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add treatment with suboxone

first off i will say i have been on suboxone for about a year and a half after having a 6 year relationship with pain killers and have successfully been tapering off the past 6 months or so down to .5mg daily and now off completely.  
now with that said i have been trying to get treatment for my add and feel like my treatment options are based around my past addiction. i was diagnosed with add in highschool and put on vyvanse for about a year (my parents thought i was too young to be taking stimulants so they took me off it). it worked amazingly with focus and keeping my racing thoughts organized. from the time i dropped out of school to now i basically have always been taking opiates whether it was pain killers or since i’ve been on suboxone. since tapering off suboxone and somewhat having a ‘clear head’ for the first time in years ive noticed my add symptoms are much more noticeable. i fear that i will loose my job if i don’t treat my add because of my forgetfulness and inability to complete a task (flat rate diesel tech so time is a big issue as well). i went to my gp who referred me to a neurologist for my forgetfulness and seemed to completely disregard treatment for add. then about 2 weeks ago i went to a psychiatrist hoping for more understanding of my situation. she did diagnose me as having add but wanted to try strattera until i was off suboxone completely which i suppose i understand. she also said that maybe i should consider treatment for my anxiety even though i told her my anxiety most definitely stems from my add symptoms. she told me that if the strattera didn’t work that we can explore the options of stimulants. so i tried the strattera for a week and did not notice any benefits just side effects plus it’s very expensive. i do know strattera needs to build up in your system to take effect but the side effects and price made me feel like there were better options. i called her today and told her this and that i am now off my suboxone. she then decided to write a script for wellbutrin because it’s cheaper? which makes me think that’s the only part she heard was that strattera was expensive and not that’s its not working. that really did not expect that. i feel like i am being treated like a liability to these doctors and not getting proper treatment as i have told them the vyvanse worked! i have never abused anything other than opiates and have taken adderall and vyvanse plenty of times in the past on certain occasions when i had important deadlines. never abused them, never got a high, just was able to slow my brain down and pay attention to things. so with all that said, i don’t know what to do at this point. i’m walking a fine line and don’t want to come off as seeking drugs but i also want to be honest and tell her what has worked for me. i’ve been taking adderall the past few months as i tapered off suboxone and it was a night and day difference as far as productivity and keeping my cravings at bay. i honestly don’t know if my sobriety will last that long if my add isn’t treated.

does anyone have any similar experience? any input on what to do next?
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189897 tn?1441126518
COMMUNITY LEADER
  First, congratulations for getting off the opiates!  That is not an easy thing to do.  In fact, if you have the will power to get off that highly addictive drug....you should be able to handle this too.
Wellbutrin is an antidepressant.  Your doc is treating the anxiety and not the ADHD.  Wellbutrin is a fairly mild drug, and might even be slightly helpful, but it doesn't treat ADHD.   Perhaps, it is just a step to the stim meds? You need to know what her overall plan for you is.  If she cannot communicate this to you.....then

  I think, if you can, that you need to look for a new psyc that specializes in ADHD.   She seems to fear that you might abuse the stim meds.  That just does not happen for people with ADHD. Furthermore, it is impossible to do if the prescriptions are followed.  Kind of makes me wonder how much she knows about ADHD.

And there are other things that you can do to help your self.  They are not as effective as stim meds, but will help.  Things like high intensity exercise, high protein breakfast   ( easiest thing to do).  Making sure you get a good nights sleep.  The sleep thing is really important for daytime success.  Are you taking the Wellbutrin at night?  if not, I would give that a try. And try to cut down distractions at work...can you wear headphones?

Hope this helps.
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thank you for your feedback! as for the wellbutrin i have not yet gotten the script. i have an uneasy feeling about anti depressants as ive been prescribed them in the past with no success. even though this is for treating my add supposedly.
i have tried other ways to help my add like music seems to help calm me down and think clearly for awhile but nothing has been too successful. i wish i could sum up the courage to tell a doctor exactly how i feel but i always become so nervous when talking to doctors. i even write everything down before i go in so i can remember! either way i doesn’t come out right. i have an appt with the neurologist friday my gp recommended and i think i am going to be as flat out honest as i can. like you said if the doctor really knows i have add then they would understand that i wouldn’t abuse stimulants because they don’t give me any sort of rush or high. and when i am taking adderall my brain is so clear and focused i completely forget about my cravings as when i’m not i can really feel the urge of relapse and that scares me more than anything.
i guess we will see what happens with the neurologist this week. all i can hope for is he is someone who can look past my past issues and see i’m a person who just wants proper treatment.
I hope it goes well for you!  Let me know.  Two links that might be helpful.  The first is "what you doctor needs to know about adult ADHD"  I think it might be helpful.  https://www.additudemag.com/symptoms-diagnosing-adhd-in-adults/

  The second link  is how fidgeting helps with concentration.  It has a few ideas that might help you at work.  Granted, its nothing like taking meds, but it could be helpful.  That link is ....https://www.additudemag.com/focus-factors/?utm_source=eletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=school_february_2018&utm_content=021418


Hope these help a bit.   Good Luck!
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