Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know • Hacker News Board

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#141

Post by Sir_Substance » Sat, Dec 30, 2017, 11:13 PM UTC

YeGoblynQueenne wrote: post #138

chimeracoder wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The point of a to-do list (or reminder in Google Calendar) is that it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it. It sounds like you're using one-off calendar entries. I'm not suggesting that "try not having ADD", just suggesting you use mechanisms to remind you to do stuff that are persistent and thus work. No offense, but from what you're saying, it's pretty clear you don't understand how ADHD wor…

>> Hence, that's why OP read your post as "try not having ADD", because you're literally suggesting solutions that presume that they not have ADHD in the first place. To be fair, the article does make the point pretty strongly that it is very hard to separate ADHD from natural variations of attention, concentration etc: But “ability to concentrate” is a normally distributed trait, like IQ. We draw a line at some poin…

>To take the example of height again, just because someone is short doesn't mean they won't look taller with high heels.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbMv0UkAswI&feature=youtu.be...

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#142

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Dec 30, 2017, 11:24 PM UTC

wincy wrote: post #100

zschuessler wrote: post #51

If anyone here reading this needs the motivation or gentle reminder: you might not need Adderall anymore. I've used it to get ahead in software for the past ~8 years. I recently gave it up, but it was hard to realize that it was time. It might be time for you, too. The thing holding me back was fear. Fear I wasn't enough, that I couldn't be efficient. That I would get fired from my high position. Or even if I could m…

I really relate with this. It took extraordinary measures for me to get where I can work efficiently without Adderall. Adderall turned me into such a different person that my wife started to be scared of me. Just interrupting me from work was a landmine, I was so mean. The doctor just said “be nicer” when I asked him about Adderall and anger issues. I’m a fun and easygoing person and it was like that part of me would…

[deleted]

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#143

Post by rdlecler1 » Sat, Dec 30, 2017, 11:25 PM UTC

dilap wrote: post #91

rdlecler1 wrote: post #86

I was high school dropout turned Yale PhD. I was prescribed for either Adderall or Ritalin for about 20 years starting in my second year of University. The two main side effects I had from Adderall were appetite suppression (which has the bonus side effect of intermitent fasting) and hyper focus. With hyper focus I could work like a machine for 14-16 hours, and would have to remind myself to stop and eat, but I could…

That's how I feel about drugs in general, but I think society has this weird split of two extremes: any unprescribed, street drug is super dangerous and evil, and any prescribed drug is just just medicine correcting an "imbalance", and is totally benign and fine and good. Madness both ways. You mention getting prescribed in college, as a adult. How would you feel if you had been prescribed as a kid? To me, growing up…

I’d avoid perscription drugs for my kids if possible. For me, ADD was a kind of personality trait that affected how I looked at and reacted to the world. It had pros and cons. Adderall helped me deal with the cons when the time was right. I wouldnt try to take that away from my children. Also knowing what I know I could probably be a better parent to children with ADD.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#144

Post by costatus » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 12:38 AM UTC

CydeWeys wrote: post #92

chimeracoder wrote: post #90

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The point of a to-do list (or reminder in Google Calendar) is that it's constantly staring at you until you actually complete it. It sounds like you're using one-off calendar entries. I'm not suggesting that "try not having ADD", just suggesting you use mechanisms to remind you to do stuff that are persistent and thus work. No offense, but from what you're saying, it's pretty clear you don't understand how ADHD wor…

How does a persistent in-your-face reminder that does not go away until completed fail? I suppose severe procrastination or complete lack of willpower would do it, but are these not different from ADHD?

CydeWeys - thanks for your persistent posts... they are a wonderful example of how someone without the condition cannot fathom what is going on "inside" and thinks they can be fixed with a system or willpower. These things help to a point but there is an underlying problem that can't be fixed this way.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#145

Post by 1a2a3a4a » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 1:02 AM UTC

fny wrote: post #6

apostacy wrote: post #4

I really, really wish there was more discussion of this. This is something that is very present in my life and the lives of people I have worked with, but nobody talks about it. The two things that really stick out for me are the existential implications of taking a pill that rewires your brain, and the inevitable intersection of that with one's career choices.

I don't take adderall, but I'm not too convinced by the concerns listed here. The drug seems far less risky than alcohol on all counts, and I'm pretty sure all amphetamine users are aware that their playing with some sort of fire. I think the compelling question is why people feel so compelled to take a pill to sell their souls to a rat race? Seems like an almost Huxleyan Prisoner's Dilemma to me.

For what it’s worth, for me, the main impact of adderall is on a second to second level, not whether I can concentrate for 12 hours straight.

