Actual Users & Other Emails Received

names have been removed for privacy

I just want to pass this along! My 19yr old niece mother of two ages two and three give her children up for adoption because of this drug. There is nothing the family can do to stop the adoption. This drug was never prescribed to her by a doctor and she has been getting her supply from a boyfriend. This drug caused her to not want to be in the same room with her children, have paranoia and delusional thoughts of her family, hates her entire family, moved out of her home and left everything behind including her car.

My families nightmare started Memorial Day Weekend 2011 and still continues. My niece and her two children went to her new boyfriend's home for the weekend. During that weekend she called an adoption agency nine times and told them to come get her kids. By Tuesday Memorial Day they were handed over to a license Mississippi social worker and her rights were signed away. The family was not aware of the Adderall and did not recognize the signs of Adderall use until the children were placed for adoption. We tried getting the police involved and lawyers but due to the Mississippi laws we are unable to save these children.

Most people have never heard of Adderall and know nothing about it and those that have think it's safe because it is a prescribed drug. Most families dealing with a love one abusing Adderall may not even know Adderall is the cause of behavior problems and conflicts. My niece was showing signs beforehand, but the family just did not understand what was going on. Some of her signs were: talking fast and excited, having her clothes all over the house because she couldn't pick something out to wear, extremely aggravated by everything, not getting along with family members, drama of some sort on daily bases, delusional thoughts of her family, and eventually placing her children in the bedroom all day because she could not deal with them. The signs were not over night and over looked by the family as a behavior problem! The family over looked her talking fast and exited because of her drama, overlooked her clothes being everywhere as laziness, overlooked her not getting along with her mother since they lived together, over looked the children being in the bedroom when visiting as they were playing.

I hope your company is able to get the word out to other families and help somebody who is abusing Adderall. This drug causes such despair and displacement I am only grateful she did not kill her children as the Casey Anthony girl did.
My husband is a licensed state certified master plumber and we own a business. In his line of work he goes into many homes on a daily bases and witness the on going problem of prescribed drugs that are being abused. This United States has a prescription drug problem and it is happening in low income home's middle class, and the rich.


Sincerly,

 

I am writing this to hopefully get some good advice and information in response. Im currently addicted to adderall. I have been on adderall for over 3 years now. I started on the drug because I tried a pill from a friend and it seriously was the best feeling I ever had. I struggled with ADHD all my life and I always delt with depression and when I took that first pill, ALL of that (my problems) went away. So I went to my doctors and he prescribed me to 30 “20mg” pills for a month. Well I started going to school during the day and working full time at night. I used to take one pill and it lasted the whole day. So one day after school I was tired and was not looking forward to going to work that night. So I thought about taking another pill but was always hesitant because I was scared that it would hurt me and what not. So finally I got the courage to take another pill and ever since then its been down hill!! I ended up dropping out of the tech school I was going to because work and school was just way too much for me to handle. So at this time, I was just working. My friends were still in school and of course when you go to college theres going to be a lot of partying going on. My friends and I were always the cool people in high school and always the ones who were at the best parties so when they all got to college, the partying became a much bigger habit. So I eventually took another pill one time before I went out partying with them one night and it was an awesome feeling once again. I could drink soo much and still be able to function. Well the partying scene became a much bigger scene in my life and I started to get a drink quite a bit when I was on my pills. I was single at the time and so I had nothing else better to do then to go out and party it up. I always was able to talk to people when I went out and felt like I finally was able to “FIT” in with everyone and finally was able to feel “NORMAL” in life. Time went on, I met a gf and things were under control and didn’t really have any major problems. Well problems started to coming eventually ( I forget what they were) but I started taking another pill when I felt depressed and ever since then I got hooked. Im currently prescribed to 30 “20”mgs and 30 “10mgs” pills a month. I usually run out of both bottles within 2 weeks. I hate them and love them at the same time. But for the most part I hate them because there is def way more bad stuff then good stuff that happens to me when I take them. I went to my family doctor at one point and I told him to take me off them and I told him to never put me back on them even if I asked to be. I told him everything about my addiction and all my problems. Well I was off of them for over a month and during that month I struggled so much with my adhd, stress, depression and just every little thing was going wrong (it seemed to me anyways). I was on a depression pill and it didn’t seem to work and usually I wouldn’t take it on a regular bases. So finally I told my mom that I need to get back on adderall because that’s the only think that works for me. I ended up going to another doctor and he wrote me out the prescription. I gave my pills to my dad to keep at his house so I wouldn’t over take them but that only lasted 3 weeks until I made him give them back to me. I thought I was strong enough to control myself this time but I was wrong. I am doing the same thing I used to. I just want to be able to feel normal and be able to challenge the world without being on the meds or even just taking the meds like im supposed too. I got my 10mg prescription filled this past Friday (Nov 21) I was out of them by Monday. That means it only took me 4 days to empty the bottle. I got my 20mg pills on that same Monday. I have taken 9 pills in the last two days. I took 6 total throughout the entire day yesterday and I took 3 today so far. I feel like total crap. Out of all the problems I have with adderall, my number one problem is the anxiety I have when I take too much. I can not function barely at all and it is the most entirely worst feeling in the world. Even though I feel sooo bad I still continue to abuse them. I have a lot of problems in my life right now and this is prolly the worst. I struggle very bad with dealing with stress, and when im not on the pills I can not handle stress at all…I want to be able to deal with my problems without the pills..I know its possible to be done but im just stuck right now and don’t know where to turn… Im going to call some counseling services soon and start going to them. I just hope to get some advice back and hopefully a wake up call of some sort so that I can fix this terrible problem. Please respond and let me know anything that will be helpful to me and my addiction… Thanks for taking the time to read this and understand. Sorry if some things don’t make sense, im feeling really bad right now with my anxiety and its hard to concentrate and function.

