About to start medication for ADHD. Will the autism take over?

[AuADHD]

I’ve read that taking adhd medication can make the ASD more prominent. Does anyone have any experience please? I’ve got an appointment on Mother’s Day to discuss things further because the initial assessor was just an admin person and didn’t know how to interpret my answers unless a yes or no response.

It can do, yes. My AuDHD daughter is currently titrating and initially, it was great, but 3 months in she has very low mood and “crashes” off the meds. (I have ADHD and am medicated and don’t experience this. My consultant thought ADHD meds were worth trying with DD as sometimes there is positive impact on ASD traits as well). We’re going to keep a diary for the next month to see what interaction there is with her eating/drinking and hormones and then decide whether to keep going or not.

Best of luck with it.

Thank you.
I’ll be quite happy to have less appetite but hope it doesn’t affect my sleep as I’m always tired. I’m almost 50 and can’t imagine a quieter brain or a tidier house. I’m hoping it might have a positive effect on the misophonia so I can enjoy eating with others or eating out.
I don’t know what they’ll try me on but I just hope it helps.

This is one of the reasons I have gone down the medication route yet. I've heard that ASD traits can become highlighted when the ADHD medication suppresses those ones, and I've got too much going on in my life at the moment to be able to cope with any changes in the balance.

Not all meds impact appetite.

They’re a lot less effective if you don’t support them properly with nutrition and hydration too.

2 years in my brain is quieter for my working hours but my house certainly isn’t any tidier nor am I any more organised.

Where are you getting this info about meds?!

Recent research suggests that AuDHD is a condition in its own right, not ADHD +ASD. Which is why treating one part doesn’t necessarily resolve issues well enough.

I also read this and it did put me off trying medication.

However, I am now medicated and wouldn't be without it. It's not perfect of course, but the main thing it has done for me is to turn down the intensity of the fight or flight/adrenalin I was living with for all waking hours, which was horrendous. I honestly did not know what calm felt like. I've found that the meds mean I can pay attention for longer and I'm not so dysregulated.

As for whether ASD is more prominent, I can't really comment, as everything (mood, sensory stuff, etc) is fluid and fluctuates for me day to day anyway. I have given up trying to work out what is linked to adhd and what is linked to ASD, also what is peri menopause, etc etc.

I am really strict about my sleep hygiene (hate this phrase but you know what I mean), nutrition and movement, and am also on HRT and anxiety meds. I take a holistic approach to living with these conditions.

I would say anything is worth a try, you can always stop or change.

I do find my sleep is more disrupted if I take my meds after 8:30am, but I’m a night owl so struggle to switch off before 2am anyway. Adding an extra 5mg at lunchtime had me awake all literally all night.

caffeine/other stimulants will also impact on drug efficacy.

My consultant advised that meds can only ever make 70% of whatever improvement is possible. Other life factors play a massive part (nutrition, hydration, exercise).

Thank you for all the replies. I eat quite healthily. I mainly eat homemade vegetable soups, homemade pizza, breadsticks and hummus with vegetable sticks. I currently sleep well but am always exhausted and in bed no later than 9pm but usually earlier. I don’t drink anything with caffeine, I don’t drink alcohol, don’t smoke or take drugs. I drink lots of water and I’m very physically active. Being active is a great regulator for me.

You’ll need more protein once you’re on meds.

I already eat as much protein as I can. I snack on things like babybels. I eat hummus for lunch daily or proper greek yogurt. One of my favourite soups is lentil. I don’t eat eggs because they make me sick and can’t eat nuts until I do a food challenge to check I’m not actually allergic. I don’t eat meat or fish. I have porridge with chia seeds for breakfast.

I don’t eat meat either and need to supplement with vegan protein powder/bars (I have lactose allergy) to get enough protein. It does make a massive difference to how effective the meds are.

I’ll need to find something non-UPF in that case. Hopefully the nut challenge will go well. I need to toast some seeds for snacks and will make my favourite tofu dish more often.

Because DS shows signs of AuDHD we were advised to take it vvv slow with the medication, and this seems to have paid off. For myself I also found it helpful to titrate slowly (start on lowest possible dose, consider half a tablet if the tablets you are prescribed can be split, and then spend at least a week at each dose before moving up, potentially 2-4 weeks) - I don't think I am autistic but I am sensitive to things.

For DS it does seem to make his autistic traits stronger but nothing negative. He's more intent in his special interests, his speech is more monotone, he is more particular about rules. It's taken his constant dysregulation completely away, which is brilliant.

Obviously not completely UPF free but there are some reasonably clean ones around. You can’t really have it all, unfortunately.

Worth checking where you get to on your current meals. Ideally you want 30g protein with your meds and up to around 100g a day overall.

I had no idea meds make ASD more obvious

I should be starting Elvanse in the next few days depending on how quickly the pharmacist dispenses it.
I’m really nervous now which is probably daft.
I’ve been told to get a good breakfast. I’m going to do the nut good challenge on Wednesday and hopefully will be able to add nuts as a source of protein to my diet. I can’t stomach Greek yogurt in a morning. It has to be porridge. I did try adding Greek yogurt to it but it tasted rank so that’s not an option.