20th January 2008
Update on my problem with the Focalin/Ritalin elevated blood pressure and heart rate problems. My shrink (only for the meds, he won't talk to me, lol) seemed unconcerned about those symptoms, so I fell back on a Diazepam (in true ADD fashion I cannot think of the name for the non-generic) prescription that my family doctor had given me a long time ago.
It reduces my anxiety to the point where I am somewhat functional though not quite organized. I am using it on days where I have to function with some clarity but if I want to pay bills or something requiring real concentration, my shrink did prescribe a different generic form of the Ritalin, Methylin, which doesn't elevate my blood pressure quite as much but as long as my anxiety is at bay, I can just kind of push my depression to one side and forge ahead.