u/emerald_stargazer

Maybe it's just me and whatever weird corners I find myself in while idly scrolling but I see... so often... people treat anxiety as “fake.”

Can it sometimes be a misdiagnosis? Absolutely! But can it be something else but still with anxiety? Also yes!

I get the misdiagnosis frustration. My ADHD went ignored/undiscovered until I was pushing 30. And I’ve tried SSRIs and they’re not my friend so I get the unhelpful medication frustrations.

To be clear, I’m in full support of second opinions if something feels wrong. I’m pro “the treatment that works for you, whatever the label.”

But it still sucks when someone seeks an assessment / treatment for the first time, no prior medications, no prior diagnoses, and hear “anxiety” and have an automatic “misdiagnosis” reaction. Sometimes they go in expecting a certain result and come back to gripe that the doctor told them it was “just” anxiety. Just. And the comments also affirm “it’s not anxiety, it’s (other thing.)”

I see this at least a lot in ADHD spaces, where someone shares what symptoms prompted them to seek treatment and they resonate with the anxiety side of my life. Often with my ADHD side too! But some symptoms fit more with GAD criteria.

And the discourse can turn into… not even being open to trying to treat that, just an automatic “Wrong.” Which can strike me less like “anxiety’s not my diagnosis” and more like they’re handwaving it away, treating it as a “lesser” diagnosis, or medical misogyny, or the 21st century version of hysteria. And when people affirm them, the intent might be to support, but it makes me feel dismissed.

There’s a high comorbidity rate, it easily could be both! I’m not saying “if you were told it’s solely anxiety then it’s solely anxiety” at ALL because yes, psychs and doctors can be wrong!! I’m more trying (poorly) to kinda just… blah… about how people inherently reject anxiety as not a thing in favour of something they view as “more serious / real.”

Was my anxiety just anxiety? Nope. So I get it. But. I’m also not treating the anxiety directly right now, more treating everything else around it to at least help. And I had a panic attack last night that caught me by surprise. It wasn’t “just” anxiety. But it was also anxiety.

IDK. Anxiety isn’t “lesser.” It can be “lazy doctor being lazy and writing a script for Lexapro” but that doesn’t mean it’s not a legitimate diagnosis, or that it’s a lesser one, or that an anxiety diagnosis is always wrong, or whatever.

Inspired by that earlier post where someone took their Concerta the first time and is in awe of the silence in the noggin'

Not trying to undermine, I just got curious! Because before I started Concerta (my first ADHD med) that was what I heard soooo many times and fully what I expected and it seems like the most common experience

Anyway so me, on 45mg, started Concerta back late April, is currently sitting here while Patio Lanterns is playing in my mind's jukebox (for god knows what reason, I haven't heard that song in years and also I hate it)

It also probably impacted my motivation, mood, task switching / initiation and executive function, way more than it did my focus (selectively, sometimes it helps!) so I think I'm just an oddball lmao

But for posts sake I'm so curious if anyone else still has a brain that sounds like a radio emitting several frequencies at once?

Context:

Pips is one of the games on the New York Times website that involves placing dominos in the correct spots on the board. For the past several months, one user has been writing and posting solve guides for the hard puzzle.

After another user posts their own guide, a dispute ensues regarding who should be allowed to post guides. Some share appreciation towards the Longtime Guide Maker (LGM) while others defend everyone's right to post

(Background) July 22: Someone shares a solution guide of their own

Mod apologizes toward LGM

> I’m really sorry you’ve been downvoted, reddit can be so fickle. Thank you for putting so much work into your guides, i don’t think you should stop something that brings joy but understand not wanting to continue after negative feedback. > If you decide to post again and are having issues please reach out to our mod mail and we’ll do whatever we can to help >> Sorry but what negative feedback? Another person posted a guide which the usual guide poster took extremely personally for some reason and created a drama. Everyone else is confused why multiple guides can't coexist and why this was bad enough to stop posting.

