15mgs Adderal experience? - anyone get really tired on this?

[fatality]

Okay so I know I've stated in previous threads that I was doing fine on 5mgs of Adderall IR which is essentially 10mgs Adderall XR that I take as well but given in two doses.

This morning I decided to try taking half a 10mg XR capsule off while taking 5mg IR along with a cup of hot coffee. If the coffee didn't break down the XR beads in my stomach - then I got about 10mg and I'll be getting a 5mg boost at 10:30 am.

How do I feel... Hmm, Well, tired really. I had a energy boost at 8 but now I'm yawning and fighting to stay awake. This is kind of annoying, as I thought higher doses would keep me awake / energized and lower doses would make me sleep...

Should I tell my doctor next tuesday about this? I'm scared she would take me off the Adderall for experimenting without her permission - but I really need to find a dose that helps me focus * I feel as if I'm only using 1/4th of my abilities on this dose*. Idk whats going on I've never felt this tired on a stimulant before - coffee only makes me more tired >.< . what should i do?

[Joehaz]

You need to talk to your doctor and just tell him whzts going on with you. Only you know ow you feel the doc isnt there to watch you all day so you have to tell him that the dose isnt working for you your getting sleepy.

[fatality]

Yeah I think I will tell her that. I'll just say I took an additional 5mg's to see if I grew tolerant to the 10mg XR and that it still had no effect except making me even more tired than I was on the 5's.

What I don't understand about the medication is why I'm tired on it. This medication is an amphetamine! Speed for crying out loud! People take this stuff to be alert, focused, and energized! I feel somewhat focused but it's hard to remain that way when my eyelids are wanting to fall shut and I keep yawning every minute

[ADHDTigger]

Fatality, it used to irk my husband no end that I would take my morning med and go back to sleep. I would have a cup of coffee before bed and go to sleep. He just didn't understand how I could do that.

Having a chat with the doc is a good plan. It sounds like you aren't at the right level of Adderall for you.

[fatality]

Originally Posted by ADHDTigger

Fatality, it used to irk my husband no end that I would take my morning med and go back to sleep. I would have a cup of coffee before bed and go to sleep. He just didn't understand how I could do that.

Having a chat with the doc is a good plan. It sounds like you aren't at the right level of Adderall for you.

Hey Tigger, may I ask what medication you are on? I'm guessing you've had the same problem - maybe not with the same medication, but did raising your dose work for you - if so, was it a big raise or a small raise? This might take a while to get on the right treatment as doc's with adderall go from 5's->20's and so forth. Really annoying but guess it's beneficial for my safety

[ADHDTigger]

Fatality, I take Ritalin IR. I take 50 mg/daily split into four doses. I thank heaven for the alarms on my computer and Touch- they remind me to take it.

I think that at least part of the problem is the unique way we are wired. Stims have a calming effect for many (most?) of us. Having my brain be quiet is conducive to sleep. What helps is to take my medication and then DO something- go downstairs and get a coffee, go take a shower, something. Remove myself from the sleep environment.

When I was titrating up to my current plan, I increased by 10 mg/monthly. My husband passed away when we had gotten to 40 mg/daily over four doses. We stayed there for an extra month because my symptoms changed as a result of grief. We added the final 10 mg cautiously because my doc wanted to be very sure that we weren't trying to medicate grief. Not surprisingly, the symptoms of grief are remarkably similar to the symptoms of ADHD.

I know you mentioned that you took half an Adderall XR along with an IR. That alone might be part of the problem. Taking half an XR really might not give you exactly half the dose because of how Adderall XR releases. I know that docs prefer to go to the extended releases first to try to help with compliance issues- let's face it, we can be forgetful- but the extended versions aren't always the best way to go.

This really is something to chat with your doc about. If you are new to Adderall, it is probable that you simply haven't reached optimum dosing yet. Titration is a process and should be. It can really help to reduce side effects from the medication. Unfortunately, it is also a frustrating process.

Hang in there, hon! (((hugs)))

[PedroDaGr8]

Originally Posted by fatality

Hey Tigger, may I ask what medication you are on? I'm guessing you've had the same problem - maybe not with the same medication, but did raising your dose work for you - if so, was it a big raise or a small raise? This might take a while to get on the right treatment as doc's with adderall go from 5's->20's and so forth. Really annoying but guess it's beneficial for my safety

You can get drowsiness on too low of doses but also paradoxically on too high of doses. It isn't as common but it does happen. Basically, on too high of a dose the body tries to compensate by down regulating your system but it over compensates with its attempt to down regulate and you end up sleepy.

[tambourine-man]

Getting on a straight IR regimen might help. Personally I don't understand XR as all it is is two IR doses four hours apart. Since no one metabolizes meds exactly the same it is much easier to manage your dose yourself. If your doc is one of those XR nuts just tell him you think you would get the same benefit from two IR doses based on the science of the XR beads and that it would be far more cost effective for you. They can't tell you what you can and can't afford.

[fatality]

Originally Posted by tambourine-man

Getting on a straight IR regimen might help. Personally I don't understand XR as all it is is two IR doses four hours apart. Since no one metabolizes meds exactly the same it is much easier to manage your dose yourself. If your doc is one of those XR nuts just tell him you think you would get the same benefit from two IR doses based on the science of the XR beads and that it would be far more cost effective for you. They can't tell you what you can and can't afford.

You have a good point. I was going to respond sooner, but, have been feeling pretty down lately. I took another .5mgs IR with a XR this morning - thinking maybe my body needs to adjust to this, idk getting desperate. I can't stay focused on tasks, the impulsivity to want to do something else overwhelms me. I have 4 projects at home that have %30 completetion. I'm physically drained even though I slept a good 11 hours today.

It might be the increase in Effexor that I started yesterday. I went from 75mgs to 150mgs on doctors orders. Idk, either way this is getting ridiculous if I don't see a change by monday, then on tuesday I will be asking my new psych if I can go off the effexor and get a increase in adderall. Idk If I should though as I was severely depressed and experiencing pre psychosis(* losing touch with reality, feeling disconnected, living in a "dream" *) before and no other anti-depressant worked that was the reason my old doc put me on it.

I gotta stop writing. I'm losing my mind. I'm losing track of my thoughts. Thanks to all who've wrote back - appreciate your input.

[fatality]

Originally Posted by tambourine-man

Getting on a straight IR regimen might help. Personally I don't understand XR as all it is is two IR doses four hours apart. Since no one metabolizes meds exactly the same it is much easier to manage your dose yourself. If your doc is one of those XR nuts just tell him you think you would get the same benefit from two IR doses based on the science of the XR beads and that it would be far more cost effective for you. They can't tell you what you can and can't afford.

I don't know how much IR costs w/o insurance compared to XR - my dads health insurance plan is $2 for every generic. Very grateful for that. I'm thinking of trying XR once more - 20 or 25mgs 1x in the morning with a 5mg IR in the afternoon and if I can - a 10mg XR before bed.

If that fails then I will prob switch to IR. I don't like the hassle of having to carry medication around with me - I often do forget to take my medication consistently at the same time, therefore the convenience of XR is nice for me.

On my 5th cup of double strength coffee and working to my 6th. Feeling much better, and focused. Maybe I just need my dosage raised after all. Idk.

I do like the IR suggestion... Then I can cut the tabs in half and take as much as I need - while having more in case my pharmacy runs out again, or I can supplement during periods of the day where I go unmedicated.