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Thanks for mentioning that not everybody responds well to Ritalin. I was medicated with it while in grade school, and it was not pleasant; the school nurse would check my mouth to make sure I took the pills each morning, because I would spit them out otherwise. To this day, I am not interested in taking medication for my mental health.

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Ritalin in the 90's was pretty brutal for me too - when I was first put on it it was a big morning pill and I think two separate afternoon boosters - this meant that I was constantly cycling between overly sedate, level, and apathy - but I've found that switching over to a single XR pill has helped out, I think I've also benefited from being able to clump my active hours according to my own schedule so that I can be productive semi-reliably and sort of trail off in the evenings.

If you're able to get by without it then good on you - but I thought I'd mention that things have improved somewhat.

I can't take Ritalin. I get mood swings and suicidal ideation. Adderall, however, changed my life. Have you tried other medications?

I also find that a vegetarian diet, low in carbs helps a lot for me. But I can' t keep to it very well without the adderall unfortunately.

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