Adderall and Depression Side Effects

It could help a lot at first place for it is well known to have much less side effects than other med. And you are right it was used in weight loss but today adderall is one of the most often meds prescribed in treating ADD or ADHD that usually comes along with depression. I know that for my 10 eleven year old child was on adderall and still is on it occasionally. Adderall is actually amphetamine that at first place might cause weigh loss and appetite loss as well as the insomnia. Also one of the possible side effects might be dizziness and headaches especially when the adderall dose is high. My son is occasionally prescribed adderall but after a while his doc prescribed him some other medication and the reason is he might develop high tolerance if taking adderall for longer period of time. And also there's a possibility that someone might get adderall addicted if adderall is being taken for some prolonged period of time.

This is mostly anecdotal, but I take dextroamphetamine (it's essentially just one of the base ingredients of adderall) and I'm not really sure how I lived life before it. Actually, I didn't really. I was too tired and too worked up constantly to enjoy or do anything; ADD medication's given me motivation, alertness, and an overall sense of calmness sufficient that I can actually get things done and have a normal life. Medications can have all different sorts of effects on people though based on their make up.

There's more scientific places than an anonymous internet user to get this information that I'm sure you'll be able to find, so the biggest thing I think I should say is that depression or ADD is a description of symptoms, not a cause. It's not 'I don't feel happy because I'm depressed' it's "I don't feel happy, therefore I'm depressed'. Your daughter's depression is as unique as your daughter. If she wasn't depressed before the add medication, chances are it's all a chemical thing, in which case you *might* try prozac (this is the only SSRI I know of approved for children because it's less potent and doesn't have such bad side effects if you fail to take it). From what I understand (i.e. look for yourself) raising levels of one chemical can lower others in the brain and so she might just need a boost that way.

At the same time, adderall works by releasing more dopamine, not creating more of it, which is what causes the crash after it wears off. If your daughter's on the XR version, her brain may just not have enough dopamine and the add medication can't help release what's not there. Backing off on the adderall in that case might help her reach a happy medium.

Personally, I think diet and lifestyle have caused the spike in all sorts of mental issues these days; I recommend looking into over the counter things such as St. John's Wort (a plant which is actually prescribed in some European countries) that might help if her symptoms are relatively mild. Probably ought to discuss it with the doctor if he's willing to listen also, because over the counter things can interact with medications just like prescription medications.

Oh wow. I could just write on this forever with my armchair psychology, but I hope any of this helps. Just keep learning as much as you can about it for yourself, don't rely on *anyone* except yourself and your daughter of course to figure out what's going to work for her and what won't.

i wouldn't give adderall to my worst enemy. i've taken adderall xr for almost year the year before this. it causes deep depression. one that forces the consumer to consider drastic releases, i.e. self-mutilation, suicide. the overwhelming feeling left me with the sense that i needed to complete something, and that sensation could never be satiated. the loss of appitite left my personality dull and zombie-like.

I was searching for an answer, which I found thank god. For a second, I truly believed i was going out of my mind.
I used to take adderall for classes about umm .. a year and a half ago. The doctor i got it from was no longer on my insurance plan so i didnt get it for a while. When i was on it though, i lost drastic wieght. I felt on top of the world, it always made me happy and i loved being on it. I loved being on adderall so much that i considered taking more when i felt it wearing off, thats when i realized this may be a problem. I guess it was meant to be the doctor was no longer on my insurance and i stopped taking adderall. A lot of things happened and i moved for about 8 months. When i came back home, i reenrolled in school and began looking for doctors on my new insurance plan to prescribe me adderall [not only did i used to feel wonderful but my scores were wonderful as well]. I found a doctor on my plan and went to see him. Previously on adderall rx, i was taking 40 mg a day but i was also thinner then. This doctor prescribed me 6o mg a day, i dont know if its because of age differance, wieght differance, whatever. Getting that prescription, i was beyond excited to digest my 2 wonder pills. Little did i know...

