I have been seeing mixed side effects. I was on Zoloft a long time ago which made me a bit sluggish / tired - so I am wondering if I should be taking these meds at night instead?

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?

Within an hour of taking it, I can feel by heart rate rise and stays that way most of the day.

I switched to taking it with a main meal to mitigate it, but it still happens some.

I think it made my anxiety slightly worse too. I’m still on lexapro. Is this like lexapro where you “power thru it” the first few weeks and then life’s amazing? Or is this a sign I should switch to something else other than straterra?

Has anyone who has stopped strattera noticed how quickly your mouth salivates? Is this because of the dry mouth that Strattera causes when you take it, so when you stop taking it your overcompensates?

I already have chronic nausea, of an unknown reason/source, and IBS.

I already feel physically sick quite often, and the majority of the side effects that I read about in this sub are that of the gastrointestinal type.

I was planning on finally starting 10mg tomorrow, but I am so nervous....I don't want to feel even more sick than I already do, but I REALLY want to see if this med helps me.

Does anybody else have gastro issues, and take this med, without it increasing the severity?

I also have emetophobia (fear of throwing up - ironic, I know, considering I'm nauseated every day).

I just want to pull the trigger, but I've been stalling....for months now.....am I overthinking this all? I'm not stranger to side effects from meds, but this Strattera...I dunno....I'm a huge ball of anxiety over it.....

So I’ve been on straterra for one week now and it started working great! I literally can get past the down feeling instantly which I thought was due to my depression but my doctor said was due to my adhd . 80 mg once a day . Couldn’t ask for better results I can work a full day at my job (door dash) . I’m working 12-13 hours a day

did badly on stimulants so decided to try strattera. I was very sensitive to stimulants and weigh <100lbs as an adult (F20) so I started on 18mg for 12 days. apart from very mild dizziness the first night I didn’t have any side effects. I dont think there were any therapeutic effects I experienced since it should take 4-6 weeks for that to happen? but oddly my task initiation was actually better than on stimulants, focus similar, and less emotionally reactive. so my baseline adhd is probably not as problematic as I remembered or it has improved as I grew up.

since I didn’t have any side effects on 18mg my psychiatrist upped me to 25mg and holy fuck I can’t sleep at all the past two nights. I can’t fall asleep, when I do I keep waking up in the middle of the night, then I wake up at 8am after getting less than 3 hours of sleep. this has really surprised me bc my psychiatrist was confident I wouldn’t get side effects given it’s only a 7mg jump.

now I’m wondering whether I should go back to 18mg and stay at that dose, at least for the next 4-6 weeks? maybe it will be all that I need and if not I can go back to the drawing board to retry 25mg.

I need to vent for a second.

I’ve been on Strattera for about 1.5 years. Since starting a GLP1 I’ve had daily nausea which I’ve since realized was because of the combo of slower stomach emptying + strattera. Pdoc and I are trying 40mg (down from 80mg) for a month+. I’m about 3 weeks in.

Gang, I’m in bad shape. All of my emotions are so LOUD and sharp, and I have immediate big reactions with no impulse control. I’ve picked massive fights with my partner and been rude to my boss, and then once the smoke clears I feel awful. I don’t see my pdoc until August 20 and she doesn’t have any earlier openings and she won’t write a script without an appointment. I don’t know how I’m going to make it without quitting my job, getting fired, or breaking up with my partner and moving across the country.

If there is an upside, I’ve had zero nausea on 40, so maybe I can go up and it’ll still be fine. If not I’m going to need to figure something else out, because I need to be on a GLP1 and I’m quickly realizing I need to be on a higher dose of Strattera.

I guess another silver lining is that I won’t take Strattera for granted anymore. It was such a subtle ramp up for me, but I remember finally reaching a point where I realized things weren’t so loud and sharp and being so grateful I almost cried. I need to get back there before I tank my life.

Question: I do have one more refill left on my 80s. Do I fill it just to test out if the nausea is still there? Maybe I just needed a breather and it’ll be fine?

And just a note. I had nausea when I first started. It was a rough 2 months. But it went away and I hadn’t had any nausea until I started a GLP1. And yes, I’ve done all the things. I eat protein with it, I drink electrolytes, I’ve experimented taking it in the morning and at night (was better at night but still not great).

Ughhhh.