Follow up later that day, in which one user makes an appreciation post

One user does not share OP's appreciation

> Getting this mad over a downvote isn't normal. Does he think he has ownership over writing guides or something? >> Must have gotten one more. This seems a wild overreaction, it’s sad. >>> what did the comment say? >>>> Something like if they got one more downvote, they were deleting all their guides and never posting again.

July 23: LGM stops posting guides

Users discuss the previous day's events in the July 23 pips megathread

> Such dumb drama. He's still going to write them, but then withhold them until we all start worshipping him on our hands and knees like he is our messiah. >> I didn't catch all of it but several people stepped up (to get others to show some appreciation/support/etc.) and still he deleted them, I mean, come on man.

One user accuses LGM of reporting his posts

> this dude is also lurking and keeps reporting my comments to the mods (who apparently exist, despite never doing anything). > He got downvoted for making upset comments and then edited that comment to say that if anybody else downvoted that comment, he would quit being the guide guy ... so he then rage quit this subreddit, deleting about a dozen posts. > Then, (OP of the previous post) wrote a post basically caving into his demands and inviting us to worship the guide guy, as if he was the great and powerful Oz.

Late July: A variety of users begin to post their own guides

The next few weeks see various posters making their own solve guides for the daily hard puzzle. On July 29, LGM returns to posting solutions guides

August 11: Multiple guides posted

Users comment that one guide was taken down

> Someone already posted a guide for today but it was removed. Why? >> No idea, when I posted mine this wasn’t visible to me so must have been removed earlier - maybe by OP themselves.

The since-reinstated guide

> Why was this removed? >> [removed] >>> The below comment, somehow directed at me, is in response to me telling the mods that this one guy is getting other people's guides removed, so he can be the only guide guy. And yet I'm getting the lecture.

August 11, later: A "No Kings" reference is made

Anyone can Post here. NO KINGS.

Several users speculate on why one guide had been removed; some make accusations

> Just to be completely clear. The mods of this sub deleted somebody else's post because (LGM) told them it was spam. They didn't check to see that it was spam. They just deleted it. > Once they were informed that this had happened, they actually looked at the post and realized it WAS NOT Spam and have reinstated it. But that's not the job. That's actually a bad job. So bad job, the mods of this sub. Although this mod I'm now speaking to says moderators don't remove posts. So what do they do? Lecture me about once a week about being nice. And absolutely nothing else. >> Is it possible it was auto removed? I’ve had my posts from other subs auto removed by an automod action because it was mass reported as spam by someone in that community with a personal vendetta against me. I had to manually contact mods for a review. I think they sometimes miss automod actions/don’t double check them. >>> It wasn't auto removed. >>> Was deliberate negative action - taken by someone - who feels this sub is their Personal Turf.

Mod clarifies there was no moderator action, reinstates post

> Hello, i’m a mod here and it wasnt purposefully removed. I looked back at the logs and the only thing present to it was a report, with no mod action attached. I can see who removed/approved posts and there was no action taken. Since someone brought it to my attention the post has been approved. I promise there is no grand conspiracy to push down other user guides and i’ll be screening more carefully to make sure things arent being taken down by reddit itself

One user expresses they want LGM to see the thread

> let's get him in here so he can threaten to quit again. What was definitively proven the last time he made this drama was that he needs this far more than this needs him. Other people stepped right up and it was fine. and to be completely clear, I'm talking to you, (LGM) > You are being problematic. You do not own the guide business. >> Posting guides is obviously a full time job. You gotta schedule a post, then keep an eye on the sub to see whether others are competition for your role. If you find someone, report them and get their post removed. Act all jolly in the other comments. You wont get it man...

From one of today's guide makers

> Yo, what the fuck. I didn’t mean to usurp anybody’s place - I came into the sub, noticed there was no guide and took a swing at it to help other people. I even credited that person in the first sentence of my post.

