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Are there ways to cope with side effects of stimulant medications?

6 Answers
Last Updated: 07/06/2020 at 1:24pm
1 Tip to Feel Better
United Kingdom
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Psychotherapist

I have been through a lot in life too, which helps me to be able to empathize with situations, thoughts and feelings that we have. Sometimes, it's not easy just being human.

Top Rated Answers
sillyllama
November 16th, 2016 1:02am
YES!!! I've been taking stimulant medications for about 14 years now and I've found some good ways around the horrible side effects. The meds effect everyone differently but I often experience a loss of appetite and sometimes I get easily annoyed with anyone that is distracting me from whatever I'm doing. Coping with loss of appetite was a gradual processes. Everyday, I would eat my meals at the normal times but I would only make myself eat as much as I could handle and I would eat small snacks throughout the day whether I felt hungry or not. Each day, I would eat a little more at meal times and a little less during other times in the day. It's a process of making sure your stomach doesn't shrink and teaching your body when it needs to be fed. As far as being easily irritated, I've learned to tell my friends when I need my "me" time and take time to be by myself until I feel ready to be around people again. Hope this helped!!
BeingThatOneGuy
October 20th, 2016 2:34pm
Depends on what the side effects are. Most oft them keep you from doing certain things like eating orsleeping. Som may trigger aggressions or sadness. When I took my ADHD Medication I developed an eating and drinking disorder. So I always would have to force myself to eat and especially drink, because if I didn't I would just fall unconcious from dehydration. That is e.c. how you make it not that bad. Maybe you could ask your doc if there is any medication that eases the side effcts.
DrMaelisaHall
February 6th, 2017 2:33am
One of the best ways is to track your side effects throughout the day, along with things like your sleeping and eating patterns. You may find that some environmental things (like what or when you eat) impact the effects of the medication. Then present this info to your doctor so you can discuss whether you may need to adjust the dose (sometimes a tiny tweak is all that's needed!), try another medication, or change some daily habits.
AnimalLover90
February 26th, 2017 10:56am
Try taking them early in the day. Preferably when you wake up. If you wake up after 10, set your alarm for 9 am and take your meds. Cut out caffeine. Caffeine is a stimulant and you don't want 2 stimulants working together. Drink lots of water. If you don't feel better after a week, contact your Dr and they may either want to change your meds or your dosage.
softukulele
August 27th, 2018 2:47pm
Choose something creative, like drawing, character creation, world building, writing or playing an instrument to help channel all that extra energy. Picking up a new instrument is a personal favorite as you also learn a new fun skill. It's also just a lot of fun to channel your energy into something healthy, positive and creative. If you are more of the intellectual type then learning a new area, if your science-minded try learning about coral, if your a mathy type try creating a mathematical proof that 1=2 (its a lot of fun). Bullet journaling is also a very popular strategy Push yourself and get creative! Start thinking of cool strategies that may work for you!
MelodiesUnheard88
July 6th, 2020 1:24pm
hey there, I am not a doctor but I do have ADHD. Iv been told that if stimulations make you restless or cause you bad side effects then its not for you. it has to make people with ADHD feel more comfortable and calm them down since they are impulsive and they have lots of thoughts. there are some other medications for ADHD other than the stimulations. they can be effective with some people. and if you mean other side effects like losing appetite for example you can set a time for eating every meal and there are also some medicines and natural recipes to get your appetite back. and at the end there is no way you can totally avoid side effects but you can learn to deal with you have of course