How long does Modalert take to improve my concentration?

Question

Hi doctor,

I am taking tablets Prodep 60 mg, Modalert 200 mg, and Oleanz 5mg. I know you would not recommend me Modalert 200 mg, but I have tried it as I am very concerned about concentration and cognitive enhancement. By god's grace, now Modalert 200 mg suits me, and there are no side effects as such. Moreover, I feel improvement in my doubts and nonsensical thoughts.

There are two major problems for me:

Once a week, there is an attack of thoughts that life is very bad. Thoughts of suicide come to my mind. By god's grace, I have not tried suicide. These thoughts leave my mind after two days.
I am taking Modalert 200 mg for 10 days, but I feel no improvement in cognitive enhancement and concentration. There has been weakness in my hands for five days. Is this a symptom of any medicine that I am taking, or is there any other reason for this?

Please give your valuable suggestion regarding when Modalert 200 mg will give me improvement in concentration and cognitive enhancement.

Kindly help.

Thank you.

Answer 1

Hi,

Welcome to icliniq.com.

I understand your concern.

I am happy to know that you are improving in some domains and have started considering your health as a priority. At the same time, I congratulate you for being able to overcome all the negative thoughts that sometimes creep into your mind.

When I recommended Modafinil 200 milligrams about two months ago, there were problems due to side effects. Fortunately, you are now tolerating the same medication, which is a good sign of recovery. Like all psychiatric medications, Modafinil takes some time to act, and you need to wait for at least two to four weeks to see improvement.

If you have already completed two weeks or more of Modafinil, it is advisable to stop it if there is no positive effect on alertness and concentration.
In case there is some improvement, continue taking it as usual.
Please take Modafinil early in the morning and never after 11 a.m.

There is another new drug from a similar class that may be useful if Modafinil is not effective. We will plan for this alternative after assessing the benefit of Modafinil in the next consultation. The drug is known as Armodafinil.

The weakness symptoms that you mentioned are not related to any of these medications. To rule out anemia, you can check your hemoglobin level from a nearby laboratory. There is also a possibility that poor sleep during these days might have caused the weakness.

At this moment, you only need to ensure:

Proper rest.
Balanced diet.

The current weekly thoughts of self-harm are expected to reduce in the near future. Please continue following the advice I gave you during our previous video consultation a few weeks ago. I hope you still remember the imaginary Stop Technique.

Having said this, continue taking Fluoxetine and Olanzapine at the same dosage. Regarding Modafinil, follow the instructions as described above, and continue it at the same dosage before 10 a.m. in the morning if it is effective.

Thank you.