ADD

That's basically what I've heard. Adderall is more potent.

Here's an update:

Yesterday, I told my doctor about all of the side-effects I was experiencing, so he told me to stop taking the Ritalin and prescribed me Strattera.

I went and picked up my Strattera, and then came home and read about it. Basically, I think my doctor is just an idiot, or he doesn't know what he's doing. Strattera is usually what they give you if the stimulant ADHD medications don't work. It causes all sorts of fucked up side effects, such as pain in the testicles, trouble gaining/keeping an erection, difficulty orgasming, and leakage before orgasm. Fuck that shit. Not only that, but it takes 4-6 weeks to even start working, assuming you got the right dosage. That's just way too fucking long to wait to see if it works. He could have given me dextroamphetamine or Adderall and we could know in a couple of days if they work.

I called a psychiatrist today and made an appointment for next Tuesday. I even made sure that I picked a psychiatrist that listed ADHD as one of their specialties. Hopefully she'll know what she's doing.

EDIT: Oh, and I'm not taking the Strattera. I'm kinda bummed that I paid for it and now I'm not going to be taking it.I'm taking the Ritalin still, for now, as it does help at least a bit. I upped my dosage to 20mg twice a day instead, and the side effects are still about the same but the intended effects are a bit better. I just took a third dosage for the day so I can do some housework and homework. I understand that upping my own dosage without a doctor's orders is potentially a dumb thing to do, but I'm perfectly healthy and have low blood pressure, so I feel that there are no risks.

Fuck that other medication man. Your doctor must be a fucking idiot. He obviously doesn't know what he is doing. If I were you, I would hurry up and switch doctors perminantly before he fucks you up forever.

I already cancelled my follow-up with him and I don't plan on ever seeing him again. I don't need him to prescribe, since the psychiatrist can both diagnose and prescribe. I don't know why I didn't just go to a psychiatrist to begin with, it would have simplified this whole thing.

No one that messages up with drugs really thinks they're at risk. There's a spotlight bias that makes us think that we're above that sort of thing.

Well I'm not taking an abnormal dose. There are children who take 4-5x what I'm taking right now. I'm simply following the criteria that a doctor would. If I don't have high blood pressure or any other possible heart problems, there's no problem with the dose I'm taking. I could probably safely take a lot more than I'm taking.

So how hard was this to really get prescribed?

I'm sure if someone did enough reading about ADHD and figured out the key symptoms and signs, they could fake their way into getting diagnosed. However, most good psychiatrists will ask for the imput of friends/family/co-workers/supervisers/teachers/etc as well.

Ya, although it seems like a very common over diagnosed illness. Much like Asthma.

Straterra was actually the first medicine I was prescribed for ADD.

I started with Concerta and have taken it ever since. My doc is an idiot too though. He only has a 100 lb kid on 1 36mg a day. I know a kid who is doing 2 36 mg a day. I want to know if that would work better but high dosages have led to side effects for me. Oh well.

Why is it that people read something a little here and there on the internet and think they know more than doctors?

Why is it that people read something a little here and there on the internet and think they know more than doctors?

Well thats a no brainer. 15 year olds know everything of course.

What does ADHD stand for?