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Cantabrigian said:
Hi - I self diagnosed then went to a psychiatrist who agreed with me. Now on Ritalin - has a good effect but dose low to start - 20mg orally barely seems to do anything and I take that am plus 10mg more at noon which is very subtle. I think I need more of it and more often but worry a bit that the doctor will think I am too enthusiastic about the drug and be concerned. Anyway, the good news is that you are likely to be right if you have read widely, etc., and the meds do seem to work well. I am in Tokyo and the psychiatrist I saw here said that "ADHD responds beautifully to Ritalin" - he is Japanese but spent 30 years in private practice in US - formally Japan doesn't recognise adult ADHD so Ritalin is only available for narcolepsy here, so it's been a bit of a "game" as you can imagine! Anyway, best of luck - be optimistic - if you are right there is a lot of hope - we are lucky to have something so well understood and treatable .

Kind regards,
Cantabrigian.

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That's a tough one... since your in Japan, I don't know how the heck they would handle that. I'd just tell your psychiatrist what you told us, and see how he responds. The worst thing that can happen is he won't give you a higher dose and/or different stimulant. Then you are no worse off than before. Ritalin is just one of several you know, and if you were in the US you would have other options to chose from.
See if he will prescribe you a higher dose of an "Extended Release" version of Ritalin. These extended release capsules cannot be turned into liquid form to be abused, and that's the most common way abuse is done. He's unlikely to think that you would want to abuse the ER version, and it will possibly work better too.
Are you Japanese? Do you have any other options?