My Experience Taking ADHD Meds (& Impact On Autism) #adhd #autism

My experience of taking ADHD medication including how this impacted my autism traits. Including;
- the process of titration of ADHD meds
- the benefits I've noticed so far
- how ADHD meds have impacted me as an autistic adult

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[sacrilegiousboi]

This video describing the conflict between autism and ADHD describes a girl I knew at university. She would sometimes be bubbly, chatty and extroverted, doing a million things all at once, constantly hopping from one thing to another but always saying inappropriate things and having meltdowns and outbursts, making new friends and burning bridges, having very little emotional regulation.

Other times though she would act very quiet, closed off, introspective and anxious and very hesitant to start or say anything which was the polar opposite of how she was at other times, I’m guessing this was when she was on ADHD meds revealing her autism.

[kristenmanners]

Wow, you have perfectly explained the feeling of the 'pause point' when on ADHD meds which I never had a name for. I could never work out what caused me to feel so different as I was growing up and as a working adult, until we had our 14 year old son diagnosed with both ADHD and ASD. Since my son was diagnosed, I was strongly encouraged to seek an assessment for myself. I guess you would know my outcomes from this comment, being in my late thirties, having a successful career and a mother of six I have had a rollercoaster of emotions and self doubt since finally understanding the why to most of my trials in life. Thank you for your videos I find them so relatable and they allow my to feel that I am not alone.

[soyis_boyis]

Relate strongly to this. ADHD meds are very important to my emotional regulation. I'm able to be "more myself" by slowing down my impulsivity and choosing where to put my energy. I also noticed it reduces my bodily stress. I used to have more body pain off the meds because I stiffened up so much from stress. Also rediscovering special interests on meds bc I can finally dedicate the energy/focus to them.

[Aussieloz]

I had a similar feeling when I started methylphenidate, I was going through titration but during the postal strikes so ended up having delays between my doses at which point I discovered my impulsivity would return. I do find that the meds make the constant 'white noise' that I didn't realise I had, go away. I ended up getting nasty headaches on the higher doses though, and the Elvanse made me super anxious. I settled on a low dose, standard release methylphenidate that is often given to children. It takes the edge off, but avoids the headaches. I now also try to have a matcha latte each morning as I find this gives more stable energy release rather than normal caffeine drinks. And of course, my time of the month, nothing works at all and the world becomes a scary place. It's all a bit of a balancing act but it's amazing how even small changes can make such a big difference!

[finnmelville]

I’ve taken Ritalin most of my life, but recently made a change to vyvanse. It has honestly saved my life. My brain feels less buzzy and I have MUCH less depressive episodes. Therapy ( with my adhd and autism specialist ) has really been helping too.
Love your videos <3

[ctyson]

Your self awareness is just fantastic and it's really helping me to reflect on myself. I'm at the very start of understanding and getting a diagnosis.. So thank you so much for giving me some hope and acknowledgement about why I am how I am. Best of luck with your journey and much love. ♥️

[sarahcatley]

Hello Ella! I'm autistic with inattentive ADHD. I just started atomoxetine (straterra) 2 days ago. It is a non stimulant, non psychoactive ADHD medication. It is said to help with anxiety also. They say the longer your take it the better it works. I've already noticed my mind and body feeling calmer. I'm still tired and find myself wanting to go lay down or sit frozen staring into space ... just a little less stressed I think. I'm still running on two modes, resting or hyper focusing but I think my hyper focusing has become a little sharper and it seems as though time has slowed down a bit. I'll come back and comment in a month or so to let you know how the meds are working once my body get use to it :)

[hagridsbeardguy]

Elvanse completely changed the trajectory of my life. Was in Ritalin for a long time and the anxiety and comedown was really noticeable. I found Elvanse calms me down and unlocked a new perspective on life for me. Dosage is everything though. I’m also diagnosed ADHD Combined type I’m adulthood and have an ASD diagnosis.

