Opinions - Ritalin vs. Adderall

[chillinwill]

Adderall seems to be the best one outta the two for treating ADHD or ADD....makes one euphoric and speedy but the crash is a lil bit harder

Ritalin is slightly euphoric and less speedy but not as noticible of a crash in SWIM's opinion

[Blueprint Soul]

I'd say it's entirely personal preference. Amphetamines last longer, and I think have a wider pharmacological effect, but many people enjoy/benefit from methylphenidate more. My preference is amphetamines, by far. I've a 40mg/day prescription for adderall.

For me (and a few others I've discussed it with), methylphenidate has a "clean" high, giving just pure motivation, attention, and mood uplift with higher doses, making it more useful for complex linear work (memorization, repetition, et.c.). Whilst amphetamines have a "noisy" high, giving everything that methylphenidate does, but also tons of mental noise, like ideas buzzing around your head, or your inner voice becoming six voices and all of them shouting, which is more useful for non-linear work - creative work - writing poetry, drawing and such, whilst being extremely distracting for linear work. I'm an artist, so it makes sense I'd prefer the latter.

In studies, methylphenidate has been more useful in treating ADHD (ADHD with hyperactivity), whilst amphetamines have been more useful in treating ADHD-PI (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Predominantly Inattentive, priorly known as ADD).

I have ADHD-PI diagnosed, so that could also have to do with my preference.

Originally Posted by dpayne

Adderal - Racemic (50% mix Levo-Amp and Dextro-Amp) Compare Amp Sulphate

That's not exactly accurate. There are four amphetamine salts used in Adderall. Two of them are pure d-amphetamine (saccharate & sulfate USP), and two of them are racemic d,l-amphetamine (aspartate monohydrate & sulfate USP). Racemic d,l-amphetamine means a mixture of d-amphetamine and l-amphetamine; that results in an overall d-amphetamine:l-amphetamine ratio of approximately 7.27:2.73 (72.7% d-amphetamine, 27.3% l-amphetamine). It's not exactly 75%:25% because of a difference in aspartate monohydrate salt mass & saccharate salt mass, I'm guessing.

Blueprint Soul added 6 Minutes and 6 Seconds later...

Correction: I couldn't find any of the studies I remembered on methylphenidate being more effective for ADHD and amphetamines before more effective for ADHD-PI, though I'm pretty sure I remember reading at least one. I could be wrong.

[LiquidHandcuffs]

SWIM has been prescribed Adderall (IR) for the past 4 years.

40mg -- 20mg 2x/day

Three of the finest qualities SWIM has enjoyed are No Tolerance (at least not for him), Mildly Addicting (nearly entirely psychological), and virtually No Dependency concerns.

Swim takes the same amount daily, and has not had any problems with it.

Back on topic, Adderall crushes Ritalin. Every single time.

[Zgill1990]

swim has a friend who has adhd and asperger syndrome and gets 60 20mg focalin xr pills a month. swims friend doesnt like them (makes him drowsy) so hes been giving them to swim for the last 2 years and swim can say that focalin is the best drug swim has ever taken. Swim has had a couple of adderall here and there but finds it too be a bit to twitchy. Everyone bitches about the awful comedown from methylphenidate but adderall has the same problem it just takes longer to come down. If swim is having a bad comedown he justs takes another focalin.
Swims friend is being changed to vyvanse (similar to adderall) next month so swims focalin days are coming to an end but it was one hell of a ride !!

I hope everyone will stop dissin the ritalin
PEACE

[aridchimp]

My chimp prefers Ritalin. Very under-rated and it gets a bad rap for being highly considered a "kiddydrug" compared to amphetamines throughout history. However my chimp finds that adderall is way more variable and influenced by mood while ritalin does its job and does it the same way every time. Often with phetamines my chimp feels buzzed for ten minutes then gets pissed off randomly...with ritalin my chimp feels happy and buzzed no matter what (if a bit more jittery than addy but whatever, u take a stim deal with it haha). Amphetamines also come in, my chimp finds, smaller prescribed doses than ritalin...they will run out way faster than Vitamin R. Amphetamines also go past horny into sexually obsessive. Writing a paper on phets is fine till you realize your browser is a click away, but my chimp finds that with ritalin, obsession, while there like with any stimulant, is way more fleeting and short-lived, allowing for refocus when it seems impossible on addy. Comedowns aren't a factor because they should barely exist if you take care of yourself during the high.

aridchimp added 5 Minutes and 31 Seconds later...

