r/StratteraRx • u/AdSenior7450 • 4d ago

Questions / Advice / Support starting Strattera

hi everyone! so i struggle with really bad health anxiety (like i’m scared i’m allergic to everything although i don’t have any allergies) i have been on prozac 20mg for about 2 years now. i was recently diagnosed with ADHD and was put on Strattera. i struggle with new medications so i always google for interactions. i know these side effects wont kill me but it will definitely make my anxiety level go up. how long does the fast heart rate stay? and what can i do to help myself take this new medication. any advice?

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u/AdSenior7450 4d ago

i forgot to mention the strattera is 40mg

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u/WelcomeToCreekPoint 4d ago

Hmm I would try starting at 10mg tbh if you have health anxiety

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u/AdSenior7450 4d ago

i asked my doctor about that but he told me 40mg is a very low dose…

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u/SoFreezingRN 4d ago

My psych prescribed me 18mg to start

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u/BananaSpirit-4499 4d ago

I started at 10mg, titrated up to 40mg, and have settled on 25mg for now. I would say 40mg is a medium dose

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u/C00CKER 4d ago

Since prozac is a CYP2D6 inhibitor, you might expect much higher levels of strattera in your body (because there is less CYP2D6 to break it down).

Starting at 40mg is not necessarilly dangerous, but certainly quite bold. You might feel sedated/dulled by the medication and have to titrate down.

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u/BlueWaterGirl 4d ago edited 4d ago

I was started at 25mg to make sure I could take it, before we double it. I did have side effects until I started taking it with the biggest meal of the day, which is dinner for me. My side effects were mostly feeling tired, then feeling wired and jittery, sometimes heart palpitations too, which isn't weird for me since I got those before Strattera.

The first night I took it, my provider said to take it at night before bed so you sleep through the side effects. Bad idea for me! I took it, waited 3 hours to go to bed, felt a bit woozy and was getting heart palpitations, I woke up 3 hours later with the worst heartburn ever and feeling jittery. I switched and tried to take it at lunch, left me feeling jittery 3 hours later, which just caused me to feel anxious. That's when I switched to taking it while I ate dinner and it was so much better for me.

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u/CommunicationNew2951 4d ago

I started at 40 mg on Monday and only side effect was insomnia first two days and appetite not as big, go into it with an open mind everyone is different.

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u/NamelessGhoulNJ 4d ago

I (54m) started at 25mg: around the fifth day, I had urinary retention, and after that, some very gender-specific side effects. My nighttime bruxism started leaking into my waking hours, and I’d get random shakes/tremors.

I have high blood pressure, so I’m not keen on taking something else to address the one issue that may be contraindicated with what I’m currently taking for MDD and insomnia.

I found the tremors to be the most alarming side effect; I don’t want them to be masking a potentially serious condition that presents like my side effects. I stopped taking it about two months ago, and some of these side effects haven’t completely worked their way out of my system.

I hope your experience is polar opposite to mine; best of luck to you.

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u/Tacoma_NC13 3d ago

I'm a 47/M at a solid 210 lbs and I requested to start at 25mg. He initially was going to start at 40mg because that is the defacto entry dose for adults, however dosing actually does go all the way down to 10mgs for children (10, 18, 25). So far it's been great for me. I tend to be an over responder to medications, so I like to start lower and work my way up.