ejohns1

Hello. I just found this website today and I must say that I am extremely surprised and happy to have found such a large and supportive community dedicated to one single cause (or goal in this case). My story: I've struggled my entire life to pay attention to anything for longer than a few minutes. My friends and family always told me I was being inattentive or daydreamed too much. I had no idea why I had such a hard time concentrating on literally the simplest tasks I was given. I first began secretly taking adderall as an undergrad in college. I was given a few 30mg XR pills from my friend during my freshman year and from the first time I took them; I was hooked. I loved the immense amount of power and control I suddenly had over my mind and body (or so I thought at the time). But I couldn't morally deal with taking Adderall without a proper prescription, so I decided to meet with a psychiatrist and ended up getting a formal diagnosis of ADD within a few months. I did not tell my parents; who are extremely old-fashioned. That was five years ago and up to this current day, my parents still do not know about my dependence. They simply think that I had some sort of epiphany at college and pulled myself together enough to start making straight A's and B's. I am currently still taking Adderall, but since graduating with my Master's in Social Work with an emphasis in Mental Health (ironic, right?) I have come to terms with the fact that I am now completely dependent upon Adderall to function throughout my daily life and that at some point soon I need to stop using Adderall to simply get up in the morning. I want to have a life that I can truly live. Of course I want to quit, and yes, I miss aspects of my former self. But there were many things about myself before I started taking Adderall that I do not want to go back to. This is why I have been foiled in my past attempts at quitting Adderall; because I am afraid of who I will revert back to once I stop taking it. But I think the one thing that I miss the absolute most about my former self was my ability to have a "stomach-hurting-slapping-your-knee" kind of laugh. I had been told my entire life that I had a very infectious laugh, even as a small child, which I loved. Since I began taking Adderall five years ago, I have not laughed that amazing laugh one single time since. I miss it dearly and I can recall many instances during the past five years in which I wished I had that laugh still. But no matter how funny I find something to be, that laugh has continued to evade me. It seems minuscule and non-important; to have a good laugh. But to me, it was a defining feature of myself that I absolutely loved. I also think that it shows just how much Adderall has impeded my ability to truly show my true self even in the simplest ways.