When I’m not on medication, I have a lot of short term memory loss and sudden changes in train of thought. The impact of this was that I would sometimes “wake up” and have no recollection of how I got to where I currently was, I continuously lost everything, and had trouble with math word problems that were described over long paragraphs.

My parents actually originally went to the doctor because of the stress caused by always losing things.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#146

Post by solarmist » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 1:16 AM UTC

vincentriemer wrote: post #46

Klathmon wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is what I have to explain to people, my ADHD doesn't only apply to things I don't want to do. Things like not being able to watch a movie, or even play some video games without missing huge parts of the story, or sitting through a conversation with a group of friends trying to constantly "catch up" to a topic that I missed a few minutes ago, or trying to be self aware enough to not change the subject on people t…

I had held off getting tested for ADHD because I was convinced I was just lazy and didn't like schoolwork but once I noticed I couldn't play a single videogame for more than 15 minutes at a time and had to do something else, I got myself tested and ultimately diagnosed. I still remember the first day I took the medication, it was like somebody finally turned off a white noise machine in my brain and I could finally d…

This. This was exactly my experience.

I texted my wife after my first dose that I heard someone having a conversation near me and that I could hear them, but I didn't know what they were saying and I didn't care.

This was a revelation for me.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#147

Post by harigov » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 1:32 AM UTC

ankushnarula wrote: post #113

zschuessler wrote: post #64

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I apologize my wording made it appear I was abusing drugs, I don't condone that. In fact I'm the opposite: I microdosed Adderall. 5mg a day for the longest time, then bumped up to 10mg. My doctors over the years pushed me to take more but I always said no. Instead I would take breaks and let tolerance die down before resuming. I first got a prescription when I found I would rather spend 2-3 hours of my work day stari…

I was convinced that I had ADHD by the time I was 21 after a lot of struggling in high school and college. I went to a psychiatrist and he asked me the basic DSM IV questions and he said it was a 90% match. So he put me on Ritalin and then eventually Adderall. I also had severe insomnia so this exacerbated my abuse potential in order to make it thru multiple days with higher performance without sleep. Within a year o…

Thanks for sharing this! I am pretty sure that I have ADHD but I was never diagnosed, nor did I ever try visiting a doctor for this purpose. As someone with relatively low access to healthcare, I am always concerned about taking any medicines, even if they are supposedly "good". I realized that most of my ADHD symptoms stem from inflammation. If I take away any inputs including dietary(sugar, gluten, dairy, egg, etc.,) and environmental(pollutants, cold, dust, pollen, etc.,), I am as focused as ever. So that's what I focused all my effort on. My focus levels have improved quite a bit but I am still not there yet. If your symptoms are similar to mine, you might benefit from Spirulina and Turmeric. Both of them help reduce inflammation and provide several health benefits.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#148

Post by nihilum » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 1:51 AM UTC

Copying in a post from Reddit:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Nootropics/comments/7n2qjz/adderall...

He cited the infamous squirrel monkey study without noting that (a) there were no signs of neural death or neurite retraction anywhere, and (b) reduced baseline dopamine levels are exactly what you would expect as part of the mechanism of tolerance.

That study did not establish the existence of neurotoxicity. It merely established the existence of tolerance.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#149

Post by jasonlotito » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 2:02 AM UTC

empath75 wrote: post #82

jasonlotito wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you actually have ADHD? > I've used it to get ahead in software for the past ~8 years No, you don't. At least not from how you are describing your use. You don't take this medication to get ahead. You take this medication to get to an even playing field. To get some control over your life. So yes, if you are abusing drugs, don't. That's generally good advice. Don't abuse drugs.

If most people are stronger than you, and steroids make you stronger, does taking steroids to ‘even the playing field’ constitute abuse or just taking medicine? How is that substantively different from taking adderall?

Regarding your first question: is this prescribed by a doctor, or simply you deciding to use it?

I can't answer the second question until you answer mine.

Re: Adderall Risks: Much More Than You Wanted to Know

#150

Post by jasonlotito » Sun, Dec 31, 2017, 2:05 AM UTC

barrkel wrote: post #63

jasonlotito wrote: post #62

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you actually have ADHD? > I've used it to get ahead in software for the past ~8 years No, you don't. At least not from how you are describing your use. You don't take this medication to get ahead. You take this medication to get to an even playing field. To get some control over your life. So yes, if you are abusing drugs, don't. That's generally good advice. Don't abuse drugs.

Did you read the article? This perspective is covered quite well, I think.

Yes, it talked about the dangers. I took the parents comments as saying that you don't need to take drugs. The reality is, you shouldn't take advice like that from a comment. See a doctor. Work with them to find what works for you.

What I saw from the OP was dangerous advice.