Hi,
You know, when I was 20 years younger this would be a great effects. I'm not though. I'm 49 yrs old and just started takeing Adderall XR one week ago. I feel so stoned all the time. My concentration hasn't improved...quite the opposite. I am taking only 10 mg because I can't seem to handle med's well. I'm also taking 10 mg Lamictal for depression but am weaning myself, per Doc, off it. Just started yesterday. My question is, does "anyone" else have this problem of being stupified all the time? This med makes me feel awful. Dizzy, confused at times and stupidly stoned. Also only works for approx 6 hours and then drops me hard. I'm loosing weight weight way too fast and can't afford to lose 1 pound so this is also a concern.
THanks,
Harleybluz

Harleybluz,

Tell your doctor the effect Adderall XR is having on you. About 20% of the population do not respond to stimulants with increased focus. Another possibility is 10mg is too high for you. Response to meds is very difficult to predict.

Stimulants help most people concentrate better. So giving it a try and let's see what happens is no way to diagnose ADHD since ADHD has no bearing on whether anyone responds. And if the dose is too high, most people seem drugged and sluggish, ADHD or not. To further complicate the complex, there are a slew of other medical conditions including thyroid problems and diabetes that can mimic ADHD symptoms. And no one can concentrate when anxious or depressed.

At a minimum, get a complete physical. Your inability to maintain weight, especially at 49, might be a smoking gun. I'm 54. I had no weight problem until about age 30. I've been gaining ever since. Can we switch medical problems? :D

Bob

Hi, harleybluz,

I had recently taken Adderal XR also with quite similar effects, it seemed to make not only my ability to focus worse, but my depression too. My Rx'ing doctor thought it would be a good idea for me to try it since I got freaked out about having to take Ritalin 3-4 times a day.

So for now I am back to the Ritalin (sigh), which works great for me. Good luck :wave:

hi my name is gab. I am on adderal XR too and i know EXACTLY what you mean. I'm on 20 mg once a day and duuude i feel stone right now (btw im not a stoner...well i was once...but not anymore) but without the munchies cuz well obviously its an appetite suppressant. i'm 15 though...so like this effect it has on me...its really crazy...i feel like so depressed too tho and its weird. but anywayz i know what youre experiencing cuz im going thru it right now :yawn: but i dont think stimulants are supposed to make you drowzy... :confused:

I just started Adderal XR 3 days ago after being on Strattera for the last two months and I'm not seeing results with either medication. How long does it take to kick in?

The buzzed feeling went away for me in a couple weeks.

More importantly, one of the things I found with stimulants like ritalin or adderall was that too low a dose was worse than nothing at all. I would be more emotional and less in control as if the medication just turned up my sensitivity without increasing my control. Increasing my dosage allowed me to be more in control. Anyway 10 mg once a day of Adderall XR sounds quite low. You might want to try the shorter acting Adderall and adjust your dosage (in consultation with your doctor) till you find what works and then switch back to the XR.

As to the crack comment... I've tried ritalin as well as Adderall (I switched because I didn't like taking it several times a day and the rebound seems harsher than with Adderall) and my response to the comparison to street drugs is that any medication that you have to set an alarm on your watch to remember to take, is not a big candidate for abuse.

Thank you, everyone, for your comments and opinions, although I think the "crack" comment was typed before thinking.

I appreciate your help. Will talk to my Doc. Wanted to know if anyone else ever got this way and now I know it's not just me. That, in itself, is a relief.

When I first started, I felt similar issues. It took about a month of gradual migration to 30 mg and then all side effects tapered off. After six months now on it, I can honestly saw it made a big difference in my ability to maintain focus. I take 30 mg Adderall XR each morning. I have noticed that I do tend to "slip" a little in the evening to my old unfocused and scatterbrained self. My Doctor is now trying 10 mg regular tabs spread out over the day to see if there is a difference. Good luck to you! I think the short term side effects are worth the long run benefits. :bouncing: (Me before Adderall!) :) (Me after!)

Hi I also take Adderall XR and have the same problems it makes me shy and everyone thinks i am very skinny one thing is it makes me to where i dont eat lunch at all sometimes. Here is the great thing about Adderal XR when you take it you can eat all the junk food you want but you have to be careful because you still need to eat good foods as well but you can eat more when you are on this med. I do not eat lunch hardly all week, but on the weekends i do not take it because of its affects on me and i eat like a pig. The whole sleepy part its normal, Adderal XR not only helps you concentrate but it also gies you an energy boost and calms you down. So your getting all this energy from the pill mean while your poor body is dying of lack of energy. It would help if for lunch and breakfast maybe you ate a cereal or bagel you know something with carbs. the dizziness my be from lack of sleep since this med dos suck up your energy do you get enough sleep if not then i would arrange that. ADD can be very frustrating but you get use to the meds. Oh and you may want to go to your doctor and ask if you could get maybe 15Mgs because I took 10mg when i was in &th grade and i barely have it.

Mike,

Insightful comment. I was started on a low dose of Ritalin - 10mg 2x/day. It was regular release. That may have been the difference in my problem and harleybluz. Yep, I get a buzz but I'd also get focused for about an hour, then nada. Iterate in the afternoon. An extended release of 10 mg is indeed delivering a very low dosage with each microcap release.

I'm am now taking Adderall XR 20mg with good results. I must add that I had to make several changes in the way "I do business" to get my ADHD under control.

The real quandary, I believe, is med management. One book I read, "Beyond Ritalin" said the doctor "will set up a schedule of trial dosages." What doctor are they talking about? No doctor in Pennsylvania, I'll tell you that for sure.

Bob

[QUOTE=MikeAlberta]The buzzed feeling went away for me in a couple weeks.

More importantly, one of the things I found with stimulants like ritalin or adderall was that too low a dose was worse than nothing at all. I would be more emotional and less in control as if the medication just turned up my sensitivity without increasing my control. QUOTE]

Talk to your doctor and try a different med.
Everybody has a different chemistry and your body reacts to different meds differently.
Hang in there. You will find the right one for you.

I take regular adderal as needed. I only use it for school. I can't imagine using a XR version of it. I mean I like to be able to control my dosages and how I feel. With XR you can't. If i take 10mg and I dont feel it i take another 5mg. Or if I take too much, well it just makes me a bit hyper, but i use that energy to really focus. One day they accidently gave me the XR, I took it back right away, I will never take one, I can't take the risk of nto being able to be in control of the use.

As far as the stoned feeling you all are talking about, well I think it really is just the amphetamine, it is a drug and it will make you feel weird. I dont get that feeling anymore. I think that feeling comes from it being to strong, thats why I like to control my dosage. I usually start out with 10mg then if i need a little more Ill take 5mg like 20-30mins later, and that usually does the trick. then when I feel like im getting tire (wearing off) I take another 5 mg. But I do get the stoned feeling everyonce in a while, like if I take 15mg and there is not much food in me, I will get that. But the great thing about my non-XR adderal is that it wears off and doesnt stay like for 8hrs or whatever your XR pills last for.

So my point is really maybe for you who havent tried the regular kind, maybe you should look into it. Again it is really great to be able to control the dosage and strengh. they work so fast too. Ijust make sure I dont take them too late.