From the other of today's guide makers

> reporting my post as spam and forcing the moderators to delete the post, and then commenting like this is very crybaby-like. I would have hoped he commented on my post and said something like "nice job; I did it this way for the record", but got the polar opposite.

EDIT: REWRITTEN DUE TO MISCOMMUNICATION ON MY END & failure to get my point across ///

Disclaimer: Disability, disorder, impairment, however you want to label it. Many commenters mentioned they don’t consider it a disability, that they’re just debilitated by it / it makes their life difficult sometimes. For post purposes I’m lumping all of these in the same bucket. For post purposes, I mean nothing more than “anything that makes it a bitch to live with.”

Disclaimer 2: Nothing about what I’m about to say has anything to do with responsibility or accountability. ADHD can often come with RSD which can cause big emotions, but we’re still control of our own actions, and it’s our responsibility to be accountable and face consequences and learn and do better. ADHD can be the reason we make mistakes, but being called out on those mistakes is not ableism, it’s not a get out of jail free card, there is no “uwu im just a girl” trump card to play. We’re adults. We have to grow up and behave like it instead of saying we should just be allowed to skip meetings and be late to work.

///

All I mean to say, is, I can’t stand the “superpower” chat, but specifically, this post is targeted toward the people who shittalk meds, who shame people for taking meds, who, any time someone mentions a way they struggle with their ADHD, kool-aid man into the conversation to say “it’s not a disability, it’s a superpower, it’s the best thing that ever happened to me, I feel bad for people without ADHD,” the people who take a borderline neurodivergent supremacy philosophy and say that the only reason they’re creative, inventive, fun, have a personality, have emotions, is because of their ADHD and think of neurotypicals as boring dull sparkless NPCs as though neurotypicals can’t be musicians or painters or artists or first responders. The people who preach that ADHD is actually how people are meant to be. Who are then in the comments of so many posts armchair diagnosing a neurodivergence based off one tiny quirk and deviation from the “husk of a human being” neurotypical stereotype.” Who don’t just mention a social model as a factor but preach a solely social model. The people who deny any drawback whatsoever and say it’s purely exclusively beneficial and any drawback is just incidental and “not the ADHD at all it’s just capitalism and only capitalism.”

Have it be a superpower. Sure. I don’t have a sense of smell and yes that’s a pain in the arse a lot of the time but it’s pretty dang great at others. Work with your ADHD. Take a positive approach. I’ll even advocate for anyone embracing it and learning to love themselves with it because as someone whose ADHD caused my depression and worsened my anxiety, learning to be okay with who I am and striving to do better has been critical to my wellbeing.

But the people who push that onto other people, who say “if you don’t like every part of your ADHD at all times that’s your fault because there’s nothing negative about it whatsoever and meds are just doctors trying to make you a compliant worker bee” who have told me outright I am abusing my medication for taking it on weekends, for taking it later in the morning so it’s still affective in the evening when I want to enjoy my hobby? Those are the people I mean. It’s dismissive.

It’s our fault when we fuck up. It’s disordering, impairing, disabling, annoying, however you want to define it. Telling people that “but you’re still responsible for you” is the right response in almost every situation.

(Edit like, 4 I think: That's different than people telling us "you're just lazy" "try harder" because punishment and shaming and acting like we just fucked around and didn't give a shit ≠ mature responsibility that acknowledges why something might have happened but rightfully pointing out we're still a part of the social contract. I don't have a sense of smell. If I got yelled at, berated, blamed, made to cry, told I was just being "lazy" for accidentally cooking with slightly spoiled milk, that wasn't chunky, was just before the expiry date, but made supper taste like shit, and someone told me I should've known better and "I can smell it was starting to turn why did you do that!" that's out of line. That's like telling someone with ADHD "you're just lazy and you'd stop being a fuckup if you tried harder." But responsibility is... me acknowledging I erred and, learning from it, yeah, doing what I do now, tasting shit before I throw it in the dish or when I had roommates, getting them to sniff. That's accountability, and something along the lines of... how ADHD can explain our actions, can disorder us, and we should take responsibility, but also acknowledge "I have to do things a different way and figure out a workaround.")

