Just able to decide what they are going to work on and actually put it into action

This is my biggest benefit to taking Ritalin. I have actually been able to do stuff. And not random crap like … researching Roman politics or interior commercial architecture because my interest was suddenly piqued, but actually doing things I want to do.

But there’s also a problem, as @coelecanth described below… I can focus too much. I have to make an effort to stay away from my PC after work hours and during weekends, because I’m so into learning things and finally having the ability to direct my focus leads to me overusing it and my brain actually gets sore.

There’s a more recent post on ADHD about building good habits which … it’s really the other side of the coin to this. If you can finally run for the first time in 30 years, it’s not good to run all the time. You still need to have balance.

(As an aside, I recently had to do some quite difficult things that caused me a super high level of anxiety, hands shaking level, and I really struggled with that, like moreso than I would have normally perhaps.)

concerta was the best med I had by far. after a few years I felt like it might have been getting less effective, so we upped the dose. heart didn’t like that. I miss it all the time

Congrats!

It was always quite potent for me and I changed from the 20mg slow release to the 10mg so that it didn’t affect my appetite as much, and I swapped to using it sporadically as needed instead of in the morning no matter what.

It provided a decent amount of energy and strength of will, as well as allowing my thoughts to be clear and linear.

After it wore off each day I would crash quite hard, but all stimulants do that. Your mileage may vary.

For me personally I prefer taking smaller doses of the instant release as needed instead of the slow release capsules, gives me more control of the effect.

I don’t know what dosage you’re on but I’ve tried a wide gamut and one of the things I disliked about being on a higher dose slow release was the heart palpitations it gave me, combined with the very common loss of appetite. Nothing medically serious apparently but it felt uncomfortable.

If you’re prone to hyperfocus uncontrollably (as I am) then be warned that for me at least Methylphenidate can often exaggerate this problem which can be troublesome, so keep an eye on that.

It’s pretty awesome, I’ve been on it pretty much continuously for twenty years and the only real downside is the occasional existential identity crisis when the imposter syndrome hits you full in the chest and you wonder if the true you is holding down your job and married your partner.

Outside of that it’s peachy, and a fair measure of existential dread is healthy for you. Oh, I should mention that I’m a bit feverish and delusional - I’m in my singing continuously phase.

I experienced (and have seen post from others) that there’s somewhat of a honeymoon phase. The first weeks i felt odd, like i had drank a million cups of coffee, but also crazy drive. For the first time i could just do things in a timely manner without a deadline or pressure and I wasn’t miserable.

Now a few months later, I’ve gone back a bit to my old ways. It still helps and i can tell when i forget to take it. Its significantly tamer and needs more effort to get stuff done.