Starting on Adderall, What to Expect? - ADD / ADHD Message Board

girly1282 · 12-14-2006, 01:47 PM

Hi Everyone, I am just starting my adderall today and am not really sure what to expect. I know about all of the possible side effects, but what does it do with your concentration? I can tell that it calmed me down because I finally stopped wiggling today (yay!) but I can't really say that I have more concentration. I am only on my half dose right now to make sure I don't have bad side effects or reactions to it. Anything I should know? Thank you in advance!

tonymc · 12-17-2006, 08:13 AM

Everyone is different on how it affects them but here's a good way to telling for sure as an individual. What are some of the things you have a hard time with (re-reading the same sentence/paragraph in a book a number of times, walking down the hall and forget where you were going, loosing keys, and such, not being able to clean a room/desk/closet all the way through... and it looks the same after you think you've made some headway, ever been in Walmart 10 minutes only to realize it's been 2 hours?). See if these tell-tale symptoms go away.

Have a friend observe any difference in you.

One thing to keep in mind, the first few days you will have a really good feeling and lots of "good mood" energy and it will go away. That's not what you are looking for so don't worry when it does. When you take the meds and you don't have all that giddy-ness, then is the best time to really tell if the "base-line" symptoms have been aleviated.

Tracking the differences you note is your best tool.

Don't expect a miracle.

cstep · 12-20-2006, 02:57 PM

Once you start your full dose, one of the main things you may notice is the inability to sleep. This drug is also used to treat narcolepsy. My seven year old is on 25mg and I am currently being started out on 15mg. My son did have issues with sleep early on, but as time went on it seemed to get better. The earlier you take the medicine (7am), the better chance of sleep at night. Some people will take antihistimines for help. I take Abien once in a while-the lowest does is 5mg, which is what I take. It is said that abien can be addictive, but at a low does and with appropriate use it can be helpful. As far as the focus goes, you'll probably notice more of a change when you take your full dose. You'll notice you can read, and not have to continually re-read things-and you understand them. I am a full time college student with two kids-so this was great. I also don't forget things. Dry mouth is a side effect, so carry water with you-or gum works well. Make a list of how you were before adderall and use it to compare with the list after-also let your doctor know exactly how you feel for dosage increase or decrease. If adderall doesn't give you great effects you may also need to take Strattera with adderall. Hope this has helped.