JUST SO YOU KNOW IM GONNA MAKE IT AND ILL BE OKAY IVE OVERCOME METH 5 YEARS AGOSO THIS IS JUST SOMETHING ELSE IVE GOTTA OVERCOME
AND IM GONNA BEAT IT SO JUST PRAY FOR ME PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!
I KNOW YOU DONT KNOW ME BUT THANKS FOR LISTENENG

I just wanted to thank you for what you're trying to accomplish. We are the witnesses to an epdiemic that is going to shock our "medicated" nation.

In all fairness, I must confess that my wife and I were guilty of using Adderall in University. Never before and never after.

My oldest brother, 31yrs old, has been addicted/abusing adderall for the better part of 8yrs. It started in his last year of University and we've been witnessing a downward spiral ever since. Before he had encountered Adderall, his social drug of choice was Cocaine. Needless to say, he found the generic benefits of Adderall through improved/completed course work through a legal drug...This was in the early 2000's when it was (and still is) extremely easy to "manipulate" his way into receiving a prescription. Throughout the last 5 years we've witnessed him create these "larger than life" religious ideolotries and develop an acute lack of logical thinking. In this time period he's been a fanatical "Chistian", then became a Muslim, then back to Christianity, then became a Mormon and now back to Christianity. There have been times where we've witnessed him frantically flipping through the bible or the koran trying to express his ideas. None of which would have any coherent meaning to a devout believer of these faiths. We've gone through very agressive/violent outbreaks with him (experienced by myself, my middle brother, and my father) and he's assaulted 3 officers in a shoe store. Lucky for him we live in a relatively small town where the "politics" of the town played to his benefit due to the fact of who we know (no charges), etc... In the past we've witnessed him in obvious sorts of pyschosis and have tried so desperately to reason with him and love and support him.
Just this past weekend (and as we speak) he experienced the worst breakdown that we know of as of yet. Experiencing acute hallucinations/delusions and terrifying paranoia. To the point of "running for his life", "people's faces were changing", setting a 9" mounted sailfish free in the ocean, cutting all tv cables and removing all mirrors or pics from the walls or countertops in the condo that my parents have let him stay in..etc.
My family is at a loss of what to do. My parents, in particular, are extrememly loving/giving individuals and have probably (out of fear of losing him) enabled his lifestyle by providing a roof over his head and biweekly HEB cards for food. (He hasn't been able to support himself for years)..... I'm writing you this now and doing as much research as possible to educate myself as much as possible with how I can help in this situation.
For the first time ever, we had a type of "intervention" where he was to either get help now (admit himself into a treatment center) or be on his own. At first he surprisingly agreed with them that he needed help and that it was the Adderall. Then, midway through his phone interview with the treatment center he started backpedaling and basically, he's now in a cheap motel for two nights where at any moment he can call my family or the center to get help. Otherwise he's on his own.

Forgive me for venting/rambling but I want to make it clear that YOU are not alone and I fully support you in your mission. I have every intention to be active in the fight against these types of pharmaceutical drungs, especially Adderall. If I can join a list serve/organization or just receive relevant information, please let me know. This has to stop now.

A concerned brother.

I JUST CAME UPON YOUR SITE LOOKING FOR SOME ANSWERS ---- to help me.IVE BEEN TAKING ADDERALL SINCE 2001 AND 2 WEEKS AGO I THREW IT ALL AWAY. WHAT IN THE WORLD AM I GOING THROUGH? DO YOU KNOW WHAT I AM SUPPOSE TO BE FEELING LIKE? ALSO IS THIS SAFE? THANKS

I have a sister seeing a Psyhcologist and this is what he is giving her.First of all mind you she is an alcoholic and has been since she wasabout 20 and is 57 now:Adderol 40 mg I think it is 20mg twice a day Valium as needed and they are 10 mg Effexor 150 mgs
She also takes premarin and provera. She drinks vodka in coke all day long about 3/4 to one whole bottle a day. She takes the adderal in morning to get going. Gets up and starts drinking and is flying high with plans and going to do this and that. Early afternoon she is tired Then she takes valium to bring her down and drinks some more

I am so angry at this Dr. How can he see she is not addicted. She likes it cause it makes her loose weight but she is a bitch to live with. Just tell me am I losing my mind here cause she driving me crazy. I cannot get her in rehab against her word so that is out. She will not
believe any of us. She can barely move or walk some days. But she will kill for this medicine and
that makes me afraid of her.

