apinecone

As an RN you will undoubtedly need a bunch of that nervous energy but its not very helpful when sitting around studying or just plain sitting around. There are a number of non-prescription alternatives but they generally deal with biochemical adjustments. There are several behavioral effects that can be measured; see http://www.add-products.com/add_adhd/research/study3.htm for examples (not recommending the med, just that the measures are main ones to consider). Also, there are related problems, particularly pyroluria and candida, that have some effects similar to ADHD that you might want to look into; there are natural alternatives for these that might help, esp. related to decreasing intake levels of dairy and sugar products in particular, decreasing the likelihood of taking in irritating metals such as copper, taking your fish oil [eek! not cod liver oil!], increasing intake of vitamin B-6, increasing zinc and magnesium levels, which can have effects similar to Rx meds that adjust amine levels. In general, auto-immune and histaminic reactions can cause nervousness or irritability, and improving auto-immune resistance through natural alternatives may help; there are a number but you should first determine whether you have this problem; your pdoc should be able to help you focus on this area. A general article on various biochemical and nutritional adjustments is http://www.hriptc.org/biochemical_individuality.html. I know these are general but unfortunately it's a broad field and ultimately therapy is highly individualized, so you need to start with general study and then narrow it down, hopefully by study and not trial and error. If any of these seem to match up with your symptoms, then I'd recommend following the line of research; usually there are not that many alternatives involved, since like the various disorders, they tend to have 'branches' in which several related alternative meds or nutritional adjustments together will help, but there is also a common set that underlies more specific ones, for example, getting rid of gastrointestinal and autoimmune 'antagonists', or factors that tend to promote [hyper]sensitivity, which tends to drive distractive and hyperactive behaviors. Just BTW that these are at best a help and may be as Pooh says a "bother" but a sensible combination might help the Tigger in you to settle down a bit in time for the fall term. And good luck with your RN the world needs [many] more good nurses!