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Dr. Bob is Robert Hsiung, MD,
bob@dr-bob.orgShown: posts 1 to 7 of 7. This is the beginning of the thread.
Posted by pathpop on October 31, 2003, at 15:13:43
Hi there :)
I am an 18yo female and I believe I have inattentive ADD. I am seeing a psychiatrist who has diagnosed me with extreme social phobia and anxiety. But I also have symptoms of the inattentive type ADD. Such as forgetting what I'm reading while I'm reading, even reading out loud I can't concentrate. One teacher in high school told other people that I was a daydreamer. I have always done well at school but I do not remember much from school because I believe I wasn't thinking about school during school...if that made any sense :P I find it difficult to study unless the subject interests me a lot. I get overwhelmed in some situations. It took me till grade 2 to stop crying everyday at school. I am also lazy and extremely unmotivated. There is a family history of ADHD. I was wondering if anyone thinks I should talk to my doctor about this? I don't really talk to him that much. So I'm not sure if he's picked up on my inability to concentrate, etc. Plus I don't know if it's just me? I'm trying to find out if I can improve my memory and concentration because both are pretty bad. I guess my mind jumps around a lot. I'm currently on 150mg of Zoloft. I have never tried the ADD type drugs. I think I read that it's good to take a stimulant when you have inattentive ADD, but I may feel happier on zoloft but my attention span has definitely decreased as compared to remerol (sp? called avanza here). Ok that's enough blabbering.
If anyone has similar experiences or thoughts could you please reply. It's greatly appreciated.
Posted by BackOfClass on October 31, 2003, at 17:44:39
In reply to Inattentive ADD help, posted by pathpop on October 31, 2003, at 15:13:43
I can relate to everything you experience. I have debilitating social anxiety and the same type of ADD. I also take 150 mg of Zoloft, in addition to Zyprexa, Adderall and Klonopin. I suggest you talk to your doctor about this. I would not ask him directly for a stimulant, although that is what you may eventually need, but suggest you mention you may have this problem and stress the family history. If the Zoloft is helping with the social phobia then I suggest you stick with that, if not you should demand a low dose of Klonopin to augment it. I can guarantee you that any ADD medication will make your social anxiety worse, so it is ideal to experiment with the Klonopin and stimulant until you find the right dose. This can be almost impossible, since both of these meds are addictive, so most docs prevent this flexibility. I take the Zyprexa to help take the edge off the Adderall, but if you can get your doctor to prescribe Dexadrine there would be a less increase in social anxiety.
Posted by Kacy on November 1, 2003, at 11:19:08
In reply to Inattentive ADD help, posted by pathpop on October 31, 2003, at 15:13:43
Pathpop, why don't you go here:
http://www.amenclinic.com/ac/addtests/
and take the on-line test. It might give you some answers. You'll find the link to the "Online ADD Test" listed in the blue stripe just below the Amen Clinic.com logo near the top of the home page.
You could print the test and the results and then give it to your doctor. You might even drop it off in advance of your appointment in case your doctor has time to review it before you get there. Make sure the web address is on the papers so the doctor knows where you got it.
What you've said so far is typical of add/inatttentive. I wish I had found help for that at your age. Keep working at it.
Posted by Mid- Life Crisis on November 2, 2003, at 20:26:26
In reply to Inattentive ADD help, posted by pathpop on October 31, 2003, at 15:13:43
One of the things I like best about Strattera is that it has definitely not worsened my anxiety, unlike Concerta and Adderall. I found that both Adderrall and Concerta made me more anxious, generally, but especially worsened social phobia. Strattera also does not give me the ups and downs of stimulants, so I don't have to "crash" every 4 hours. Be sure to give it at least a month to become effective if you decide to try it, however.
Posted by LightShifter on November 4, 2003, at 15:06:32
In reply to Inattentive ADD help, posted by pathpop on October 31, 2003, at 15:13:43
I'm just starting Strattera at 40 mg today and I like the calm, content feeling so far which displaces the anxiety I was having... I also have the Innattentive form of ADD and had extreme trouble reading in school... Strattera works with the reuptake of Norepinephine instead of the reuptake of Serotonin which most antidepressants work on.... I feel we inattentive types may have too much Serotonin and/or don't process it correctly which causes our minds to become worse on the SSRI antidepressants that work with Serotonin reuptake.... We need more norepinephrine and/or dopamine .... I tried Effoxor for 1 day and got "brain fog" on it and it works with both Serotonin and Norepinephine reuptake... When switching to Strattera I didn't get the "brain fog" and Strattera only works with norepinephrine reuptake which can only mean the Serotonin reuptake was causing my brain fog...