I no longer feel like i used to taking it. The first couple of days back on it, i was extremely shaky, anxious, could not sit still or stop talking and thinking about everything and nothing. The first day back on it, the insomnia let me have not 10 minutes of sleep! i was up for 32 hours with it letting me get a 2 and a half hour nap. This was last week, its now week two and its much worse. It's literally been 10 days back on adderall and bye bye 10 pounds and my sanity. For the past three days, when i awake in the morning and take it i will be decent. About three hours in, mood swings and irrability out the ass [my boyfriend had to stop me from getting out of the car the other day, on the highway, in the middle of bumper to bumper traffic, from ripping this guy out of his vechile through his window by the face because he cut me off]! Worse yet, like the person above me, for the past three days, at night when the adderall is truly wearing off i slip into a crazy kind of depression. Yeah, we have all made mistakes that thinking back on can make us sad but this adderall. I will dwell on things from years ago, to the point that i am so depressed i feel completely hollow break down and cry. Non-stop, on and off, for hours. This depression is also starting to get so bad that in the midst of breaking down into tears, suicide is a constant thought. How to do it, when to do it, what way will be least painful while still, in tears. My boyfriend told me ive been a ''zombie'' for the past week.
i was never the happiest apple in the tree BUT NEVER LiKE THiS EiTHER!
i dont think adderall is for me anymore and as nice as it may seem for a little while. Nothing ''that amazing'' lasts forever and there has to be a point where you do things on your own without ''assitance''.

Adderall is one of the most terrible things. It's addictive and as it wears off, it causes MAJOR mood swings. I hate this medication. I will never use it again.. it's harmful and, in the end, it makes things worse, not better. Pills cant solve everything.

This is so weird, but you've described practically exactly how I've been feeling since switching from dexadrine to Adderall XR. I've had problems with anxiety and depression in the past, which I'm sure is a factor. Lack of food/sleep is a factor too. As well, depression is a common co-morbid condition for girls with ADHD, and it's especially common in girls who were diagnosed in adulthood (I was diagnosed last year, when I was 22). But still, my depression went from "Meh, I feel pretty unmotivated today" to "I'm a terrible, terrible human being and I'll never amount to anything." I don't feel like talking to any of my friends or even leaving my apartment, and my boyfriend says I'm acting "weird." I have an appointment with my college's ADD therapist next week, but it's so hard to function like this. It's a relief to hear I'm not the only one though.

