Long-term effects of Adderall

Hey Mitch. Just wanted to say... WOW. That post was obviously from the heart and I was able to relate with many, many of the things you said. Yes, sometimes it seems as if Adderall is the solution, and you are the problem. I honestly enjoy taking adderall, but never two days in a row. If I take it two days in a row, or more, I get in the zombie mode you described. My own thoughts consume. I do think ADHD is real, but not unconquerable, and not necessarily a bad thing. As you said, you are who you are, but not on this drug. It changes something about you. I am curious about exactly what it is. Can you point me toward any literature or info about the drug, other than mainstream stuff? I am curious about the effect it has on the subconscious mind, as well as the conscious mind, and what happens in the brain to change your persona. Thanks for sharing your experience, and I would love to hear from anyone regarding this topic. It's so interesting to me. Of course, I'm on it right now, you can probably tell, haha!

I'm going on 30 years old and I've been on ADD meds since I was 10  - Ritalin first followed by adderall when it came out. I currently take 60mg/day of adderall every single day with only a day or 2 off every few months. I graduated Summa Cum Laude in college and I am in a highly technical career in which I do very well. I was originally diagnosed by a neurologist with supporting feedback from a psychiatrist. The neurologist conducted brain activity testing while performing activities to see if the brain was actually disengaging in the way it does in those with ADD, while the psychiatrist would basically say it's NOT depression, anxiety, etc since the symptoms often mimic ADHD. This used to be how ADD/ADHD was diagnosed and it was thorough. The test for ADD now is a questionnaire with obvious answers or no test at all, which I think is a big reason behind this entire message thread.

For me, when I take a normal dose I feel "normal". I eat normally (I was actually a body builder in college so I ate far more than the average person), I'm social, I don't have anxiety or even sleep deprivation. When I don't take adderall I feel like the same person but have a very hard time connecting the same dots in my head that I do on adderall, although I can get there eventually. Basically, when I don't take adderall I feel like me with ADD.

Before going on medication, I had a teacher's aid that would come take me out of class 3 times a day and take a lap with me around the school because I could not sit still for more than an hour. I used to compulsively doodle and tap my pencil constantly. I got horrible grades because I could never pay attention long enough to learn properly. I was ACTUALLY ADHD. Just looking at the shear length of some of the posts on here it seems clear to me that a lot of you do not need to be on ADD medication. If you have normal brain chemistry and take an amphetamine, it's going to throw you into an obsessive loop like I see in so many of these posts. To me, adderall seems to be one of those drugs that you are either positive that it is making your life better or extremely anxious over the way it makes you feel. If you are the latter, you are likely not ADHD and may be worse off on adderall.

No offense--I know you're just trying to contribute to the discussion--but I think what you wrote above is exactly the type of attitude (and reflection of ignorance) that keeps mainstream people confused about this drug and its effects ... If you've taken amphetamine regularly and then abruptly stop taking it, you're brain is not going to work correctly--whether you have ADHD or not ... Adderall and other types of amphetamines primarily work by (literally) flooding the brain with catecholamine neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine ... The prefrontal cortex is believed to be primarily responsible for executive functions such as sustained attention ... Amphetamine activates this site--along with others--and this is why it has a therapeutic effect for those suffering from attentional problems. If taken on a daily basis your body begins to react by assuming that this daily flood of neurotransmitters is a normal thing ... Since the body (and the brain) now believes that--for instance--it has a surplus of dopamine--it will react by decreasing or downregulating the number of corresponding dopamine receptors in the areas of the brain that are exposed to the activity ... In other words ... Imagine a person's dopamine system before they were ever given amphetamine ... He or she has a certain amount of dopamine activity and a certain amount of corresponding dopamine receptors ... Now imagine that same person's brain over time as they have been exposed to amphetamine on a daily or regular basis ... The amount of dopamine is overwhelmingly large compared to the amount of corresponding dopamine receptors ... The brain thinks "well, I have enough dopamine, so I can get rid of many of these receptors." Over time more and more receptors are decreased. Now imagine that the person stopped taking the amphetamine ... They are suddenly faced with A) not having access to the substance that their brain now depends on for catecholamine neurotransmission and B) not having the appropriate amount of corresponding receptors in the part of the brain that is responsible for attention (among other areas) ... If you didn't have ADHD before you started taking Adderall, you definitely WILL once you stop taking it!

No offense--I know you're just trying to contribute to the discussion--but I think what you wrote above is exactly the type of attitude (and reflection of ignorance) that keeps mainstream people confused about this drug and its effects ...
If you've taken amphetamine regularly and then abruptly stop taking it, you're brain is not going to work correctly--whether you have ADHD or not ... Adderall and other types of amphetamines primarily work by (literally) flooding the brain with catecholamine neurotransmitters dopamine and norepinephrine ... The prefrontal cortex is believed to be primarily responsible for executive functions such as sustained attention ... Amphetamine activates this site--along with others--and this is why it has a therapeutic effect for those suffering from attentional problems.
If taken on a daily basis your body begins to react by assuming that this daily flood of neurotransmitters is a normal thing ... Since the body (and the brain) now believes that--for instance--it has a surplus of dopamine--it will react by decreasing or downregulating the number of corresponding dopamine receptors in the areas of the brain that are exposed to the activity ...
In other words ... Imagine a person's dopamine system before they were ever given amphetamine ... He or she has a certain amount of dopamine activity and a certain amount of corresponding dopamine receptors ... Now imagine that same person's brain over time as they have been exposed to amphetamine on a daily or regular basis ... The amount of dopamine is overwhelmingly large compared to the amount of corresponding dopamine receptors ... The brain thinks "well, I have enough dopamine, so I can get rid of many of these receptors." Over time more and more receptors are decreased. Now imagine that the person stopped taking the amphetamine ... They are suddenly faced with A) not having access to the substance that their brain now depends on for catecholamine neurotransmission and B) not having the appropriate amount of corresponding receptors in the part of the brain that is responsible for attention (among other areas) ...
If you didn't have ADHD before you started taking Adderall, you definitely WILL once you stop taking it!

