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by throwaway_51122
1304 days ago
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A slight semi-tangential/related question for OP/others who've benefited so much from medication - did you receive any guidance from your doctor on how to use it, or do you use any strategies you figured out yourself? I have been prescribed (generic) methylphenidate, but the doc essentially told me "Take the tablets twice a day, good luck!". The medication does give me more mental energy, but it's much closer to "being on a rollercoaster" where you're being flung around than driving a sports car that you're in control of. (I haven't received any particular guidance/therapy etc.) To give an example, if I take my dose when getting ready, I'm probably going to be focusing too much on moisturizing my face or arranging my bag, rather than using the energy boost to "just" get off my butt and move out. I should probably add that I don't have very good structures/schedules in place. I really would like to help "tame" the med and would be grateful for any HN'ers help/suggestions! |
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- I initially started on Concerta but found that I was burning through the dose way faster than advertised (4hrs vs 8hrs) and experiencing an unpleasant crash at the end where I felt zoned out, emotionally flat and unable to focus at all; and this was with the supposed holy grail Janssen variant.
- IR was slightly better but the rush up and crash down wasn't stable enough for me throughout the day, and managing the doses is an imperfect science / requires awareness of time (obviously not my strong suit).
- Going onto an XR variant (generic for Metadate, capsule with extended release beads) has been the best so far. It lasts throughout the workday, has a smoother onset and "landing" that for the most part doesn't send me into a crash, and is available to me as a very cheap generic.
- I take it first thing in the morning, take my dog out for a walk (~30 mins), and the timing works out perfectly for when I get back and get started with work. If you have a gauge of how long it takes to start working, then maybe work backwards and build a routine around that (e.g., when you arrive at work, before you leave, etc.). Ideally it's latched to something in your existing routine so you don't forget.
- Regarding the period where medication is wearing off, this tends to align with when I finish up my work throughout the day (which the proper dosing should achieve), and I usually go to the gym to lift weights shortly after. This works for me as a transition to doing something productive / good for my health, and the exertion seems to help with the slight withdrawal sensation during this period. Otherwise I tend to trail off into mindless internet browsing once I check out of work.
- Organization-wise I just maintain a simple to-do list so I have it on hand when I get started with my day. It seems to work best when I have it updated from the day before so that I can just sit down and get started without having to figure out what to do first. Granted I do still have a tendency to jump around between things throughout the day, but having that reference on hand definitely helps me to stay productive instead of going down rabbit holes.
- I also somehow semi-quit social media after years of trying to no avail. Namely Instagram, which for me was the lowest resistance / easiest to slip into an endless time-suck on, as well as my Reddit homepage (I only check two sports subreddits which don't move that quickly). I hid Instagram from my home screen, and created two browser bar bookmarks to the individual subreddits to avoid going to the homepage so if I have an impulse I can take a quick break, but won't have enough content to stay on for long. The endless scroll is a son-of-a for folks like me. YouTube time has gone up, but at least with the content I watch there I'm learning something related to my hobbies.
- I'm sure you already know but always good to mention food and water, I went through a short stint where I had to take antacids because the combination of medication + some acidic foods (I think it was greek yogurt) were messing with my stomach.
Definitely still doing some fine-tuning myself, but the medication has been so helpful in the sense that I can actually implement lifestyle / habit adjustments without them immediately falling by the wayside. Currently my main issue is managing my sleep schedule - I've always been a night owl but also know that I feel much more calm when I can wake up earlier and get a good start to the day. Seasons have also always hit me pretty hard energy / mood wise, especially during the daylight savings transitions. I use light therapy to help stave that off.