im 17 and going to be 18 in march, I am a beautiful girl with extreme potiential. i lived a rough life as most of us have but have faced many many obstacles that no child should ever have to face. I do have a father whom had an accident leaving him paralyzed from neck down when I was 7 and my brother was 9. For years, i was tossed around living roughly between 5-10 different homes with family/freinds,ect. due to my father being in and out of the hospital and having problems getting along with both of my parents.My mother left us and has another family now, 10years later, and though my borther has had no contract with her since the age of 10, I still keep in contact with her and visit her and her children. I try to look past everything and deal with it on my own, I feel as though noone could ever understand. I dont bother with counsoling because its as though there is way too much to explain and noone would understand so i bottle inside. Ive made many mistakes and mistreated my father and others that to this day I have grown form and realized to become a better person but I hold a grude over myself because I could never take it back.. I suffer major anxiety from this and my doctor has prescribed me 1mg Xanax(Alprazolam) and it works like a charm for me. In my junior year(last year) i stoppped going to school more than halfway through the school year.. I just didnt have the motivation. As of now, i am still technically enorlled at my school but I get tutored one on on at a different location for 3 hours a day and still graduate this year with my graduating class this year, making up all of the work and taking regents exams that I missed last year. I am very appreciative for the teachers and ministraitors that understand my condition and have given me the opportunity to do this program and still receive a Regents diploma. I am very greatful. Although, i still dont have the motivation to even get up and be where i go to school at 11:00am-2:00pm instead of getting up at 5:30am for normal highschool. I greatly appreciate the offer they give me and i do try the best i can but I find that it makes me depressed because its as if each day is different, and most days drag. Some days I just dont want to go. I feel awful because i feel asthough it isnt my fault because its uncontrollable i just mentally CANNOT find the strength or motivation no matter what to just get up and go. taking my xanax deffinitly calms me down, it doesnt "zonk" me out too much but it still leaves me with a MAJOR issue, my motivation is a huge obstacle. My doctor gave me Adderall XR 20mg yesterday and i waited until today to take it for the first time to help me motivate and focus myself because I had a regents exam today, tomorro and thursday that i am determined to pass and this is required for me to pass in order to graduate which i deep down am striving for to make myself happy as well as my boyfriend and my family. I woke up this morning, ate breakfast then took my first pill. After that i jumped in the shower got ready and it had kicked in by the time I was on my way to take the 1st part of my regents exam. I felt on top of the world. I was felt SO motivated and ready to go, I was in a good mood, happy and i felt as if there acually was hope for me to get through and graduate erliar then a expected it. I had no negative thoughts. For once i was taking my own advice and making moves as I would put it rather then feeling hopeless. My tutor was ecstatic with me and even though shes not supposed to tell me how i did on it, she gave a good hint and defifnitly gave me hope. I believe that today i was focused more then I ever was and im confident i got a strong 4 (90-100) on the first part. The remainder of my day went pretty well, Around 5:45-6:00 i started feeling a come down ( I havent taken my Xanax at all today) and im getting a little nervous. It is not 7:40 Eastern time and im feeling pretty depressed. im not sure if this is normal but I deffinitly dont feel happy like i did before. I love the feeling because it helps me get through my day and now after experiencing this feeling of hope It makes me depressed for it to start to go away. Will I feel happy like i did today each time i take this medication? Or will i slowly become "immune" to it and will it not make me as happy. Depression is my worst fear because when I get angry and depressed, its major. I just dont know what to do because I feel like I need to take medication because im not normal. My bestfriend tells me not to take the xanax and adderall because im going to have to take it for the rest of my life, but i feel like.. if I didnt have to take it then why would i? these feelings before the medication making me feel better, have been occuring for id say i good 4 years now and its not like i havent tried to focus myself or make myself feel better. I need some advice, im sorry for the novel story.. but could anyone give me any advice??

I'm glad to know i'm not the only dealing with this. I was diagnosed with depression around 20 but it first set it around 17 or 18. I had taken a couple anti depressants starting with paxil cr, effexor xr, but then i would feel better and think i don't need them......not true...never do this!!! it will just come back and you will be at square one. I am now 26 yrs old. I have been taking lexapro for about a year and a half and had decent results. At least i was not going into long episodes of depression. On a visit w/ my general practitioner...we talked for a few minutes, i discussed my lack of motivation, not being able to complete tasks, etc. so she put me on adderall xr 15 mg as well.......well i can say for the first few months, it was great......i thought i had found a miracle. Then after about 3 months, it became excessive. I became so obsessed with constantly doing something i NEVER took the time to enjoy life or my family b/c i had to do 5 million things in a day and still would not be satisfied. Then the onset of anxiety set in bad. i have dealt with an anxious feeling all day, every day, for several months now. Now in the last month, the motivation is gone......i have to force myself even more to complete things. I have been in a depression slump for about a month now and NOTHING can make me happy. I am MISERABLE. I don't think i have ever felt so hopeless. On top of all this, despite the lack of motivation and doing nothing but going to work, or things that i have no choice I am still anxious all the time inside. My chest always has this tense tight feeling. If its not bad enough, my personality is gone, i used to be a funny, laugh, and people were always laughing at me. I'm so uptight and irritable i can't enjoy my husband or my four year old son who are the light of my life. I miss myself and want it back. I have pretty much isolated my friends. I don't want to do anything w/ them and i don't know why. soooooo , i decided this is ENOUGH. It's thursday and i have an appointment monday and i'm looking forward to it. I finally after all these years am for the first time going to a therapist for an evaluation. Then will continue to see her and also so a psychiatrist to get my medicine corrected if necessary. I'm looking forward to getting myself back and being happy again. If you are depressed to begin w/ i suggest getting a thorough evaluation before starting this, not just let some general doctor talk to you for five minutes then put you on it...NOT GOOD!!! I deserve to be happy and my family deserves to have me back.

