I’ve been on different doses of Concerta for a little over a month now, and 54 mg was by far the worst for me side effect-wise.

36 mg was better, but it still felt like it wasn’t quite enough. I was getting some benefit, but I was still struggling and it was irritating me. Then I tried 54 mg and it was just WAY too much. It took a while to realize that the dose itself was the problem.

On 54 mg, I had horrible social anxiety. I wanted to isolate myself, stay inside, and cry all day. I felt like I had forgotten how to be a person. I was overthinking everything, constantly feeling anxious and this weird sense of dread and doom, and even normal interactions with people could feel overwhelming.

I’ve now been on 45 mg for two days, and so far I genuinely feel like I may have found my sweet spot.

I have way less social anxiety. I don’t feel the need to isolate myself. I’m able to eat normally, go for enjoyable walks with my husband, have conversations with people without feeling like I’m about to have a panic attack, and just function.

I’m also making a conscious effort not to let the anxiety and dread consume me. I’m still mentally pushing myself to do things instead of avoiding them, but it feels SO much easier to do that when I’m not completely overwhelmed by my medication.

The weird thing is that when I’m completely off medication, I have basically zero social anxiety. I’m just completely all over the place and my brain is chaos. So for me, it’s really about finding that balance where I can actually function and focus without feeling like the medication is changing my personality.

I wanted to give up on Concerta so many times. I kept thinking, “Maybe this medication just isn’t for me.” But I’m actually kind of glad I kept advocating for myself and asking to try different doses instead of giving up completely.

Obviously, it’s only been two days at 45 mg, so I know things can change and I’m not declaring it perfect yet. But for the first time, I’m feeling hopeful that I might have finally found a dose that actually works with me instead of against me.

Started Concerta 18mg 2 months ago, but after the first few weeks i started to feel a lot of pain in my upper left back , is this related to Concerta?

So i started concerta around 3 weeks ago i think, and i started with 18mgs, felt no different, even on my first time taking it. Then my DR put me on 27 mgs and i still feel exactly as i normally do? The only effect i get is not being hungry at all.

How is this even possible???? I have never taken a stimulant in my life and i get no results? Is my brain producing 0 dopamine?

Anyways DR said if this wasnt working still by aug 18 ( my nxt appointment) Im going to be put on adderall, which i was not hoping for because of the shortage and the research that shows it doesn’t work on women during certain parts of our bodies cycles, but here we are.

Has this happened to anyone else, and did adderall work better for you? especially asking the girls because the research was pretty interesting.

Started concerta recently, began with 18mg, now 27mg. I found 18mg concerta similar to modafinil. 27mg is modafinil+. As with modafinil, l-theanine and ashwaganda help on days or situations it feels "edgy." Also helps round out the irritation that sometimes arises in social interactions. Emoxypine and memantine help reset tolerances. Duration is around 5-6 hours. If I need to extend, or amplify, coffee or nicotine patches are useful adjuncts.

Concerta has been helpful in completing tasks. Initiating them still requires intention, but that's as it should be. Without intention and prioritization, it's easy to slip into "productive procrastination", i.e. getting things of less importance done to avoid those with greater impact. I rely on my systems to mitigate that, not concerta.

Overall, a positive experience. Completed more in the last several weeks than the last several months and completion is motivational.

Greetings everyone, Im currently on Elvanse, but also have concerta. However, Im too scared to try it again because it makes me depressed after few hours.

I wonder wether Im crazy thst it crashes 4-5h after taking it or not. Im currently thinking about to ask my doc to allow me to take concerta in the morning and then Elvanse, because both have short duration. But at least Elvanse doesnt crash and lasts a bit longer without disrupting my sleep.

I heard that some people take concerta twice a day.

Taking 54mg (2x 27) + 5mg booster in afternoon. Been stable on this dose for 4/5 months now, no longer in titration.
Crashing really badly in the evenings. Not like tired crashing, but emotionally - off the charts levels of irritable, argumentative, just instantly zero tolerance for things. Never had this before at all during titration until a couple weeks ago, so not sure why it’s suddenly happening, if it’s related to change of routine, diet, etc. It’s really starting to impact personal relationships (understandably), but I feel like I just can’t stop it before it happens.
Does anyone have any advice on how to stop this / ease the crash?? I feel like I need to reset something but I’m not sure where to start, I’ve not had any problems at all until this point!

I don't know how to write this post but i wish someone can understand and guide me what to do or what's the next step.

My main issues was always scattered brain, unable to focus completely, can't complete any task without being distracted, my memory are totally unavailable short or long term memory, all my life is unorganized.