Others have made this point as well but it needs mentioning. My chimp can fall asleep easily when stimming on ritalin but with addy, no such luck

[dpayne]

swiD was sure alot of ppl have said ritalin was a way harder crash when taken as prescriped compared to adderall. Wish swiD was in the position to speak from experiance.

[100mg Methylphenidate]

Ritalin doesn't help swim much, and the recreation value isn't much greater than caffeine as his tolerance has gone up. He used to like them a lot more, but after a long night of snorting them, his tolerance shot to the roof and never came down. Now it just make's him really anxious. Adderall makes swim feel very calm and at peace with the world, yet very alert and awake. Adderall absolutely wins in every aspect over methylphenidate to swim.

[dark12]

SWIM recently got his prescription changed from Focalin XR(dexmethylphenidate) to Adderall(amphetamine) and he actually Adderall more.
Focalin did make him more alert, but also much more anxious and agitated. Adderall seems to provide more euphoria with less side effects. Plus snorting Adderall is much easier and pleasant than methylphenidate.
SWIM thinks they are both good for long study sessions though.

[100mg Methylphenidate]

Swim thinks adderall tastes overly sweet when snorted...methylin pills were pretty good though...although the high didn't compare at all.

[Horiz]

There is a massive difference in effects in SWIM's opinion. For example, Ritalin brings a very slight speedy feeling and a moderate mood lift with a higher dose. Adderall being a mix of true amphetamine generally brings a much more energetic feeling and euphoria.

In reguards to treating ADD, Adderall seems superior in every way. However it also brings about a much more noticeable crash or 'come down' which usually manifests as depression among other things. And also (again, in SWIM's opinion) much easier to become dependant on.

[ninjaned]

question- how different(effects wise not chem.) is ritalin from adderall? would swim need to dose differently mg wise; is one stronger than the other? any help would be much appriciated.

[100mg Methylphenidate]

Let's put it this way, after doing adderall, ritalin isn't much better than coffee to swim. Adderall's a lot more focused and swim finds it a lot more relaxing. Dose wise...swim wouldn't expect any dose of ritalin to keep him awake. Adderall on the other hand, 20mg will give him the ability to stay up all night if he wishes.

Swim has never hallucinated off a concerta/ritalin binge. Adderall on the other hand, swim has hallucinated hardcore when coming down.

It's a lot easier to make an adderall binge last longer too. Although that ends up being a bad thing...

Snorting wise, adderall tastes worse. Swim finds methylin(generic ritalin aka methylphenidate) pills to be very yummy.

Adderall gives swim a lot more muscle spasms but they aren't generally that bad and they're pretty controllable for the most part. Dealing with that is a lot better than the panic attacks swim gets from ritalin though.

All in all, adderall > ritalin.

[TweakinLuv]

Hello everyone,

Swim gets 60 20 mg Adderall a month. Swim will admit that swim abuses them, goes thru them in 1-2 weeks. Because of this swim has a very high tolerance built up. Swim can take 100mg (either swallowed, chewed or snorted) and hardley feel anything. That is not the issue though. Swim just came into a large amount of Novaris branded 10mg Ritalins. The problem is that swim just cant get much out of them. Swim isnt as focused or in a good mood as with adderall. Is it that swims tolerance issue is the issue? Being that adderall is more potent per say than adderall?

Thanks for any replies

[Alfa]

Some related threads:

Which is better, Adderall or Ritalin?

Adderall vs Ritalin for studying?

ritalin to concerta ratio?

Meth vs. Ritalin vs. Adderall

[cloudrein]

