Splitting concerta, keeping the mechanisms?

[staples]

I've seen quite a few topics on opening concerta and it's time-release mechanism. From what I understand, one part swells up in the stomach/digestive tract and effectively pushes more of the drug out of a porous membrane to be absorbed into the body. I'm a little confused when people refer to the different parts of concerta, because they refer to them as "the brown layer" or "a layer of wax," and I"m not sure if colors are different for different dosages, or if there are more than one wax layer -- or if it's even really 'wax'. SWIM might have to cut one open and tell me about it.

Would it be illegal for someone to post pictures of what it looks like to cut one open? SWIM is thinking about cutting open a concerta and taking pictures, in which case he could send them to me to post for people to see/label.

Anyway, my main question is if it's possible to make, say, two 27mg concertas out of one 54mg concerta. That is, I want to know if one could preserve the time-release mechanism but reduce the dose (without wasting the rest). All of the topics so far seem to be about extracting just the drug and taking it for an instant release.

With Adderall XR, it's SO simple! the capsules can be opened and the XR beads can be divided up however desired, without breaking the XR mechanism. It just doesn't seem fair that concerta should be so difficult.


There was a document that someone linked to in one of the posts that, from the context, looked like it was going to be a lot of pharmacological information on concerta's workings, but the link was dead. If someone knows what I'm talking about and where I can find that document, I'd very much appreciate it!

The document is said to describe at one point the comparison in dosages of concerta versus instant-release ritallin. This brings me to my next question: Does 54mg of concerta contain 54mg of methilyphenidate? or does 54mg include mass of the time-release mechanism? Also, how is the drug divided up in concerta (how much of it is released instantly, how much is slowly released?)?


Thanks

[Kernacktur]

Is SWIY just trying to evenly split the dose? One half contains the grey powder(if you can call it that) the other half contains the white powder. If trying to evenly split the doses, simply cut lengthwise down the center of the pill. This should result in a roughly equal dose of both types of concerta material. Hope that helps

[staples]

Originally Posted by Kernacktur

Is SWIY just trying to evenly split the dose? One half contains the grey powder(if you can call it that) the other half contains the white powder. If trying to evenly split the doses, simply cut lengthwise down the center of the pill. This should result in a roughly equal dose of both types of concerta material. Hope that helps

I think you are correct, that sounds like what SWIM wants to do. From what he understands though, wouldn't this penetrate the components that are responsible for the slow release?

He tells me he'll have to cut one open and see for himself. I'll let you know what he finds when he tells me (he says tomorrow most likely).

Thanks

[eche05]

Originally Posted by Kernacktur

Is SWIY just trying to evenly split the dose? One half contains the grey powder(if you can call it that) the other half contains the white powder. If trying to evenly split the doses, simply cut lengthwise down the center of the pill. This should result in a roughly equal dose of both types of concerta material. Hope that helps

Nooooooooooooo. Wrongggggg. Sorry, but the green/gray material is nothing but a hydrophillic sponge that expands and pushes the white/pink powder out of a laser-driled whole. here's a picture.

http://www.psyq.nl/files/Media/PsyQ/...k/Concerta.GIF

[staples]

OK. SWIM sees what you mean, but he has a few questions. He's prescribed to 54 mg concerta. The pills (or, their outer layer) are orangeish.

He said the orangeish outer layer started to peal away in chips, but he wonders, is this the layer that some people think contain some of the drug?

After the outer layer was removed, he says one side was grey and the other white (oriented such that, as you suggested, cutting down the center lengthwise would give equal amounts of grey and white).

However, SWIM had extreme difficult cutting into the concerta much farther and eventually just gave up. He was wondering if anyone has any methods that make it easier, or add precision?

He also wonders how the grey powder (presumeably, slow-release part) is not damaged in this process? Whereas, smashing the pill would damage the grey powder into an instant release?

Lastly, he's wondering if, in his 54 mg pill, there are 27mg of the white part and 27mg of the grey?

Should SWIM just ask his doctor for both 54mg and 27mg prescriptions? or this an unlikely scenario?

Thanks

[razorwiredildo]

if the pills are cut in half, swim thinks the time release mechanism will still function, though maybe a bit less effectively.
Even if the pills are crushed, unlike ritalin, the powder in concerta is very waxy and not very powdery. The waxiness of the powder is, by swims logic, part of the time release.

[staples]

So, when people talk about obliterating the concerta pill before taking it, are they fooling themselves, or does such extreme destruction of the pill eventually, in fact, defeat the time-release mechanism?

If what you say is true, than I might suggest the following:

For anyone interested in splitting their concerta tablets (where this is legal, of course), perhaps it would be easier to first cut the pill in half "width-wise" (i.e, around the circumference of the pill rather than along the length of the pill) near the center, thereby separating the "instant-release" and "extended-release" portions.

Then, one would be left with two nicely-proportioned chunks of concerta which should be easier to cut in half without risking slipping and chopping into a finger.

A friend of SWIM's recently switched from concerta to adderall, and thus had an excess of concerta that she didn't want and gave to SWIM, so he has extras to test on now.

I'd be happy to ask SWIM to document his concerta-cuttings with a camera if anyone else is interested?

My final question is this: is there a "good" way to store the unused portion of the pill, since a cut-open pills exposes the drug, which easily flakes off? I would immediately think Saran Wrap, but then, would it be okay for SWIM to injest some Saran Wrap when taking a cut-up pill later (which would ensure that none of the drug farther flakes off)?

Okay one more question: SWIM encountered, what appeared to be, a small pinkish layer of drug, he was wondering what this layer is?

Thanks

[Acyl]

You can still crush the pill to speed up the release.

Methylphenidate is embedded in a matrix that allows slow diffusion when ingested normally. You normally only release drug slowly from the perimeter of the pill (as this is what the stomach juices come in contact with).. If you crush up the pills (Though concertas are a BITCH to crush) you increase the surface area and allow more of the drug to diffuse through the time release mechanism at once.

[Acyl]

Anyway, my main question is if it's possible to make, say, two 27mg concertas out of one 54mg concerta. That is, I want to know if one could preserve the time-release mechanism but reduce the dose (without wasting the rest). All of the topics so far seem to be about extracting just the drug and taking it for an instant release.

No, you can bust the pill cleanly in two to try and attempt something like this though. Im not entirely sure if one side of the pill releases faster than the other, if this is the case you're out of luck.

[yayooxy]

can swim sniff a dextroamphetamine,,, will it be a good buxx, just checking if anyone knows????? ty

Reputation Comments on this post:

off topic, wrong forum

[crashboy59]

YO people that's is not how it works the green part of the Concerta pill is not Methylphenidate it's some kind of substance that pushes the white powder methylphenidate through a small tube over a certain amount of time. All u have to do is peel the two skins of the Pill and cut the green part with the white one and just swallow it you would probably feel it in 10-30 minutes
QUITE A RUSH

[yayooxy]

swims talking about the solid orange dextroamphetamine pillz 5 mgs...is that possible?

[staples]

Originally Posted by yayooxy

swims talking about the solid orange dextroamphetamine pillz 5 mgs...is that possible?

You might have an easier time getting information about dextroamphetamine if you were to post such questions in either the Amphetamines or Adderall forum, rather than in a thread about Concerta/Ritalin (Methylphenidate).

[Richi]

How is it that the green half of the pill 'expands' and pushed the white part out of the other end?

Would placing the green half in a glass of acidic water then have this 'expanding' effect?

[EDIT]Some answers to these questions from ALZA's website found here.