Does anyone else take a RX stimulant (e.g. Dexedrine, Ritali

allroundthesun

To be clear I mean take one *legitimately*, as prescribed by a doctor, because you need it, not take one recreationally.

I take Dexedrine and it's really causing me to struggle with eating healthfully and becoming fit. I've been offered advice and suggestions, and I really appreciate those, but I would love to have a small support group, if possible, with others who are dealing with a similar issue. Anyone else?

ETA: I am not looking for advice about whether or not I should be taking the medication (my doctor and I agree it is necessary and it has been incredibly beneficial for me), horror stories, commentary about the over-prescription of these medications, judgement about ADD being diagnosed incorrectly, etc. I am only looking to commiserate with others who are also currently dealing with this. Thanks.

ETAA: Sorry, didn't realise the title would get cut off. Dexedrine, Ritalin, Concerta, Adderall, Vyvanse, etc. I'm sure there are others I'm unaware of, too. Any prescription stimulant for treating ADD, basically.

laniackerman1

Was the other one Ritalin?

gameovergt

no maam

pammyedmunds

I took Dexedrine for 10 years when I was a teen for ADD w/impulsivity. Towards the end I turned into a Zombie and I was having a hard time loosing some weight. I was working at a gym then too. When I came off it I was so happy. I haven't been on that medicine in 20 years and I am glad that I am off it. I turned to caffeine - diet coke when I went off the medicine. I still have ADD w/Impulsivity but not as bad I don't think.

pammyedmunds

I took Dexedrine for 10 years when I was a teen for ADD w/impulsivity. Towards the end I turned into a Zombie and I was having a hard time loosing some weight. I was working at a gym then too. When I came off it I was so happy. I haven't been on that medicine in 20 years and I am glad that I am off it. I turned to caffeine - diet coke when I went off the medicine. I still have ADD w/Impulsivity but not as bad I don't think.

allroundthesun

Was the other one Ritalin?

Ah, sorry, didn't realise the title would get cut off. Dexedrine, Ritalin, Adderall, Concerta, Vyvanse, there's a bunch of them.

allroundthesun

I took Dexedrine for 10 years when I was a teen for ADD w/impulsivity. Towards the end I turned into a Zombie and I was having a hard time loosing some weight. I was working at a gym then too. When I came off it I was so happy. I haven't been on that medicine in 20 years and I am glad that I am off it. I turned to caffeine - diet coke when I went off the medicine. I still have ADD w/Impulsivity but not as bad I don't think.

Out of curiousity - no need to answer if you don't feel like it, of course - do you still rely on the diet Coke?

bmontgomery87

What's your problem with the medicine?
Is it suppressing your appetite to the point where you can't eat enough? Or another issue?

pammyedmunds

I took Dexedrine for 10 years when I was a teen for ADD w/impulsivity. Towards the end I turned into a Zombie and I was having a hard time loosing some weight. I was working at a gym then too. When I came off it I was so happy. I haven't been on that medicine in 20 years and I am glad that I am off it. I turned to caffeine - diet coke when I went off the medicine. I still have ADD w/Impulsivity but not as bad I don't think.

Out of curiousity - no need to answer if you don't feel like it, of course - do you still rely on the diet Coke?

Actually I have cut back on diet coke big time. In fact I have not had it in a week. LOL yes this is a big accomplishment. LOL. When I was on mat leave 2 years ago I was really bad with my pop consumtion. I think the impuslivity side takes that in hyper stimulation. To this day I find that I get addicted to stuff that I enjoy very easily.

pammyedmunds

I will only drink diet coke if it is in the house or when we go out for dinner

Chauncey_freak

I take Ritalin, have done for many years.

I've found it's good for losing weight, but not gaining it - so good for cutting, bad for bulking.

All the clinical trials for stimulants that i've read found an overall loss of weight in the stimulant group, of usually a few pounds, with the placebo group usually gaining a pound or two. This includes some anti-depressants like Tranylcypromine.

Diet cola is great too! I drink a lot of coffee when i take less Ritalin.

PS. I also take Omacor - it's like refined fish oil, they usually give it to heart attack people. It's a prescription pill so i imagine there's a lot of omega 3 in there. It does help me a little, and the few ADHD people i talk to who take fish oil usually say the same thing.

allroundthesun

What's your problem with the medicine?
Is it suppressing your appetite to the point where you can't eat enough? Or another issue?

