Sunday, August 17, 2014

Concerta

Recently I said I was going to be a dad in November.  Today Claire had her baby shower and we got to reveal that we're having a girl!  I'm a lucky man.

Doesn't Claire have a gorgeous baby bump?

Changing gears now.  Last Thursday I started taking meds for ADHD for the first time in almost 8 years.  The doctor told me that since I was diagnosed as a child it was a lot easier to start me on medication again and prescribed me Concerta, a time-release form of ritalin.  A lot fewer hoops to jump through I guess.  We talked about my weight as well.  He said one side-effect of Concerta is weight-loss and ritalin was actually used as a weight-loss drug, so we decided to wait until I'm acclimated to it and reassess the next time we meet.

So I went down to the pharmacy and got my prescription filled.  The next morning I started my first day of being treated for ADHD.  Here are some things I noticed:

I talk more on meds.  A LOT more.  Faster too.
Having ADHD and taking meds doesn't make the ADHD go away, it just makes some parts of your brain work faster to keep up.
I can finish a task.
It bothers me more when a task isn't completed.  I've been compelled to finish some things on my to-do list.  I also pulled out the oven and cleaned underneath it today, so there's that.
I feel jittery a lot.
I have trouble sitting still and not doing anything.
I have it on good authority that I'm more coherent when telling stories.
I have a much harder time realizing I'm hungry.

That last one might be just what I need to develop a healthy relationship with food.  Normally I have this compulsion to eat.  I can't stop eating until I'm stuffed.  It's like I don't have a shut-off switch.  Once I've started eating the urge to keep going is so overwhelming that I can't stop shoveling food into my face until I'm about to burst.  Since I started taking meds, I haven't snacked at all.  I have to learn to recognize other signs that I'm hungry in order to make sure I eat and stay healthy, but the compulsion to binge seems to be gone.

Now, I know it's early yet, but I think this is a good start.  I feel like this is how people who have healthy relationships with food feel.  I'm going to try to use this to develop good diet and exercise habits.

Hell, maybe I'll even be blogging more.

No comments:

Post a Comment