[haka]

I just got my ASD and ADHD diagnosis as a 51 year old woman. I’m starting on Ritalin tomorrow. I really resonate with your thoughts and videos. I’m a little anxious about it, but your self reflections are calming me down. Thanx! 🥰

[Sethisalive]

This was wonderful to listen to as I related a lot to the autistic traits coming out while on medication(non-stimulant). Reducing my addictions(Idle games, phone scrolling) have also allowed the traits to come out as well. I see it as such a positive though because my adhd(only self diagnosed at the moment. Going through the steps) would fuel my dissociation and I'd end up doing little to nothing that accomplished anything, even finishing movies or tv shows or whatever leisure activities I normally enjoy. I suspect a large component could also be burnout but I am learning a lot still so I cannot be certain.

I also notice a dropoff over the course of the day, especially by evening, but this could also be due to taking it at the wrong time(my schedule is wonky so I don't know when to take it and am just experimenting with shifting it an hour day by day and noting differences). It's difficult to tell for sure though because my brain might just be worn out by processing a lot of recent trauma and it might not even be a dropoff so much as emotional exhaustion.

All in all, thank you. Between you and Paul from Autism From the Inside, I have found immense relief and understanding and validation through both of your experiences and frankly stunning ability to articulate it in both a technical and lived way. I'm forever thankful to you both and the others that I find randomly.

[MyASDJourney]

I was diagnosed ADHD/Dyslexic 1970... was given a short trial on ritalin but it hit me so hard I would shiver for 30 min and I don't think it helped with focus. They took me off of it and that was the end of any real support / accommodations. I think it was the undiagnosed autism that baffled everyone's attempt to understand my challenges. There were no real services then - just put me in the "slow learner's class". 2018 diagnosed ASD - have been trying vyvance - It is a trade off because it affects my sleep/relaxation. It also affected my blood pressure. It does help with concentration / focus. Looking back, I know I've been in denial or maybe its just doing whatever it takes to get through the day since it is not something you can control by will alone. It is so important we define and address our needs and not avoid/ deny them and suffer in silence. Our value as a person is not a measure of our types of challenges: This is what society would have us believe. We are doing our best with the tools we have.

[Dulcimerist]

Guanfacine and Clonidine are excellent non-stimulant ADHD medications, plus they both treat hyperadrenergic POTS right at its source by preventing sudden spikes in norepinephrine and adrenaline. Guanfacine turned my daughter's life around for the better with just a nightly dose. I take a nightly dose of Clonidine since it can also treat restless leg syndrome and migraine issues. Both medications also treat anxiety by attenuating the body's "fight or flight" panic response.

[mccannger]

ADHD and emotional dysregulation … yes, I totally agree and have been there and done that!

Meds help a reasonable amount with this. They also give me a quieter mind and better focus.

Based on my experience, keep trying different ones and doses and possibly combinations with your doctor as there should be a decent option for you. It took 8 psychiatrist sessions to get mine right, but now it’s approaching game changing levels! Feeling like a functional human being…wow! Thanks Elvanse!

[uberrapidash]

Thank you for openly talking about this! It helps fight stigma. I was diagnosed ADHD at age 29 and autistic at age 31. I also have POTS and hEDS.

I'm currently on an itty bitty tiny baby dose of Adderall immediate release that I take twice daily, which gives me more control over how it affects my POTS symptoms. In the past, I had a major surgery, and for a year after that, my body would NOT tolerate any kind of stimulant or even non-stimulant ADHD medication, so when I went back on last year, we did it this way, that way if I had a bad reaction to my morning pill, at least it would be out of my system in a few hours and I could just not take my afternoon dose.

I actually found the opposite to happen for me than it did for you--some of my autistic issues calm down when I'm medicated. I'm extremely triggered by sound, and when I'm medicated, sounds bother me much, much less!

Most of the other stuff you described is similar to my experience, though. Especially the emotional regulation.

