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Will the double dose of Concerta work????

9 replies

Nickersnackersnockers · 13/08/2023 10:05

I know it's early days. Adult dd started 18.5mg of concerta four days ago, to be doubled in 3 days to 36mg. There has been no difference whatsoever thus far. Is the half dose just checking for side effects, or do we assume that if there's no difference on half dose, there'll be no difference on full dose?

Obvs, the titration period has just started, so I do realise we may need to change, etc.

Thanks in advance for any input

OP posts:
LongDuckDong · 14/08/2023 15:02

I too started on that dose. They did it to check that I was feeling confortable on it. I am now on 56mg as a constant, we did try an increased dose but it didn’t work for me.

Nickersnackersnockers · 14/08/2023 22:14

Thanks so much for your reply. Can I ask if it was the first med you tried and what mg you were on before it had an effect?

How are you doing on it?

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LongDuckDong · 15/08/2023 08:33

The type of medication hasn’t changed but the brand has. When I was released back to my GP the brand was different and I noticed that I wasn’t doing as well.

It wasn’t until I was on 56mg that I really noticed the change, but for me it doesn’t last more than 3 or 4 hours, however that is enough to boost me.

Nickersnackersnockers · 15/08/2023 08:56

What happened to you when you were on the higher dose, and if you only get a boost for 4 hours max, is it your decision not to try another med?

Sorry for all the questions, but we are so new to this, so it's a massive learning curve.

My adult dd is due to start 36mg tomorrow, but I'm already thinking the dose will still be too low.

Thanks again

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Begsthequestion · 16/08/2023 19:09

I think they start everybody on 18mg first, then increase by 18mg over time until you feel it properly working. I'm on 74mg now (slow release, taken in the morning) and it lasts up to 12 hours.

Nickersnackersnockers · 16/08/2023 19:37

What difference has it made to you begsthequestion please

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Begsthequestion · 17/08/2023 18:27

Overall it's made life much more manageable, so I don't feel like I'm constantly juggling too much and dropping the ball and running out of time and letting myself and others' down.

I no longer have a hundred radio stations competing for attention in my brain (just three or four on a bad day), I ruminate less, and I find myself fitting in small tasks in the day that would normally take me months to get round to, if I did them at all. I'm better at finishing things and can spend more than two weeks on a hobby now, without waking up one morning having had any interest in it completely wiped from my memory!

My emotions are much more stable and even throughout the day, which has really helped me feel happier. My anxiety has lessened too, perhaps because things feel more manageable.

I am able to remember to implement coping strategies (like timetabling everything, or buying duplicates of things so I spend less time looking for them) for more than a week, and I'm better at planning ahead now and am rarely late.

I suffer much less often from burnout, and can understand my limits more, to help prevent it - I used to plough ahead trying to do everything and be social all the time (people pleasing is a common feature of adults with late diagnosed ADHD I think, maybe because we're always so afraid of inevitably letting people down/being late/feeling inferior and thus feel undeserving of putting our own needs first) and then after doing so much for a couple of weeks I'd be running on empty and crash, forced to confine myself to my bedroom for a couple of days, unable to do anything, or talk to anyone, feed myself, no concentration, no relaxation, just kind of stuck. I believe I was misdiagnosed with depression in part because of that.

I have much less desire to drink/smoke/overeat etc which were all forms of self-medication, in retrospect. Weed actually effects me like a normal stoned person now, I get a bit silly on it, instead of it just helping me focus enough to read or write in the evening. I now try to exercise instead and take cold showers to boost dopamine if my head is feeling a bit fuzzy.

I still have some bad days (due to hormone fluctuations I believe, from looking at my mood diary) but they're not as bad, because I have experienced many good days and know that it's just one or two days, and even if I do have more bad days, I can seek a change in treatment or try different coping strategies in future.

Hope this all makes sense. If you have any questions about my experience feel free to post them here or DM me x

Nickersnackersnockers · 19/08/2023 09:28

Thanks so much for your comprehensive reply! I will dm you if that's OK xx

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Begsthequestion · 19/08/2023 14:16

No problem! Please do x

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