I have been taking adderall since fivth grade. I am now twenty and still take it. I can't really funtion without it. I think even worse issuses are stuff like vyvance; a new amphetamine drug on the market.

I recently found that roommate #1 has been getting adderall from his older sister. Roommate #2 and I believe he has sometimes been taking as many as three pills a day. He has about 80% of the symptoms on your site. He has just run out of pills so we are going to see if he gets anymore. What can you suggest we do about this situation? We are giving him one more week before we sit down and talk with him(the problem with that is he is also minor OCD and has developed a sense that any criticism against him can be countered with one of his excuses). We are going to try this before we email his parents.What can we do to save this kid because I can tell he will have completely broken down by the end of the semester. Thanks.

I really need some information. My wife is a recovering meth addict and was a HEAVY user. She has indications of brain shrinkage and a host of other symtoms. Her doctor prescribed 2 Adderall (20mg dosage) three times a day.....120mg per day total.
She can barely function....can't remember anything and has become almost impossible to live with. I suggested that she wean herself from the drug but she refuses and I can't reason with the doctor. I suspect she is also purchasing additional quantities of adderall somewhere.

If you are a true adhd then the effects are the opposite of what you are mentioning
Not medicating a kid can be a very dangerous situation if for any reason they try the illegal version of methanphetamine and experience the calming effect it produces on true adhd people then they will auto medicate themselves on the wrong medication with the obvious effects these could bring it is true adderal is abused mostly by university students but you have to be aware of the effects of not medicating remember jails are full of non diagnosed adhds

I am doing a college project on Adderall abuse and found your website through google. I was diagnosed with ADD in 2002 and took Adderall until 2006 when I forced myself to live without it because it had changed my ability to function on a daily basis. I have since tried Vyvanse, Daytrana, Concerta, and many other medications. As a college student, I see a lot of Adderall abuse within my group of friends and among fellow students. For my final project in my Journalism course, I decided to do my final story on Adderall abuse because it is such a major part of the college scene today. Since exams are a week away, people have been begging me for my medication and I see first hand how out of control this epidemic of amphetamine abuse has gotten.

I was diagnosed with ADD and started taking adderall. It has been about 1 year & 1/2 and I have completely lost who I was. I hate it because when my room is messy I take adderall, when I need to study I take adderall, and now it is everyday. I used to not like taking it and didn't take it a lot...but I have began to take it everyday and feel stupid without it. I want off and I don't know how to get my life back.
All the things you said happen like "lose all normal perceptions", can they go away if I stop? Can I be normal again ever?
Thank you.

First off, thanks for this website. I was happy to see other people's emails and seeing that they deal with my same problem. I hope my story helps one more. I'll try and stick to the mainpoints to keep it short.

I began my adderall adventures as a senior in highschool. My friend took them like candy and he'd let me have some because I needed to either study or stay up late with him. I didn't think much of it at all. I liked it wasn't anything I needed to operate from day to day. But college was coming up and I knew if I wanted to do as well as I could I should get perscribed. So the end of the summer they gave me some concerta to start off with. After a few months I switched to adderall.
College began and I noticed that if I saved up my adderall and took a higher dosage when I had to study I did much better on tests. This wasn't bad except the more I took the more I didn't get to save which made me call in my perscriptions early. At this point my friend from highschool who was perscribed 75mg's a day (after taking it for 3 or 4 years) went to rehab for adderall abuse. But he didn't graduate High School and had many other problems so I thought I was doing fine.
I was only on 20mg's a day and calling it in early so I got my perscription upped, again, again, and again.
So now about two years have gone by. I'm perscribed 90mg's a day. I abuse the crap out of those pills each month. It controls me. I am not a fun person anymore. I am way less confrontational but thats because I have no feelings. I've got plenty of friends but none of them know the real me, the me before I got to college. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard I cried or my face hurt. I lost weight and have no where near as much energy as I did. I study, and study, and study. But every detail of my life stress' me out 10 fold compared to what it should. I am slow in thinking and get confused all the time because my mind is racing. It is an addiction and it is ruining my life. I want to be normal again, I want to take this drug to cram for tests not because society thinks I'm too outgoing. It's hard when I stop for a few days because everyone thinks I'm drunk or high or something. It's said because I'm actually sober, not high on adderall for once.
I am sick of watching my life slip by in my zoned out world. I'm sick of being dependant on a pill. It is so much harder to stop when you think your the only one. But I've identified this addiction a while ago and have since been watching my self much more closely. I set a goal to have not take adderall daily, and lowered my perscription to 45 mg's a day. I'm hoping to kick this addiction and it helps reading other people's stories.
That is why this is a good site. People are looking to see if other people have the same problems as them or just determining if it is a problem. I looked other places but saw no personal stories. Keep these coming, it is effective. An updated blog would be an awesome attribute as well.