But that doesn’t mean, either, that ADHD is just the “makes you fun and passionate” neurotype with zero drawbacks. Even ignoring the social vs medical model, if someone is struggling with something, the proper response shouldn’t be “lmao there’s nothing negative about adhd you know that’s a superpower right” while shoving the kryptonite under the rug. Because stuff like that is... well, if you're insisting there's no drawbacks to ADHD and it's purely a superpower, you're kinda doing the same thing a lot of people have done to us — "you're just lazy" "it's not the adhd" "you're just a fuckup on your own"

It might only have happened because I'm avoiding something that is incredibly overwhelming, but I vacuumed for (I think?) the first time in the year of our lord 2026

Took stuff off the counter and wiped it down. Vacuumed the kitchen and the carpet and the whole apartment (except under the bed because the cat was hiding under there lmao). Didn't mop but like... at least wiped down some floor stains.

There is currently enough cat hair in my waste bin to make probably three more cats and enough seeds to sprinkle on a whole bakery's worth of everything bagels.

I am tired. I can now no longer avoid the overwhelming task I've been putting off all day.

But I vacuumed. Can't wait to do it again this time next year.

Two months on Concerta was enough for me to know what the deal is. Zero appetite. Zero anxiety. Turned into a zombie if I got no sleep. Very thirsty. Reliable wear off 11 hours in that sometimes came in the form of a 20 minute mental breakdown that felt like "all the cortisol in the world is in my body right now."

Friday night? Had an appetite??
Saturday? Woke up after a good sleep. Still had the appetite?? And then anxiety at the 6 hour Concerta mark?? No mental breakdown but there were bees in my belly for no reason.
Sunday (today)? Anxiety all day. Not thirsty. Still have an appetite. Again, good night sleep. Mental breakdown at the 10 hour mark.

And today I started Foquest which is supposed to be "Concerta but it lasts 14-16 hours" so what the hell why did it wear off so soon.

Can't even blame the med shift like I want to because the pattern clearly began on Concerta

anyway cool thank you body for having done literally nothing different but "take slightly better care of my body" and still crapping out. I like being hungry again, but the fact that hunger means "the meds ain't doing jack" is something I like less

Ugh

So after ~2 months of Concerta and the last month spent on 36mg, I'm shifting over to Foquest.

Currently I'm taking Concerta later in the day (around 11am-12pm) because taking it earlier risks a hard emotional crash off the deep end if the wear-off happens during a cognitively demanding task (which I'm often doing in the evening). Plus, I've found the earlier I take it, the more likely I am to be "too alert" when I go to bed and it's harder to get to sleep.

The crashes have severely lessened (in both how often they occur, their duration, and intensity) with each dose increase (only happened 4 times in the 4 weeks I've been on Concerta, which is great) but when given a choice between increasing up to 45mg or switching over to Foquest, it was no contest.

I'm already struggling a little bit with "intense tunnel vision and suddenly I lost my afternoon without noticing" if I'm left to my own devices having a chill day, and I don't want to risk that worsening if my dose is upped.

Foquest is very close to the same thing (still methylphenidate), and supposed to have a smoother off-ramp and also last a few hours longer than Concerta, so our thought is I won't have to hold off on taking it and choose between a productive morning or enjoying my evening, my emotions might stop driving into a lake for 20 minutes sometimes, and even on weekend sleep-in days I've already proven my ability to nap with a stimulant still active in my body,

So anyway, making the shift from 36mg Concerta to 35mg Foquest. Just curious if anyone else has shifted over (even with different doses) and how that's gone for you!

