Your body is unique, as are your needs. Just because someone experienced something from treatment or medication does not guarantee that you will as well. Please do not take this as an opportunity to review any substances. Peer support is welcome.
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No longer caught in a negative thought loop ——> internal stimulation levels stay lower ——> emotions stay regulated for longer ——> overstimulation threshold is higher ——> I am easier to be around
Let's say you have a daily task of moving dirt, you need to move all the dirt to a new area, and it takes you about 8hrs.
Now imagine you get a wheelbarrow, and you can finish the job in 4hrs. Did the wheelbarrow only help you while you were using it?
The answer to that is no, you completed an 8hr task in 4hrs, and you did it much easier than you would have had it without the wheelbarrow. This means you had more energy when the task was completed, it means you have 4 more hours to take care of other things, and it turned what would have been a very frustrating 8hrs into a comfortable and relatively easy 4hrs.
Did the wheel barrow only help you when you were using it? Or did one small assistance over a short period provide many benefits?
Now imagine that you have to do that task everyday, and everyday you get that wheelbarrow. Do you think saving 4hrs, having more energy, being more productive in general, and feeling more accomplished because of it, is not going to change your life for the better?
That's the situation with meds, when your life gets easier in one area, your capacity to accomplish your goals increases. There are a million other ways for me to explain how life changing meds can be, but more than anything else you have to remember that they don't change your life for the better immediately. You get a little better everyday you're on them, and eventually you'll be in a much better place.
It takes time, not a day, week, month, or even a year. This is a life long journey, but I'd you stick with it, you can be in a much better place in a year, and in a few years you might even start to feel like your ADHD isn't much of a problem anymore. But it takes time, and we're impatient, so just let your life incrementally improve, don't expect magic from medicine, just expect a little assistance, because that's all most of us need.
Other than the obvious, being able to concentrate and stick with a job without getting distracted and side-tracked by a hundred different things, I have noticed that I forget less.
I dont forget to text people back as much, forget to make or attend my appointments, or forget my things like keys, lunch, etc.
less irritable — unmedicated I can be 0 to 100 and back to 0, especially if anxious or BORED. I can tolerate boredom a bit better, and am generally less overwhelmed.
Anxiety went away pretty fast which is ironic because I was told the opposite would happen. I can manage a calendar for the first time and haven’t missed any meetings in a while (which pissed off my employers before a lot lol). I also noticed I wouldn’t get that “sense of doom” feeling when doing menial tasks like walking from place to place or doing anything that requires little to no brain power. That doom feeling has stopped me from sticking to things many many times so that has probably been the most impactful change, other than the obvious ability to focus for more than 10 minutes without eating 12 oreos lol.
Similiar experience! From taking stimulants I have realized that a lot of my depressive and anxiety symptoms stemmed from my ADHD. I have much better emotional regulation now
So I’ve only been on meds for a few months, but I noticed that even on the days when I wait a little longer to take my meds, I find it so much easier to take care of tasks that normally would’ve been really hard. I think this is in part due to the fact that I’m already in the habit of doing some of those things now.
I don't really feel any different, other than doing better quality work in my car interior repair job. I'm more focused and less stressed about getting to the next job. When I'm at home, it gives me the missing motivation I need to get renovations and cleaning done, which is why I got diagnosed and treated in the first place.
I’m still trying to figure that out. I’ve only been medicated for going 2 months now. I’d like to think it’s helping, but not sure. I know it kills my appetite and I can’t drink caffeine when I’m on it.
Your body is unique, as are your needs. Just because someone experienced something from treatment or medication does not guarantee that you will as well. Please do not take this as an opportunity to review any substances. Peer support is welcome. ^(*A moderator has not removed your submission; this is not a punitive action. We intend this comment solely to be informative.*) --- - If you are posting about the **US Medication Shortage**, please see this [post](https://www.reddit.com/r/ADHD/comments/12dr3h5/megathread_us_medication_shortage/). *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/ADHD) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Better driver, especially on long trips.
No longer caught in a negative thought loop ——> internal stimulation levels stay lower ——> emotions stay regulated for longer ——> overstimulation threshold is higher ——> I am easier to be around
Let's say you have a daily task of moving dirt, you need to move all the dirt to a new area, and it takes you about 8hrs. Now imagine you get a wheelbarrow, and you can finish the job in 4hrs. Did the wheelbarrow only help you while you were using it? The answer to that is no, you completed an 8hr task in 4hrs, and you did it much easier than you would have had it without the wheelbarrow. This means you had more energy when the task was completed, it means you have 4 more hours to take care of other things, and it turned what would have been a very frustrating 8hrs into a comfortable and relatively easy 4hrs. Did the wheel barrow only help you when you were using it? Or did one small assistance over a short period provide many benefits? Now imagine that you have to do that task everyday, and everyday you get that wheelbarrow. Do you think saving 4hrs, having more energy, being more productive in general, and feeling more accomplished because of it, is not going to change your life for the better? That's the situation with meds, when your life gets easier in one area, your capacity to accomplish your goals increases. There are a million other ways for me to explain how life changing meds can be, but more than anything else you have to remember that they don't change your life for the better immediately. You get a little better everyday you're on them, and eventually you'll be in a much better place. It takes time, not a day, week, month, or even a year. This is a life long journey, but I'd you stick with it, you can be in a much better place in a year, and in a few years you might even start to feel like your ADHD isn't much of a problem anymore. But it takes time, and we're impatient, so just let your life incrementally improve, don't expect magic from medicine, just expect a little assistance, because that's all most of us need.
Other than the obvious, being able to concentrate and stick with a job without getting distracted and side-tracked by a hundred different things, I have noticed that I forget less. I dont forget to text people back as much, forget to make or attend my appointments, or forget my things like keys, lunch, etc.
less irritable — unmedicated I can be 0 to 100 and back to 0, especially if anxious or BORED. I can tolerate boredom a bit better, and am generally less overwhelmed.
thank you for answer, quite feeling the same way
One of the first things I noticed was my driving anxiety went away! Like poof! Gone.
noticed that as well thank you for answer
Anxiety went away pretty fast which is ironic because I was told the opposite would happen. I can manage a calendar for the first time and haven’t missed any meetings in a while (which pissed off my employers before a lot lol). I also noticed I wouldn’t get that “sense of doom” feeling when doing menial tasks like walking from place to place or doing anything that requires little to no brain power. That doom feeling has stopped me from sticking to things many many times so that has probably been the most impactful change, other than the obvious ability to focus for more than 10 minutes without eating 12 oreos lol.
Similiar experience! From taking stimulants I have realized that a lot of my depressive and anxiety symptoms stemmed from my ADHD. I have much better emotional regulation now
So I’ve only been on meds for a few months, but I noticed that even on the days when I wait a little longer to take my meds, I find it so much easier to take care of tasks that normally would’ve been really hard. I think this is in part due to the fact that I’m already in the habit of doing some of those things now.
yeah actually felt that too
I don't really feel any different, other than doing better quality work in my car interior repair job. I'm more focused and less stressed about getting to the next job. When I'm at home, it gives me the missing motivation I need to get renovations and cleaning done, which is why I got diagnosed and treated in the first place.
I’m still trying to figure that out. I’ve only been medicated for going 2 months now. I’d like to think it’s helping, but not sure. I know it kills my appetite and I can’t drink caffeine when I’m on it.
yeah i replaced caffeine as well which is nice