How Long Does Ritalin Last?

If you or someone under your care is on Ritalin, you may have questions regarding how it works, how long it lasts in your system, its side effects, and if it causes addiction. Having such concerns is normal. In fact, it’s always best to educate yourself on how any drug, including Ritalin, will interact with your body. Luckily, this article will examine Ritalin in depth so you can make informed decisions for yourself or loved ones in liaison with your healthcare provider.

What Is Ritalin?

Ritalin or methylphenidate is a prescription drug that acts as a stimulant for the central nervous system.[1] It also goes by other brand names, such as Concerta and Methylin.

Healthcare providers prescribe Ritalin to adults and children who suffer from diagnosed attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and attention deficit disorder (ADD).

Sometimes this drug is also used to treat narcolepsy, a sleep condition that causes affected individuals to experience excessive drowsiness accompanied by sudden bouts of sleep during the day.

Worth noting is that while Ritalin is categorized as a stimulant medication, it’s not as potent as amphetamine. It may, however, have similar effects to caffeine, although Ritalin’s potency is higher.

How Ritalin Works

Methylphenidate works by increasing the amount of neurotransmitters (dopamine and norepinephrine) in the brain, which affect the feelings of motivation, pleasure, and attention regulation. It then blocks the reabsorption of these neurotransmitters back into the neurons.

For ADHD treatment, Ritalin decreases the symptoms usually associated with this condition and improves attention span, concentration, and listening skills. Its stimulant nature benefits individuals with narcolepsy by increasing wakefulness. It does so by increasing the activity between nerve cells in the body and the brain.

Like most drugs, Ritalin has potential side effects, even when taken as directed by your doctor. The most commonly reported side effects are trouble sleeping and increased feelings of nervousness. [2] Others include:

• Headaches
• Increased heart rate and blood pressure
• Loss of appetite
• Moodiness and irritability
• Nausea

How Long Does Ritalin Stay in the Body?

Ritalin duration in the body varies from one person to another. Therefore, you shouldn’t take the estimations provided in this article as definitive. When you take Ritalin, its effects will generally last in the body between three and four hours. [3] For some people, this can take up to several days for the body to eliminate the drug.   This is because factors like individual metabolism, formulation, and dosage can affect how long the effects last.

Ritalin Half-Life: Immediate-Release vs. Extended-Release Formulations

Drug half-life in the medical world refers to the amount of time it takes to metabolize the active drug molecule to half or 50 percent of its initial concentration. For Ritalin, the half-life will usually change depending on the formulation.

An immediate-release form of Ritalin means that the product is quickly or immediately released in the body. This means that it remains in the body for short periods. Usually, the half-life of immediate-release formulations is between two and three hours, while extended-release forms have a half-life of three to four hours.[4]

For each formulation’s average half-life, multiplying it by two will give you an approximation of how long Ritalin will stay in your system.

Detecting Ritalin in the Body

There are several reasons that may require testing for Ritalin in your system, including medical, athletic, employment checks, and legal testing for substance abuse. When this need arises, there are several drug tests the interested parties can leverage, including:

• Urine Tests: This is the most popular test for detecting Ritalin because it can pick traces of the drug for up to two days after the last use. [5] Plus, collecting samples is pretty easy.
• Blood Tests: These tests can only detect Ritalin in your system for 12 to 24 hours after the last use of the drug.[6] Due to the short detection window and high costs, blood tests aren’t typically the first option.
• Saliva Tests: To detect the presence of Ritalin in your system, the medical professional will collect a swab of saliva from your mouth. This test usually detects Ritalin for up to 24 hours after the last time you used it.[7] Unlike the blood test, a saliva test is more cost-effective.
• Hair Tests: Though less commonly used, these tests offer the widest detection window for Ritalin. Usually, hair follicle tests can detect Ritalin in your system for up to 90 days after you take it.[8]

Factors That Can Affect Ritalin Drug Testing

While you can detect Ritalin using tests, it’s not a foolproof method. Several factors may affect the test results, including:

• How often you take Ritalin.
• How long you’ve taken it.
• How much water you drink.
• The dosage amount: smaller doses of Ritalin may last for shorter periods.
• The amount of physical activity you do.
• Your metabolism rate. If you have a fast metabolism, you may eliminate Ritalin faster from your body.
• Your age: older people may take longer to metabolize the drug than younger people.
• Mixing it with other substances like alcohol. This can lengthen the time it takes for your body to eliminate Ritalin because the liver prioritizes metabolizing alcohol.