So I've been on 36mg for two weeks now. Honestly? Fab. God knows how but my "2 weeks of PMDD followed by 2 more weeks of hating myself and everyone around me" that I had even on lower doses and Wellbutrin has been reduced to 5 days. Glorious. I mean the ADHD came back with a vengeance for 2 weeks and I have a pile of dishes in the sink because I can't bring myself to empty the dishwasher, but that is a very welcome trade-off for the most emotional stable I've been in months and maybe years.

But I digress. Just wanted to gush since I'm still so happy.

The first few days of 36mg were fine, sleep wise. I've never had much problem sleeping at all. But then as I got into the PMDD era... that changed. And I've gotten myself trapped in a pattern I can't seem to break. Concerta wears off around 10-11pm. And then I get into bed, and suddenly I'm awake. And no matter what time I actually try to go to sleep, I can't. My brain's making noise again, or I can't get comfortable, or I have to pee, or I have to pee again, and then I check my phone and see it's nearly 4am and I haven't slept a wink.

And then I'm exhausted all day. When I can, I nap for an hour after work, and that's no problem. But no matter how groggy and "I can't do anything" I am in the day, my brain will be too noisy for me to sleep, even when I am tired getting into bed. It won't shut up and melatonin isn't enough to turn off the mental juke box.

I'm pretty sure it's not the Concerta making me daytime tired since this isn't a problem on weekends when I can sleep in (and drinking water does marginally wake me up, and I think water makes Concerta work better, so). Guarantee it's the "3-4 hours of sleep" making me yearn for naps all weekday.

I know Concerta can cause insomnia so it feels related. But when I check in with my prescriber again, I want to be able to bring it up without her automatically going "Concerta is keeping you awake, take it earlier in the day," since it feels more like Concerta's silencing my brain, and since I'm no longer used to constant chatter, when Concerta wears off it's impossible to ignore. (And because my number one goal of treatment was to get my evening and hobbies back, so I'm very hesitant and reluctant to give those up again because unmedicated evening means no hobbies means couch rotting means feeling blah).

Or, on the contrary, I want to be able to bring it up without me being stubbornly set in my ways if I'm thinking about it wrong.

I'm in Canada, so Foquest is an option (which my prescriber did talk about the last we met) which is longer lasting if "going to bed with my brain still quiet" is a potential solution.

But I guess I'm just wondering, has anyone anecdotally experienced the same? Insomnia, but post-Concerta insomnia? And what have you found that works?

Hey all, recently diagnosed with ADHD, had been given two PMDD diagnoses in recent months as well. So. Y'know. Super fun, of course.

I've been on Wellbutrin 300mg since November and Concerta for a little north of a month (36mg as of a week ago). I have tried birth control in the past, but before I was on anything, and it was no bueno. Just something about starting arguments just out of boredom during follicular made it clear it wasn't for me.

But now that I'm into my second luteal phase since starting Concerta and my body decided to yoink away the good mood and hope I'd had and remind me I can't have nice things, I've got a different pack of birth control pills. Because I have had it.

Honestly, so glad I found this sub, because yesterday I was musing about "but why am I still not great in follicular? Why am I only okay during ovulation?" but that pinned message here made everything click, and yeah, I think the PMDD diagnosis was probably accurate, because luteal is still the worst and I definitely get better when menses start. I think follicular is just a matter of tweaking some med stuff to snuff out my lingering regular depression, and only feels awful in comparison to the "yay! I'm cured!" I feel during ovulation and before luteal hits like a bus.

You can probably tell by my only-somewhat coherent ramblings that my Concerta is... not doing its job today and I am all over the place. Thanks, menstrual cycle.