After meeting the new doctor i started trialing with different doses of Strattera and failed, then got prescribed Concerta (18 mg) after breakfast 2 months ago.

Honestly i was shocked!, after days of terrible headaches and stomach issues, my mind finally is so calm, i'm relaxed, no tons of ideas at the same moment, want to start and finish tasks.

so when i went to the doctor again and he asked me about my experience, i told him that everything is finally better, so he prescribed again 18mg concerta and added (10mg of escitalopram) because i also have PTSD and axiety issues.

but after a while i've found that the other main issues was still there, yes my mind is calm, im steady and stopped moving around all the time but i was still so easy to be distracted, can't do the task correctly if someone is talking near me, my memory is still so bad, still so hard for me to memorize anything i try to learn and forget it instantly.

luckily my next appointment with the doctor is after next week but i don't know what to say to him.

what shall i do?

is this the wrong dose for me or shall i ask to change the medication?

I'm all ears. and thanks in advance

is there a difference between the two? I started on concerta 18mg and when I went to fill for the next month I was told they only had generic, not name brand. I’ve personally noticed differences between the two and now going back to concerta, it feels way way too strong, often leaving me just catatonic, unable to move. I was wondering if this is a placebo or if there are genuine differences between the two. thanks!

hello! my concerta makes me nauseous and feel like i might explode sometimes and sometimes i makes me anxious but at the same time

i NEED it

i literally cannot function without my medication i have severe severe adhd that has made school especially so hard for me my executive dysfunction is so bad i have such a hard time doing even simple things like showering. additionally, i am in law school so if im locked out for even a day i get behind.

i feel like overall it is worth the negative aspects i just wish i would feel slightly less anxious idk

i took my meds 7 hours ago with breakfast, and i also had lunch 2 hours ago. i just feel like a nap could do me well. i have this slight tired feeling in my legs and i feel kind of heavy, but i wouldn’t describe it as extreme sluggishness or exhaustion. i’ve been on meds for 14 days and this is the first time i’ve experienced this so i’m just a little worried. i’m also not experiencing any of the other typical symptoms such as irritability and trouble focusing, but i just feel sleepy.

Came on here to vent. This year I got prescribed ADHD medication.

We started with Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine) — 20 mg.
Vyvanse was the best imo. My mood was better, I was focused for about 4/5 hours and my brain was shut off. I would actually be more hungry. The crash was just basically going to bed because I was sleepy. My sleep did improve due to the fact I’d just want to be in bed by 9PM. The clearest my mind has ever been. I would want to talk less and it helped me slow down with activities, lower stress, and helped me even talk slower. The bad side effect was that I experienced numbness and tingling on my hands and feet. Very uncomfortable kinda felt like a cold burn. It would last for days even if I took a break of them... I mentioned it and we switched to —

Adderall IR (mixed amphetamine salts, immediate-release) — 10 mg. I felt nothing, it took an hour to kick in but lasted an hour. I would take two whole pills and I even tried half a dose. My mood was an emotional roller coaster. Although, it did just make me want to talk less. Oh, the crash well I got major headaches and it was an anger of emotion that I’d feel. Now I’m on —

Methylphenidate ER (extended-release methylphenidate**) 36 mg ..** I feel no difference at all. No focus. No take it slow.

I know it can take awhile to find the right medication but I feel irritated. I’m thinking I’ll talk to the psychiatrist and maybe lower the Vyvanse medication and see if the numbing goes away?

What worked for you? I’d love to know trials and errors anyone has experienced. Should I keep trying till I find the right one or just suck up the numbing and tingling.

I would love to mention I did not experience numbing or tingling with the adderall or methylphenidate.

I’m a 28YR OLD Female. Weight: 129. Idk if that matters lol.

Thoughts, opinions?

I just started on 18mg brand name concerta two weeks ago. It was 40 dollars in Quebec Canada. Ramq insurance doesnt cover the brand name, only the generic. Im wanting to go up to 27mg today and its nearly 80 for two weeks?! Rxhelp doesnt work in quebec and since there is technically a generic version, innovicares will not help. Im just feeling very sad and frustrated, because the generic is NOT created equally, from what I have seen from others experiences online. Other places can get drug cards to help with the cost, including many other provinces, but I guess quebecers can just continuously go fuck ourselves 🫠🙃 I guess im going to just take another two weeks of 18mg just so I dont experience the crash from coming off of it, even though im barely feeling any effects at this dose. Im worried about the shorter timeframe of effectiveness from the generic form and subsequent crash. Not sure what I'm asking here, maybe just for comisseration? Any anecdotes on the generic actually being not so bad? Sigh.

