Adderall For Fatigue

[dizzygirl]

Hey all.. I'm going to be starting adderal (sp??) for my fatigue.. since my insurance will not pay for provigil.. and i'm wondering if any of you have taken it for fatigue and if so what are you're experiences with it? does it help? any weird side-effects?

thanks abunch

Linda

[Rachel]

I just recently tried Adderall for the same reasons - fatigue and insurance not covering Provigil. Adderall didn't help my fatigue level, but it did help me to be a little more alert during the day. It also made sleeping at night much, much more difficult. Even with a sleeping pill I had difficulty sleeping. So for me that outweighed the benefits. Provigil worked much better.

Adderall didn't help me, but I know it does help others. I hope you will be one of the ones it helps! I didn't have any weird side effects from the med other than difficulty sleeping at night.

Rachel

[Sunfish]

adderall wasn't a great fit for me as it gave me headaches & blurry vision that was intolerable before i was able to get to a dose that provided any benefit.

BUT i have had pretty significant success(relatively speaking) with some other meds with the same intent. concerta was my "magic pill" for years in regard to its vasoconstrictive benefit (similar to midodrine) as well as it helping to combat my fatigue & cognitive difficulties. without it i don't think i would have been able to finish college nor work for the few years that i did (albeit quite creatively) after graduation. along the same lines, though not as dramatically, i now wear a daytrana patch which helps me a bit in the fatigue & cognitive/ concentration departments. without it i can't focus/ stay alert enough to read a book, watch a movie that requires any thought, etc. with it there are still many days & hours where i can't do this but there are some where i can. as you know i'm far from able-bodied, but i do better with the patch than without. it also keeps me from having to sleep for several hours every afternoon/ evening. i still need this nap at times, i.e. if i've pushed and/or haven't had enough sleep the night before, but without the patch the nap is a must, aka i'll zonk out whether i want to or not.

i know these aren't the meds you were asking about but i still thought i'd mention them as i know some have had similar success with adderall.

i've never tried provigil as it's not an option for me as it doesn't come in a non-oral form (liquid, crushable tablet, or powder that can go into my J tube or a patch, injection, etc).

good luck with the trial!

melissa

[ajw4790]

Hi,

I had thought I had recently seen a few people list on here that they were just recently trying Adderall out. I thought Rachel was and had been curious to how it worked for you (her). I can't remember who else was supposed to be trying it? Anyways...

So, I have recently started on Adderall, and have tried it now about two weeks. For myself, I find that it makes me more tachy/flutter/arrythmia's, but not frequent/bad enough to stop due to that itself. It has also increased my Essential Tremor, messed up my appetite, and am even more of an insomniac on it then "normal" me. I think I have also noticed a bit of an affect on my personality/mood, in that I am more aggressive and have more colorful language for someone who really does not normally.

I am currently trying to decide whether or not to stop taking??? Leaning towards stopping, but I have tried almost all ADHD meds, so I am trying to give it a good trial run.

Has it helped? Minimally, ADHD (concentration etc) symptoms are about the same, I am a little more alert sometimes when I take it for a short period (couple of hours). Do I feel less tired? No, probably because am still not able to sleep, sleep for long periods, or sleep well (restful). So, minimally helpful, in the long run I think for myself the side effects will out weigh the benefits.

But, everyone responds differently, for me even the way it responds to all my other meds might be an issue. I know others on the board have found it very helpful.

Hope that helps and your trial goes well!