So anyway. Concerta. Wellbutrin. About to add birth control to the mix. I guess I'm just looking for stories of anyone else who's on mental health meds and added birth control, how that's gone? I've heard mixed things, from birth control making the meds less effective, to the estrogen boost levels things out and keeps the dips at bay, and figured I might as well hear from other folks in my shoes rather than just reading whatever I find on Google!

went up to 36mg friday after 3 weeks on 27mg

had bad crashes frequently the week i was on 18mg. fewer crashes on 27. and friday night through sunday night were incredible. felt the best i had since my wellbutrin honeymoon. chill. not euphoric or in a honeymoon but just like a person

no crash. just a smooth slow descent into my normal brand of stupidity that i didn't notice until it had already happened

thought i was fixed. and i'd been more mindful of proper sleep proper nutrition proper hydration.

things were coming up milhouse and i was so glad i might actually get my life back

until last night. i could feel myself getting agitated. overstimulated by my cat wanting attention. thought i could weather it until i spent 20 minutes bawling that felt like five

and today i still feel crummy. to the point where if i didn't mark on daylio that id taken my concerta and wellbutrin id be so convinced i hadn't.

it ain't. doing. jack. i slept so well. had a breakfast that was disgustingly high in protein. drinking so much water i've spent as much time on the can as i have at my desk today

and i'm pissed. i can't think. i can't concentrate. have no desire to do anything but rot and wait until bedtime. i feel so stupid and embarrassed and ashamed and incompetent

i haven't had any anxiety on 36mg like i had sometimes on the lower doses so that's cool beans but COME ON i had several depression-free weeks and now my luteal phase decided to hit me sooner than usual and now im back on my regularly scheduled misery

cool 👍 didn't want to do my job today or feel competent at my hobbies tonight anyway

Wasn't sure if I should flag this as a question, side effect, or tips and tricks so my b if I chose wrong

But anyway, I've found every evening is a bit of a coin flip on if I'm gonna crash hard or not. At best (and most commonly), I end the day scatterbrained and discombobulated. Sometimes I'm irritable with zero patience. Occasionally I'm a sobbing nervous wreck for no reason outside of "my body is gonna burst if I don't have a release."

I FEEL like I have found that very tiny amounts of caffeine (like, in a cup of green tea) around 10 hours after taking my Concerta has helped. And making sure I stay hydrated throughout the day helps. Eating regularly helps. Sleeping well helps. I don't think it's a coincidence that yesterday I let all this fall by the wayside and ended my evening an emotional mess.

I know all this stuff is important on Concerta. But is that more for making sure it works effectively? Or is this also the key to a smooth taper off at the end of the day? Even anecdotally.

My prescriber is aware and she did emphasize the importance of sleeping eating and hydrating, and given my dose wasn't all that effective she thought upping it might help and give me some of that momentum to finish off my day strong. And if not, we're thinking of moving to Foquest.

I know the Concerta crash is very much a thing, but had anyone had them very harshly, a 15-30 minute burst of anxiety and depression before an equally sudden return to emotional stability, and all the self care stuff I mentioned above mitigated it? Anything else y'all got for suggestions on how to ease the crash?

Initial disclaimer: Not asking for medical advice; I do have an appointment with my doctor in less than a week so she will be hearing about this

But Concerta is... it's an inconsistent mixed bag for me. I've been on 27mg for two weeks, and before then, I was on 18mg for a week.

18mg, I felt no difference. 27mg almost feels like it's doing what meds aren't supposed to do, but not doing what they're supposed to do, and it's also inconsistent.

Meds aren't supposed to help with motivation? That's basically the only benefit I've gotten. I have urges to do things I've "wanted to do but can't be bothered, or I don't care about doing them anyway" and now want to do them and care about them and do them. I can feel happy and chill and zen most of the afternoon because of that newfound sense of accomplishment.

But I never got the brain quiet. I'm still scattered often. I'm talking way more and definitely gotten more annoying because of it. (Maybe because I'm getting "locked in" more often now which feels more like a negative than a benefit)

And the anxiety. Oof, the anxiety. I've always had issues with that, but now, my chest feels like a constant pit of "a swarm of bees making me want to puke." And this is one of the things where I've Googled it to see if I'm not alone, and I just get hit with a pack of "I'm afraid to take stims because I have anxiety" getting answered with "if you have ADHD, stims will get rid of your anxiety!"