Yes, the side effect I'm having issues with is extreme loss of appetite. I take it at 11:00 AM when I wake up and then at 6:00 PM (which is when my doctor instructed me to take it, and I don't want to go against her orders for fear of misusing it; I've brought up the issue with her and she's firm about the timing and just says I need to force myself to eat even if I'm not hungry). It lasts 4-6 hours, so I have zero appetite during the day; when it starts wearing off at 10:00 - 11:00 PM my appetite returns and I end up eating all of my calories then, and that just does not seem healthy at all and I don't want to be living in an unhealthy way. I've tried forcing myself to eat during the day as the doctor suggested (people have suggested smoothies or protein shakes as a particularly goood idea) but I literally can't - the best way I can describe it is like having a stomach virus. I I feel nauseated at the thought of food the way one does when sick with a stomach virus, and if I try to force myself to ingest something, I just gag and I can't get it down, again, as if sick with that. I CAN'T go off the medication, though. So it's a major problem. :frown:

allroundthesun

I took Dexedrine for 10 years when I was a teen for ADD w/impulsivity. Towards the end I turned into a Zombie and I was having a hard time loosing some weight. I was working at a gym then too. When I came off it I was so happy. I haven't been on that medicine in 20 years and I am glad that I am off it. I turned to caffeine - diet coke when I went off the medicine. I still have ADD w/Impulsivity but not as bad I don't think.

Out of curiousity - no need to answer if you don't feel like it, of course - do you still rely on the diet Coke?

Actually I have cut back on diet coke big time. In fact I have not had it in a week. LOL yes this is a big accomplishment. LOL. When I was on mat leave 2 years ago I was really bad with my pop consumtion. I think the impuslivity side takes that in hyper stimulation. To this day I find that I get addicted to stuff that I enjoy very easily.

Oh, I feel you! I gave up soda and sugary juices when I joined MFP, and it seriously is HARD! I've caved maybe half a dozen times in two-ish months (like you said, if it's in the house, I get so temptd to drink it, and my roommate buys it, so it's in the fridge half the time, ughhhhh) but I've gotten better! A week really IS an accomplishment when it comes to soda, WTG!

fishermanwife

would it be possible or have you already tried another similar med, two of my children take adderall xr in the morning and its suppose to last all day my son is starving when he wakes up but they both eat regular through out the day and have never had any nausea or eating issues, hope you find something that works good luck

allroundthesun

I take Ritalin, have done for many years.

I've found it's good for losing weight, but not gaining it - so good for cutting, bad for bulking.

All the clinical trials for stimulants that i've read found an overall loss of weight in the stimulant group, of usually a few pounds, with the placebo group usually gaining a pound or two. This includes some anti-depressants like Tranylcypromine.

Diet cola is great too! I drink a lot of coffee when i take less Ritalin.

PS. I also take Omacor - it's like refined fish oil, they usually give it to heart attack people. It's a prescription pill so i imagine there's a lot of omega 3 in there. It does help me a little, and the few ADHD people i talk to who take fish oil usually say the same thing.

That's the thing, I really don't want to use it as a diet aid to help me lose weight, I really want to lose weight healthfully.

Yeah, I've read a lot of the studies as well, though not about the old school anti-depressants, interesting (Psych. major with a particular interest in Psychopharmacology, so I'm into learning about this stuff *cough*nerd*cough*).

I'm trying to kick soda altogether, though. Aspartame freaks me out, which granted is rather illogical, since the refined white sugar used in non-diet sodas isn't exactly a healthy substitute - if anything there's more negative data on it. Oh, or are you from America? Subsitute refined sugar for high-fructose corn syrup in regular soda, then, amounts to about the same in the crap department. We make regular soda with sugar here; I nearly choked the first time I had a regular soda in America, wondering what the hell was wrong with it :laugh: Taste-wise, I mean, not regarding health implications, since I didn't know what was in it.

And coffee, holy crap, smells great, tastes great, but puts me through the freaking roof! I'm talking jittering non-stop, can't sit down, pacing, so irratible I'll lose it if someone asks me what my deal is, can't hold a conversation, through the roof. Apparently I have a low tolerance for caffeine, because the same thing happened when I took Tylenol with caffeine for a migraine - damn it was crazy!

