Diagnosed today, starting meds tomorrow! eek!

[AutumnGlamour]

Hi there!

I'm F, from Montreal, Canada. I have been struggling with ADHD and tics all my life, yet was never officially diagnosed for ADHD. I'm in graduate school and I finally realized I cannot put off doing something about my symptoms. It's gotten so bad It takes me 3 hours to read one page and I am terribly behind in my work. I am so afraid I will fail, I'm so glad I found a good psychiatrist who was able to explain what I'm going through and what my treatment will be...

I'm starting on Adderall XR 5mg to be increased to 10mg slowly, then 15mg if need be.... I'm kinda stressed and worried and excited at the same time to see what the effect will be! I have never ever taken any prescription medication before in my life, and I have no idea what to expect. The doctor didn't go into much detail why he chose Adderall over Ritalin, but I read online about it and it seems to be more potent. Im hoping it won't make the tics worse... Does anyone have any experience with tics, adhd and adderall? Any consolation at this point would help

Sorry for the long post, looking forward to meeting some nice like-minded people on the forum, and to share and be supportive. Thanks for reading!

[kalimba]

Hi Autumn.

Your post reminds me of me. I somehow managed to finish graduate school pre-diagnosis/treatment. Course it took 4 years for a 2 year program - I was placed on academic probation and nearly dismissed from the college. But I made it. And now I've got crazy student loans to show for it!

I don't have any tics, sorry. My doc choose Adderall IR because he believed it to be cheaper than some other medications, but I don't work at a pharmacy so I have no idea if this is true or not - just the reason he gave me.

[carped1em]

Hi Autumn & welcome!

I don't have any tics per se but I have a weird stilted stutter when I'm brain spinning too fast. Sometimes it seems worse to me when my stims are running full throttle but I think it's just that my perception's slowed a little so I'm more aware of it. Other than that, it's well worth it.
Good luck & hope you find some relief!!

[novagal]

Hi Autumn, welcome to the forums!

[AutumnGlamour]

Thanks everyone! My psychiatrist says the tics might subside with the meds and they might not... Im starting today... so keep your fingers crossed for me, cuz ive heard good things about adderall... i dont wanna be switched to strattera or something...

[meridian]

Originally Posted by AutumnGlamour

Thanks everyone! My psychiatrist says the tics might subside with the meds and they might not... Im starting today... so keep your fingers crossed for me, cuz ive heard good things about adderall... i dont wanna be switched to strattera or something...

Hi Autumn and welcome!

I'm on Strattera and it has worked really well for me. We need meds like diabetics need insulin according to Dr. Russell A. Barkley.

It might take a little while to find the right med, the right dose and the right timing, but don't worry, most of us here have been through it or are going through it with you, so you have people to talk to who know what you are dealing with.

Best of luck on the new meds!

[AutumnGlamour]

Hi! So I took my first pill of Adderall XR 5mg today, and I dont know if its supposed to work right away but I felt alot calmer today, much less figety, less angry, maybe even too relaxed...and my chronic neck tic was almost 90% reduced... I feel so much relief!

I have to up the dose in 2 days to 10mg, I really hope the effect on the tics doesnt change... after 9 years of cracking my neck I finally feel the cd telling my body to crack my neck has stopped skipping in my brain! I dont know if anyone knows what I mean! lol

Thanks for the welcome everyone, I feel much less alone in this.

[GBPac12]

Hi Autumn,

I actually got diagnosed with ADD on Friday and took my first pill within an hour after receiving the script . It was a 5mg sandoz generic Adderall. I was really worried that I might have overblown some of my symptoms and not really have it. I was petrified that I might have a weird reaction to it and just drop dead. So I decided to take it right next to the university health center lol, you never know... It turns out that the pill actually calmed me down, everything seemed much clearer and I sprung at the chance to socialize. It is a great day to be alive