Has anyone tried Yoga and/or meditation for ADD? I think it might be helpful...I am distracted easily and often. However, I find breathing exercises help me focus.
Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
31–40 of 223 posts
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#32Earlier quoted context omitted.
Prescription "meth" is just that: meth. Methamphetamine is legal in the US and available under prescription (brand name: Desoxyn). It's scheduled just the same as Adderall -- not that scheduling means much; most of it's science-free political posturing. Adderall/Vyvanse are amphetamines but not methamphetamine.
It's figurative, not literal. I am very much aware of desoxyn and that adderall is actually composed of four amphetamine salts, none of them literally meth. However, the amphetamine family of drugs have very similar effects — meth is very similar to adderall is very similar to vyvanse.
I don't understand the figurative part. Is that like folks who call oxycodone "legal heroin" or "synthetic heroin"? Is it supposed to sound edgy or provide some sort of shock effect against ignorant people? I don't get it.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#33It's unfortunate the author was not able to manage the drug properly. Adderall is a potent substance that, when used in the correct fashion, can be an effective aid for those who need it. It's also highly addictive so must be combined with a healthy lifestyle and coupled to good habits in order to be kept in check. I would highly recommend that anyone who feels themselves falling into a routine similar to that descri…
Exactly. The tone of the article made it seem like the Author was a victim here, when in reality I think this comment sums it up: >The writer tells us she was "23" when all this happened, as if to say, "Really, I was just a kid." But, really, she wasn't a kid. The brain is quite mature at age 23, but she didn't explore, evidently, the possibility that she was making a mistake.
Denial is a principal aspect of drug addiction. Even if she quits using, it will likely take a long-time for her to fully accept that it was all her fault. Drug addicts will blame every single person but themselves.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#34This made me sick. I don't know what's worst: the author's self-absorption, the victimization tone, or the fact that her colleagues had to do similar unhealthy shit in order to compete with her. It stinks the whole way.
Using drugs to gain an unfair advantage over other people at work has unhealthy emotional side effects? Am I to be surprised by this?
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#35There is a smart way to do this and not be a complete moron like the author. I take adderall a few times a year and have been doing so since my senior year (2003) in high school and have never come close to this trainwreck. It's a simple approach: know exactly what you have to do before taking it, eat a meal before (since you will have no appetite), take them in the early morning (so you can sleep by night), and finally...don't use them again for at least a few months. Also have water nearby the entire time since it dehydrates you.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#36I've never met someone who was diagnosed with ADHD since their early years. It's always people like the one in this article. I have a few questions to ask people who have used amphetamines while exercising (cross training, cardio), having sex, meditating, or anything that raises your heart rate. How does it feel? Does it feel like running on an empty stomach on a Monday morning after having slept only 3 hours?
Methylphenidate (Ritalin) and the amphetamines do wonders for physical work. You feel fantastic and capable. Amphetamines in particular provide a bit of a euphoric boost. In general, amphetamines are going to make you feel pretty damn good, although coming down might be unpleasant sometimes.
I have to caution people to not do exert themselves, as they figure out that they can go workout at the gym like mad. I'm not sure it's healthy to work out while on stimulants.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#37Earlier quoted context omitted.
> People don't realize that the 60mg Vyvanse they are taking casually is an extremely hard drug to take for somebody not fully diagnosed with ADHD. Are controlled stimulants less harmful to those diagnosed with AD(H)D? I'm sincerely curious. Anecdotal accounts abound on this particular subject, but I can't recall seeing any specific literature supporting the claim.
The adverse side-effects do not magically go away; however, the benefits are (supposedly) much greater for a person diagnosed with AD(H)D than recreational users. Thus the net gain (benefits - costs) is positive for some people.
