RITALIN Reviews (METHYLPHENIDATE HYDROCHLORIDE)

Average Rating: 3.4 (214 Ratings)

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 CNS, MISCELLANEOUS    DEA Schedule II   

 Type: Rx Drug

  

RITALIN  (METHYLPHENIDATE HYDROCHLORIDE):  This medication is used to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder - ADHD. It works by changing the amounts of certain natural substances in the brain. Methylphenidate belongs to a class of drugs known as stimulants. It can help increase your ability to pay attention, stay focused on an activity, and control behavior problems. It may also help you to organize your tasks and improve listening skills. This medication is also used to treat a certain sleep disorder (narcolepsy).    (Sources: U.S. Centers for Medicare Services, FDA)

  

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Key to Ratings: 1=LOW (I would not recommend taking this medicine.)
5=HIGH (this medicine cured me or helped me a great deal.)

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RATING  REASONSIDE EFFECTS FOR RITALINCOMMENTSSEXAGEDURATION/
DOSAGE
DATE ADDED
 
 3  Adult ADHD I am on a generic form and it is a short lived medication. When I take too much I am too focused and almost confused. I can't stand having to take my medications and remember when. I want to try time released..but not sure how that will go. I would like some comments on that. I have dry mouth, weight loss...have to actually force myself to eat. I have blurred vision...It has changed my life in so many ways, but I have an addictive personality and take too much on purpose sometimes I think...then I want to drink alcohol..which is a mess. So, I want to be able to have a medication I can't mess with, but unsure if it will be beneficial. I can't stand the come down effects. I am so wired when it begins to leave my system..do you feel that with time release? How long does it last? F 36 3 months
11/29/2006
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 3  Adult ADHD I am on a generic form and it is a short lived medication. When I take too much I am too focused and almost confused. I can't stand having to take my medications and remember when. I want to try time released..but not sure how that will go. I would like some comments on that. I have dry mouth, weight loss...have to actually force myself to eat. I have blurred vision...It has changed my life in so many ways, but I have an addictive personality and take too much on purpose sometimes I think...then I want to drink alcohol..which is a mess. So, I want to be able to have a medication I can't mess with, but unsure if it will be beneficial. I can't stand the come down effects. I am so wired when it begins to leave my system..do you feel that with time release? How long does it last? F 36 3 months
11/29/2006
 3  Adult ADHD I am on a generic form of Ritalin. I feel that I am a very intelligent person. Yet, in my past I have got a lot of great jobs and was in school for my masters-I always have failed at it all. I feel normal for the first time in my life. I can do what I saw other people doing all the time. I can do the things that people I envied are doing. At this point I can think, I can concentrate, I can listen. I can sit through whole meetings actually paying attention. I don’t feel like I use all my energy just managing my own crazy brain and behavior through the whole day coming home exhausted and full of anxiety. I used to feel like I had cobwebs filling my brain. Now, it is clear. I don't avoid conflicts, I can work through them because I have time to think now. Even though I am doing well, I have a hard time feeling like I am doing anything right now because I have failed for so long. I actually am aware now of the crazy out of control feeling I used to feel all the time when I am F 36 3 months
11/29/2006
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 3  ADHD dry mouth, cold, back aches, hard come down I love the way ritalin makes me finally concentrate and get my life in order. However, it lasts about two hours strong and then I need to take another pill. I feel weird once it starts to leave my system. I really have a lot of accomplishments from the drug, however, I have a hard time feeling aware finally. I have been so crazed for so long. I have to take 5mg. every 3 hours to have the right effect. I wanted to go on the time release because of over-dosing but I know I will have the come down and not be able to control that. It is good to finally feel on earth. I just wish it was easier to do so. F 34 2 months
11/13/2006
 4  ADD sleeplessness. as i am up at 2 o clock in the morning right now. slight rebound when ritalin is wearing off. i often find myself pondering life and being more introverted 3 to 4 hours after i take it. loss of apitite. sometimes jitters and anxiety. i think the anxiety is coupled w/ the sleeplessness. replaying the day in my mind as i try and sleep. works! i was put on ritalin as a boy, i was tested extensivly and diagnoised with ADD in 3rd or 4th grade. i took ritalin all throughout highschool and it helped me concentrate more on my studies. went off it my sophmore year of college and my grades fell. i am taking again now but irregularly. I only take it when i need 3-4 hours of focus time. e.i., classes, studying. i can study for a few hours and get alot done now that i'm back on ritalin. M 20 6 years
