Adderall and dexedrine

I am 29 years old, I have been taking Adderall XR for about a year and a half. It wasn't working too well until recently. Note that stress depletes the nesessary brain neurotransmitters necessary for focus, and optimal functioning. The very first time I took Adderall, I was taking 15mg and the night before, I had the proper amount of sleep which is about 7-8 hours. It worked very well. I woke up at I think, about 8AM, and the medication started helping me focus in approximately two hours later. But unfortunately that day, I had just received some very depressing news. The next day, the medication did not work properly again until now. I'm assuming the stress from this news depleted my brain's natural chemicals and did a number on me. On the other hand, if I had not of experienced that bad stuff, and I was going to school or work on a regular basis, my symptoms of AD/HD would of been a lot less and that Adderall would have consistantly worked. These medications are much more effective when taken properly, when you sleep well at night, exercise helps, and when there is very minimal stress in your life.

Since this August I have been seeing a specialist, a psychiatrist who specializes in AD/HD. Before August, I was taking 20mg of Adderall XR and 20mg of Prozac every other day. Today I've had Adderall increased to 30mg. So now I take 30mg of Adderall XR, 150mg of Wellbutrin XL and 20mg of Prozac every third day. Today I seem to be more focused, more energy, less procrastination, and less figiting.

Also, I would like to comment on the fact that for that 21 year old who was prescribed a lot of Adderall to start with----- 20mg of Adderall twice daily-- I believe that is too much. If I were her, I would of either started with 5 or 10mg of Adderall or even start with 10mg of Dexedrine instead. Before I took Adderall, I had been taking Dexedrine ever since I was 17 years old. I had been taking Dexedrine on-and-off. I think I started with 10mg of Dexedrine and 20mg of Prozac. My psychiatrist then, told me we would start the Prozac also because Dexedrine sometimes has the tendency to give people a bit of nervousness. So the next day, I knew Dexedrine was a miracle drug because I could actually listen to what the teacher was saying, study, learn, focus, keep info. in my brain and have conversations with people,without forgetting what I was about to say! It was amazing. From that point on, I knew that I had a brain and in that brain there was actually a high level of intelligence. Before the meds, I had always thought I was dumb.

It is also my opinion that in combination with medication, people with AD/HD should see a counselor or AD/HD couch to help them with their planning in life, goal setting, follow-through and to just sort of push them along positively.
So good luck everyone.....If anyone with ADD or AD/HD has had simular experiences or wants to chat, e-mail me or leave a message on this post.

I'm sorry so many of you have bad experiences with Adderall. My side effects went away in about two weeks.

The amphetamines in Adderall have been used for 70 years, so if they were that dangerous, they would not be around today and one of the top 10 most prescribed pediatric drugs in America.

To Spoiled Rotten,
Apparently you can't read all that well or don't know how to do research, maybe you should have been on Adderall as a kid. RITALIN, CONCERTA, FOCALIN, DAYTRANA are all Methylphenidate, which IS NOT AN AMPHETAMINE.

Be a Big BOY/GIRL and do your own research about these drugs. Real research, not a side-effects website where people who know nothing about the drugs themselves hear something from someone, who knows someone's sisters friend who ABUSED their medication.

ALL DRUGS can be bad. You can die of an aspirin overdose. It's how they are used. Adderall and Ritalin are "very safe" when used properly" (Driven To Distraction).

I'm sure 99 percent of you don't even know what ADDICTION really is. This is a huge health problem in America. Yes, the addictions, but MORE so the ignorance and stereotypes of people with them.

African American 47,
You DON'T just get addicted to a drug. You can BE DEPENDENT on a drug, and not an addict. Cancer patients take very large amounts of NARCOTIC pain killers and THEY ARE DEPENDENT on them. For pain relief and physical dependence. They DON'T crave the drugs though.

So with SPOILED rotten's philosophy, the 20,000,000 people on Adderall or Ritalin (NOT AN AMPHETAMINE, similar, but not the same thing) who's quality of life has been improved 100 fold just like mine. I would have benefited GREATLY from medication but did not get diagnosed until 3 months ago at the age of 24.

Medication IS NOT for everyone, as "it doesn't work very well for about 80% of people who take it." (Driven To Distraction, Dr Edward Hallowell).

IF anyone has questions about ADD read "Driven To Distraction". The Author(s) both have ADD themselves and are psychiatrists.

Too many people with ADD refuse medication because they think "oh no, I will get addicted", which is 99 percent of the time not the case for ADD. They miss out on at least an option that could help them immensely.

I am so irritated with the ignorance and lack of knowledge from people who bad mouth things they know really nothing about. It didn't work for me so I am going to demonize the drugs and spread lies that they turn kids into zombies and cause them to shoot up schools..........C'mon, you're how old? I'm probably 1/2 your age and I have twice the common sense.
I'm not saying your a bad parent Spoiled, but your NAME IS Spoiled....you seem to be on a high and mighty chair, and you seemingly have a very self centered mind. Doesn't work for you then it must be the work of the devil.

Learn how to do research, form educated opinions, maybe read a book. Use your rights as a patient to see a different doctor if you don't agree with one. Do something productive.