Focalin and Tiredness: What Users Say

• My...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• January 5, 2013

For ADHD "My 8-year-old has been on the meds for 3 days now. His teachers say he's doing great at school, and he's a lot more focused and less compulsive. BUT... He complains of being tired the entire time, stomach pains, headaches. I give him the medicine at 7:00 a.m. By 4:00, it's starting to wear off, and he seems to be coming off a high. At moments, he's purely goofy, almost to the point of having psychotic moments. He also talks to himself a lot. I don't know if I should give it a week or two to get in his system or stop it. I understand he needs better focus and fewer compulsive moments at school, but I love him more than to harm him with medicines."

• Gan...
• Taken for 6 months to 1 year
• November 16, 2020

For ADHD "Focalin does what it is supposed to, but this medication makes my heart beat fast and also makes me super nervous and agitated all the time. I hate this medication. It makes me feel like a zombie, and it makes me feel cold all over. The worst part is that I can barely eat without feeling sick and that it makes me constantly shake. This medication also makes my mood stoop to a terrible and very low level. After it wears off, I feel weak, tired, cold, and nauseous."

• ada...
• January 31, 2010

For ADHD "My 9-year-old son has been on various medicines for ADHD since he was 6. We just switched to Focalin 10 mg about 2 weeks ago. We are noticing that by about 1:00 in the afternoon it is completely out of his system and there is no focus. We are going to try a booster dose of 5 mg in the afternoon. I'm going to talk to our doctor about lowering his morning dose because he feels shaky and tired, which I thought would have subsided by now. His focus is terrific, but I wonder if we can get the same results by knocking down the dose a bit and adding the booster. Other than that, his sleep and eating habits are the same. Whew!"

• gre...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 15, 2018

For ADHD "My dose of Focalin is 10 mg. A few hours after taking it, I start to feel very depressed and down, like I can't do anything at all. Makes me feel like I'm going to throw up, feel tired, and have to go poop a lot from it."

• pre...
• January 19, 2018

For ADHD "The doctor started me off with 10 mg. It seemed to never 'fully' kick in, I would feel some effects, mostly just staring out into space and daydreaming. I told my doctor this, and he just said I needed to refocus my focus. (He's a hippie, y'all.) Then when I finally convinced him to up it to see if I would actually feel anything more, it just amps my anxiety and makes me extremely tired. You can forget about taking a second extended-release capsule after that one wears off, it just makes you more tired and amps your anxiety more, makes you jittery and really on edge, and also makes your heart beat incredibly fast. Would not recommend."

• Adu...
• October 4, 2022

For ADHD "Excellent experience, I take only 5 mg per day and it actually lowers my anxiety and emptiness to zero! I have borderline personality disorder, so I suffer a lot of emptiness and I worry a lot. I was very pleasantly surprised to discover that those symptoms are gone. The only side effect is that some nights I feel absolutely exhausted, so my body is processing it very differently. I never took any drugs, so I guess for my extremely healthy body, 5 mg is a lot!"

• Ste...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• July 1, 2018

For ADHD "I am a 62-year-old female. I so wanted Focalin to work for me. Prozac and Focalin are both not good. So tired, can't focus, nauseated, dizzy, reclusive, crying. Now on the second day of Wellbutrin and already feeling 100% better. I thought Focalin would give me a boost. I’m giving Focalin the boot!"

• Rya...
• Taken for less than 1 month
• November 29, 2020

For ADHD "I'm on Focalin 10 mg twice a day. I'm shaky and cold after I take it, my appetite is down, and my heart is beating way too fast. I feel relatively blank, I'm tired, but have a hard time sleeping. I used to sleep between 9 or 10 pm then wake up around 7-8 am, now if I'm lucky I go to sleep at 11 pm or 12 pm and wake up at 6 am. I rarely sleep through the night, and I'm anxious and agitated all the time. I'm also on Prozac (20 mg), and maybe they're clashing. It does help with paying attention, I can focus on things long enough for them to register, but I feel worse than I did before I started it."

• hyd...
• July 5, 2021

For ADHD "After 43 years, I was diagnosed with high-functioning ADHD and OCD and maybe PTSD from abuse. I am very confident and have made many accomplishments in my life. I am proud of what I have become, but being medicated has changed my life. I started on Zoloft and felt tired, but it helped. I was amazed. But I then went into Focalin 45 mg. I feel like it is not enough as of yet. But I love this med. Honestly, it seems like I cannot be stopped. I recommend this for a try. My only complaint is I haven't received a higher dose as of yet. I was a bit shaky and moody for 3 weeks. After that, things started to click. I recommend not using THC or high doses with this med. Try small THC and high CBD. Remember, without the THC, your ADHD brain will not accept the CBD."

• Fga...
• Taken for 1 to 6 months
• June 9, 2021

For ADHD "I’ve been on Focalin for a few months. I have ADHD and absolutely cannot concentrate at work, and I fall asleep most of the time. At first, it was okay, but I did notice that I would feel like a zombie after work. No appetite, no energy, and depressed! It kicks in, and sure, you're focused and alert for about 2 hours. But boy, when it wears off, it is awful. I have an appointment tomorrow because I cannot take this medicine anymore. I feel about as bad as I did when I first started treating myself for mental health. I used to be on generic Ritalin, and I do not remember the come down being this awful."

• Tin...
• Taken for 10 years or more
• October 24, 2021

For ADHD "I take a 30 mg in the morning and a 30 mg in the afternoon. I have been on this medication for 14 years, and it has had its ups and downs. I find that it has recently turned me into a zombie, but every day for 14 years, every morning, I have diarrhea and extreme stomach cramps. This medication makes my heart beat fast. It definitely helps with my impulses. For me, the withdrawal symptoms of this medication make me exhausted. It is so hard to get this prescription refilled, several times, I have had to go through withdrawal. It’s a pretty complicated situation."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 5 to 10 years
• August 31, 2020

For ADHD "Focalin just makes you irritable and tired all the time, doesn't even make you pay attention."

• Idk...
• Taken for 1 to 2 years
• April 11, 2020

For ADHD "Focalin makes my hand and stomach numb, causes a tired feeling, and a meh feeling, and see if feeling, but everyone says it helps me."