8/30/2006
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 5  ADD Dry mouth, loss of appetite I've been very happy with this medication. I'm able to focus and I've found the side effects minimal. It's obviously not for everyone, but for many of us, it's a godsend. Don't believe the propaganda by the anti-ritalin crowd. Try it yourself with an open mind, remembering that it may or may not work for you or your child. If it doesn't, move on. That doesn't make the drug bad, it makes it bad for you personally. M 39 10 years
7/12/2006
 1  ADHD The popular ADHD drug Ritalin used by millions of Americans has been linked to linked to heart attacks, strokes, hypertension and sudden deaths. M 29
6/30/2006
 5  ADHD, inability to focus First noticed some palpitations, but was being monitored by heart doctor. Palpitations have since ceased. A little jittery at first, but not in a bad way .. it made me move, which helped me accomplish more! Wonderful. I can remember being out in the garden trimming hedges and thinking, "This is the way I want to feel!" Not stoned or hyped, just happy to be doing what I was doing and not totally tired or distracted as usual. In recovery 9 years, I won't abuse Ritalin - or anything else - I had problems at first with taking a mood-altering substance, but worked it out through a therapist. Now see it as similar to insulin for a diabetic. It has definitely worked for me and, as a bonus, has reduced my social anxiety ... instead of trying to get out of social situations, I actually don't resist them at all and enjoy them while there! Wow! After three months, I'm finding that I might be developing a tolerance as the effects are not as strong, but am working through it with my psych to tweak the amounts. F 51 3 months
6/14/2006
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 1  depression, panic attacks no sex drive, weight gain, people told i have changed It messed up my brains I wasn't depressed but I was acting like real mental Feeling like they put some machine inside of my brain which thinks for me. It is really scary I tried a lot of antidepressants but they never solved the problem. That is what helped me: neuroscience test (go to neuroscienceinc.com and get information about their test and products), book "Feeling Good" by David Burns (until you find all your silent assumptions (when you read this book, you will understand what I am talking about) which cause you depression you will never get out from it, this book will help to do this. Targeted Ammino Acid Therapy (TAAT), cranial electrotherapy stimulation, deep breathing exercise – 3 times a day (do it when you are anxious and have panic attacks, also while doing it, imagine yourself as you wish you wanted to be), special diet for depression (really helps for mood swings), day light lamp, hot and cold shower, daily exercise, meditation, keeping schedule, acupuncture St. John’s Wort - 9 pills a day, Red clover - 6 pills a day, Omega 3, Calcium, B-complex. F 36 4 weeks
5/10/2006
 3  ADHD Tremors are something i've always had very very slightly, however, with the addition of Methylphenidate, they worsened very quickly. As well, with my bipolar depression, it made me feel far more suicidal. I wouldn't say to not take it; it can be helpful, as long as you tell the doctor about side effects you experience (something i didn't do). With my ADHD, it only worsened the hyperactivity, but it did help me concentrate. M 16 3 months
5/9/2006
 5  ADD nervous, shaky, weight loss Helped my concentration a great deal. F 33 2 years
5/3/2006
 5  Depression Helped me concentrate and calmed me down. Required willpower and I would have thought it would not help chaotics. Only required occasional doses. Bit of strain to take it every day, only when I needed something done. A "pick me up". Illegal and not used by Doctors in the UK. M 24 30 days
3/31/2006
 3  Inability to concentrate/focus Severe headaches at times, some loss of appetite, currently suffering from severe abdominal pain. I'm very afraid of this medicine, my son seems to have all side effects symptoms, his abdominal pains are becoming more frequent lately. I say I'm scared because we take the generic and have been on 20 mg long acting since we started, I have cut this pill in half and still get the same results - how strong is that. I even tried giving him a fourth and still get the same results. I chose the generic because his loss of appetite is not as bad BUT these side effects are really making me re think this. I've already complained to the maker of this drug and have insisted they continue research on this drug. I'm taking my child back to the doctor for more test to make sure this medicine is not damaging him in anyway. It does help him in school but side effects weigh heavier than benefits. We have tried Stratera and Metadate, Stratera did not work and Metadete side effects were too strong. M 9 3 years
