How do you explain the need for adderall to others?

[LaurenAshleyTexasGirl]

I decided to tell my sister about my addiction. Having someone know (because I've kept it from everyone) will hopefully make the problem harder to ignore and force me to take the next steps to finally quit. At least I hope. Anyway... So, I'm trying to explain why I take adderall (way too many times a day, not that it matters). She doesn't understand why I don't "just stop". I think it's difficult for non-addicts to understand. And rightfully so. I mean, I know what I'm doing is wrong. And I know I shouldn't be doing it. But logic is squashed every time. And I don't know how to help her understand.

I want to be prepared when I talk to her again. Instead of just saying, I don't know how to explain it. It's just not that easy to quit. This is the best explanation I have been able to think of so far:

It's similar to the feeling of being really thirsty. It's uncomfortable and something that can be fixed by having a glass of water or another drink. Ignoring your body's need for fluids isn't an option. When I'm thirsty, I drink something. Just like everyone else. When I'm really hungry, I know I have to eat something. That's how I feel without adderall. The feeling is unbearable. And I can make it go away with a pill (or 3). It almost doesn't feel like an option. My body needs it... It's just something I need to survive now. At least, that's how it feels anyway. If that makes sense??

What do you guys think? I would love to hear from anyone. How would you describe it? How did you help people who love you understand you're behavior? I'm new at this...

[Zerokewl]

I think it would be key to explain the cycle of dependence. How one all nighter leads to a bigger dose to keep going and so on. Also the way your tolerance creeps up and suddenly you need 2 pills to accomplish what one did. One pill to feel normal 2 to feel good 3 to feel better and 4 is too many.

[BeHereNow]

Hi LaurenAshley!  

 

Good call on telling your sister!  In my experience, telling a select few people was one of the most powerful steps to help me quit.  I highly recommend it!  

 

First, because you will need support from loved ones during early recovery.   (If you have a partner or best friend(s) you can trust, you might want to let them in on it, too.)

 

Second, for some reason, adderall and secrecy seem to go together.   I kept it secret from everyone.  But when I quit, I told a select 2-3 people.  That immediately helped me realize that what I was doing was horrible and needed to stop.  And then gradually, as addiction lost its grip on me, I got over the secrecy gradually and told more of my loved ones... which helped the addiction to loosen its grasp even further.  

 

But how to convey what it's like?  That's a GREAT question.

 

ZK, good call on the cycle idea.  Along those lines I was thinking you might want to explain about how the brain stops functioning normally without adderall. Your brain becomes dependent on adderall to produce dopamine, and how your dopamine receptors eventually become desensitized.  (These are the physiological aspects of quitting adderall.  Your brain literally has to relearn how to produce dopamine, and how to process it.)

 

I found that explaining it by analogy helped too.  I told some close people that learning how to function without adderall is like a stroke victim re-learning how to play piano.  That was very effective.

 

If you haven't seen it yet, look up "shit adderall kids say" on Youtube.  The guy says something like "Oh, coffee?   What is this, the 3rd grade?"   It's funny, but kind of a good analogy too.  Adderall is 1000x stronger than caffeine, but both are addictive stimulants.  So maybe explaining how adderall is kind of like coffee, but a thousand times stronger and harder to quit, could help.  It helped me explain to some people who had no adderall experience.

 

I'm hesitant to go with the food/water analogy, though.  I totally get what you're feeling-- anyone here can-- but your sister might not quite get it.   Since those are things we all NEED in order to function biologically, those are impossible to quit entirely.   That's why eating disorders are so tough to recover from.   

 

I'm a little worried based on your post, that YOU might be thinking of it as similar to food and water though...   If so, you'll need to ditch that mentality if you really want to quit for good.  

 

Your sister has a good point about just stopping taking it, because that IS an option.   She just doesn't understand what stopping would mean for YOU in terms of recovery and functioning... but the fact that it's not a biological need is probably where she's coming from.   (People who don't understand addiction have trouble understanding how hard it is to stop.)

 

On a side note... Food and water are some of your best friends right now!   They are ALL that your brain truly needs in order to rebuild your dopamine and return to normal functioning.  You DO need dopamine!  But adderall isn't the real source of this.   Food, sleep, and time are.   In addiction, we deplete our dopamine until there's none left, and we start thinking of pills as something we "need."  Physiologically, the brain gets used to this.  It's tough.

 

Last, there are a lot of great articles on this site that can help with explaining adderall to others.  I believe there is one specifically designed for friends and family.  Browse around and send links, maybe show your sister the site!  Reading through the forums is one of the best ways to learn since there's not much info out there about quitting adderall.

 

Ultimately, people who have never taken adderall (and people who have never been addicted to anything) won't understand.   They'll have no clue what you're going through.   Actually, anybody who has never quit adderall won't quite understand, which is why this site is so amazing.  We get it, and and you can post here 24/7!!!  So post away and feel free to lean on us, too   This support group is so helpful when you're feeling isolated and having trouble conveying what you're going through.