Uh, yeah, so now that you know my life story, I'll shut up. Will def. look into the Omacor, though. Thanks!

allroundthesun

would it be possible or have you already tried another similar med, two of my children take adderall xr in the morning and its suppose to last all day my son is starving when he wakes up but they both eat regular through out the day and have never had any nausea or eating issues, hope you find something that works good luck

Unfortunately I've already tried Ritalin and Adderall and had the same appetite problems plus a gazillion other side effects that I thankfully don't get with Dexedrine. I appreciate the idea, though, thanks!

spiritmachine

ADD meds are prescribed speed. Just realize that first off. They will always suppress your appetite. 6pm seem really late to take a stimulant but then again you are getting up at 11am so I guess you have late hours. If I were you I would do your best to try other methods of improving your ADD symptoms. Have you tried cognitive behavioral therapy? As another poster pointed out, long term amphetamine use will turn you into a zombie. Every notice how happy you are when you stop taking the meds for a few days. Concentration is not worth happiness. That is my very biased opinion.

Chauncey_freak

That's the thing, I really don't want to use it as a diet aid to help me lose weight, I really want to lose weight healthfully.

Yeah, I've read a lot of the studies as well, though not about the old school anti-depressants, interesting (Psych. major with a particular interest in Psychopharmacology, so I'm into learning about this stuff *cough*nerd*cough*).

I'm trying to kick soda altogether, though. Aspartame freaks me out, which granted is rather illogical, since the refined white sugar used in non-diet sodas isn't exactly a healthy substitute - if anything there's more negative data on it. Oh, or are you from America? Subsitute refined sugar for high-fructose corn syrup in regular soda, then, amounts to about the same in the crap department. We make regular soda with sugar here; I nearly choked the first time I had a regular soda in America, wondering what the hell was wrong with it :laugh: Taste-wise, I mean, not regarding health implications, since I didn't know what was in it.

And coffee, holy crap, smells great, tastes great, but puts me through the freaking roof! I'm talking jittering non-stop, can't sit down, pacing, so irratible I'll lose it if someone asks me what my deal is, can't hold a conversation, through the roof. Apparently I have a low tolerance for caffeine, because the same thing happened when I took Tylenol with caffeine for a migraine - damn it was crazy!

Uh, yeah, so now that you know my life story, I'll shut up. Will def. look into the Omacor, though. Thanks!

Heh, i'm not from the USA but i've been there, that HFCS stuff is nasty! Apparently a proper sucrose-containing pepsi is released once a year and people go crazy for it. Like cadbury's creme eggs.

I'm actually laughing here; as someone who has *also* studied psychology with pharmacology, well.. It's interesting to know how we work! Probably a lot of science people fall into areas that are relevant to them like we did.

Caffeine is a double-edged sword - too much and you start getting paradoxical ADHD side-effects. My friends still talk about the day when i drank 6 espressos in one go (19 years old on a dare). I got tunnel vision with a tinge of blue, it was like being in a cheap sci-fi movie.

About the dosing schedule - does eating food before the taking the pill help at all? I know what you mean about wanting to lost weight naturally; if i wanted to, i could just eat 1 small meal a day and the fat would melt off, but so would the meagre muscle mass Also dieting of any kind reduces the nutrients you need to keep healthy. You might see a benefit from taking Omacor (or any kind of fish oil) and a general multi-vitamin. Hope it goes well!

laniackerman1

Ye I take ritalin for ADD it really helps, I am a student and study very advance medical science so it's imperive that i am able to concentrate but it does ruin my sleep! It's also causes my heart rate to be a little higher. but other than that it doesn't affect my weight loss or exercise... if anything it helps! x
However thinking back when I was on the fast acting ritalin (the one you take twice a day) and I had the same problem as you! Now I am on long acting... it releases slowly thoughout the day so although it supresses your appitite it's not as bad you can still eat! Maybe there is Long acting which is taken once a day (slow release) dexedrine? I went to a specialist and she's the one who put me on the Long acting instead.

allroundthesun

That's the thing, I really don't want to use it as a diet aid to help me lose weight, I really want to lose weight healthfully.

