone else ever feel that?

Thats all for now

I used to stop mind racing by playing golf in my head...play each shot, envisioned walking in pseudo real time, just keep doing thast until i went to sleep. I played very well also.

I've also tried chess but got confused as to the positions on the board after a while.

They have almost ceased since i've been on strattera, I'm just a little restless.

Everything is still thumbs up. I think the hot flashes will stick around for awhile. No biggy

Cool! Glad to hear it! :)