Greetings, fellow ADHDers!

These last three years have been a shit show, that led to the simple conclusion: Medication sucks (for me).

I’ve been through at least 8 Non-Stims and 3 Stims. The only Medications that worked for me was Adderall (but the anxiety it induced was unbearable) and Straterra (but I’m of the lucky few who have Urinary side effects). My Psychiatrist tried to balance it out with Zoloft and other similar medications but the side effects whacked me out so hard, it resulted in a Misdiagnosis of Bipolar Type 2. (Two weeks after i stopped taking all meds, all side effects subsided and my emotional state stabilized.)

Now, Im terrified of Medication. A lower dose of Adderall would conceivably help, but I dont like the health risk its impact on my cardiovascular system could have, and I have a genetic history of heart disease.

In conclusion: Medication isn’t for me, and I need some tips of managing symptoms and depression related to ADHD symptoms. Life is HARD.

Thank you

  • 𝑔𝑎𝑙𝑎𝑥𝑖
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    1 year ago

    I’m not the person you responded to, but I’ll throw my hat in with them and say that running helps my mental health too! I’ve had a terrible history with exercising consistently, but I’ve been running at least a couple times a week for over a year now and the thing that helped a lot was getting away from “my goal is to run X number of days” and focus on rather “my goal is to make the idea of running less painful.” I didn’t want to get super active, I just wanted to lower the bar for action so that it was something I would continue to want to do. I never shame myself for not going, it’s always an open choice for myself to help me feel better, and I let myself even just “go for 60 seconds” or “down the block and back.”

    And one thing that helps a lot is if you can figure out a time of day that works the best for you. I have a harder time going on weekends because I normally run during my lunch at work. On the days I don’t run, I walk, because I sit a lot at work and it drives me mad to spend lunch sitting around too. Plus running is a lot more fun if it’s literally taking you farther away from responsibilities, lol. Also, if you tend to do better forming habits with the buddy-system, don’t be afraid to look into trying to use that as a motivator too! :D