Adderall, the first time SWIM had it, was an awesome experience, because SWIM tried DXM for the first time that night, in conjunction with weed and a variety of alcoholic beverages, all in unreasonably high doses (stick with me: respectively, 120mg, 150mg, 1.5g, and 6 o.z. (40 proof)+ 4 beers (12 o.z., ~4% alcohol). SWIM went to a friend's house where there were laid out 2 lines of 20mg Adderall on a textbook. SWIM's friend offered SWIM some Adderall. The generic, orange powder was unfamiliar to SWIM and SWIM had never heard of either Adderall or amphetamine before, so SWIM was both skeptical and curious. SWIM took the lines (both in under a minute) then took two more 1.5 hours later. 2 hours after that, swim took 2 more. SWIM had dosed 150mg DXM in the form of Robitussin 30 minutes after dosing the first Adderall. SWIM arrived at the Addie house drunk and high, but drank another beer after dosing the DXM. After the last Addie-dose, people went home. SWIM and two friends who lived at the Addie-house went to the laundromat to clean clothes. Clothes were put in washers, then friends and SWIM took a walk to pass the time. SWIM didn't "trip" or dissociate from the DXM, but was extremely stimulated while simultaneously feeling the effects of 2 downers and a mixer. He talked an above-average amount and did a lot of heavy thinking. Everything was easy while on amphetamine. Amphetamine remains, to this day, one of SWIM's favorite drugs, and SWIM wishes he could get an Adderall prescription rather than the 10mg methylphenidate he has now.

SWIM takes 10mg methylphenidate in the morning every day. 20mg does very little but wake SWIM up and keep him "full" until lunch. There is no euphoria, there is no high, there is no buzz, there is no real stimulation to speak of. Methylphenidate treats SWIM like coffee does, without the jittery side effects of caffeine or the guarana found in energy drinks (which SWIM used to drink 2-3 times daily). Ritalin is a suitable alternative to caffeine, but does not deliver the buzz of amphetamine. For medicinal purposes, methylphenidate (Ritalin) is a great drug. For recreational purposes, SWIM recommends amphetamine+dextroamphetamine (Adderall). Adderall works well for medicinal purposes also, but tolerance is a serious problem at doses higher then 10mg daily (in SWIM experience, buying the 10mg daily from connections).

Once again, methylphenidate (Ritalin) is a great drug for medicinal purposes. SWIM recommends amphetamine+dextroamphetamine (Adderall) to have a good time.

[100mg Methylphenidate]

Swim has a new opinion on the matter. Adderall is more euphoric taken orally. Although, after being prescribed Metadate CD(essentially ritalin. Extended release methylphenidate) and snorting the drug for the first time after a couple years, swim thinks snorting ritalin might be more fun than taking adderall orally. Swim feels more in control and can get to sleep a lot quicker afterwards. And it gives him more of an energetic coked out feeling than a focused relaxed feeling. It's just different. But he thinks they're both fun.

[TinfoilxTouch]

I'll make it nice and simple...

Usual coke amount over 3 hours - big pickup with good euphoria and some productivity urged. Maybe will do something other than pace the hall if alone or talk someone's ear off.

Maximum daily doseage of Ridalin over 3 hours = nice pickup with some euphoria. Feel like staying up and talking or watching a movie.

Maximum daily doseage of Adderall over 3 hours = insane high where SWIM is writing long poems, cleaning my house, chatting online, browsing the net and downloading music.

Adderall is in a class of its own. For those like SWIM who actually have ADHD, it's amazing to go from feeling like "FML I have to get out of bed" to "okay how can I be more productive at work today?". Of course this means there is huge recreational upside, which is why SWIM made the personal choice not to take it after work or on weekends.

[junkfuck]

SWIM finds Ritalin to be a hallmark in his life. It is an amazing chemical. It does so many nice things. However SWIM also thinks that Adderall has MUCH MUCH more pleasant feelings accociated with it... He seems to think ritalin, while very nice, does have incredibly shitty comedowns, Adderall seems to taper off quite nicely. SWIM feels much more relaxed on Adderall, if SWIM rides his bike on ritalin, he feels like a space cadet. If SWIM rides his bike on adderall, he feels like hes riding on a lazyboy. Ritalin makes him twitch and rattle like a parkinsons patient sometimes, Adderall does not. But both are liked very much.

[Liqu1d Sun]

SWIM has taken Adderall in a recreational setting in the past, and has recently learned that he will be prescribed Ritalin starting in January (his physician has prescribed other medications, and wants to prescribe the Ritalin afterwards). SWIM always felt that Adderall not only helped him with his attention issues, but also was an incredible drug for purely hedonistic pursuits.

SWIM has never tried Ritalin, and is wondering where SWIY would guess Ritalin will fall. SWIM truly wants to treat his attention problems, and feels that Ritalin being different from Adderall might keep it from being a drug of pleasure. What does SWIY think?