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Permanent effects of long-term adderall use/abuse?


BeHereNow

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Like many of my generation, I was raised with D.A.R.E. and Nancy Reagan's "Just Say No" campaign.   The ad where they compare a frying egg to your brain on drugs.  Super scary anti-drug propaganda.

 

This all makes it sound like if you use (illegal) drugs, you'll be permanently ruined and brain damaged, with no hope for the future.  

 

I don't agree with this, and I think drug education needs to be more informative and encompassing of all types of drugs.  

 

Still, Do any of you think having taken adderall has had permanent effects on you, even after quitting?

 

Many people I've met say that just trying a drug once, or for a short time, has permanently changed how they think and view the world.  Anything from antidepressants to hallucinogens seems to alter us.  There are certain experiences that you can't return from.

 

Has adderall changed how your brain operates?  How you think and experience the world?

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I'm sure it does but also seems like the worlds gone crazy so something is changing people in food we consume etc. Unless you live on a island with land untouched by modern man eat all organic food and undisturbed water its hard to really say what life is like toxin free. Just turn on the news something is wrong with us all not just the recovering addicts.

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I'm sure it does but also seems like the worlds gone crazy so something is changing people in food we consume etc. Unless you live on a island with land untouched by modern man eat all organic food and undisturbed water its hard to really say what life is like toxin free. Just turn on the news something is wrong with us all not just the recovering addicts.

 

Well said. And something I've been thinking for a long time.  I'm sure there are many reasons for this, including increased diagnosis, but the percentage of people coping with "mental illnesses" (scare quotes because if things are so deeply wrong, socially politically and economically, are we really ill??) -- "mental illnesses" like anxiety/depression/adhd or whatever it might be.... Violent tendencies... group thinking...  violence, hatred.... show us that there is something seriously, pathologically wrong with everyone and our culture.  Like you said, just turn on the news. 

 

I believe recovering addicts are the ones with the most strength and resilience and self-awareness.  Few things in this life are harder than recovering from a serious addiction.  And in some ways I am thankful that I am a recovering addict, because it has been a shortcut to very deep awareness, sobriety, and true success.  

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Adderall definitely changed my brain chemicals but it's not like permanent brain damage. It just rewired some neural pathways and my brain is repairing or rerouting these pathways now that I'm off of it. The fact that I can remember my life when I was on it means it didn't completely ruin my brain. I have hope that my brain will come back stronger than ever given enough time. 

 

I'm coming up on 3 months and I definitely feel like my brain has healed quite a bit since I quit. 

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 the percentage of people coping with "mental illnesses" (scare quotes because if things are so deeply wrong, socially politically and economically, are we really ill??) -- "mental illnesses" like anxiety/depression/adhd or whatever it might be.... Violent tendencies... group thinking...  violence, hatred.... show us that there is something seriously, pathologically wrong with everyone and our culture.  Like you said, just turn on the news.

 

"Paranoia" (Daniel and Joseph Freeman) explains how paranoia and other mental illnesses can be induced by environmental  factors not related to the individual. 

 

Living in a city, being a contract employee or working part-time jobs, and being an immigrant can also make people more prone to paranoia.  Given this information, we have a responsibility as a society (as do the leaders of the society even more so) to look at whether our individual actions are really helping one another or if they are actually making things worse by creating more and bigger problems.

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Some very cool posts. I'm in a bit of a cognitive fog last 24 hours or so. I get so frustrated with this "non-linear" recovery but wanted to chime in.

Great stuff about the general state of society with respect to all the ways one can wind up being labeled and or truly experiencing depression, anxiety, paranoia, etc... I haven't read Sebastsin Jungers (The Perfect Storm) newest book "Tribe" yet, but from what I understand it's an extremely insightful look at the very issues mentioned above, but looks at them most exclusively through the eyes of vets returning from war. I believe that the main premis is that it's our current societal beliefs and ways of "rugged individualism" that make it so tough for the vets to re-integrate into "main-stream" society. More so then trying to forget the atrocities of war! It turns out that battle forces people to work together, develope deep loyalty and trust of your fellow man, share the burden of others (including those who are injured!) and countless other traits which at one point in time were fundamental principles of any successful community. But as we all know have next to Zero value in the modern world. So what much of what gets labeled PTSD, is really a soldiers utter despair at the loss of shared mission, comraderey, loyalty, and dare I say love, once returning home. The current medical practice seems to be dispense whatever combination of drugs that will either mimic the above emotions, or more likely dull ones awareness to them. I'm not trying to say there isn't PTSD as most have come to define it! Please don't think I'm insensitive to the horrors of war. I'm deeply grateful to our veterans. My job, though part-time for now, serves a great many veterans. I just thought so much of what was being said above effects veterans so much, and it would be great to see more information and awareness shared about what so many of these returning men and woman truly long for. God bless

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So what much of what gets labeled PTSD, is really a soldiers utter despair at the loss of shared mission, comraderey, loyalty, and dare I say love, once returning home. The current medical practice seems to be dispense whatever combination of drugs that will either mimic the above emotions, or more likely dull ones awareness to them.

