| | dieter67 | Nov 23, 2004 6:06pm | Hi Everyone,
I was dx in 2002 w/ADD. The Pdoc put me on Adderall regular @ 20mg to start. Well, now I take 90mg/Adderall XR a day PLUS 80mg Strattera.
I don't think Strattera does anything for me, except maybe ease depression. What is interesting about the drug combo, is that pdocs and pharmacies don't tell you that as an epinephrine uptake inhibitor, Strattera should not be used w/Stimmulants like Adderall or Concerta.
I fired my pdoc a month ago, and now I have to get a new one, and every single one looks at you you weird when you tell him you are currently taking Adderall at high dose. Oh well, this is all I can write for now. Cheers! Patrick |
|
| | | etoile | Nov 25, 2004 8:13am | | I was diagnosed in 1987. I wasn't on anything for a while, and then in 1993 I started Dexedrine. In 2003 I determined (after a year or so of thinking about it) that the Dex wasn't working for me anymore, and I switched to Strattera. Personally, I prefer it, if only because I can get refills! I hadn't heard that Strattera was contraindicated with Adderall or Concerta, in fact the Check My Meds section at AIDSmeds.com doesn't list anything, and they usually list ALL interactions. |
|
| | | dieter67 | Dec 7, 2004 5:28pm | Hi etoile,
I found out that it doesn't have to be listed and the risk is minimal, for a person like me though, I take meds for depression, panic, anxiety, etc plus the good old ADD, and one of the reuptake inhibitors is bad...I'll do more research and get back to the forum.
I stopped the Adderall and now just take the Strattera for the ADD. I think my body needs time to adjust before I make any decisions one way or the other, nice input, thanks and see you soon (in writing, anyway) Patrick/dieter67! |
|
| 
|  godsdragon | Oct 3, 2005 7:38pm | Hello. Interesting thread here, this is what really caught my attention (temporarily LOL) to the group. I just switched from adderal again to Strattera about 2 weeksd ago. I was on Adderal for about three weeks after a period of non medicated ADD...What a difference medication makes for me! It is a freagging shame it is so GDmn expensive if you don't have proper coverage!
Anyway, I like Strattera better as the side effects are minimal (tingly head) compared to the speedy feelings Adderal gives, but pricewise, Adderal is cheapper...Overal, I don't mind either...! Just gimmie some! LOL
It seems also my depression is on check better when I am on both ADD meds and a small dosage of Zoloft...
Yes, I agree with time to adjust, it took me about a couple of weeks of finding out what the right dosage of Zoloft was for my 40 mg of Strat... |
|
| 
|  Hepsubah | Nov 7, 2005 8:07am | Interesting. I am depressive as well as ADD. I have been ADD all my life but when I was a kid I was told I would "grow out of it". When in late 2004 it came up that ADD just might be part of my problem I persued it and recieved a positive diagnosis.
At that time I was taken off my SSRI and put on Wellbutrin as that was supposed to have some effect on ADD. It helped a little with the ADD and the depression was not only gone but I wasn't emotionally numb. I have since been put on a combination therapy of 30 mg Adderall XR plus 450 mg Wellbutrin per day. This combination seems to work well, at one point we tried dropping the Wellbutrin but it seemd that it had some synergetic relation with the adderall and not only did my ADD intensify but my depression began to return.
While the current cocktail seems to be pretty effictive it still is not the golden calf. My pdoc (also a licensed pharmicist and DO) suggested adding Strattera to the cocktail as my insurance sux and she can give me samples of that. Unfortunately w/the Adderall she can only give me one vouvher card a month and even that it pushing it. Thus the concept of adding the Strattera, otherwise she would just increase the adderall dosage.
As for the speed feeling godsdragon was talking about, I have none of that. Initially there was a little jitter but that passed quickly. Now if anything, the adderall provides a calming affect (I can sleep on it). |
|
| | | floatin | Nov 12, 2005 5:28am | | i take strattera in combo with effexor they both boost Norepinephine and it has made my life a LOT easier i can hold down a job now and concentrate reasonably well. i have adhd and depressive symtoms though. interesting though lunesta doesn't work me anymore. It might be Safe for long term use but not effective. I have found on nights i can't sleep i take half of a atenonal beta-blocker. And that helps me sleep better. I suspect the stattera/ effexor has some effect on the adrenal system, and the beta blocker helps calm that down and let me get to sleep. |
|
| | | JennyLynn | Jan 11, 2006 6:35pm | | Hi All... I was diagnosed with ADHD at 7... I am now 23. I am currently perscribed Aderall and Wellbutrin for ADHD. My doctors discouraged taking Strattera because of it's side effects. I have found that the wellbutrin and aderall work well for me, however everyone is chemically different. |
|
| 
| | d-monk | Mar 1, 2006 8:56am | | Hello. I am new to this forum, but this thread really intrigued me. I am depresseive and ADD. Zoloft works very well for my depression and I have been taking Concerta for my ADD for about a year. The Concerta helps, but I wish I knew if it was the best fit for me or not. Any suggestions? |
|
| | | Wolsno | May 29, 2006 11:14pm | I took Ritalin for ten years, Dexedrine for three, and Strattera for the last year-and-a-bit.
At first the Strattera semd to work really well--I was able to get really deep in consultations and discussions with potential clients. There was always this nagging dragging going on in my body, which got really sluggish. And then the Strattera stopped working. Oh, I can still focus, but rthe slightest distraction makes me focus fully on it instead.I swear, it's like suffering from ADD, on steroids. I hate it. My ill-educated shrink thinks that stimulants are always a bad idea, the imbecile. I made her refer me to her professors at the UW Med School. Hopefully they're not as stupid.
I tried Adderall and Strattera together for a day or two. It was great. All the advantages of both, and none of the post-work irritation and prickliness I got from Ritalin, which is a rough drug, but very effective.
Such a pain to get this straightened out in steroidal ADD conditions.
Thanks for the vent, guys! Oh, and Patrick,in your shoes I would use either a little Adderal (better than Concerta by a long shot, IMO),with your Strattera, or vice versa... I dunno, it sure worked for me. |
|
| 
Sponsor |  johnroper | Jul 6, 2006 12:30pm | | I was in a car wreck about 11 yrs ago in which I got thrown from the truck I was in and landed head first on the pavement. I have been through many many shrinks, neuro-shrinks and the like, but after all this time I have found one I like. I have been on xanax, tranzene, adderall, zyprexa, risperdal, abilify, geodon, effexor, celexa, paxil, prozac, straterra, wellbutrin, and last but certainly not least dexedrine. After all this time I am still having to tweak my cocktail. So for those of you that think you may never find the right combo, you might be right. |
| |
| |
AADD Adult ADD/ADHD → Discussion
