Concerta making me BORING

[Arwen]

Hi all

I just started Concerta 18mg (4 days now) after being on Ritalin (10mg 3x a day) for 2 weeks. The Ritalin was giving me bad rebound depression and I was not taking Ritalin regularly.

So after the first 2 days I felt Concerta was definitely smoother than Ritalin, but not as effective. I know that I am less impulsive on Concerta and my thoughts are calmer. I have also been taking 10mg of Ritalin in the evening as the Concerta seems to last only about 7-8 hours.

But my friends and acquaintances have definitely noticed a BIG difference with me being on Concerta. They have commented that I'm less squirmy, less hyper, I talk about one thing at a time and the worst thing, "quiet". Some don't know I have been diagnosed ADHD but have been nicknamed 'ADHD' as my personality- bubbly, explosive, talkative. So a lot of them just comment that I seem a bit depressed.

I don't feel depressed, I feel like my thoughts are clearer (not slower). It seems to me that they think I'm 'boring'? I still talk, just maybe not as much and not as hyper... I guess.

I heard about people being zombified on methlphenidate. But having been on 30-40mg of Ritalin a day to 18mg of Concerta is making me frazzled!

My psychiatrist told me to increase it to 36mg in the morning if I didn't feel any effects, but I guess I'm worried that I might become zombied or something.

Concerta is definitely weirding me out. Is there something I'm missing or doing wrong?

Can anyone share their similar experiences on Concerta please?

[mynameisjoanna]

I doubt that you are boring. I really do understand what you are talking about, though. I used to be the person who, if excited enough, would try to tell 10 stories in one sentence. I swear that my mind moved faster than my mouth however hard I tried to keep up. When you are used to talking and feeling like your mind is working a mile a minute, it is completely awkward to have calm thoughts and not always feel the need to interrupt people. To have the patience to sit and listen to someone else is a new feeling. It's awkward at first, but I'm sure you will get the hang of it. For me, calm beats out hyper every time. Even though my friends love me, I'm sure I made them tired trying to listen to my rants. Heck, I make myself tired.

Pay attention to how you feel, I think that you will know what works and what doesn't. But keep an open mind about who the "real" you and the "adhd" you is, then decide which one you prefer to keep around!

Good luck.

[tdogg3278]

Welcome to life the way everyone else lives it. I also see a big difference in my personality with concerta but I do not see it as a negative at all. See with ADHD i was all over the place and a bit of a clown. I would rant, rave, joke nonstop and at the wrong times. Now I would dscribe myself as yes boring, but also evenkeeled. I still have a sense of humor and I still love to joke around but it is something I control and not the other way around. I have no complaints at all.

[scout13]

it's funny because i have heard/read about that zombie feeling and wondered if it was just because others are so used to you being very "up" and now you are tres calm .

i myself have had that zombie feeling, though no one is commenting on it, but i am totally glued to the couch and unmotivated! unless i HAVE to do something, i wont. had the same thing with Strattera. ick. my thoughts are not clearer. there are really just passing ideas......... can you believe it? i might think about paying bills but just cannot get the order and all components together to start it. so thats out. that never happened off meds. i always paid bills. i was messy at it, and late, but never uninterested in it. it was my sunday ritual, and now, you can see where i am sunday morning. i hope that passes. i have no interest in my daily chores. none. again, same thing on Strattera. once that left my system, i was up and moving and doing everything, but of course in the most chaotic and least effective way . but hey, it got done!

but going to keep taking it (concerta now) and hope its just the adjustment phase. i just wonder why it works so well for others and not for some. my side effects wouldnt be so bad if i had some benefits at this point. i could totally understand waiting for the side effects to go away.

keep us posted

[redwards]

I have a bi-polar friend, and though she refuses to ever address the subject, for years many of our friends wished she'd get on some medication of some kind because her ups and downs were driving us nuts.

Smoothing out a bit isn't all bad.

I do understand your concern though. I'm only two days in, but I definitely don't feel quite like myself.

[Arwen]

So a week on Concerta now... Been taking 36mg the last few days. I guess I have been outwardly more focussed, less impulsive, less hyper etc. I have been having less desire to engage in dangerous activity. BUT internally it hasn't helped. Does that make sense?

Whilst I appreciate that Concerta has curbed my impulsiveness, I don't feel like I can focus on tasks like I can on Ritalin, there is still a lot of mind chatter and the distractions in my head. I guess meds are not perfect, but is this all medication has to offer? I know there is no "miracle cure", but I would really like some of the internal noise to maybe die down?

Psychiatrist said Dexamphetamines, in her experience worked better but I'm told it's a lot more OMPH and I was going for AHHHHHH... If Methylphenidate or Dexamphetamines don't work, I have no other choice as Australia does not carry other stimulants.