I am not on any other meds so this elimates the possibility of polysubstance issues causing it.I would recommend trying small doses of Strattera alone and see how it works. IT also seems to get rid of all the anxiety I was also experiencing and makes me feel calm and content.
Hope This Helps,
Blessings,...Dan/Lightshifter
Posted by LightShifter on November 4, 2003, at 15:49:47
In reply to Re: Inattentive ADD help, posted by BackOfClass on October 31, 2003, at 17:44:39
The below post states that the person "guarantees" that "any ADD will make your Social Anxiety worse".... This has not been my expereince with Strattera (a norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor that work differently than Ritilin, Dexadrine or other stimulant meds.).
In 1 day of trying 40mg of Strattera alone - without any other meds -my social anxiety virtually disaappeared. I feel calm and focused and don't have any "brain fog" like I got when I was using Effexor (which also has Serotonin reuptake).
Multiple drugs confuse the whole thing because who knows what's causing what. I found Effexor which I was taking for the anxiety that my ADD caused "brain fog" and I coudn't think straight. So I decided to try Strattera alone instead which only reuptakes norepinephrine and NOT serotonin and it is working wonderfully.. I think we innattentive type of ADDers have a problem with either too much serotonin and/or not being able to process it properly.... Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs like paxil and zoloft)seem to CAUSE the "brainfog" which cause doctors to think they need to add stimulamt medication... My belief is that it isn't that we need stimulant medication so much as dropping of the serotonin reuptake (which is exactly what Strattera does).
I believe we ADD Innatentive types have high serotonin and low norepinephrine (and perhaps dopamine) levels which is why Strattera works so well... at least for me.
Antianxiety meds like klonopin (benzodiazipines)are highly addictive and hard to get off of without reexpereincing high levels of anxiety again. Strattera poses none of these problems so far as I've read and is much safer.
Hope this helps,
Blessings,...Dan
> I can relate to everything you experience. I have debilitating social anxiety and the same type of ADD. I also take 150 mg of Zoloft, in addition to Zyprexa, Adderall and Klonopin. I suggest you talk to your doctor about this. I would not ask him directly for a stimulant, although that is what you may eventually need, but suggest you mention you may have this problem and stress the family history. If the Zoloft is helping with the social phobia then I suggest you stick with that, if not you should demand a low dose of Klonopin to augment it. I can guarantee you that any ADD medication will make your social anxiety worse, so it is ideal to experiment with the Klonopin and stimulant until you find the right dose. This can be almost impossible, since both of these meds are addictive, so most docs prevent this flexibility. I take the Zyprexa to help take the edge off the Adderall, but if you can get your doctor to prescribe Dexadrine there would be a less increase in social anxiety.
Posted by Viridis on November 5, 2003, at 0:40:03
In reply to Re: Inattentive ADD help, posted by LightShifter on November 4, 2003, at 15:49:47
I have a similar reaction to Strattera, and find it has a mellowing effect (I have ADD). However, I do think it's important to go up slowly with the dosage, as side effects seem pretty common (although most disappeared quite quickly for me). I can't tolerate SSRIs at all -- they make me very anxious and all over the place emotionally.
I disagree, though, that benzos are addictive for most people. I'm not aware of any evidence to support this, despite decades of use with tens of millions of patients. Xanax seems to be the one that's most likely to cause problems, but even with it, most of the difficulties are with tolerance and dependence, not true addiction. So, as with all sorts of meds, you have to discontinue use gradually.
Reports of Strattera withdrawal are beginning to appear here and really, I suspect that almost any of the meds that substantially affect brain chemistry will require tapering for successful discontinuation. That doesn't mean they're bad, just that if they induce a major change, then it can take a cautious approach to get off them and get your system back to normal (which may not be so great anyway). In any case, Klonopin is pretty safe in this respect compared to some of the commonly-prescribed antidepressants and is not known for being addictive.
This is the end of the thread.
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