This is how I'd put it. I've been diagnosed with adult ADHD and take a moderate to low dose of Adderall under the direction of my doctor. I can easily forgo taking it for weeks, and do so. These "vacations" without it were advised by my doctor to prevent tolerance buildup, and I suspect to diminish the potential for addiction. My dosage has remained constant and I don't feel a "need" for it, so I guess they work. For many of those with ADHD the drug makes a world of difference, and pushes focus and tendency to move around into the "normal" range. For certain activities the (benefits - costs) equation works out, while for others it does not (which is to say certain activities don't appreciably benefit from the quiet mind--the costs are long term and are more difficult to discern). It's about planning to take it for days where it does help, and being mindful of the health ramifications (staying hydrated, eating normal and healthy meals, monitoring cardiac health with support from a doctor, continuing to consult the doctor, etc.).
My biggest fear beyond addiction is that it will be detrimental to my memory and learning in the long term. It's difficult to know if that is true.
The author clearly abused it. Taking it "to socialize" seems weird to me. I suspect the author did not need it in the first place, and was already in the "normal" range. My mentally disorganized self is much more outgoing that the focused version of me. If it is impacting sleep, the dosage is probably too high or too extended (though many MDs prescribe the XR version since ostensibly it has less potential for abuse).
Some of the alternative pharmaceuticals may work about as well, but Adderall has been around for so long that its risks are fairly well understood--though less so with long term use.
Vyvanse is a means to extract more money from patients via patent protection. It's essentially dexedrine with a lysine attached (new side group=new patent). The lysine gets cleaved in vivo, and it becomes dextroamphetamine. Adderall is a mixture of dextro- and levo- handed salts, so it's a bit more nuanced.
Taking it without doctor supervision is a major risk, and taking more than is prescribed or mixing it with other drugs as the author did compounds the risk. The potential for abuse is real.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#38This made me sick. I don't know what's worst: the author's self-absorption, the victimization tone, or the fact that her colleagues had to do similar unhealthy shit in order to compete with her. It stinks the whole way. Using drugs to gain an unfair advantage over other people at work has unhealthy emotional side effects? Am I to be surprised by this?
Tone it down. This is a sober (heh) account of a young woman finding herself in a place she thought she'd never be, not a personal ad.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#39I've never met someone who was diagnosed with ADHD since their early years. It's always people like the one in this article. I have a few questions to ask people who have used amphetamines while exercising (cross training, cardio), having sex, meditating, or anything that raises your heart rate. How does it feel? Does it feel like running on an empty stomach on a Monday morning after having slept only 3 hours?
Methylphenidate (Ritalin) and the amphetamines do wonders for physical work. You feel fantastic and capable. Amphetamines in particular provide a bit of a euphoric boost. In general, amphetamines are going to make you feel pretty damn good, although coming down might be unpleasant sometimes. I have to caution people to not do exert themselves, as they figure out that they can go workout at the gym like mad. I'm not s…
If there is a euphoric boost it sounds like the dose is much higher than would be indicated for ADHD. Slight modulation of mood maybe, but euphoria speaks of abuse.
Re: Adderall Addiction: The Last All-Nighter
#40I've never met someone who was diagnosed with ADHD since their early years. It's always people like the one in this article. I have a few questions to ask people who have used amphetamines while exercising (cross training, cardio), having sex, meditating, or anything that raises your heart rate. How does it feel? Does it feel like running on an empty stomach on a Monday morning after having slept only 3 hours?
Methylphenidate (Ritalin) and the amphetamines do wonders for physical work. You feel fantastic and capable. Amphetamines in particular provide a bit of a euphoric boost. In general, amphetamines are going to make you feel pretty damn good, although coming down might be unpleasant sometimes. I have to caution people to not do exert themselves, as they figure out that they can go workout at the gym like mad. I'm not s…
I've associated Ritalin with a negative connotation until a few weeks ago when I saw what it can do. I haven't tried adderral yet but I'm guessing it makes you feel synthetic. Like a robot who just learned how to use it's reserved cores. It's not natural but I feel like someone should measure their heart rate when doing the activities I said while high on amphetamines. How would one feel?