Cold Turkey or Taper Down

[detroitnvrleft]

Getting ready for my 3rd attempt at getting clean for very excessive adderall use.  Just wanted to get input on if people have found more success just cutting it off overnight/going cold turkey or trying to taper off over a certain period of time?  Thank you in advance for the input.  Anxiety now is very high - with this being my 3rd attempt I’m less confident in my ability to get success this time.

[EricP]

I did cold turkey and it was brutal... If I went back in time I think I would have first tried taking some “Holliday’s” days off thru the week that I could test my ability to be off of it then after a couple weeks try just 2/3 to 1/2 of normal dose and slowly cut 1/4-1/3 from there a week at a time...

Since you have failed before and you are high dose it sounds like a good option for you. If this doesn’t work you will need to get your doctor in the loop to cut off your supply and flush your pills. You need to have extra willpower to taper as pills will be accessible. Maybe have a friend or family hold and give your each days dose...?

[SeanW]

3rd attempt isn't too bad. Took me till bout my 15th attempt. 

[Frank B]

I quit twice first time cold turkey failed after one month. The second time tapered down but under three months and been off it now for over 2.5 yrs. I can’t say which is best but only thing that matters is once u decide which day is your last that’s it no safety net toss away your stash, burn your future scripts and burn bridges with your doctor. 

[SleepyStupid]

i think it depends how you define " very excessive adderall use". what "very excessive" sounds like to me is a lack of self-control, which means tapering is probably not going to work unless you have someone else dispense your pills as @EricP suggested. that's nothing to be ashamed of though. most of us are here because of a lack of self-control.

cold turkey will certainly be more brutal, but unfortunately it's the only option for some of us. FWIW, on days i used to take less adderall than what i was used to, i'd feel worse than if i didn't take any at all, but that effect may depend once again on how much you were taking.

gl!