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just started taking Adderall, though i am not prescribed. I went ...

Posted at 6:39 PM on Jan 17, 2008 by lilrosey, #26387
just started taking Adderall, though i am not prescribed. I went to my doctor and asked for it but she said no. I explained that I am often overwhelmed at work, I am a case manager and keeping on task with all of the work is hard. My doctor said when she was in med school, med students used to take it for that purpose.So anyway i bought 5 pills from a coworker. I seem to have super human energy, get all types of work done and stay focused all day. On the down side, in 5 days I have lost 3lbs., I want to lose weight, but not that fast. I have what I consider to be Adderall hangovers the next day, where I am extremely tired. I also have noticed severe headaches, every day that I have taken it, I crash by the end of the day at work and cant wait to get home, because I am so tired. My neck aches, and I had to change to a firmer chair at work, because all of a sudden my back is killing me, I also get insomnia and have to counteract the Aderall with Tylenol pm just to get to sleep. These side effects freak me out, and I don't know if I want to again ask my doctor for a script, but I get so much done at work, and I am heading back for grad school, I just don't know what to do? oh yeah, the pills that I bought were Adderall XR 30 mg.
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Reply 7 months ago on Jan 17, 2008 by barbaral, #4138

Hi there,
I have a perscription for adderall xr. I think your dosage is way too high. When people take adderall xr who don't have attention disorders react very differently to it so that dosage will make you nutty. I am on 20mg and it makes me super motivated but i dont have those side effects that you do. however i do have no appetite. What time of day do you take it? That can effect your sleep because if you take it too late in the day even late morning it can keep you up all night. Another point is that in the beginning when you're not used to it, you react more sensitively to it. I wouldn't take any PM meds to help you sleep because an upper and downer mixed isn't safe.

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Reply 7 months ago on Feb 06, 2008 by sync, #4641

I could not fuction, cannot function without adderall. I finally found out what was wrong with me after all these years. When the medication being effective, which is not at the moment due to the time release, I can handle life. No anxiety, no depression, no frustration, no worry, no wanting to give up. Once the determination of what exactly my condition consisted, Adderall completly changed my life from a living hell with no escape to a somewhat normal existance save the nightly crashes that just a little to early for my social schedule(no I do get home by 10pm) and leaves people wondering ok what just happened to you as it seem one minute you are functional and a short period of time later you are not. I can deal with it if I have to(I have for a great percentage of my 30+yr life) but not for days on end. I have recently just started treatment for ADD after I finally got the correct professional to diagnose me and not a family doctor who likes to give out flavor of the month precriptions( I can name names :P ) The first stimulant after getting me off of welbutrin worked ok for a 2 short parts of the day and sending me back to the living hell inbetween. Adderall CHANGED EVERYTHING I AM STILL AMAZED although I have to dig myself out of a disorganized mess of a life that took years to "build".
I can only approximate what normal people feel after crashing on adderall from related experiences, try living like with no help. Eventaully I imagine that my medication will get dialed in enough that I can wake up and function for a normal day and get to sleep by 11:00pm and be half - sentient.

To lilrosey

I NEED adderall, I feel energetic and I am able to function and many many symptoms of my ADD vaporized, how can I not feel better. 30MG of XR is not all that crazy IF you need it and if you use it properly. You are not and that is why you have insomnia and backache and other symptoms. I get none of that unless I abuse my body through lack of sleep and overstimulation(coffee is really really bad to drink for me now, primatime tablets are not usable(my poor lungs) and several others that will cause various synergistic effects)

Do me a favor and save the Adderall for those who need it so I can learn to live like a normal human being. If you really need it go see a shrink and get evaluated and do things the right way before some idiot lawmaker gets on a pedastool and wages a war against what is my chemical savior(in this life).

You should probably try concerta, which did very little to nothing most of the time and somewhat ok for 2 short periods, but you need a shrink to evaluate you. If 30mg of adderal XR once a day is overstimulating you that badly then concerta might be just right if you truly need it. Remember the intended goal is to approximate normal functionality, not a blitzkreig of officework and superhuman powers. In my initial stages of treatment I am delighted to even have the capacity to get anything done/completed/or show progress on larger tasks. It is not inability through lack of intelligence and understanding, it is not the lack of ability to communicate verbally, it is not the anxiety and depresson loop that follows from decades of frustration it is ADD and I get the feeling that due to the magnitude of change that mine might be a bit severe, but then again I do not have enough time in with the drug to have normalized fully. They did say it would take time to get me just right. Right to the point where someone who needs the drug is finally able to work at behavioral changes that will be much needed even if medication will always be a neccessary thing. I can see, more clearly at times, the amount of work I have to do in conjuntion with medication, and that is just to get my head right, it is a matter of survival.

The really really bad part about all this is I knew but was afraid to go because I knew doctors are so damn scared of people like lilrosy that the first outright refusal of treatment would mark me and I would NEVER HAVE GOTTEN HELP.