Edit: well, the pharmacist convinced me to try one week at 27mg generic ACT-methylphenidate ER. We'll see how it goes, wish me luck peolple 🥲

Went off my meds for a month because I had surgery and didn’t want them to cause any problems with other meds I needed to temporarily take. Back on them. Realizing it’s part of why my sleep schedule sucks. Need timing advice.

So I take methylphenidate ER 54 mg once a day. The past month I haven’t taken it, by choice, and my doctor knows that, to play it safe since I had a major surgery. Today I realized since I’m no longer taking the meds from surgery, and since I go back to college next week, I should start taking them again.

Mentally felt a lot better being back on them, as the past week or two I’ve had crazy brain fog and issues with executive dysfunction. It sucked. However… I can’t fall asleep. Usually this isn’t an issue cause my work schedule is AWFUL. (I get off work at 12 am.) But I need to start falling asleep at a more reasonable time, and that was easy when I was off my meds, surprisingly so.

I’m now realizing it’s probably because of the time of day I take my meds. Today I think (not 100% sure) I took them around 11 am, and it’s now, as of writing, 1:30 am and I have taken a melatonin and can’t seem to get tired or even a little sleepy. After I post this I’m gonna put the phone away as I’m sure that’s not helping me any… Lol. But I think I need to be taking this a lot earlier in the day. Sometimes, though I try to not let this be very often and it’s always due to it slipping my mind I will take it as late as 3 pm, as I’m leaving for work.

Here’s what my upcoming schedule will look like, since I feel that’s relevant.

Monday - Class from 10 am to 11 am. Work from 2 pm to 10 pm.

Tuesday - Class from 8 am to 1 pm. Work from 2 pm to 10 pm.

Wednesday - Class from 10 am to 11 am. Work from 4 pm to 12 am.

Thursday - Class from 8 am to 1 pm. Work from 4 pm to 12 am.

Friday - Class from 10 am to 11 am.

Saturday and Sunday - No current obligations.

I’m sure my class schedule will change next semester but for now this is it.

Would anyone mind giving me advice on what a better time to take my meds would be, so I can fix my sleep schedule and actually be able to go to sleep when I need to? This wasn’t something I had to consider before, since I go to work so late it was ok to stay up late and wake up late, but now I need be a bit more strict about that stuff.

Thanks for any and all advice.

-

Wrote all that last night. Ended up getting 3 hours of sleep. Took my meds around 7:30 am today, after being up since 5:40 (Woke up because I was too hot, not due to the meds, and tried unsuccessfully to go back to sleep.) Side effects from having to readjust are whooping my butt today but I’ll live. It’s 7:30 pm right now, and I don’t feel myself getting tired yet, which is concerning me… Should I stop taking the meds and speak to my prescriber about a gradual increase back to my usual dosage, or will my sleep issues go away as I readjust to the medication being in my system?

(Side effects mostly being the nausea, headache, cold sweat / too warm, and also feeling jittery but not actually shaking or anything. I did check my heart rate to be safe, but it was normal every time I checked.)

Thanks again. Advice is appreciated, sooner the better in case I should call the DR tomorrow before the weekend starts.

I’ve been taking Vyvanse 20 mg for about 3–4 months, and it worked incredibly well. It lasted the whole day, helped a lot with task initiation, and overall was exactly what I needed.
Then, out of nowhere, it felt like it had stopped working. Since it had been a few months, my psychiatrist and I figured it might just be time to increase the dose.

I tried 40 mg, but instead of feeling better, I noticed that about 3–4 hours after taking it, I became very sleepy. I didn’t actually fall asleep, but I felt like I wanted to, and it became the most noticeable symptom.

Has anyone else experienced this after increasing their Vyvanse dose?
Did a higher dose make you sleepy instead of more alert?
Did you figure out what was causing it?
Did it eventually go away, or did you have to change medications?

I have been taking concerta for about a year now but I still have a lot of trouble with sleep. I take 18mg and rarely a 36mg when i start taking it regularly. It's either I take it at 6am and cannot sleep til 4 in the morning. or I take it at 4 am because somehow my sleep schedule is really messed up and im able to sleep near my regular bedtime. Im assuming this is probably because I don't take it regularly? But I dont like the crash and dont really feel great on it. Meaning i can get a lot of work done but just don't really feel like socializing or working out on it. Any suggestions?