I am so happy that the last few replies say exactly what I am feeling!  I took Adderall either last year or the year before and I never once had any bad side effects.  However, I only took it for probably 6 months and I only took it no more than 4 times a week.  I didn't want to become addicted so I only took it on on the days I had class and the days where I had a lot of studying to do.  I had to stop taking it because I am uninsured and couldn't afford it anymore.  I just started taking it again in May and I HAAAAAATE it! Im on half the dose I took last time and I still only take it a few days a week.  I HAVE to take it when I have a lot of studying to do or a lot of homework to finish.  It makes me feel like a crack-head (not that I ever did crack).  I get so damn shaky that it is seen by anyone in close proximity to me.  On the inside I feel like I am having seizures constantly and my heart beats so fast I sometimes wonder if it is going to jump out of my mouth.  I have probably had only 3 headaches in all my life and they were "baby" headaches.  They lasted for a few seconds and were gone.  Lately I get the most insane pressure in my head that i feel like I was shot.  They last for hours and I have to turn all the lights off and try to control my breathing as if I was in labor.  I never thought that it could have been my Adderall.  I don't think I ever felt a "crash" coming off of it but the other side effects are really harsh.  I have been screaming at complete strangers over the most ridiculous things.  I have always been non-confrontational (with people I don't know.....I am too scared to say anything), so when I do lose my temper on strangers, I feel like a crazy person because of how mad and loud I become with them.  I was hospitalized recently and I was given a different ADD medication that wasn't a stimulate.  I believe it started with a "P" but it is really expensive.  Are there other medications that aren't addicting, actually work and not make you feel like a crack-head with a score to settle?

I was put on Adderall for my ADD about three years go and didn't realize until recently that it may be the cause of my depression for these last few years. I thought that maybe it was just because of what was going on in my life but when one sits back and really looks at things you realize that your feelings don't quite fit the situation. I was feeling extreme depression for small things that were going on. But never put the two together until recently. I was taking 10mg in the am and 10 about six hours later when I even remembered until I noticed that I was feeling way more anxious and paranoid about some things. So much so that I couldn't concentrate on my work. I decided to stop it for a while and see how I felt. I didn't have any side-effects coming off of it except for gaining weight. In about a month I put on about 8 lbs and decided that 8 lbs for my 5'0 frame was not cool. So I started it back. Since then I have been incredibly ill, tired, dizzy. I've had the worst headache and I've had little waves of nausea appear out of nowhere. I decided today that I'm stopping it again and I'm going to ask my Dr. if she can put in on Stratera or something similar. A dr. of my mom's, a neurosurgeon, once told me that Adderall was just legal meth. I wouldn't give it to my son. EVER.

After 22 years of taking it, I suggest taking her off of it. It ruins lives. Her depression and add symptoms will get better but that is because she will become numb, turn into a zombie/robot and lose herself in the medication.

i have been taking this medication for about six months. I take 10mg each morning and at first the increase in energy was great. That however has subsided. Now i am severely depressed and have no energy. I have lost weight and a great deal of my hair has fallen out. I desperately need advice on what to do next. This is all so frightening.

(You may not read this, you posted quite a while ago). I, like you, take 10mg of Adderall in the morning; but, unfortunately, I feel more depressed than energized (I am bi-polar II, and maybe my meds don't mix well......) I haven't figured out what all the fuss about Adderall )is -- I have never felt and kind of rush of energy whatsoever. I hope you are doing better since you posted. I just wanted to share my experience to let you know that you are not along. Maybe it's just not the right medication for you (or for me, for that matter.....).

What did you go on because my son has been on Adderall xr for two yrs and it helped during school but he hates it he says it makes him depressed he's 18 and is on 30mg we want to try something with less depression side effects thank you tina