erg57
06-30-2004, 11:25 PM
I am about to embark upon my first script of Adderall after being diagnosed. What should I look for when taking this? I am bit freaked out admittedly. I have never been one for medications. My doc was a bit evasive in his advice about the meds. Does it get you "high"? Do people get hooked on it?
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bearboy
07-01-2004, 03:04 AM
Amphetamines have a very high abuse potential. They are a class II (second only to illegal narcotics) controlled subastance, which is given to prescription drugs with the highest abuse and dependancy profile. If you use your medication as prescribed, then there should be no risk of becoming addicted, though it is possible to acquire a psychological dependancy.
It is a good rule of thumb that if a drug produces a 'high' or euphoric effects then that usually means your system is having a bad reaction to the drug. And of course if it is light euphoria, this may be expected in the first few days of amphetamine treatment. If you think something is wrong, call your doctor or pharmacist!
It is a good rule of thumb that if a drug produces a 'high' or euphoric effects then that usually means your system is having a bad reaction to the drug. And of course if it is light euphoria, this may be expected in the first few days of amphetamine treatment. If you think something is wrong, call your doctor or pharmacist!
smashedcricket
07-02-2004, 05:21 AM
stimulints like adderall usually do not make ADHD folks feel euphoric, especially at doses fit for their treatment..in fact it usually produces a calming and focused effect for most, even at fairly high doses..I am currently on 90mg, and I get no extra "rewarding" side effects or others for that matter, but everyone is different...there is no fixed dosage for this drug...its all based on what works for you..some people need 10mg a day, some people need much more..
emery2
07-02-2004, 11:48 PM
The main side effect I know of is decreased appetite and weight loss. My son was on Adderall for 3 months and lost 8 pounds. Be careful and let your doctor know if anything just doesn't seem right.
fotojunkie
07-04-2004, 06:00 PM
My son played the ADD roulette for a while. Finally, we settled on Adderall about 6 or 8 months ago. He is 14 and against meds. We have usually treated health issues homeopathically or with alternative medicine or nutritionally. He was not thrilled with using scripts. We battled it for several years. Even when he got the Adderall script he balked. He didn't really want to take it, but I told him to give it a try and if it didn't work for him we would look elsewhere. Well, he tried it and said that he doesn't know how he functioned in school without it. His grades improved almost immediately. He now takes it on his own. He had so much trouble in school prior to the Adderall that he wound up failing two classes and went to summer school. He took the responsibility of taking it himself before class. He told me he wanted to take it because it helped him focus.
I will tell you what he told me about how it made him feel. He felt focused, like he could concentrate on what was going on. He didn't have the "channel changing" in his head like he used to. He can keep his thoughts straight. He isn't so easily distracted.
He said his appetite wanes a bit. We compensated by adjusting meals for him. He eats breakfast, some lunch, a small snack after school, but his appetite isn't near what it used to be. I serve him a good dinner when he is ready in the evening. I have found that quality of meals compensates for the quantity he eats. I make sure that good, healthy foods in a large variety are always available. We had to lose some structure to work around his eating habits (and his brother's who is on Concerta). He is a big boy at 14, 6'2" tall and about 215 pounds. He is also pretty mature for his age. I am really proud of him for taking the responsibility for this issue, owning it and taking control. We have always been very open and talked a lot. In my opinion he shows great maturity in taking his meds.
Watch out, though, he said that if he doesn't eat he gets weak and dizzy. We have found that keeping his blood sugar level (frequent meals) prevents this. He did not have this problem prior to being on the Adderall. He has actually passed out a couple of times, but once we did the frequent meal thing he did not have it again.
His moodiness also improved. He is in a much better mood.
At first he had trouble going to sleep. But we figured what time in the morning worked best to take the meds and with the diet that cleared up as well. He is actually usually the first to go to sleep now.
I will tell you what he told me about how it made him feel. He felt focused, like he could concentrate on what was going on. He didn't have the "channel changing" in his head like he used to. He can keep his thoughts straight. He isn't so easily distracted.
He said his appetite wanes a bit. We compensated by adjusting meals for him. He eats breakfast, some lunch, a small snack after school, but his appetite isn't near what it used to be. I serve him a good dinner when he is ready in the evening. I have found that quality of meals compensates for the quantity he eats. I make sure that good, healthy foods in a large variety are always available. We had to lose some structure to work around his eating habits (and his brother's who is on Concerta). He is a big boy at 14, 6'2" tall and about 215 pounds. He is also pretty mature for his age. I am really proud of him for taking the responsibility for this issue, owning it and taking control. We have always been very open and talked a lot. In my opinion he shows great maturity in taking his meds.
Watch out, though, he said that if he doesn't eat he gets weak and dizzy. We have found that keeping his blood sugar level (frequent meals) prevents this. He did not have this problem prior to being on the Adderall. He has actually passed out a couple of times, but once we did the frequent meal thing he did not have it again.
His moodiness also improved. He is in a much better mood.
At first he had trouble going to sleep. But we figured what time in the morning worked best to take the meds and with the diet that cleared up as well. He is actually usually the first to go to sleep now.