I have the added benefit of it helping with my POTS symptoms. My POTS gives me low blood pressure, elevated heart rate, temperature dysregulation, blood pooling in my legs, dizziness and light-headedness, etc. When I am medicated, it makes all the difference. It raises my blood pressure just enough to kind of stabilize things. I can do a task in the kitchen without my feet turning bright red and hurting from the blood pooling. I don't experience pre-syncope problems when medicated (unless there are other extenuating circumstances, such as after I had surgery). I wonder if you have POTS problems, since it comes so commonly with hEDS? I've never seen you talk about anything like that, though!

There's a shortage right now and I'm not going to be able to get my meds for weeks... I don't know what I'm going to do. :/ It's not just emotional regulation and cognitive functioning that it helps me with... a lot of it is physical. I am a little distraught about it. I can't substitute caffeine instead because it makes my physical issues worse.

[graceface]

Somehow it feels like as I age, my ADHD is getting worse. Now that I'm in my 40's, trying to focus feels like I'm back in my school days trying to force myself (unsuccessfully) to do my homework. The meds definitely help me to stay more on track & focus for longer. They're like a subtle tap on the shoulder saying, hey... weren't you doing something else? Or maybe you should eat something before continuing this task? I think of it as guiderails, but I like the 'pause point' reference.

When my ADHD feels 'under control' my Autistic traits also become more prominent, so it's relieving to hear someone else have that experience, too. Thanks for sharing, Ella!

[Catlily]

I tried ADHD meds (a stimulant of some kind) years ago. I didn't notice much difference and it was definitely harder to sleep. So I went off it.

[MsSilentH]

You hit a lot of good points that also resonate with me, especially the meds actually helping with allowing me to step back from things before I get frustrated. It's also done the same thing to (what I say as possible autism symptoms since I still am looking into that possibility) overstimulation, which I had never even noticed before! This point is both positive and negative for me, as learning that some of my anxieties are actually overstimulation, allowed me to be nicer to myself and more introspective on what the trigger was, which, should have been happening with anxiety anyways, but I'm still working on that.
The negatives of that specific thing though, is noticing that it happens more often? Like you said, noticing it so so so much more! I think half of it is not being able to mask as much, which can be good, masking is exhausting for me, but at the same time, the regret of not being able to do as much as I used to is still hard to work though, and will be a long process of accepting. At the moment, since my ADHD diagnosis, which was only months ago, I felt that I am actually simultaneously struggling more but also being better at keeping myself afloat if that makes sense...

But like you, I definitely still feel the need for some tweaking, how the meds wear off is still a struggle, with the long acting dose I used to take two rounds per day, but they wore off right as I went to bed, which was actually a nightmare for sleep, the shorter acting seems more promising, with allowing me to taper off farther from bed, but still giving me the help I need through the early evening, (as long as I remember to take it mid day to avoid the rebound) but I still wonder if mine is right for me in general.

[dss]

Hello,

I am going through the process of being diagnosed for ADHD and Autism at the moment, and since it has been found at the age of 38 and has caused increased anxiety and depression. I am in a even darker place not knowing atm. reading the side effects of the drugs scares me as the side effects are leaning towards mood swings, stomach issues (of which i already have one) and anger issues which I have had more now than ever!

In 2020 I almost died and got Covid, Pneumonia and Pleurisy and ever since have had Long covid, Juggling being disabled by long covid for nearly 4 years and then having to tackle the part of me I have always hidden away from and avoided is overwhelming. I found this video and will take a deeper dive into your content!

Thank you!

[jemmadurham]

Thank you so much I needed this right now. I'm a mum to my 13-year-old son who has ADHD he has been on elvance 20mg for just over 2 months. Stopped working so put it up to 30mg for 2 weeks the 40mg for 2 weeks. It was hard the first few days on the 30mg but then was ok. But when he took the 40mg it couldn't control his anger. So we are going back to the 30mg. Was going to give up on medication altogether but I know it helps him even though they are negative when taking them sleep and food issues.

[jerichoburg]

Thanks for this video. I'm autistic with ADHD as well, and only diagnosed with ADHD two years ago. I haven't had a chance to try medication because it's not available in the country where I live, but I'm hoping to be able to try it when I'm back in the USA in 2024. This gives me an idea of what I might expect. I've been curious about how it could affect my autism, too.