# What side effects did you get from methylphenidate (Ritalin)?



## Hulgil (Oct 4, 2010)

Actually, what effects did you get, period?

I had some weird depression from low dose Ritalin, but not when coming on - as soon as it kicked in. No energy. Higher doses felt uncomfortable but more like you might expect a stimulant to feel. I would like to hear other experiences with this medication.

In addition, if you were switched from Ritalin to Adderall, I'd like to hear about how you approached that (with your shrink) too.


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## crayzyMed (Nov 2, 2006)

Ritalin gave me terrible anxiety and a ton of jitters, just unpleasant, dexedrine was far better.


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## zelda123 (Oct 16, 2010)

it also increased my anxiety and made me really paranoid and frightened at night


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## Canadian4Life (Sep 27, 2010)

Ritalin is a strange drug. I;m on 60mg a day and it always hits me and makes me feel different everytime. It's amazing for my adhd and when I take low doses it is good for my social phobia. Ritalin for me has to be the I.R. form..every slow release form didn't work and caused bad anxiety. And you have to know your limit. Too much ritalin and you get paranoid, anxious and jittery and too low of a dose no effect or crabbiness. So with the right dose you can get some good effects and benefit from ritalin.


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## Noca (Jun 24, 2005)

Ritalin makes me jittery, and makes my teeth clench.


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## terra (Feb 12, 2007)

Hulgil said:


> In addition, if you were switched from Ritalin to Adderall, I'd like to hear about how you approached that (with your shrink) too.


I just asked--it was as simple as that. I mentioned that my sister was taking Adderall and it worked well for her, so I asked if I could try it out. Like literally 2 minutes later, I had an rx for it. I'm not seeing a psychiatrist right now; an advanced nurse practitioner prescribes my ADD meds. Anyway, I shouldn't have switched--Adderall does not work for me; Ritalin is much better, in my opinion. But, your results may vary--Adderall seems more popular and most people seem to do well on it.


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## Takerofsouls (Oct 20, 2010)

It really helped me, i felt great. But the comedown was scary, just horrible i never want to experience that again.


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## Polyoxymethylene (Feb 24, 2010)

I had dry mouth, and it made me a bit more social, gave me more energy, generally made me feel better. I did switch to Adderall just by saying that Ritalin was great except for the fact it wasn't helping my focus at all. Now Adderall isn't doing that either, but no dry mouth!


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## nothing to fear (Mar 23, 2005)

Ritalin made me feel kind of agitated and anxious. Other than that the usual stimulant effects.. more energy, decreased appetite, insomnia. Adderall doesn't give me that agitation but there's still the other side-effects to deal with.

I didn't really have to approach my doctor about the switch, he decided it was right for me to try stimulants for the inattentive ADD and started me on Ritalin but was okay with giving me something else if it didn't work out.


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