Been whinging to my psychiatrist and psychologists about this issue, and they've both said stuff like, as written by my psychologist "By the way, you could NEVER be boring!!!! The medication may change some of the ways that you think about and perceive thigns but it doesn't stop you from being unqiuely 'you'..."

I'm gonna try Concerta for a bit longer, since I've noticed the 'dullness' I had has lifted. Yesterday I went out for drinks at the bar and realised that I can still laugh, joke like before and all, I'm still *mostly* ME... just not as excitable... and when I'm dealing with explosives maybe it's not such a bad thing. Just joking... I'm very careful around work stuff.

[coondude88]

I have noticed the same thing in my experience with Concerta. It definitely works best for me as far as addressing symptoms, but the zombification and resulting dull personality are definitely unlike me. I know that on weekends, when I skip the drug and instead use caffeine pills/dark chocolate, I become very outgoing, happy, laid-back, and sociable. Wish I could have the best of both worlds all the time!

[sohcahtoa1277]

I noticed the EXACT SAME thing when taking Concerta - especially in higher doses. Ultimately what it boiled down to was working with my psychiatrist to find a dose that provided adequate symptom control while not making me a robot.

I know the search for the right meds with the right dose can be grueling but it eventually does pay off.

Good luck!

[C.C.]

I am on 54mg's and I too notice a dulled personality....quiet. I don't have a lot of focus (the one thing I need) but do seem calmer all around and think before acting...just because I am thinking slower.

I dont love it but dont hate it.

My hubby asked what was wrong with me this weekend because I was just kinda floating around doing whatever...normally I would be bubbly or active 100 miles an hour but instead I was just kinda there doing housework or whatever. My daughter had a soccer game and kinda felt like okay...Im here...hope she wins. Normally I would be cheering on the side. I don't know .... I still like the fact I am not as impulsive as I am off it. I hope to either find a dose or med that will help with both the impulse or the focus

I think it is turning me into Eeyore...

[pandasplace]

hi all,

I'm a newbie, both to the forums as well as to AD/HD...well sorta. My son is almost 18 and he was diagnosed as a young child. I have read and listened and learned in order to advocate for him.

For several years now, I've been diagnosed Bipolar rapid cycler, though it's fairly well controlled over all. My P-Doc and I have discussed off and on that maybe we need to look further for myself. I have always told him it was a later issue because I felt like I needed to focus on my son (and daughter but she's the classic ADD one).

To make a long story short, suffice to say that "later" seems to be "now". As my son has had a fair amount of luck with Concerta, that is what we started me on.

I am ending week 2 of 36 mg of Concerta. Has anyone experienced...well...i don't know, I guess depression, especially in the late afternoon? I can't figure out what the depression/lethargy/etc is coming from. Could it be like a rebound effect from the Concerta? I take the meds at 5am as I am starting work. I feel ok till 1'ish or so but from then on, it's a struggle to fight through the....i dunno, like walking through mud.

I do have a check-up with my P-doc scheduled for the 2nd of April. I (and my family) feel that I'm not at risk for harming myself at all. I am just trying to figure out if this is a normal type of thing or i need to dig deeper.

Any thoughts/comments would be appreciated

Nissa

[coinfliptourist]

New to the board, But I resonate with this thread-topic.

For me, I've been on Concerta 27 for about 2 months now, and I was trying trying to explain this to the doctor - that I felt a bit like a consumer instead of a maker. I'm ar artist, so its lots of doing, making, building and innovating. I have a huge creative spark that was a seriously motivating force to achieve "hyper focus" to get things done... But its like Concerta clouded that spark. So while I can focus... I am more apt to focus on things like... "must.check.email.12.times.a.minute" Which is hardly useful to me, because I don't have the "exciting thing" to pull focus and drag me down a creative path.

I have also noticed that I have become really anti social... like 3-4 people is all that I really want to hang out with. I used to love events with many people! but now its almost like I just can't take it... sensory overload, or something.

These side effects combined which really does affect my feeling of self worth... because so much of my life/energy/happiness is tied up in creative pursuits.

Does anyone else feel this way, or have strategies for focusing on the "right things?" or keeping the creative spark?

[daevilgangsta]

I take Concerta and I got the exact same feeling. It was terrible and it increased my social anxiety and made me think other people were judging me. I recently realized this was all in my head and I am starting to get over it.

You should definitely try an amphetamine for your ADHD like Adderall. I felt like it took away the "stuffed with cotton" feeling. I am back on Concerta though but will definitely try to get back on Adderall. That will be difficult because my parents prefer Concerta and fear that I will/have abused Adderall in the past.

[LunaLovegood]

I hate taking it. I don't exactly feel zombied, it's more like (this is hard to explain), the meds are trying to slow my brain down, but my brain is putting up a very good fight. So it's like I keep on feeling like I have a thought on things people say, but I just can't think of what that thought is. Also, I can never find the words for anything anymore.