3/6/2006
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 3  Adult ADD euphoria, loose stools, gas, physical and psychological addiction, depression and scary withdrawals on the days I don't take it Ritalin is very helpful for helping me pay attention to my tasks, my dosage is 10-20mg/day. I always take my ritalin with a large meal to lengthen the absorption time in an attempt to avoid addiction. My doctor reccommended I only take ritalin on days I really need it to avoid addiction. I need it pretty much every day to get things done, and on the days I didn't take it I began having withdrawal symptoms just like a hard core junkie would have: couldn't rest, couldn't sit still, I was insane and unable to do anything but pace and lay down and pace and lay down. I was very scared, the only thing I could do to stop the withdrawals was to take a ritalin. I've been methodically reducing my dosage, took 5mg/day for 2 months just to stave off the withdrawals and have just now been able to not take ritalin. I'm disappointed because the drug does help me with my attention deficit, but I don't want to be addicted, so I guess I'll just have to find other ways to cope with my ADD, wish me luck. F 30 1 years
2/26/2006
 4  ADHD Extreme sleepiness at first and depression upon hitting puberty We took me off Ritalin when I was about 11 because my mother was seeing depressive symptoms upon me entering puberty. However, before that it worked beautifully and wonderfully. Don't dispare! Take the time to get the dosage and/or cocktail right. F 18 7 years
1/10/2006
 3  Severe ADHD (combined-type) Nothing adverse, other than extremely quick onset...feeling of effectiveness...and extremely short period before come down (the worst kind of come down I have experienced from any ADHD Stimulant med.) I took as much as 60 mg, at least once a day, and found that the anxious and depressed side effects outweighed the genuine (2 hour long and then another 3 for come down) benefits. Other ADHD meds have been and are MUCH more tolerated as far as I go. M 22 1 months
1/8/2006
 3  Depression In exactly one hour, a 10 mg. tablet would "awaken" my brain and enliven my body, but the effect lasted for no more than an hour, often less. My doctor increased the dosage from 30 to 40mg., then from 40 to 80 mg. But tolerance soon mimized the drug's effectiveness, so that 80 mg. was of no more benefit than the 30 mg. I'd started with. Tolerance and addiction are both problems, along with fatigue (within one hour after taking a 10-20 mg. dose). Also, I did not have stomach pain prior to taking this drug and Adderall, which preceded Ritalin and acted very much the same. M 65 5 years
1/4/2006
 2  ADD none Totally bummed that no ADD med I've taken so far as made a dent in my ADD symptoms. This one is no different. F 51 1 years
12/30/2005
 1  ADD Neverousness, jitters, convulsions, insomnia, anxiety, sudden urge to urinate, suicidal thoughts. Lets give a 10 year old kid who can't concentrate amphetamines. Great idea. I was on this drug from the ages of 9 to 14. Probably the worst years of my life. When I complanied to the perscribing md, he put me on the extended release version. Thanks doc. Please do not give this drug to your children because they are not doing well in school. I was so nervous I started smoking when I was 14 and quit immediatly after I stopped eating this crap. My life and performance improved 100% after I refused to take this garbage any longer. I credit this drug for my current anxiety disorder, and manic episodes. On the positve it made me never want to take speed ever again M 27 5 years
12/12/2005
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 5  Adult ADD headaches, abdominal pain, insomnia, occasionally speediness, initially very groggy as dose wore off but only for about fifteen minutes then evened out. Started 2 weeks ago, take 10mg @ 3-4 hours. Taking generic brand. I am 40 and have struggled to hold jobs all my life. Very bright, very hard time studying. Always saw it as a character issue. Got sober 15 years ago. Very, very happy in sobriety but very frustrated with unbelievably poor memory, concentration, emotional lability, very low energy. Advancing professionally, inadequacy of behavioral tools (time management, lists, et al) reaching crisis point; friend intervened, suggested I see doctor for diagnosis. Ritalin has changed my life. Am very scared of potential for addiction but cannot overstate how NORMAL i feel for the first time in my life. I can do what I see other people doing all the time. I do feel speedy sometimes which scares me. Dose total @40mg daily which is pretty standard. Goes against much I am taught in recovery but at this point I have found I have to make up my own mind on many issues (not alone, but solely responsible for decisions) and have been F 40 16 days
11/17/2005
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