Ritalin, or Methylphenidate, is a well-known prescription medication that has been used for years to treat people with ADHD, daytime drowsiness and narcolepsy. It is a central nervous system stimulant that increases levels of dopamine and norepinephrine in the brain.
People with ME/CFS will find that they have neuropsychological symptoms along with the slew of other physical symptoms present in the illness. Some of the neuropsychological symptoms include:
- Concentration difficulties
- Difficulties with short-term memory
- Difficulties with thinking
- Impaired attention
- Slowed processing speed
I know I have all of these problems and I have often wondered if I had ADD because of these symptoms and issues.
Neurostimulants that increase dopamine and norepinephrine activity, such as bupropion, dextroamphetamine and recently immediate-release methylphenidate have been advocated to improve neurocognitive deficits like the ones I listed above.
Ritalin (Immediate-Release Methylphenidate) has been used in a small study on ME/CFS:
Using the positive results of this study and the well-known beneficial effects of the drug on a range of similar cognitive symptoms in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, this perspective addresses CFS and other related disorders and provides a discussion on the potential promising role of methylphenidate in the therapeutic armamentarium of CFS.
The doctor gave me ritalin long time after suffering from back pain, I did not take importance to I found chronic fibromyalgia, and after evaluating and conduct a comprehensive this icon in order to feel pain, until no stamina, after many doctor visits and many tests review told me that the most appropriate to ease the pain were ritalin, vicodin or oxycodone, but I asked my doctor to prescribe me the most effective and less addictive and prescribed ritalin, have already taken this medication 2 years and though it causes some kind of anxiety I control myself properly, I have no problems so addictive, I think if they know their anxiety is effective restraint, this is good because these narcotics findrxonline indicate that opioids can be very dangerous.