[jstrodd]

Reading your comment makes me so nervous. I could have written it myself when I was in college. Back then, ADHD meds transformed my life for the better, at least during the first couple years. It was great! A pill solved all of my problems. But then, very slowly, over the course of years, I developed a much worse set of problems. Now, ten years later, I'm struggling with an addiction that affects every aspect of my life. I'm less productive than I was before I ever took meds. I've lost friends and become socially isolated. I fear that my executive function is permanently damaged.

Meds don't even make me productive anymore, they just keep the withdrawal at bay. And the withdrawal is so bad that I can't even function enough to do a time sheet right for at least a week. I can't quit my meds without great difficulty because there is simply no way for me to do that while maintaining employment. I have a family to support, so I'm trapped using this drug that has been devastating to my life in a lot of ways I'd rather not share.

Before I took meds, I was a little bit of an under-achiever and just a typical ADHD sufferer. But I was able to function and get by. Now, I'm barely able to function, and my life feels like it's constantly on the edge of falling apart due to what has become total dependency on the drug. The person I was back then is gone.

Very little research has been done on the long-term effects of prescription stimulant use. I can't say you'll end up like me, but just know that there is a large and growing community of people like me who desperately wish they never took this drug.

[adhd_thraway]

Please talk with your doctors about it, switch specialists if needed. If someone dismiss how you feel about yourself and your situation it's them who is wrong, not you.

One of the reasons ADHD has a bad reputation is because Adderall et al. were given out like candies at some point. I'm 100% aware of that. I wouldn't be surprised if someone would be forced into ADHD box only because parents/doctors/someone else think they should be. Kid is underperforming? Hit it with meds. Too noisy? Same. I wouldn't be surprised neurotypical person would get boost from meds.

I also don't believe ADHD can be managed with "here's a pill, go play" approach. It's a complex issue that requires complex solutions.

[hazmazlaz]

First of all, let me say as someone who has struggled with dependency in the past that you have my deepest sympathies. I hope you find the support you need to overcome the issues you are dealing with.

I do have to object to one statement you made:

>Very little research has been done on the long-term effects of prescription stimulant use.

This is objectively untrue. There has been a great deal of research done on the long term effects of prescription stimulant treatments. The preponderance of the evidence shows that long term use of stimulant medications has limited negative consequences and is generally safe. Here is one such study, and you can explore the citations/related articles to find more:

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11322742/

Speaking as someone who was also diagnosed with ADHD as an adult, the consequences for me personally being unmedicated are far greater than the anticipated long term consequences, and on the whole the treatment is an acceptable risk.

If anyone is out there who is suffering but is afraid of taking medication, don't be. Talk to a medical professional, and learn for yourself the pros/cons. Treatment with prescriptions has the potential to reduce your suffering.

[JohnBooty]

This is awful to read. I'm so sorry you're struggling. I 100% believe you.

I would mention for others that this is not my experience. I was on Adderall as an adult for about 8 years from 2008-2016 and did not have any long term issues.

Eventually though, it did lose its effectiveness for me. And because it made me slightly cranky, I eventually felt the downsides outweighed the upsides. Especially since there were quite a few instances of adderall shortages at the pharmacies, and those were stressful.

    And the withdrawal is so bad that I can't even 
    function enough to do a time sheet right for at 
    least a week.

Again, I 100% believe you! But for others, I just wanted to say: most people (myself included) find the withdrawal very mild, if you taper your dosage off over 1-2 weeks rather than stopping suddenly. Way less severe than caffeine withdrawal for me.

    ...when I was in college. Back then, ADHD meds 
    transformed my life for the better, at least 
    during the first couple years. It was great! 
    A pill solved all of my problems. But then, 
    very slowly, over the course of years, I developed 
    a much worse set of problems.

Without knowing anything about you, I would hazard a guess that the demands placed upon you and your responsibilities also grew greatly during this time?

Back in college, I was pulled in 2 or 3 directions at a time. Work, school, dating. Yeah, it was a lot.

But now? Maintaining a home, trying to manage finances with an eye towards retiring before I'm 150 years old, marriage, all the health problems that come with no longer being 19 years old, aging and dying parents, in-laws, etc. And I don't even have children. I feel like I'm 2x better at managing things, but I have 5x the demands.

[darkhorse13]

I'm sorry about what happened to you, really sounds awful. Have you tried tapering your dose very slowly over a long time? Speaking from personal experience, that worked for me (thank God) with my med dependency.

[annie_muss]

Can you go into more detail about what withdrawal is like for you? I've been taking methylphenidate for ADHD recently and I want to know what to look out for.

[bladegash]

Not OP, but have been on stimulants off and on for a decade (tried various ones, with Vyvanse and Adderall being most effective, but the former triggering mania so can’t take anymore).

YMMV, but “withdrawal” has never been more than a minor annoyance, even after years at relatively high dosage. Tired for a few days, a little bit lacking in motivation, definitely more difficult to concentrate.

The concentration part is usually the hardest, but is not necessarily worse than before the drugs, you just forgot why you went on them to begin with or how bad your ability to focus really was.

I will say, it can take some time to adapt to that lack of ability to focus though, as your coping mechanisms before you took medication are a bit atrophied due to no longer needing them.

The physical withdrawals themself really aren’t problematic though.

[JohnBooty]

Not the parent poster, but I suppose an extra data point would not be a bad thing.

My main point of comparison for Adderall withdrawal would be caffeine withdrawal. I don't have experiences with other dependencies.

"Cold turkey" caffeine withdrawal was much more severe than Adderall withdrawal for me. Probably twice as bad. In both cases, I felt extremely fatigued. However, severe caffeine withdrawal went beyond "fatigue" and really made me feel like total shit.

Everybody is different but I believe this is consistent with what most people report.

Of course, there is no real reason to go "cold turkey" and quit suddenly. For both substances can just taper your dosage steadily down to 0mg over a week or two and you should be fine.

[karpierz]

For me, it feels similar to when I'd go cold turkey from 2-3 daily cups of coffee (before I started taking medication). 2-5 days of shitty mood, then back to baseline pre-coffee. It sucks, and it will sour your mood when your ability to function drops significantly for a few days, but it passes.

[JohnBooty]

    cold turkey

For the life of me, I have trouble understanding why folks would do "cold turkey" for stimulants rather than tapering their dosage off over a week or two!

[karpierz]

Personally, I have a hard time with moderation, and doing things gradually. I'm very much all or nothing, so it's easier for me to say "no caffeine in any circumstance!" than "okay just a little caffeine each day", because at that point it's easy to convince myself "well half a cup was fine, so just a sip more won't really make a difference."

[mobiuscog]

Exactly the same for me, but also the approach to alcohol. Moderation is not something that works - either I 'forget' or the it snowballs. Therefore, decaf coffee (seems okay) and no alcohol.

[jstrodd]

This is common for people with ADHD. For me, tapering off of a substance gradually is impossible.