The situation does need to change, people need to get help in a reasonable guided fashion ,even lilrosie needs a little help living her life.

I need help so I can live life

I do not want to go back to the living death

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Reply 7 months ago on Feb 07, 2008 by katiehines, #4667

Fisrt off 30mg is way too much. You should only be taking 5-10mg a day. Any more with make you feel like your on drugs. The most you should take is 20 mg, but even that is too much.

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Reply 6 months ago on Feb 16, 2008 by something, #4888

OK WELL I DONT HAVE A PRESCRIPTION FOR IT EITHER AND I STARTED TAKING ADDERRALL FOR MY STUDYING PURPOSES... BUT SINCE MY BODYS NOT USED TO IT... THE FIRST TIME I TOOK 10 MG AND I JUST HAD THE WORSEE SIDE EFFECTS... AFTERWARDS I STARTED TAKING JUST 5 MG... I CHEW IT W/ MY FRONT TEETH FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE... AND I START STUDYING RIGHT AWAY... BUT EVERYTIME BEFOREEE I TAKE ADDERALL.. I ALWAYSS EAT!! SO ALWAYS EAT BEFORE YOU TAKE ADDERALL BECAUSE IT REALLY DOES CUT YOUR CRAVING AND YOU GO ON THE WHOLE DAY W/OUT EATING... BUT JUST EAT BEFORE YOU TAKE ADDERALL AND SERIOUSLY... START OFF W/ LIKE 5MG IF THAT DOESNT DO ANYTHING SWITCH TO 10.. BUT DONT START W/ 30 MG ... YOU NEVER START AT A HIGHER DOSE.... CUZ THEN YOU GET OTHER SIDE EFFECTS THAT I DONT THINK YOU WANT TO HAVE... I MEAN SOME SERIOUS CARDIOVASCULAR PROBLEMS... SO JUST BE CAREFUL WHEN TAKING IT ALWAYS... DONT TAKE ANY VITAMIN SUPPLEMENTS W/ IT... NOTHING W/ MAGNESIUM OXIDE... NO CITRIC ACIDS/FRUITS.... N THERES A SPECIAL SPRAY FOR DRY MOUTH (OASIS)... WORKS GREAT!! DONT TAKE IT TOWARDS THE EVENING BECAUSE REMEMBER XR IS SUPPOSED TO BE IN YOUR SYSTEM FOR 24 HOURS... BUT MOST LAST 10-12 HOURS... SOME LAST 6... BUT HEY EVERYONES DIFFERENT REMEMBER THAT... N YES THERE IS A CRASH AFTER ALL OF IT... I TAKE ADDERALL AND AFTER THE EFFECTS ARE GONE I JUST WANNA SLEEP... THE BEST THING TO DO AT THOSE TIMES IS TO REALLY SLEEP BECAUSE YOUR BODY NEEDS IT AND ITS WANTING IT SO DONT TRY TO STAY UP WHEN YOUR BODY WANTS SLEEP... AND DONT "REFUEL" W/ ANOTHER PILL... YOU GOTTA REMEMBER MORNINGS IS THE ONLY TIME TO TAKE IT... AFTERNOON MAYBE ...BUT EVENING NO WAY!! HOPE I HELPED =)

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Reply 5 months ago on Mar 27, 2008 by emma2, #5910

i have been taking adderrall for 5 years now and i am in a very similar situation as sync. its works great and i also cannot function without it unfortunatley. the only thing i can say bad about it is a few side effects i get...like i HAVE to get at least 10 hours of sleep a day and i take it everyday but i still need 10 hours or i am crabby and tired that whole day. and also my heart has started palpatating alot. and i get chest pains and my heart beats real fast. i even told my psych who prescribed it AND my family dr and they both say im fine i have nothin to worry about. but of course i do still worry. anyone been on it for as long as i have? and anyone have the chest pains and palpatations?

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Reply 3 months ago on May 22, 2008 by beentheredonethat, #8526

You are taking uppers, have bought them illegally, and on your way to becoming drug abuser!

If you are overcome at work, ask the doctor about taking Prozac- many new moms take it because the new life as a mom is overwhelming. Others take it for depression, anger and even OCD. It's not just for postal workers anymore!

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Reply 24 days ago on Aug 14, 2008 by pooh2002, #11115

Adderall should be used at the smallest doses, then work your way up if needed. You should not be having heart palpitations! That's a sign to try something else. Adderall can also cause high blood pressure, your doctor should know what you are ttaking and monitor these things. Ive taken adderall on and off for years. I didn't use to have side effects, now I do. Remember different manufacturers have different formulas. 1 Generic didn't work for my son, but another one does. Name brand XR didn't work at all. I now have severe backaches on adderall. My eyes also become very drya and I get cotton mouth. I can only take a few days then I need a day off. i will be checking with my Dr. next visit to try something else. If you really need help focusing, talk to another Dr. who will really listen to what you are saying. Be honest and tell them you tried it and the effects you had. There are so many different meds out there, but they need to find the one that is right for you.

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