Posted by francesco on March 24, 2004, at 18:13:04
In reply to THE BEST MEDICINE FOR ADULT ADHD; HELP!, posted by aazospiro on March 24, 2004, at 8:04:56
> Does Ritalin make your heart race. Does it work like caffeine? Or Better? What about Ritalin LA or Concerta? Is long acting better to maintain better control? Strattera? Bupropion HCl?
Dr. Amen says that caffeine is useful in the short term for ADHD even if harmful in the long term.
Ritalin may have some side-effect (insomnia, weight loss and blood pressure problems) but it's usually well tolerated.
The main problems with Ritalin are
1. not everyone affected by ADHD responds to it while can respond to different stimulants (Adderall, Dexedrine, Pemoline)
2. its effect lasts for only 3,5 hours (on average).
Strattera and Bupropion may work for someone but they are usually considered second-line treatements.
Other options are noradrenergic TCAs (Imipramine and Desipramine). They can be effective at lower doses than those used for depression and their effect last for the whole day.> Does a history of short-temperdness, slight to moderate inattentiveness especially to repetitive tasks, doing many things at once and getting flustered easily, point to AADHD?
Yes
> History of numerous antidepressant trials [SSRI's actually made some symptoms worse, mood stabilizers, beta blockers, AND THEY FAILED OR ONLY GIVE PARTIAL RESPONSES TO SOME SYMPTOMS.A mixed strategy may help. The best thing should be finding a doctor who's experienced with ADHD and willful to consider the different options and combos. Reading Dr. Amen's books is usually a good starting point to trying to detect which med can help before you try them.
Good Luck
Francesco
poster:francesco
thread:327665
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040319/msgs/327870.html