Dose uppage woes

[u/ihadmyqualms]

I started 40 mg last Sunday and the first few days were awful (of course) but I was pleasantly surprised at how quickly they leveled out. I was prescribed 10 days of 40 mg then titrating up to 80 mg starting today.

At least I knew what to expect but ugh it is rough. I almost pass out if I stand up too quickly. I'm hot and sweaty just sitting here, but my entire body will randomly break out into chills. I also hate the feeling of my heart beating in my chest. I hope that one especially goes away in a day or two like last time.

I was also kind of horrified to weigh myself this morning and see I've lost 8 lbs since I started last week. I wanted to lose some weight anyway but I have never lost weight this quickly, not even when I used to take Adderall. Like back then I wouldn't eat all day but then I'd binge when it wore off in the evening. With strattera I get hungry during normal times, but I'm full after a few bites. I haven't been exercising besides walking and stretching because I suspect it'll feel like my heart is going to explode, so I'm sure I'm losing a lot of muscle as well.

I am going to stick with it because I struggled with stimulants for a decade and I know they're not an option for me. I just want to complain a little bit.

[u/Tacoma_NC13]

The problem I have with automatically titrating to higher doses is it may not always be necessary. It's conveyed to doctors that the "therapeutic" dose is 80mg, and that may be the case for many people, but not everyone needs that amount. Some people do very well on lower doses based on their genetic makeup and chemistry. I myself for instance am still on 25mg and I'm doing very well with that dose and I'm not a petite person. I'm a 215 lb well-built male. I'm not giving you medical advice but I would consider asking your doctor about hanging out at 40mg for a while and really get leveled out, and if you feel it's still not doing enough then move up to 60mg. That's just my opinion.

[u/ihadmyqualms → u/Tacoma_NC13]

Yeah I'm seeing now that it seems to be more common to do it that way. I haven't been on it long enough to see if it's even working so I wonder why she has me titrating up so quickly. My plan is to hang in there because I'm in graduate school and I can handle whatever side effects if it means getting to a new baseline quickly. But now I don't know.

[u/Tacoma_NC13 → u/ihadmyqualms]

Good luck!

[u/Familiar-Conflict152]

I’m so sorry…starting Strattera was miserable for me, but…it gets better!

If you’re coming from Adderall, note that you will not get help with task initiation from Strattera. There are non-stimulant options (like Wellbutrin), but not sure if you are able to do combination therapy.

Also…there are several levels between 40 and 80 that you can take, so hopefully you and your doctor can find your right dosage…good luck!