 

This makes a lot of sense.  The scary thing about any psych drug (IMHO) is that we really don't understand their mechanism of action 100%.  Who knows what is really happening to our fragile brains when we take these drugs??!

 

It's really great that you have such caring for veterans.  I imagine that whatever service you provide, full or part-time is very helpful.

 

If you are looking for a referral program for veterans that works, check out Outward Bound.  They have a program that helps vets transition back into civilian life - the testimonials are impressive, and I believe that it is FREE for veterans: http://www.outwardbound.org/veteran-adventures/outward-bound-for-veterans/

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That is a fantastic question.  Has Adderall changed how my brain operates and how I experience the word?  I wish I could answer it, but I really don't know if it did.  My memory has diminished, but is that due to adderall/alcohol/ weed/ abuse or is it simply due to aging and being 53 years old?  Probably a combination of substance abuse and age and it is what it is.  Thank God for fish oil and other brain supplements that I use from time to time.

 

What it has changed without a doubt is my outlook on using drugs, especially stimulants.  Before my addiction, I was always seeking a new way to get high and I would experiment with almost anything that wasn't totally toxic.  But now, I know that any drug can cause addiction and that stimulants (including nicotine) are absolutely not an option for me.  

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Some very cool posts. I'm in a bit of a cognitive fog last 24 hours or so. I get so frustrated with this "non-linear" recovery but wanted to chime in.

Great stuff about the general state of society with respect to all the ways one can wind up being labeled and or truly experiencing depression, anxiety, paranoia, etc... I haven't read Sebastsin Jungers (The Perfect Storm) newest book "Tribe" yet, but from what I understand it's an extremely insightful look at the very issues mentioned above, but looks at them most exclusively through the eyes of vets returning from war. I believe that the main premis is that it's our current societal beliefs and ways of "rugged individualism" that make it so tough for the vets to re-integrate into "main-stream" society. More so then trying to forget the atrocities of war! It turns out that battle forces people to work together, develope deep loyalty and trust of your fellow man, share the burden of others (including those who are injured!) and countless other traits which at one point in time were fundamental principles of any successful community. But as we all know have next to Zero value in the modern world. So what much of what gets labeled PTSD, is really a soldiers utter despair at the loss of shared mission, comraderey, loyalty, and dare I say love, once returning home. The current medical practice seems to be dispense whatever combination of drugs that will either mimic the above emotions, or more likely dull ones awareness to them. I'm not trying to say there isn't PTSD as most have come to define it! Please don't think I'm insensitive to the horrors of war. I'm deeply grateful to our veterans. My job, though part-time for now, serves a great many veterans. I just thought so much of what was being said above effects veterans so much, and it would be great to see more information and awareness shared about what so many of these returning men and woman truly long for. God bless

The drugs these soldiers with PTSD mostly a form of SSRI's look at the damn suicide rate of these vets and or murder/suicides. If you don't see a direct link to the SSRI's and these statistics your blind. Sorry it's horrible shit more people need to be aware.

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  • 1 month later...

Effects of long-term Adderall abuse? Ha. Where do I even begin?!

I was put on Adderall when I was 14, and remained prescribed for 10 years!

Might I add that in 2008, 70mg of Vyvanse was prescribed as well.

A whole decade on amphetamines- From adolescence into adulthood!

Absolutely a detrimental time for brain development.

I have done much much research and from what I've read,

I do believe my brain is definitely damaged, BUT it is repairable!

Neuroplacisty(sp) is possible!!

t's about creating new pathways.

I'll admit I am having a hard time not using.

I'm not doing it daily, but monthly I binge for 3-5 days.

I take Lexapro & Wellbutrin to help regenerate the neurotransmitters that I am lacking.

It's tough.

I feel like I'm all alone that I am gonna never going to be able to defeat this long-term.

I could go on and on, but I'll end this here.

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