Yeah, I've read a lot of the studies as well, though not about the old school anti-depressants, interesting (Psych. major with a particular interest in Psychopharmacology, so I'm into learning about this stuff *cough*nerd*cough*).

I'm trying to kick soda altogether, though. Aspartame freaks me out, which granted is rather illogical, since the refined white sugar used in non-diet sodas isn't exactly a healthy substitute - if anything there's more negative data on it. Oh, or are you from America? Subsitute refined sugar for high-fructose corn syrup in regular soda, then, amounts to about the same in the crap department. We make regular soda with sugar here; I nearly choked the first time I had a regular soda in America, wondering what the hell was wrong with it :laugh: Taste-wise, I mean, not regarding health implications, since I didn't know what was in it.

And coffee, holy crap, smells great, tastes great, but puts me through the freaking roof! I'm talking jittering non-stop, can't sit down, pacing, so irratible I'll lose it if someone asks me what my deal is, can't hold a conversation, through the roof. Apparently I have a low tolerance for caffeine, because the same thing happened when I took Tylenol with caffeine for a migraine - damn it was crazy!

Uh, yeah, so now that you know my life story, I'll shut up. Will def. look into the Omacor, though. Thanks!

Heh, i'm not from the USA but i've been there, that HFCS stuff is nasty! Apparently a proper sucrose-containing pepsi is released once a year and people go crazy for it. Like cadbury's creme eggs.

I'm actually laughing here; as someone who has *also* studied psychology with pharmacology, well.. It's interesting to know how we work! Probably a lot of science people fall into areas that are relevant to them like we did.

Caffeine is a double-edged sword - too much and you start getting paradoxical ADHD side-effects. My friends still talk about the day when i drank 6 espressos in one go (19 years old on a dare). I got tunnel vision with a tinge of blue, it was like being in a cheap sci-fi movie.

About the dosing schedule - does eating food before the taking the pill help at all? I know what you mean about wanting to lost weight naturally; if i wanted to, i could just eat 1 small meal a day and the fat would melt off, but so would the meagre muscle mass Also dieting of any kind reduces the nutrients you need to keep healthy. You might see a benefit from taking Omacor (or any kind of fish oil) and a general multi-vitamin. Hope it goes well!

Ha, reminds me of when the Mountain Dew "energy drink" was released here (forgive me if I'm repeating stuff you know, but here you can't have caffeine in soda that isn't brown/black unless you call it an energy drink - weeeeiiiird - so our Mountain Dew was caffeine free whereas all Mountain Dew has caffeine in America) and people were all over it.

Yeah, pharmocology's a bit of a hobby for me (yeah, I know how bizarre and somewhat sketchy that sounds). It's a joke among my friends that if you're going to take something, OTC or RX, you should ask me, because nine times out of ten I'll have all the details. It's interesting stuff. If I wasn't such a lazy underachiever, I'd probably go to pharmacy school.

Holy ****, man, six espressos in one sitting? Well, a dare's a dare. I think you've outdone me in the crazy bad experimental ideas department, and that's no easy feat! Bravo! :laugh:

I've been contemplating breakfast before the medication, but I've always had a crap appetite first thing in the AM, even as a little kid. After a protracted battle, my mom caved and just started sending my breakfast in my backpack as my "snack" to eat during our first recess. Still, most viable idea at the moment, so I'll likely give it a go. I'm already cramming down Calcium, Vitamin D, Iron, Vitamin C, and B12 to counter the early stages of arthritis with which I've been genetically blessed and mild anemia (Christ, I sound like a real wreck when I write it all out!) so I don't think I need a multi, but Omacor sounds like it has good potential.

allroundthesun

Bump.

bmontgomery87

Agreed with the guy above.
You're pretty much taking amphetamines, so the appetite supression is always gonna be there.
I had a few friends in school and a roommate in college that was ADD/ADHD.

When they were on their meds they didn't eat a lot, but if you ever saw them not take their meds for a day, it was insane how much they would eat.

spiritmachine

Just make sure you take medication holidays. You body will get used to the dose pretty quickly and as the effectiveness decreases the side effects will increase. And yes, when you stop taking the meds you will go through withdraw where you will eat much more than you normally would. Do you take the meds on the weekends. You should really try to only take it when you need to be doing academic work. The less you take the better it will work when you need it.