Concerta VS Adderall?

[Mianis]

I felt the Concerta the first day I was put on it (18mg) and every week I'm increasing until I get to 36mg. I'm still on the first week and haven't felt anyting since day one.

I did research and a lot of people say Concerta is a joke compared to Adderall. I am thinking of asking to be switched to see if it would work better. I want the XR so I don't get crashes in the day and in case I forget to take a dose (regular Adderall you take 3x a day). I don't think it will affect my appetite because I feel hungry on Concerta.

Just wondering anyone else's views on Concerta VS Adderall?

[Girlinterruptedallthetime]

Better to stay with concerta for right now as there is a HUGE shortage of Adderall and it is very hard to fill each month.

With either of them the same thing will happen. You feel it for the first day or week but then you don't feel it as much. And then out of no where you will have a day or two where you feel it again. I have been on it for over 11 years now and the best thing I can say is that you need to give your body time to adjust to it all and that can take months!!!! And I like them all..... I have been on concerta, ritalin, and adderall they all have there ups and downs but the XR you most likely wont feel anything and you will be wanting to take more pills because of that. I would stay away from the XR. Then again you need to figure it all out with your doctor but I would give concerta a good try before changing it. And remember just because people say it is a joke it doesn't mean it really is. Most people say that because they can't sell there extra pills because no on wants concerta they would rather buy ritalin and adderall off people. But for me they all worked great!! I just had to change because of insurance problems and then also because I don't want them to stop working so every few years we change it up. (my body gets used to drugs easy and they stop working)

[Mianis]

I live in Canada so that might not be a problem?

Thanks.. It will be a few weeks before I can see my psychiatrist again anyways so with the increases in the next couple of weeks I don't feel anything then I will try changing it.

Yeah but everyone experiences medication differently...

If I do get Adderall, though.. do you think it would be better to get IR or XR?

[Girlinterruptedallthetime]

Nope the Adderall thing is world wide!! You maybe able to find it for a while but then it will get harder and harder to find. Sometimes I am lucky and only have to go to one store other times I have to go to 5 different stores.

And yes everyone's body is different so even what I say you have to take with a grain of salt.

I didn't like the adderall XR because I ended up having to take it 3 times a day just like I would with the regular one. I would ask your doctor what you should be feeling and for how long you should stay with this drug before changing. To know where your doctor stands can help you to try meds faster or it can hurt you if you keep asking when they want you to stick it out because they can feel like your drug searching.

[Mianis]

I guess the shortage of Adderall is partly do to so many people abusing it?

My Psychiatirst has been with me since I was 7. She wouldn't think I was drug searching. We both understand it's trial and error. And I know it may seem like I should wait it out to see how I respond when I increase the Concerta. But me and Psychaitrist know I get the effects of medication pretty quickly. I won't get an apt until a couple-few weeks anyways and that will be after my increases. If it works then I still want my apt to talk about a way to make it last longer than 10 hours in my system. I get up pretty early and it would be out of my system before dinner. I want it to last until 7-8 pm because I go to bed between 10:30 and 12.

Thankyou for your input it was really helpful ^_^

[ScienceOfBallet]

Adderall shortage has been brutal, but you just have to be diligent and check many different pharmacies. Apparently it isn't so much of a shortage as it is a misdistribution, so some areas do have it, while some don't. It's like economics-it makes no sense haha.
So, to get back to the original question. Concerta works with a different chemical than adderall. When you take Concerta, a certain chemical that is what makes it work is released. The chemical itself isn't what works, it is the release of it into the blood. If it is released slowly it will not work. It is meant to be released quickly. I assume that low metabolism could affect this, so in many ED patients it probably doesn't work properly because it isn't absorbed quickly enough. There has to be a spike in the levels to achieve the therapeutic dose in the blood, and if it doesn't happen, nothing really happens. Also, when it does work it is not as strong as adderall.
Adderall, on the other hand, works solely from the chemical in it. However, adderall generally is not as well tolerated as Concerta. Concerta is currently kind of like the golden standard, but that isn't to say it works for everyone. I would work up to the highest dose of it they want you on then try it out at that dose for at least 2 weeks to really see if it is working. If it doesn't work at all by then, maybe consider trying regular adderall. If the Concerta isn't helping you, then you probably won't get many side effects from it either-like lack of appetite. With adderall, you most likely will experience this, and it is brutal. But if adderall works for you, then you have to deal with the side effects, because there isn't much you can take besides it that works similarly and is any less harsh.
Good luck!

[Mianis]

I am weight restored and have a pretty fast metabolism from my weight/height. I maintain very easily even with "extras" and even lost a lb eating OVER my maintenace amount (which I put back on though). I eat pretty healthy and I do moderate exercise. Walking 3-4x a week, workout 3x a week, yoga 4x a week, Wii 3-4x a week.

Thankyou you for explaning the difference between the two. It really does seem like Adderall would work better for me. And I'm really careful about having my 3 meals, 3 snacks I plan them so even if I don't get hungry on Adderall I would still eat anyways. I'd force myself too because I really don't want to slow down my metabolism. Plus I have my family and mostly my younger sister to remind me to eat or if I seem to get fuller faster to push me to eat a bit more. My psychiatrist is very good and "fine tuning" meds so you experience barely any bad side effects.

I'll give Concerta a couple more weeks. But I'd rather something stronger that I can actually feel working. Like I did a little bit the first day on Concerta and nothing else afterwards. I increase to the next dose tomorrow morning so we will see.

Thankyou so much for explaining it all to me, I really appreciate it.