Do you not take them a day or two a week to give your body a break?
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Do you not take them a day or two a week to give your body a break?
I had a friend who was prescribed Ritalin for ADD. His doctor advised that he take 2 or 3 days off of the meds, every week. Ritalin can be addictive if a patient is not careful about dosage and a physician does not provide adequate oversight. However, it can also be a lifesaver when appropriately prescribed.
I would check with your doctor to make sure. Every will have their own opinion as to what they think will be more beneficial. Good luck. :)
Thanks, I take PRN as needed for fatigue mostly. Just a quarter tablet though. I've been taking it the last four days and getting more done than I do typically in a month but very little sleep. My body is pretty sore today so I think I'm going to give it a rest.
I take a 'holiday' from my Adderall every month. My doc said if I want to take off for a weekend or two every month to make sure it's still doing what it's supposed to and it's not a big deal as long as I'm ok with being hyper. I don't have withdrawal symptoms or anything, I'm just a pain in the ass to be around because I never get anything done.
*Remembers she hasn't taken her afternoon dose and waddles away to get it*
^^^Exactly, I have no motivation and can't get shit done. Now I am all sore and worn out from doing too much the last few days.
Yes, I take every Sunday off. I would like to take Saturday off, but I work in the mornings and that sucks. If I'm on vacation or taking a day off of work, I try not to take it.
Same with days when we have company meetings that don't require much out of me. My bosses always notices that I'm not on it because I'm even more hyper and crazy than usual
I take Ritalin everyday. I have taken Ritalin, Dexadrine & Adderall for 12 years for ADHD. I've not had any problems with takeing them all the time. I had a few times over the years that I ran out for a few days so you could say I did have a few hollidays but it was rare. I'm writting because I doubt anyone here has taken stimulants as long as I have & just wanted to let you know I have not noticed any problems. Just recently had a thourow physical & I'm in excelent physical health. I don't think I would do as well with an mental health test
PS, I didn't take all those stimulants togeather but took them at diferent times over the years. I don't think I wrote that right. Sorry!
See, I am not hyper when I don't take it. Of course I haven't taken it for very long. I am just extremely tired when I don't take it and feel sort of down. I think the Adderall compliments the Effexor being that it brings my mood up. It most certainly brings my energy level up which is what the doc wanted. I just don't want to become addicted or run myself into the ground when I am on it. If I take a quarter tablet, quarter of 20mg in the morning, I am wound up all day and night. I do have an antihistamine he gave me to help me relax and sleep at night. But I don't know if it's good to come up in the morning and down in the evening with meds.
It doesn't improve my mood at all, just helps me focus a bit more. If I took more I could be even sharper, but I'd rather take a little too little than too much. I'm an addictive personality. Plus it makes me sweat like crazy. Gross, makes me feel like a tweaker.
I take days off when I'm just too damn lazy or spaced out to find the damn pills and take them.
But yeah, a lot of doctors suggest an unmedicated day or two per week. This is usually recommended for kids who are in school M-F, and don't really "need" it as much on the weekend. But I find that if I want to get any housework done on the weekends, I better take some. You don't have to take days off if you don't want to. Whatever works for you.
Most docs do recommend the occasional "holiday" from the meds--a month or more. I do this--usually when I run out and can't afford it for awhile. But sometimes when I just feel like my body needs to detox for awhile.
I think I'm sort of defeating the purpose with the way I take Adderall these days--erratically & sporadically, just like I do everything else. :-\
I took 2 + months off from it this year. And I find that I am far more effective a person when I have it. Its really the only med I am willing to take. Mood stabilizers, etc, have such weird and varied effects. Plus they take too long to work. My Addy is effective in 30 minutes!
My psychiatrist gave me a prescription yesterday. Has anyone ever used Daytrana?
It really helps me when I read books. I love to read self help books, but without the medication I find myself reading the same paragraph over & over. I also don't take in what I'm reading. With the meds. I can read page after page & remember what I read. I was amased the first time I took it. Also I was able to sit still, slow down & listen to others talking. I think if a person takes it, has good results with it they shouldn't be concerned about takeing it. I've been told by some people I shouldn't be takeing stimulants. I also knew they didn't have or understand ADHD. It is hard sometimes for people without a problem to empathize with those who do.
Oh yes, everyone has different results with the dosage. It takes a lot for me. Others might take a fraction what it takes for me to get results. Each person has to experiment with dosage amount. I'm writting not because I think I know everything. I'm writting to maybe help someone because of the many years of takeing the stimulants & the high dosage I've always had to take for it to be effective.
Does anyone have problem sleeping at night? A friend of mine is taking adderall and says that at night he gets a huge burst of energy, unlike any other part of the day. He's tried melatonin pills and sleeping pills but he doesn't want to over use them and get addicted. Any suggestions or experiance with this?
When I take adderall on a regular schedule, with my second dose >6 hours before bedtime, I find that I sleep BETTER than I do when I'm off the adderall.
One way I know this is that I hardly ever remember my dreams when I'm taking it regularly. My doc told me that this is because I'm sleeping more soundly, and that makes sense: You're more likely to remember your dreams when you're sleeping more lightly and fitfully. You're also more likely to remember your dreams the longer you sleep. And, when I'm not on a regular schedule, I tend to get on this weird schedule where I stay up for 18-24 hours (often longer, if I'm hyperfocusing on some project) and then sleep for 10-12. (Does anyone else do this?)
It's like the adderall helps me to be awake when I'm supposed to be awake, and to sleep when I'm supposed to be sleeping. I've read some hypotheses re: ADHD as a dysregulation of the normal sleep/wake cycle, and my anecdotal experience seems to support this. Anyone else have similar experiences?
(Oh, but Kat's right that caffeine might be the culprit more than adderall when it comes to having trouble falling asleep. Or maybe he's just taking it too close to bedtime.)
It doesn't affect my sleep. I go to sleep on it all the time. But too much coffee......
I asked him and he said he typically takes it in the morning before school and that's it for the day. So it seems wierd that he'd still have an issue with sleeping at night....I was thinking maybe he's on the wrong medicine for him. IDK
^He must be on an extended release formula. It happens sometimes and I've noticed it myself. He should minimize any caffeine intake especially in the afternoon.
^Yes. I tried the XR and didn't like it. Not enough control. With the regular pills, you take one dose and you know you'll be medicated for 4-6 hours before crashing. Not so with the XR.
When I tried the XR, it seemed that it didn't last at all like it was supposed too. Then I was leff unmedicated most of the day. Like Nicolina said, with the regular release you knew you was ok for 4 to 6 hours. Then I was able to take another to carry me through the work day.