Adderall as well as all other prescription and over the counter drugs have side effects. The longer you take them, the higher the does and frequency the higher the risks of side effects. Everyone is different and has different reactions some people may have little short term side effects and some may have more short term side effects. The same goes for long term side effects.  

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I have voluntarily checked myself into behavioral health. Best 72 hrs of my life.

ok...have a question please. I recently was diagnosed with hypOthyroid. im on levothyroxine AND amphetamine salts. the doc knows im concerned about wieght and difficulty of loosing as well. can you tell me in LAMENS term if you thnk this will be a productive thing regarding wieght loss. ive been on this for a month and not one lb off as of yet. he just upped my amphetamine salt. I can focus and now getting things done and feel like a human. however the wieght thing is really a concern. you are very wise as I can tell. please use the smaller terms for me. lol thanks any reply welcome.

ten months ago was your post however for what its worth I use amphetamine salts and my mind is not in a fog now. its been a blessing. only been on it for a month. it doesnt really make me lack empathy but im a thinker by nature, however it does keep my focused and less dramatic about everything. it seems that may be what its doing for you and your just not used to being a bit more level and grounded. I do feel like socializing but rather focus on my house being clean and tidy thus I dont get out alot due to that not being a priority. by the time the meds wear off I just go to bed ..you might be taking too much if thats a prob. when my meds are wearing off im very agitated but its bedtime by then so I just keep quiet lol and go to bed. hope this helped . did you loose any lbs with this med?

im sort of new at this post stuff, that I wasnt sure who you had replied to and what the topic was, but i am so conerned about my wieght and just got levothyroxine , and adderall. diagnosed with hypO thyroid. i have prayed that this will be gods answer to my weight issues. so far i feel much better but its been a month and havent lost a lb. he upped the adderall mg. so maybe it will work. and yes i too belive god will b our vendicator and restore what we are due. however i am still so worried, ill keep you in my prayers , would you mind doing so for me please. any reply or info would be appreciated
when I read your post , that comforted me and now im going to lay down and rest. maybe your post was my answer to my internal worry.:-) god bless you hun

though that does not sound good at all, im just one of those people who belive our days are numbered regardless. god knows what were goin to do and what we are not before we do it. i feel our time is the same here on earth regardles of what we do to our bodies. we can make the journey on this earth better by being healthy and easier but I dont believe that anything we do will LENGTHEN our days. please dont pound me just was up late and wanted to reply. will this med make me loose wieght? my version is amphetamine salt and I do have adhd

Jesus Christ, I am so sorry. I'm on adderall as well. I'm 21 years old and have been on adderall since I was 17 (4 years). I'm still on it and having all sorts of problems. Problems I can now relate to Edema (swelling of feet, ankles, slight swelling of my fingertips) and massive stomach bloat and now some GI issues too... It's scary, I'll admit. I love the medication and the fact that a geneticist who posted above has been on it for so long too, it gives me some hope. I plan on getting off of this drug, or drastically reduce my dose to something more manageable. I believe it's killing me now with the edema-like symptoms (swelling and major abdominal bloating)... So it's now my priority to lower the dose and possibly get off it it soon. Lauren, I swear I read your post over at some other site. Hey sweetheart, I used to be a bodybuilder and we're probably about the same age right now and I promise you it's possible to kick this stuff once and for all. Have hope!

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You are very important to me after reading your reply. This is almost life and death for me. I'm very knowledgable in neurochem as well (research) and I've been on adderall for 4 years now and now having all kinds of problems (some edema-like symptoms). Please I need your help. Please email me. It would me the world to me. I'll even pay you. I'm serious.

Have you ever thought of speaking english?

Hey Lauren, I doubt you'll ever see this, but I hope you're doing better. I myself used adderall throughout my childhood as well, from roughly 6 to 15-16 and I had an overwhelming similarity to your situation. You feel like you just woke up and your entire life was on autopilot. The images, the sounds, the memories; they're all there. But you're nothing but a blank slate psychologically. It was like someone took my life and set it out on the table before me, I knew it and was apart of it, but it was no longer really me. It's a traumatizing point. Take it and keep going, because you'll have to rebuild yourself, but you can get better.
Get off of the adderall for now, you may be able to use it sparingly in the future, but never regularly as you have. If you're willing to try pills again and are experiencing what was for me, a persistent trip down a rabbit hole of self destruction. Then I do recommend trying antidepressants for a while, citalopram kicked me out of that and then I got off them. A counselor, a psychiatrist, a psychologist, a priest, a rabbi, or anyone who you can talk to freely and without fear of bias or judgment can help a lot.
Best of luck to you Lauren, and to anyone who has suffered these effects. Don't give up, because as bizarre as it may seem it is in itself an opportunity. You have the chance to recreate yourself mentally and be an individual as perfect as you desire, without petty attachments, flaws, and such. I'm schizoid though, perhaps that is an aftereffect of the adderall or perhaps that is just me. It's a blessing and a curse this, but you'll be alright.

sounds to me like adderal is not the right medication for you anymore. I would start with getting a new doctor and trying a bipolar medication or anti depressant. Remember one medication does not work for everyone I know this from experience. This may be a several year process to find what works for you but don't give up. Give each one a chance. I suggest wean yourself off of the Adderall a little bit at a time . Also start doing research on holistic herbs that help stabilize hormones . Taking birth control did this for me I had horrible ups and downs it made me normal . Might be something for you to look into. You are not the only one riding the crazy train honey don't give up hang in there.