Friday, June 28, 2013

6 Week Update

 It has been 6 weeks now on Adderall for my ADD treatment. Everything has been going fine but I did make some changes over the past 2 weeks. I found reducing my dosage to 2.5mgs. twice daily is perfect for me. I take half of 5mg. pill at 6:00am and the other half around 11:00am. I usually have a large coffee following my 6:00am dose before work. It turned out that 5mg. was just a tad too much for me at my new job because it is not physically demanding. I feel great all day long and my body must have gotten used to Adderall because I no longer have that uncomfortable feeling when it starts wearing off. I do notice around 5-6pm I am not as sharp thinking after this time. I did regain my thirst sense and have no problems staying hydrated as I do get thirsty throughout day. Hunger does not enter my mind though until afternoon so I make sure to eat some food during late morning or early afternoon for fuel my body requires. I do eat quite a bit in the evening but still am slowly losing weight, about 1lb. per week on average which is good for me. Acne is still a problem but not as bad as earlier in treatment. The new job along with Adderall has completely improved my life in every aspect. I think back to a few months ago and cannot believe how awful my life really was! So disorganized and confused, extreme anxiety and self-medicating with alcohol, tobacco and food. I have absolutely no desire for alcohol or other mind-altering drugs including anti-anxiety medicine prescribed by doctor. I cant bring on a panic attack no matter how hard I try now, and I intentionaly put myself into situations where I would guaranteed  have panic prior to Adderall. Overall in a nutshell this past month has been one of the best in decades, and I am not exaggerating. I can take days off from Adderall and have no negative feelings or behavoirs either. Highly recommend this drug for ADD/ADHD and am very happy I only need such a small dose to acheive what "I" was looking for from it. Good Luck

Ghostwriter

Saturday, June 15, 2013

1 Month Update

 Hi, thank you for returning. It has been a little over one month now since starting Adderall. I don't even know where to start because there has been so many positive experiences in my life since beginning treatment for my Adult ADD with a very low dosage of Adderall. I did change my dosage a bit over the last couple of weeks by lowering my 2nd dose to 2.5mgs. which I take around noon. This keeps me focused all day and  avoid that extra physical energy boost that is not needed as I tend to be less active as the day goes on at work. So basically I take one 5mg. Adderall when I wake and about 4-5 hours later I take half pill(2.5mg.), with 1 or 2 cups of coffee throughout the morning. I stay up later than I used to and sleep is fine, I actually have a sleep pattern now which is very rewarding for the next day.

   I will begin with my new job after being out of work for over 1 year. I entered a new field of work in the mental health community working with mentally challenged adults after 25 years in construction buisness. I had always wanted to help others that seem to be overlooked as "people" in the community which happens all over the world. Getting employment with no previous experience or training turned out to be a very difficult challenge, something the "old me" would have given up on after the first few denials for employment. Fortunately, my Dr.s' diagnosed my ADD and through talk therapy and proper medication I was able to stop self-medicating and regain self-confidence I had lost over the years giving me courage and motivation to reach my goals. It turns out I never really had any goals and I recommend if anybody reading feels that way to start your recovery by making some small acheivable goals soon. With my new found motivation and confidence I was able to focus on what I needed to do in hopes of getting the job I was searching for which began with creating a resume that is properly written, thank you Adderall for helping me retain my focus on that project and 'complete' it. I got noticed by a company or two but focused on the more fitting position for me and learned about their company before my interview. So I have knowledge of this company, high level of confidence along with clear mind and went through interview calm, cool and collected with my now usual, very low anxiety. Everything went great and was called for next interview which in turn led to being hired for a job I do not think I could have ever landed without being properly treated for Adult ADD.

 The job is going better than expected and I am enjoying waking up and going to work now, completely different than any other jobs I have had in the past. The new things I am learning are very interesting and I have very little difficulty staying focused on everything I have been doing. Instead of having to re-read questions until my ADD mind absorbs the information, I now can usually understand things the first time I read something very well. Obviously there are times that require more effort on my part but I feel that is normal for anybody and do not let my focus change into focusing on my focus, the last part of the previous sentence may ONLY be understood by a fellow ADD sufferer. Focusing on my focus, hmmm?, that makes so much sense to me now. Anyhow, with my job and family life going so well I am able to think of new activities to try and do not procrastinate nor think of negative aspects on what I am about to do. Usually I would get bad anticipatory anxiety which would be so bad it resulted in avoiding situations. Things that used to frighten me have become a thing of the past. I now enter situations with very little to no anxiety whatsoever. Trying new things are like an adventure, and this comes down to the simplest things most people take for granted such as going to a mall or introducing myself to new people.

 I will start the end of this blog by saying that since getting treated with low dosage of Adderall, I have become the person I had only imagined myself as being. I look in the mirror and see a whole new me only this "new me" looks like my old self but I have signs of aging now, lost my youthful look and have become more 'distinguished'. It sort of feels like I had been asleep for the past 25 years which is a bit uncomfortable when I allow myself to analyze that particular thought. Sure, I still have problems in my life just like everybody else but it's how I percieve them now that makes it all so different. Small problems remain small rather than letting myself over-think them into seeming like a end-of-the-world problem. With the ability to seperate the minor from major issues I am able to actually solve these smaller problems which leaves me much more time to deal with bigger issues in my life, both good and bad. I hope at least one person who has read this entire blog has improved thier life or at least thier outlook on the future. Change is not easy, whether its life altering or just being able to read an article in a newspaper without getting distracted, any change has some kind of effect and brings on some sort of emotion. These emotions can range from happiness and joy to sadness and despair, and the many emotions that fall in-between. In my life now, I tend to be at the happy side of the spectrum and rarely get lowered to sadness and despair mindset. This may sound like a miracle but I like to look at it as an acheivement because it did require alot of effort on my part with "help" from others sources including Adderall, therapy and AA meetings(for my self-medication issues).

  Thank you for reading, and if you would like to print this in whole or in part, you have my permission as I want my experiment to be a helpful tool in other peoples quest on becoming "COMFORTABLE" in life. Life is way too short to spend going in circles. Remember Albert Einstein's definition of insanity is "doing the same things over and over again and expecting different results"!!!!!!

Ghostwriter