Ritalin and Substance Use Considerations

According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, stimulants, which are often prescribed for ADHD, are in the class of medications that individuals end up misusing.[9] Further, the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) classifies methylphenidate products as Schedule II controlled substances.

Worth noting is that Schedule II is the highest level of controlled drugs you can get with a doctor’s prescription. This means that individuals taking Ritalin can end up with physical dependence on it or misusing it. Therefore, you can only legally obtain and use it under the direction of a healthcare professional.

Data shows that about 3.7 million people misused prescription stimulants in 2021.[10] The same dataset reveals that later in 2022, 1.1 percent of 12th graders, 0.7 percent of 10th graders, and 0.7 percent of 8th graders were actively misusing Ritalin.

This data is no surprise. Ritalin is often misrepresented as a cognitive performance enhancer. As such, high school and college students, including people working at demanding jobs, may use Ritalin to stay awake longer and improve performance in school, sports, and at work.

But this couldn’t be further from the truth. When taken in moderation, stimulants can definitely improve focus and attention span for short periods of time. However, overdependence and misuse can cause symptoms like aggressiveness, impulsivity, memory issues, dilated pupils, and paranoia.

Alternative Ways To Treat ADHD

Using stimulants like methylphenidate isn’t the only way your doctor can help you deal with ADHD. While it can help with relieving the symptoms of ADHD, the risks involved — dependence and misuse —are too high. Therefore, before your doctor prescribes a stimulant, they should look at other options like therapy. This can involve:

• Behavioral Therapy: This form of therapy is a general term for several types of therapy. It’s used to help treat and reduce the effects of mental health disorders, including ADHD. As its name suggests, it’s based on the principle that because individuals learn all the behaviors they exhibit, these behaviors can also be changed.
• Cognitive Behavioral Therapy: CBT is a type of behavioral therapy that combines behavioral therapy and cognitive therapy. This form of therapy focuses on patterns of thought and action. It seeks to treat the affected individual by trying to change their thoughts and beliefs to improve mood and make better actions.
• Marriage and Family Therapy: Unlike other forms of therapy, this therapy focuses on helping loved ones, including spouses, partners, or family members of the individual struggling with ADHD, so they can have better interactions. It provides your support system with tools to encourage you to adopt healthier behaviors.

If therapy fails or isn’t an option for ADHD treatment, your doctor can also prescribe other medications with a lower likelihood of causing abuse and dependence, such as:

• Intuniv (guanfacine ER) and Kapvay (clonidine ER): These drugs are best suited for treating ADHD in children aged between six and 17. Studies show that Intuniv and Kapvay work by improving attention, impulse control, and memory. Additionally, they lower distraction, a common ADHD symptom.[11]
• Qelbree (Viloxazine) and Strattera (Atomoxetine): Adults, teens, and children can use these drugs to manage ADHD. They work by boosting norepinephrine, a brain chemical responsible for regulating attention, arousal, stress responses, and cognitive function.
• Catapres (Clonidine): While primarily a blood pressure medication, Catapres has shown effectiveness in alleviating the symptoms of ADHD. It works by reducing aggressiveness and hyperactivity, and is usually used to treat ADHD in adolescents.
• Wellbutrin (Bupropion) and Trintellix (Vortioxetine): The FDA doesn’t specifically approve these drugs for this condition. However, your doctor may prescribe antidepressants to treat ADHD “off-label” if they deem it the best option.

Ritalin Addiction Treatment Options: How Southeast Detox Can Help

If you or someone you care about has an addiction problem from misusing Ritalin, it’s possible to safely get off it. This doesn’t mean that you suddenly stop taking it. In fact, it may cause more harm than good. As with most addictions, going cold turkey can cause uncomfortable, sometimes dangerous, withdrawal symptoms.

A medically assisted detox is one of the best and safest ways you can deal with methylphenidate addiction. Your dosage is slowly reduced to minimize the shock of suddenly stopping taking the drug. However, while this type of detox might help reduce withdrawal symptoms, you may still experience them, and your doctor may prescribe medication to help deal with the symptoms.

Inpatient rehabilitation programs can also help with detoxing Ritalin out of your system. This method takes away the individual from environments that may encourage and support Ritalin misuse. Lastly, therapy for both the affected person and their immediate family or spouse can help deal with addiction.

At Southeast Detox, we can help. We understand that dealing with substance addiction is unique for every person. That’s why we offer specialized treatment plans for every person we admit. We also understand that addiction requires empathy, not judgment, so we always lead with that.

Reach out to us if you need help with addiction.