Can you use methylphenidate and alcohol at the same time?

What is methylphenidate?

Methylphenidate is the active ingredient in a number of well-known medications for attention disorders, such as ADHD or autism. Methylphenidate has a stimulant effect, lengthening your attention span and allowing you to focus more on things. The substance does not cure, but it can help relieve certain symptoms. Methylphenidate is mainly found in well-known drugs and research chemicals, such as 4F-MPH. The substance falls under the group of amphetamines and can only be obtained by doctor's prescription. Methylphenidate as a recreational drug is illegal. 

Effects of methylphenidate

In short, methylphenidate is often used as a medication for narcolepsy or ADHD. Methylphenidate therefore helps with symptoms such as:

• Crowdedness in your head
• Little focus
• You are hyperactive
• You can not wait your turn
• You are irritable or even angry
• Your performance at school suffers
• You have a lot of arguments and conflicts

Methylphenidate is in medications like Ritalin and Concerta and makes you calmer and you experience better concentration. You are no longer distracted and no longer busy in your head. Therefore, these drugs also have a beneficial effect on your energy level and behavior. 

Do methylphenidate and alcohol go together?

When you take a drug containing methylphenidate together with alcohol, the side effects of methylphenidate can be intensified. Therefore, alcohol and methylphenidate often lead to severe restlessness, anxiety attacks, urge to speak and moodiness. When you have drunk a lot of alcohol or just a large dose of methylphenidate, this combination can even lead to hallucinations and becoming unconscious to the point of comatose states. Moreover, a methylphenidate and alcohol effect is that the effect of methylphenidate is masked, making you more likely to take more methylphenidate. Higher doses, in turn, lead to a greater likelihood of addiction. Treatment with methylphenidate and alcohol use is therefore strongly discouraged. 

Methylphenidate and alcohol experiences

It is generally the experience that a combination of methylphenidate and alcohol can turn out to be dangerous. In fact, in addition to the effects mentioned above, this combination can also lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular problems and a seizure, as you may experience high blood pressure or an irregular heartbeat. Your coordination and judgment may also be drastically impaired, making you more likely to get behind the wheel without thinking about the consequences, for example. Finally, taking methylphenidate and alcohol can lead to behavioral problems, such as aggressive behavior. 

Can methylphenidate be used with other medications?

One of the best-known side effects of medication with methylphenidate is that people feel sleepless. This leads many to use a sleep aid to counteract that side effect. Like alcohol, the combination of methylphenidate with other medications is dangerous. Using methylphenidate with sleep medications, for example, can cause oxygen deprivation in the brain, which is life-threatening. Especially with medications containing the substances phenelzine and tranylcypromine, an interaction takes place. This is medication for depression and together with methylphenidate can lead to risky increases in blood pressure.

Can methylphenidate be taken with other stimulants?

Methylphenidate should not be combined with other stimulants, such as amphetamines or cocaine. These drugs reinforce each other's effects, so it can easily become too much of a good thing. The compatibility of methylphenidate with other recreational drugs has not been well studied. It is generally held that methylphenidate should be taken alone, without alcohol and without combining other substances.