ADHD Medication and Exercise

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I'm ADHD and take Concerta once a day in the morning. People say I will lose weight on it and it's supposed to suppress appetite. (Which is weird because I get a growly tummy and WANT to eat when I'm on it!). Does this stuff affect my heart rate and metabolism? Should I change my nutritional goals and and slow down the exercise?

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  • HannahNoelle
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    I have a friend that is taking a medication for ADHD.. She has a suppressed appetite and the medication shot her metabolism. I also think she's taking something else, though.
  • Scorpiomom222
    Scorpiomom222 Posts: 1,462 Member
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    98 lbs? How tall are you?
  • chianne79
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    I also take medication for ADD, I take Adderall 10mg three times a day. It drastically curves my appetite so much sometimes I have to force myself to eat and that is not good. I am 31 years old, 6 feet tall, and weigh 297lbs. So far I have lost a total of 38lbs. As far as heartrate concerns, I was concerned about the same thing but my doctor encourages me to exercise and eat right. You might ask your doctor if they think it is ok for you to work out while taking that medications.
  • faithlee1986
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    There is nothing wrong with you! Get off the drug. For 18 years of my life, I took ADHD medications and now at 24 have got my body where it should be both in appearance and internally. Yes, it affects your heart and YES it effects your digestive system/metabolisim. You wont see the results until you quit taking the medication. And it will take over a year, depending on the degree of damage to get your body right. Put it this way, its basically pharmasutical (Spelling) Cocaine! Get off it, God made you just the way you are. Youre meant to be a light, dont supress it. If you have ANY questions feel free to contact me, I am very passionate about this.

    In Christ,
    Laura Lee
  • neillio123
    neillio123 Posts: 1 Member
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    Amen to that!
  • kaddie125
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    I think it is a tad unfair to assume that individuals should just simply get off any kind of medication without being aware of the situation because every person is unique, including how they react to medication. It's not as easy as saying, " Hey, God made you who you are, get off meds".

    I currently am taking Concerta and cannot speak for Ritalin or anything else, but for me it certainly is more of a benefit rather than a hindrance.Yes, Concerta does suppresses my appetite, and sometimes I find that I have to force myself to eat something. But I have also noticed that I no longer crave sugar, in fact I despise it. It also makes me kind of thirsty which is a good thing because I never drink enough water anyways. I have found myself losing weight while taking the medication but that is because I'm not laying in bed all day eating junk food. I had energy to get out and about and wanted healthy food which would've made me lose weight anyways, concerta or no concerta.

    I'm also now on a really good sleep schedule, and I can focus and do all my daily duties without feeling like I need to take a nap or sleep for 16+ hours. I eat healthy and not as often, and find that I have a lot of energy. I am taking up soccer again, getting out of bed and going to all my classes, and being on top of things when I used to be what people called "lazy,tired,and stupid".

    BUT, It can affect your heart and your blood pressure, which is why hopefully your doctor started you on a low dose (18mg). 18 mg is a child's dose and if you're over the age of 12 won't likely take too much affect. They then raise the dosage to a specific amount usually based on age, weight, etc... If you take the regular dosage you should be fine, however taking more than the advised dosage will raise your blood pressure and give you a quickened heartbeat. Much more can happen if you overdose. The amount needed to overdose also varies according to height, weight, age, etc...

    I hope this helped?!
  • Scorpiomom222
    Scorpiomom222 Posts: 1,462 Member
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    I also think it's wrong to assume anything isn't wrong with someone you don't even know and then throw God in the mix. If anything the person should have asked the doctor what it would be doing to his/her metabolism before they got on it. It's doctor stuff, but it's not rocket science.