I'm not having panic responses anymore. But it's constantly festering. And in the evening, I tend to crash hard. I get overwhelmed. And even though "dancing in my kitchen or cooking" gets rid of that just as well, if it hits when I'm doing a task that involves thinking, before I know it, my body's decided that sobbing is the best way to get rid of that energy.

And maybe it's just because I'm also on 300mg Wellbutrin because it's not like "evening overwhelm" is new, it was a thing with that too.

But I feel like I'm just in this STUPID grey area. Where meds are barely working and only in weird ways (great, I threw out my garbage instead of a pile. Great, I actually wanted to read for the first time in months) and I can feel the dopamine leaving my body after around 9-10 hours, so it feels like a "dose too low" situation. But the anxiety pit and crash feels like it's too high.

And maybe it's just because I'm not sleeping well. Except Concerta should be helping me sleep better. Or maybe it's just because I have a morning coffee. Except if I forgo my morning coffee, I'll be "consistently feeling like my meds are actually tic tacs." Even if coffee might be part of why I crash in the evening, I've decided it's preferable to the alternative of being the world's most useless employee with a filthy skillet on my stovetop for days.

It's not doing what it's supposed to. And everything that could be "user error" contributing to it are also things that wouldn't be an issue if it was doing what it's supposed to.

And yes, even though my doctor is gonna have the final say, I can't help but be worried that I'll be told it was a misdiagnosis. That I'll be taken off Concerta and not even switched to a different med type or have either my current doses adjusted, but that I'll have yet another SSRI thrown at me even though even at the lowest doses of all I've tried, I was an emotionless, couch rotting, demotivated, anhedonic slug who couldn't get a damn thing done but sleeping all hours of the day and grieving that I've lost the capacity to enjoy life.

Because yeah. I know meds are trial and error. But... I feel like my experience is too much of an anomaly to just be that. It can't be both too low and too high, I shouldn't be feeling squat on 18mg but my body gets wired at 27mg, it shouldn't be contributing to my anxiety, it's not supposed to give me motivation. I've been functioning better than before, knocking off my to-do list, but if these are the side effects and experiences I have... I'm just sitting here thinking "it's not ADHD, it's something else. I'm gonna get taken off Concerta and not put on anything else and lose the benefits I am getting and feel like a human earthworm while we go back to the drawing board."

Just. IDK. A vent, I guess, because after months of playing the "I figured out what's going on with me, I tried meds, yay they worked, oh no wait they stopped" game it doesn't feel great that I've likely gotten back to this place.

Hey all! I've been on Concerta for nearly 2 weeks, 7 days on 18mg and today's day 6 on 27mg!

It's been great for the "depression" that turned out to be ADHD but to not much surprise, it's looking like my generalized anxiety is its own separate thing.

I'm also on 300mg Wellbutrin, so between the two meds, it's like my body's teetering on the precipice of fight or flight. Not to an extreme, just like a background task I'll occasionally remember is there.

Exercise definitely helps alleviate some of that "on edge" feeling, same with hopping in an ice cold shower, or being productive around the house.

I've tried eliminating caffeine, but you know what? I actually feel the best on Concerta when I'm nursing my morning coffee (or, today, an iced black tea), pretty zen, content, focused, not crawling out of my skin, and it's generally around the 10-12 hour mark where I feel "oh, right, I'm anxious" the most, where Concerta is starting to exit my system and the caffeine is long gone.

Anyone else in the same boat? Just curious what you've done to manage, be it exercise (and at what time of day lol), or eating better, or better sleep, etc...? Just finding it pretty funny that it feels like "not quiet enough for my brain, nearly too much for my body when I'm stationary" and DEFINITELY funny that Caffeine is what makes the magic happen.

(Edit: my math wasn't mathing)