r/Atomoxetine

This medication has been life changing. If I just stopped taking it for a month, my life pretty much falls apart. I still have to put in effort but it takes less energy.

Before (without Strattera), making the bed, doing homework, going to work would’ve been. Would’ve wiped me out.

Now (with Strattera): grocery shop, do laundry, make appointments, go off schedule, get some homework done, meal prep. I still have energy left

BUT: I still sleep terribly, I have sweats at night, my heart rate is about 10 BPM higher, I have erectile dysfunction, and I feel empty sometimes.

Hi. I’m at 60 mg and I feel like I need coffee 3 times a day to avoid crashing and unproductivity. Anyone else? This includes my morning coffee, and then 2 more coffees to avoid a crash around mid day and then late afternoon.

Is this a sign of needing to increase dose, or that I need a combination of meds? I’m asking since I find my doctor (not a psychiatrist, as I don’t have access) tends to be a bit passive in our appts so I like to try inform myself so I can suggest ideas or ask about different approaches.

I think the plan is to keep increasing and do you think increasing to 80mg should resolve this or that I need something else ?

Has anybody taken a stimulant with Strattera?

Backstory: I was dx’d with anxiety in early 20’s and have been on 100mg of Zoloft. Last year I got an ADHD dx and started on Strattera. I feel like my anxiety is basically gone, but I still can tend to feel such executive function overwhelm and some dysregulation.

Would adding in a stimulant help? Or upping any of the doses?

I’m on 80mg of Strattera.

I’m trying to find out whether anyone else has had a similar experience with atomoxetine/Strattera.

I started very low-dose atomoxetine (5-7 mg) and soon afterward developed a very specific sensation I had never experienced before: pressure behind my eyes and in my head, a kind of “veil” or thickness in my thinking, light and screen sensitivity. It didn’t primarily feel like a headache or anxiety.

I stayed on atomoxetine for about 9 months and stopped more than a year ago. The symptoms improved after I went off but never fully disappeared. Every morning, about an hour after waking up, the sensation starts. I feel pressure or a weighted sensation behind my eyes and light sensitivity. Screens and attemps to focus seem to make it worse. Occasionally I also experience eye spasms. The symptoms can improve with deep breathing or relaxation techniques, but they can come back.

A psychiatrist recently suggested that this might be an atypical migraine disorder and that the timing with Strattera could be coincidental. I’m pursuing neurology/headache evaluation, but I’m curious whether anyone here has experienced anything similar.

In particular: Did you develop head or eye pressure, light sensitivity, brain fog on Strattera? Did it continue after you stopped? Did anything help?

Does anyone have any experiences with taking these two meds together?
I’ve recently been prescribed both. I have started with agomelatine and am going pretty well on it at 25mg, although I would say my critical thinking and memory isn’t great (1 week in).
I would also like to hear from anyone who has experienced the sexual side effects of Strattera. I’m yet to start taking the med but have heard some negatives. I am starting on 40mg.