Posted by Viridis on September 16, 2003, at 3:35:53
In reply to Strattera Help!, posted by KimberlyDi on September 15, 2003, at 10:59:23
80 mg/day is a large dose to start out with.
I've been taking Strattera for a few months now (along with Adderall and Klonopin), and started at 25 mg. After a few days I increased to 40 mg and had some side effects (nausea and muscle aches, mainly). Those went away after about a week. Then I tried 65 mg and had the same side effects for a few days. Now I'm at 60 mg and will probably move up to 80 mg. The only remaining side effect is slight dry mouth, and that's not a big deal -- I just drink more water.
I've tried 120 mg/day and that made me a feel a bit weird/wired, although that may just have been too much of a jump all at once.
For me, at least, this is a drug to increase gradually. And, some people here have reported success at doses as low as 18 mg/day. Like all these meds, response is highly individual, and Strattera may take a while to get used to. I don't understand why some doctors want to begin with the supposed "optimal" dose of this and other drugs -- it can scare people away from something that could otherwise be beneficial if titrated gradually.
Strattera comes in free starter packs with a mixture of 25 and 40 mg pills (and maybe other combinations). The drug reps hand these out -- maybe your doctor has some and could set you up to try a more gradual strategy. Strattera can be quite helpful, but side effects are common, especially if you start at a high dose immediately.
Good luck!
poster:Viridis
thread:260208
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20030912/msgs/260550.html