Day One

Today is day one of a new chapter. At the age of 60 + 2 months I've decided to take medication to help me deal with what I now know to be ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)/Hyperactivity Syndrome (ADHD), which has made much of my life quite challenging, not to say miserable.
I've received a prescription of Concerta XL (aka Methylphenidate hydrochloride) Prolonged Release Tablets. My current daily dose is 18mg; I'm supposed to gradually increase. More on this in a later post, perhaps.

The point of this blog is to try and keep tabs on whether and possibly how this affects my mood, my output and quality of life.

It's been a very mixed bag of a day: my "cat for a year", who ended up staying with me for almost 15 months, has gone back to her family – a wrench made none the easier for having been long expected and well prepared for.
Until her owner came – and afterwards – I dealt with some fairly urgent work for my distant clients.
In the afternoon I had my weekly one-to-one Gaelic session with my private tutor – most enjoyable, instructive and topped off by wee cups of strong coffee plus, today, two delicious chocolates made in Oban.
It was a dry, sunny, mostly warm day, so I walked into town to get some tickets for the cinema on Sunday (which re-opened on 2 August) and a Gaelic song recital next week, plus to pick up a few things from the shops.
Work more or less done, I didn't check e-mails again before I headed out to Dunollie Castle for a hugely enjoyable evening of hog roast with two different kinds of salad (rice and pasta) and a goodly quantity of a very decent Pinot grigio to wash everything down before we gathered for a drama walk about the castle grounds to the words of Shakespeare. The Walking Theatre retold the ancient tale of Macbeth in a thrilling and sometimes surprising way.
During my walk home I enjoyed the magical light on the still water – another one of these many lovely evenings we've had this summer when the water in the bay looked more like quicksilver, with a sheen of purplish gold long after sunset.
I'm not sure I've digested it all but am tired now and getting ready to turn in.
Has Concerta made a noticeable difference? Not sure – probably too early to tell. What I do notice, as I type, is that I make a lot of wee mistakes that I have to correct – is it the wine (only had one large glass, hours ago, plus a glass of water)? Or am I just tired?