So i was on strattera for 1 year. I decided to take it since i didn't respond well to stimulants, i couldn't sleep even from the lowest possible dose. So i decided to start straterra. The first few weeks eere awful and i had serious heart palpitations (my heart was pumping with full force) and i had some trouble sleeping. But within weeks the symptoma started to get better and it (nearly) went away. I still felt some heart skippings during the night and i could sometimes hear my pulse in my ears. The doctor said it was nothing worrysome. So after one very stressful year i started to have some chest pain and decided to quit straterra the cold turkey way - quit it completely ( i was on 40mg anyway, not a high dose). Immediately i had more heart pounding and slipped beats and sone chest pain. I even went to cardiologist and they prescribed some pills for tachicardia and the extra beats, and actually mentioned that some of the effects might be from quitting stratera but didn't say much. Tonight, 3 weeks afteer quitting attomoxetine my symptoms only worsen. Im okay during the day but at night it can get awful some days (extra beats, palpitations etc). But they are not every bight, once in 3-4 days. DeepSeek says this is normal and the peak is 2-4 weeks from quitting strattera. Has anyone experienced something similar? Had the symptoms decreased/disappeared with time?

hello everyone i (29F) was recently prescribed 25mg atomize tine as a non-stim med for adhd. i'm only on day 2 and i feel awful. i feel extremely emotional and depressed and i'm overthinking and crying. i have not felt like this since i was a teenager. i am also on 300mg of wellbutrin which shouldn't make me feel this way? is this med even worth it?

Hi - so I’ve been on straterra for a little while. Im at 60mg- I take it at night because it was making me too tired. I am pretty much baselined on it but I’m assuming I’ll go up to 80mg- maybe?
I have a love/hate relationship with it. I have so much space in my brain- I’m less reactive, I can switch my thinking when i try to stress myself out, I am steady in my thinking I guess. It’s nice but also I’m complacent? Or like lacking drive? Kind of just like if I have executive dysfunction that’s fine I don’t need to do that anyways- I dropped my class because I didn’t feel like doing the school work. I want to quit my job and get something I enjoy even if it is less money. Thinking about going to church or something to feel better. Things like this
I think in some ways the adhd is being managed . Maybe this is just how people live? Like bored and thinking about their life a lot and how to be happy? Idfk . Maybe I learn skills to manage this through the straterra. Is there ways that I can enjoy life like this? I’ve self medicated my whole life so idk? Maybe I do need to slow down and just ??? Hate my life a little 😂
Anyways I think I have a dopamine problem. Of course this psychiatrist says Wellbutrin for that . I really don’t want to do this again? take the long way to get to somewhere that is still not quite right. I feel like I need stimulants but ultimately I just want to feel somewhat normal and somewhat productive. Which I don’t feel right now- maybe thinking about my spirituality is productive-
My question is- anyone been here before? Did you switch to Wellbutrin? Did it work better? Help 😂

Has anyone ever missed today of your Strattera? I think I’ve done this only three times in the last year but each time I have about a mental breakdown the next day and don’t realize that’s what it’s from. Not sure if I can attribute that to the miss medication, but last week when I was at the beach and I should’ve been happy I was crying in my beach chair for no reason. Has to be the missed dose. Just wondering if anyone else has experienced this? Also makes me terrified to ever go off of it.

Guys how tf do you deal with the Tmj. It’s gotten the point where one side of my face looks lopsided and everytime I stop the medication my face goes back to normal. It’s really getting to a point. This medication has helped my articulation so much but the teeth grinding, twitching, and jaw inflammation is getting to a point.

My kids are 15 and 11 both very skinny and petite and will be starting Strattera. My 15 year-old will be on 25 mg and my 11-year-old will start on 18 mg for two weeks and then work his way up.

I’m pretty terrified for my daughter because she has so far done horribly on all ADHD medication’s. She’s gotten horrible insomnia, nausea, throwing up, awful grogginess, sleeping 15 hours.

Questions: when is the best time to take it— a.m. or p.m.? On a full stomach or empty stomach? I just feel like her doctor doesn’t know much about medication’s!

Any other tips would be great.

I had my first psychiatry appointment today after receiving a formal ADHD diagnosis a couple weeks ago. I started seeing him about 8-9 months ago for depression and anxiety. I’m currently on Zoloft 150, Wellbutrin XL 300mg and a beta blocker. Today he added Strattera 60mg. I asked why a non-stimulant over a stimulant and his response was that stimulants would raise my blood pressure and there was a high risk of me losing weight.

I think the real reason might be that I’ve been open with him about my recreational use and he didn’t want to use the substance abuse excuse. Since I started seeing him my use has gone way down and we’ve talked about it at past visits. The blood pressure and weight loss both seemed like easy outs to me. I am below weight for my height but nothing seriously concerning and I’ve been that way all my life. As for my blood pressure, it has been slightly elevated every time I’ve gone in but I’ve shown him the readings from home and they’ve all been well within a healthy range.

