Hi,
I started taking Concerta along with an SSRI antidepressant two years ago. I started taking them at roughly the same time. For you and anyone else reading, I'd like to offer my experience.
Concerta, at the time, changed my life. For the first time ever, I was able to do simple things such as watch a movie all the way through and read a book to the end. I recall erupting into tears and gaining much self esteem as my grades, performance at work and cleanliness improved. I also gained more awareness and realized things I had previously missed out on because I was always in a brain fog or readily distracted, and better retained information. I started on 18 mg. and titrated up to the highest legal dose for adults, 72 mg. More about that in a minute.
I started taking an antidepressant because I had been having panic attacks. I was taking Xanax to cope and felt powerless. I noticed the effects in about three weeks. My panic attacks disappeared. I was always generally in a happy disposition, but lost my sex drive and the ability to feel a normal range of emotions. I was never too happy nor too sad. In that way, I was a robot. I felt empty. I did not feel "love" towards my significant other; the heart-pounding moments of passion and gratitude disappeared. I was neutral toward everything. At the time, it felt better than panicking multiple times a day.
After six months, Concerta gradually stopped working. This is very common with ADD stimulants. Slowly but surely, I reverted back to my "old self"- spacey, forgetful, messy, and unreliable. It was as if the self esteem I had been given mere months earlier- something which I secretly and fearfully believed as "too good to be true", anyway- was a myth. Though, I was still on the antidepressant so the enormity and implications of what happened didn't make me feel much of anything. It was unfortunate, but I was blissfully unaware (doped up,
). Concerta first lasted for nine hours, then seven, six, and now four.
Concerta is another medicine that robs you of yourself. When it comes to work and school, it is extraordinarily helpful with keeping on par to tasks. Simultaneously, I lost all desire to be social. I didn't see a purpose in being with friends because I was absorbed in a book. My sense of humor basically died. I became serious and studious. If I was interrupted from my work, I became short and angry with people. I began to hyperfocus, so that I had tunnel vision with my tasks. I could easily become sidetracked and forget to eat. When the medicine wore off at the end of the day, I was in a sour mood for about an hour. Taking Concerta is like being on a roller coaster that starts great, plummets down and throws you off.
One day, I forgot to take my antidepressant. Actually, it was a few days, but I hadn't realized it. I was doing "normal", so I didn't feel any urgency to keep taking them. That's when hell broke loose. I thought I had the worst stomach flu ever created. I was vomiting from morning until night, getting three hours of sleep, depressed, and having tingling zaps in my head. I was completely clueless until I googled the symptoms, which pointed to antidepressant withdrawal. I knew, at that time, that I needed to get myself off of the antidepressant.
What followed were the most awful three months of my entire life. The physical symptoms subsided, though I missed many days of work. After that was the worst part: crippling, suicidal depression. I had never been depressed before, and scared myself with my constant negative thoughts. The insomnia persisted. I cried on a daily basis for weeks. I had "hit the bottom", all because of the pill that I took. To top it off, it was then that my Concerta had zero effect on me. It was like taking a sugar pill. I was very "ADD", even moreso than I was before I started taking Concerta, and very depressed. I could barely get out of bed. Through it all, I persisted and discovered strength in myself I never knew I had.
That was earlier this year. I'm still depressed, though not as severe as before, and the Concerta still doesn't work very well. I've tried other ADD medications with the same kind of result. I began experimenting with my own health and tried many things which I am still trying. I believe the Concerta stopped working because it depletes the adrenal glands. This leads me to believe that it isn't something that I want to take for much longer. Some people find success taking "holidays" from it (skipping one day a week), but this is delaying the inevitable. I've tried many natural methods: acupuncture, homeopathy, supplements, diet and exercise. I'm still trying.
Overall, I can tell you this is a good order of doing things: Nutrition, Natural Remedies, then Conventional Medicine.
Look at your diet first. See how you eat. I did an elimination diet free of gluten and dairy for two weeks. I learned a bit.
Try some supplements. 5-HTP and Tyrosine were helpful during withdrawal, and helped a little for ADD.
Only then, go to a doctor.
Hope this helps someone. I feel compelled to offer up my story when I hear questions like this one.
