Are you concerned b/c it's an amphetamine?

Yes.

---

sj, don't be. Also? Read Delivered from Distraction but Edward Hallowell--it's the updated 2005 version of Driven to Distraction that he published in 1994, and he talks a lot about medication and why you shouldn't fear it (or purely rely on it). He also talks about different types of ADD med treatments, things to look out for, etc.

---

Thanks, Kristin. I've added that to my amazon cart.

---

Tep, our great and powerful side-effect knower. For which I am incredibly grateful. Often.

---

Thanks, Kristin. I've added that to my amazon cart.

No worries. The nice thing about that book is that it's written for people with ADD by people with ADD (who also happen to be prominent psychiatrists), so you can skip around or read only the chapters that interest you.

---

Well, this is what I know about ADD drugs, both from my work and from having a BF with ADD.

Yes, Adderall (as well as Concerta and Ritalin and other ADD drugs) is an amphetamine. And yes, amphetamines are a commonly abused drug class. (Which is why the pharmacist treated you like a druggie, which is, I might add, SO WRONG and you should complain. You had a legitimate prescription from a goddamn doctor.) And yes, amphetamines -- **when abused** -- can have weird side effects.

However. The ADD brain is different from the non-ADD brain in how it processes amphetamines -- at least, in the small doses that are prescribed for ADD. People without ADD who take Adderall are going to be affected as though they took speed. That's why there's such an illegal trade of it going on among high-schoolers and college students who want to pull all-nighters, or just get looped.

But it's very different for people WITH ADD who take an amphetamine. What's going on in the ADD brain (and this is the description that The Boy has given me, so don't take this as a medical assessment) is that it needs something to partially occupy it, so that it isn't constantly running off in 1,000 different directions.

Because that's what your brain is doing when you have ADD -- it's zipping around like a hummingbird on crack, looking for stimulation. That's why people with ADD get distracted easily -- the brain isn't stimulated *enough* to stay focused on one thing.

While it sounds counter-intuitive, what Adderall does for the ADD brain is to give it *just enough* extra stimulation that it will stop (or slow down) the zipping around from shiny thing to shiny thing. Amphetamines are -- for the ADD brain -- like a long-term shiny thing.

Again, let me emphasize that the doses used in ADD are low -- not even close to the amount people take when they're abusing it and treating it as speed. Thousands (millions?) of people take it every day for ADD. It's very very useful, and won't be harmful.

Keep an eye out for side effects -- but you should do that with ANY drug, from aspirin to chemotherapy. The fact that Adderall is an amphetamine doesn't make it dangerous, in and of itself. People who abuse it are creating danger for themselves.

I know it sounds freaky -- your doctor prescribed an amphetamine for you. But truly, they really do work for ADD, and they're safe when you follow the instructions on the label.

---

Coffee:

FTR, Adderall didn't work for me and is fairly strong, so if you've tried it awhile and not seen improvement, you may want to look into the other class of stimulants. Adderall is in the amphetamine class, as is Dexedrine. The other class is methylphenidate (Ritalin etc.) and, though controlled, is not technically an amphetamine.

There are also a number on non-stimulant treatments such as Amantadine, Bupropion (Zyban/Wellbutrin), Strattera, Modafinil (Provigil), Clonidine, Guanfacine and more. The book goes through every one of them and describes research, pros/cons, and dispels rumors and myths.

---

And I have to run out the door, but I'll check in when I get home later.

---

Oh, and Steph sums it up well, though Hallowell describes the stimulant effect more as a stimulant for the *inhibitors* that are not as active in the ADHD brain. So not so much a long term shiny thing as a stimulant for the part of the brain that allows us to stay focused that is often asleep at the wheel. Hm. So kind of a long term shiny thing for the inhibitor itself.

Also?

Again, let me emphasize that the doses used in ADD are low -- not even close to the amount people take when they're abusing it and treating it as speed. Thousands (millions?) of people take it every day for ADD. It's very very useful, and won't be harmful.

Keep an eye out for side effects -- but you should do that with ANY drug, from aspirin to chemotherapy. The fact that Adderall is an amphetamine doesn't make it dangerous, in and of itself. People who abuse it are creating danger for themselves.

I know it sounds freaky -- your doctor prescribed an amphetamine for you. But truly, they really do work for ADD, and they're safe when you follow the instructions on the label.

Absolutely this.

Be aware that there are rampant stigmas against ADHD and ADHD medications. Some of these are founded in the fact that there has been some overdiagnosis in children, but the truth is that most adults with ADD are underdiagnosed. There are tons of propaganda sites out there in the psychiatry and psychiatric meds are DEATH camp. Avoid these like the plague. Your doctor and other experts know better.

---

While it sounds counter-intuitive, what Adderall does for the ADD brain is to give it *just enough* extra stimulation that it will stop (or slow down) the zipping around from shiny thing to shiny thing. Amphetamines are -- for the ADD brain -- like a long-term shiny thing.

My brother is diagnosed as ADD, and my sister, who isn't, is fairly certain she is ADD based on the fact that when she tried amphetamines in the '70s, they had the reverse of the expected effect on her, making her feel like they slowed her down.

---