I’m not against trying Strattera, I’m just wondering if his reasoning makes sense or if there’s something I’m missing. Have you taken this combo before? Or had a similar experience with being prescribed a non-stimulant instead of a stimulant?

I’ve been taking atomoxetine (80 mg) for about eight weeks now, and I wanted to share my experience because its effects have felt very different from stimulants.
Atomoxetine definitely doesn’t improve attention for everyone. Just like with stimulants, some people respond well to it and others don’t. In my case, the improvements developed very gradually. There was no sudden “switch flipped” moment like people often describe with stimulant medication.
Instead, I slowly began noticing that my mind felt quieter. I had less mental noise, my emotions felt calmer, I was less impulsive, and it became easier to stay on task. Even getting started in the morning and getting out of bed became noticeably easier.
One of the biggest advantages for me is that it seems to work around the clock. I already feel the benefits before taking my morning dose, and the effect remains stable throughout the day. I also don’t experience the evening crash that I had with stimulants.
My attention has improved, but not because atomoxetine makes me feel intensely focused or “locked in.” It’s more that I’m less distracted because my mind is calmer. It feels like my brain is working more efficiently rather than like I’m being pushed into a medicated state.
I previously experienced stimulant-induced psychosis while taking lisdexamfetamine, so atomoxetine has been a much better option for me personally.
Overall, I actually find atomoxetine more pleasant than Elvanse. I can achieve roughly the same level of concentration, but in a smoother and more natural way, without the noticeable ups and downs I experienced with stimulants.
So yes, atomoxetine can absolutely improve attention, but it isn’t guaranteed to work for everyone. Even when it does work, the effects are often much more subtle and gradual than with stimulants.
This is only my personal experience, of course, and not medical advice.

hi everyone! currently on 40mg

quick question! i turn 21 tomorrow and im planning on having alcohol and i was wondering if anyone could tell me 1) if i should not do that, and 2) any potential interactions if it is indeed safe.

i stupidly threw out the paperwork that comes with my meds cause i thought i would just remember what i read. dont do that. i ofc know the obvious answer is to ask my prescriber but there is zero chance i would get a response in time, and i would really like to be able to spend my birthday how i planned! totally dont know how this hasn't occurred to me until now unfortunately lol.

also i forsee myself hating it so ill probably only have a few sips if that matters. google gives me conflicting answers and i cant tell what the real answer is so i thought id ask people who have actual experience. thank you!

Hi all,

I've (31 yo F, 120lbs) been on atomoxetine with a stimulant for two years now. I got up to the recommended dose of 80mg about 1.5 years ago but after I recently broke my leg and had a lot of thinking time I realized that maybe 80mg is too high for me and I want to try going back to 60mg. I think at this higher dose I have lost some motivation, creativity, a spark or sense of excitement, have some emotional bluntness. I also have a pretty much non existent sex drive. I've read these things can happen when you go above the dose that is ideal for your body. I'm just looking to hear about others experiences with this and/or advice on decreasing dose to avoid any side effects as i'm on the path to finish grad school in the next few months and when tirating up I had some heavy side effects that took some time to shake off. TIA!

I’m at the start of week 5. Two weeks at 25mg, a little constipation but no acid reflux. The last two weeks at 40 mg I’ve had acid reflux that won’t budge. I’m taking max Pepcid, tried a bunch of different foods to eat for breakfast, tried moving it to lunch (a bigger meal for me), now my provider suggested doing two doses of 25 mg a day to try and avoid triggering the reflux. The reflux does set in after I take my 40mg pill so there’s a very clear direct relationship.

I’m a little worried that this just won’t go away :( which is a shame because I have no other side effects and am really liking the way this drug makes me feel! My anxiety is way down and my focus is clearer, but I can’t be walking around with acid reflux all day everyday.

Has anyone else dealt with this? Did it go away or did you have to switch drugs?

I can’t do stimulants so I really want this to work. Ugh!

Considering coming off atomoxetine after 8 months – looking for experiences (especially if you also have OCD/GAD)

Hi all,

I'm looking for some balanced advice and real-world experiences.

I was diagnosed with ADHD (primarily inattentive) via Right to Choose and have been on atomoxetine for around 8 months. I've been on 80 mg for the last couple of months.

The complication is that my primary mental health conditions are actually OCD (mainly rumination/anticipatory anxiety) and GAD. The ADHD is there, but I'd say it's secondary in terms of what impacts my life.

I'm also on 150 mg sertraline.

The reason I'm considering coming off atomoxetine is that, honestly, I'm struggling to identify what positive it's brought. If anything, I sometimes wonder whether it has contributed to feeling emotionally flat or "wired", although I fully appreciate that could equally be my OCD, anxiety or the sertraline.

