I have been on dexedrine for 3 weeks for adhd but the side effects have been intense.
I can't get any sleep, my heart is often racing at rest, I have headaches and nausea. I can't see my psychiatrist again for some time so I saw a doctor who just told me the side effects will go away after a few weeks as my body adapts to it. But that was two weeks ago and I am still taking a relatively low dose of 20mg a day that hasn't given me any benefit because whenever I increase the dose the side effects get intolerably worse.
Did anyone else experience anything like this?
I'm almost ready to give up on this medication, should I stick it out?
They don’t. You need to alter your dosage or switch to a different medication but many stimulants are similar in terma of side effects but you might have better luck with a different one.
Yeah the inability to sleep is unlikely to be different after switching meds. Same with the heart rate. The headaches and nausea are more unusual though, so changing to a different medication might actually do something for those (and it's possible that they will indeed go away after a while).
My personal experience suggests that the sleeplessness (along with any lack of appetite you may have) is not going to go away like your doctor suggests, though. When I was put on stimulants as a child, my parents complained about the sleeplessness, which led to me being prescribed a downer for before bedtime.
The really bad ones 3 days, the bad ones a week, after 2-3 weeks most were gone.
Do talk to your doctor if there are problems esp cardiac ones though. I measured my pulse in the morning and when i felt nauseas (like 2-3 measurements a day) and we adjusted dosage (but it was higher than yours). People are different and doctors can tell stuff we can't.
What protocol did the doctor and you mentioned in terms of dosage? My doctor also gave me some meds against side effects (like sleep problems and heart frequency). Also we ensured to take the medication at precisely the same time and for the one I took in the morning so sleep would be easier.
Best wishes CyberSyndicalist!
Try the lowest dose and work your way up first to see if you can find a dosage with bearable side effects then determine if you're noticing any benefits. You could also try some medications to try and manage the side effects, alpha/beta blockers for the heart, and then maybe something for sleep. Don't be afraid to communicate your thoughts/wants with your practitioner, a lot of times it seems like they really do the bare minimum and its up to you to fill in the gaps, even going so far as to do your own research to figure out what might work for you.
That sounds pretty bad. I don't remember ever having side effects like that tbh, but it has been years. The only side effect I got is dry mouth, and that never went away, I just chug water.