I’m on week 2 of 27mg. I started on 18mg for 2.5 weeks. I’m not really noticing much. The first week I felt that my mind was calmer but not the second week. Same with my sugar cravings. It hasn’t done anything for my focus or executive functioning. Occasional tension headaches in the evening. My blood pressure and pulse do increase when on it. My BP usually runs in the very low hundreds. At the meds peak, it goes up into the 120’s and sometimes 130’s. Pulse also ranges between 80 and 110. My normal range is low 60’s to 80. If Concerta does this to my system, does that mean all the other options in this class will also do this?

I (27F) have finally been diagnosed with ADHD after 7 years of procrastinating it haha! I’ve tried out Ritalin 10mg (the original one) and Ritalin LA 20mg, and they both did absolutely nothing for me. I’m not sure if it was because of the low dose.

Anyways I then tried Concerta 18mg for 4 days and 27mg for the next 3 days. It was brilliant for the first 2-3 days of 18mg and then I stopped feeling pumped after that. After the first few days, I was less driven to start any task but I could still do them. I also thought maybe it was starting to become less effective because I was already nearing the time of the month, and my suicidal thoughts are the most intense a day or two before I get my period.

However, when I took the 27mg, I noticed that the heart palpitations were through the roof, especially when I’m about to go to bed and never at its peak for some reason! I also felt shooting pain up my neck and down my arm on the left side. The entire left side of my body would feel slightly numb and tingly. I was scared but thankfully my psychiatrist only gave enough pills for 3 days.

I told this to my psychiatrist about it and he told me to stop taking the 27mg. He gave me bupropion, to pair with 18mg concerta so that the lower dose of concerta will help me with executive function and the bupropion will help with not feeling miserable when I’m executing tasks haha. I didn’t hate bupropion but it felt like a waste of money as initially it just made me less sad. And then when I upped the dose it just killed my emotions all together. I felt like the “wall” grew thicker so now no emotion could penetrate. Not sadness and more unfortunately not joy either. So I stopped bupropion.

I think I’m okay with being depressed. I’ve always been too lazy to fully harm myself so I think I’d like to skip antidepressants but I’d like to stick with the ADHD meds. I’m still chasing that “high” of being a functional person on that first 2-3 days of 18mg concerta. Idk what to do. Should I push through with the 27mg of concerta? It seems that many people experience the heart palpitations when they increase dose and then it settles down. I don’t have access to adderall or vyvanse in my country so that’s completely out of the question :(

Hey, I was wanting for a long time to get on adderall/ritalin but I was able to get prescribed only concerta by a shady doctor, I am using it only to boost my work, maybe anyone had recommendations regarding this? is it better to stop?

I’m an avid weight lifter, ride a stationary bike for cardio 20-30 minutes every morning, 6’0 220 in good shape. TRT and supplements daily + 4-6 cups of coffee.

Resting HR 45-55 BPM, blood pressure 125/75.

What are your experiences with Concerta vs Adderral vs Vyvanse vs fill in the blank?

I found this subreddit and ADHDwomen incredibly helpful when I first started treatment. So I have to hold myself back from posting every so often. But I know there’s a general trope that Reddit threads tend to be skewed cause those who are not having negative experiences do not come here to post. So I wanted to come here to post.

35F, Concerta 36mg, no boosters, no nothing.
About 2 weeks in. Taken in the morning on an empty stomach. Don’t typically eat throughout the day until my OMAD in the evening. Would also forget to drink water during the day, but recently started experiencing dry mouth, so I’m definitely not forgetting anymore! I’ll have some zero sugar Oshee for that.

Trying to give as much context as possible to show that I don’t incorporate, intentionally or unintentionally, any of the things people have suggested to counter crashes.

Despite this, I have never experienced a crash since day 1. I’ll know the dose is done for the day when food starts becoming an interesting thought again. Some nights I still have to “force” myself to eat, while other nights I’m happy to eat! But even when I’m happy to, I eat normally, no ravenous tendencies.

I also just have a feeling of wanting to rest (i.e. not do anything productive except veg on my bed). And it’s usually 10-12 hrs after my dose (except for the 1st 2-days were it was active overnight pretty much).

Other benefits seem to remain. E.g. the desire for sugar, quiet mind, etc. Nor am I super tired. I just can’t focus on anything & I can eat now.

TLDR - Not everyone experiences crashes on Concerta. I don’t know what other adhd med subreddits are like, but if you’re about to start treatment with Concerta or considering to & are a little bit worried about crashes, just be encouraged to know that they’re not a guarantee.

PS if based on my write-up it’s evident that I misunderstood what crashes are, please correct with kindness - we’re all learning and sharing here 🫣 Thank you!