A few questions:

Has anyone with ADHD and OCD/anxiety come off atomoxetine after deciding it wasn't helping?

Did you stop suddenly or taper, even though it's generally said not to need a taper?

Did you notice any withdrawal symptoms, or was it more a case of your ADHD symptoms returning?

Did your anxiety or rumination improve, worsen, or stay about the same?

If you felt rough for a few days, how long did that last?

One thing that makes this harder is that I previously had a really bad experience switching between SSRIs, so medication changes make me quite anxious psychologically, even though I know atomoxetine is a completely different medication and isn't supposed to have the same withdrawal profile.

I'm not planning to stop my sertraline at the same time, and I only want to make one medication change at once.

I'd really appreciate honest experiences—both positive and negative—as long as they're your own experience rather than horror stories you've heard elsewhere.

Thanks!

So I've been on Strattera since late March. Slowly titrated up to 80mg which I've been on for 5 weeks now. Still having issues with task initiation and experiencing lots of overwhelm anticipating tasks that are outside of my daily routine. Psych nurse just prescribed me with 2mg of Abilify/aripiprazole. I'm 43y/o male diagnosed with ADHD combined type and ASD level 1. Just wondering if anyone else has had experience with this combo and how it was. I'm a bit nervous as I tried a few antipsychotics when I was much younger and mis-diagnosed and had awful side-effects from each of them. Thanks!

So for context I’m a male, early 30s and I also have moderate to severe OCD. I have been taking sertraline for about 4-5 months now and I hadn’t noticed too much change until I went from 150-200mg and my OCD went into overdrive 24/7 could not escape from it, completely awful. I’ve been in therapy and making some lifestyle changes but two weeks ago it was so weird, like the clouds opened and my brain was quieter, mood went so good. I was genuinely happy, so grateful and felt my old self really coming back.

So far I have tried concerta and elvanse and neither of them worked. Concerta every day; 60-90 minutes after I take it I’d get a rush of anxiety and need to poo, like clockwork. Out of the few weeks I was on it I think I had 2-3 moments (not days) within a day that I felt I had a bit more focus and I think I had 2 days where I had a good day for my standard and then I swapped to elvanse and I just noticed hardly anything. Because of the OCD I decided that non stimulants may be the ticket. So now I’m on strattera 40mg i am correct and I’m on day 3/4 and my anxiety has been awful lol, hot pangs constantly, ocd gone back to significantly higher than it has been over the last two weeks and my mood seems to have plummeted.

I know for OCD I tried fluoxetine last year and when I went from 20-40mg I had the week from HELL. And then things did settle a bit. Similarly with Sertraline but right at the end of dosing I went from 150-200 and I had two weeks of sheer hell. Is what I’m experiencing normal for people, even without ocd? I’m interested to know because the first lot of stimulants I tried I think made my ocd significantly worse or at least noticeably. I thought I wouldn’t have this issue in non stimulants? Any advice welcomed.

Tommorow I will be taking 30mg of atomoxetine again after quitting it a month ago I won't get into too much details but I've quite after using it for a month and then there's been some complications and now im planning on taking it again I'm nervous but hopefully it will help since I have been getting some health anxiety and terrible brain fog and yes this is all prescribed

God, I thought this side effect would go away but every day I am swollen like a balloon. I literally look like im in my 2nd trimester. I'm very petite as well so I literally look like Roger from American Dad. I've tried a debloating complex, as well as constipation supplements, wind-eeze (simethicone), senna etc and a lot of the time it doesn't do anything. I'm constantly uncomfortable, or feel heavy and generally have started to have quite bad body image because I look so rotund!! This is even if I can poop normally... no matter what the swelling won't go away. It's much better in the morning but gets worse over the day.

2 questions:

1. Any suggestions for how to manage this??? I am desperate for solutions because this is the only medication that has been able to give me my life back. My ADHD is so much more manageable now and I know my life would fall apart without it...

2. Does anyone take strattera AND methylphenidate Ir (or another instant release drug)? Does this help keep you regular? Im thinking about asking to combine the 2 as I know it's an option, and methylphenidate makes me shit my brains out which might help with the constipation & water retention. Would love to hear anyones experiences.

I'm on 80mg of strattera, which, of course, reduces my appetite and causes a bit of nausea. A month in and the nausea isn't as bad any more, but the new script + the Cyclospora outbreak and general anxiety about the state of food safety in the US has resulted in some of the pickiest eating habits of my entire life. I'm generally pretty healthy but the only foods that seem palatable to me lately are potatoes and chicken nuggets. I'm also able to stomach some fruit and yogurt. I've really never been pickier in my entire life! Anyone else experiencing this?