Also, once you find something that works, KEEP TAKING IT!!
I know thatâs such a âduhâ statement but so so many people assume the high they feel for the first few days on a stimulant that works is how itâs always going to be and itâs not. Once your brain gets used to the new ânormalâ on meds, you lose that high feeling and get to a âhey, I can actually get shit done, lookit thatâ kind of place.
It amazes me how many people never had anyone explain that to them. Iâve been on some sort of SSRI for the last 20 years so when I started Adderall I knew what to expect. I had so many people (in a group for ADHD) tell me that the âholy shit look at me go!!!â feeling would wear off and it would stop working after a week or two and I had to walk them through just how wrong they were and quite a few had no idea that that feeling isnât supposed to last long term. ðĪĶðžââïļ
I explained it like this:
Your unmedicated brain is used to operating at a 4 on a good day. It sucks, youâre all over the place, a hot mess. Then you get on a medication that works (antidepressant, stimulant, non-stimulant, whatever) and the first few days are incredible! You canât believe that this is how itâs supposed to be! Your brain is now holding steady at an 8 or 9 and you are one productive bitch! But then your brain gets used to operating at an 8 or 9 and it becomes your new normal. Itâs harder to recognize that the medication is still working because thereâs no noticeable high anymore. You get bummed because you assume itâs not working and you either request a med change or a bump in dosage. Then 8 months later youâre frustrated and depressed because youâve maxed out on the dosage of whatever med it is and you think nothing is going to work but really youâve unknowingly self sabotaged.
Because the truth is, the first dose worked perfectly, but your squirrelly ADHD brain is so used to searching for the next dopamine hit that you failed to recognize that you were able to get through the tasks you needed to just fine. You werenât hyperfocused on researching the nuances of plant breeding, you didnât spend 5 hours in executive dysfunction while staring at your vacuum, you actually remembered to thaw out chicken for dinner. You missed all of that because you were looking for that high feeling that you had at first.
So, how does one figure out if the med is working or not when you canât tell because your brain is a dopamine fiend? Personally, I make daily âta-daâ lists. Not lists of things I need to do, but lists of things I did. Before meds, Iâd have maybe 5 things on a ta-da list. After meds, Iâd have 15-20 things on my list! So it does work, even if I donât feel like Iâm on cloud 9 when I take it.
Tl:dr Your brain is a fucking liar and your medication is likely working even if you donât feel like it is anymore.
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