RRRRRRECOVERY

[quit-once]

RESIST REST READJUST REBUILD REBOUND RECOVERED

This is a post about the stages of my recovery over the past year. All of the stages overlap with one another because recovery is not a linear process. Recovery is a different process for everybody so I have not posted time frames for these different stages. I call them the "'R's of Recovery" and so far I have identified five or six of them, and it is likely there are even more steps than those I have identified. Adderall recovery is a long and difficult process with a huge reward for those who complete it.

RESIST: From the moment you cease intaking stimulants you must resist the addiction, whenever the temptation arises. For the rest of your life. The good news is that temptations get fewer and less intense with time. You must resist the notion that adderall will solve even one of your problems. I have to resist two addictions that are linked - adderall and cigs. I believe that nicotine is a gateway drug that causes stronger and more intense cravings for itself and for all of the stronger and harder stimulant drugs. So I must double-down and resist them both.

REST: You have been abusing adderall for ___ years and getting by with less sleep that you really need. It is gonna take a while to make up that sleep deficit. So if you make rest part of your recovery program you won't feel guilty when you just can't seem to get off the couch. I still have those days but not very often.

READJUST: You will need to readjust just about everything you do and how you do it. A good example is how I do my laundry. It used to be an epic laundry event where I would wash all the fabrics in the house. Now, I do one load in the evening or whenever I can work it in, and call it good. I actually finish the task now. Meal preparation and eating is another area where I had to readjust my lifestyle after adderall. I have made it my highest priority to prepare fresh, wholesome meals for myself every day. Perhaps my biggest adjustment has been experiencing life in the mornings instead of fighting them. I wake up at the crack of dawn whether I want to or not.

REBUILD: This phase of recovery requires your ongoing active effort. Your have spent ___ years depleting your body of its reserves all in the name of persuing an addiction. It is going to take some considerable time and energy to rebuild yourself mentally and physically. I believe that Recovery is mounted on a tripod with Hydration, Activity and Nutrition supporting each leg of your Recovery tripod. Lately I have been keeping track of my Hydration, Activity, and Nutrition in a daily log I call my HAN Book.

REBOUND: This is the stage where I am currently. How high will this ball bounce?

RECOVERED: I believe it is entirely possible to completely recover from an adderall addiction. The AA/NA bullshit that you are always in recovery is just a ploy to keep these organizations in business for themselves. As long as you acknowledge that your need to RESIST will never completely go away, why not pronounce yourself RECOVERED and move on with your life?

[ashley6]

Quit-once,

This post was so insightful. I logically know that this process isn't linear, but it's not easy to accept. I think accepting that is probably the most important part in beating this. It's crazy to me how the smallest things can trigger a craving, or at least a preoccupation. I'm 82 days clean and so proud, but today was one of the hardest days I've had in awhile....what gives?! I now know after reading your story that I need to continuously remind myself that it's just that-- a process with many Rs, and a pill will not solve one single problem....thank you for sharing.

-Ashley

[Whittering]

Quit once,

Thanks, I needed that. Tomorrow marks 180 days with no Adderall. Anyone want to celebrate?

[quit-once]

Quit once,

Thanks, I needed that. Tomorrow marks 180 days with no Adderall. Anyone want to celebrate?

I will buy you a virtual beer for that one, Whittering! SIX MONTHS is awsome! That put a smile on my face tonight. Congratulations!

[Jon]

It's over a year later Quit-once, but I'll but you a drink or celebrate in any way that would please you and honor your work here.

 

I like your R's of recovery, especially the Rebuild R and your HAN book. As a photographer, how could I not like a tripod approach.

 

I am at 38 days, trying to get 45 days any way I can (a suggestion by Mike).

 

Thank you and congratulations. You have recovered.

[quit-once]

Wow, I haven't read this post since I wrote it over a year ago.  So, here are a few updates.  I kept up with logging my food and water intake for about three months or so,  It helped me to loose about 20 lbs by being mindful of what I consumed.  I have managed to keep the weight off by practicing mindful eating habits.  Keeping a food journal also helped me learn the calorie and sugar content of many foods I regularly ate.

 

Here is the most notable thing about my recovery - I thought I was completely recovered around a year after quitting.  Looking back on it, I was still having a lot of PAWS days that I wrote off as "just how I am".  Now I realize it was just extended recovery time.  I don't believe I have had a PAWS experience or an adderall-related dream since April of this year.  I still wish I could smoke a cig here and there, but not too often.  I never, ever wish I could take adderall again, even a little bit.  I am completely done with that addiction. 

 

The last couple of months I have really been getting things done with more focus and motivation than I ever had on adderall.  I do believe the Lions Mane mushroom supplement that I have been taking since April helps me a lot.  I also have tried my hand at complete sobriety, but that has proved to be elusive.  Not that I like to get bombed but I do like to have a drink or a beer or two on most days.  I have given up smoking weed on a regular basis too.  And I have continued with healthy eating practices - I grow all my own veggies in a greenhouse in the mountains.  I also have been practicing yoga at least weekly since I wrote this post over a year ago, and my dog is my exercise buddy.  I do not take any pills besides the supplements I choose to take, or not, depending on how I feel. 

 

Well, I did not intend on providing a status update, but here it is.  I guess I can do that since I started this post, right?   In general, I have never felt better physically or mentally in my whole life that I do right now, and I know that kicking my addictions to adderall, nicotine and sugar was essential to improving my health and well-being. 

[Zerokewl]

Great post I believe I am in the Readjust and Rebuild phase. Though I believe I will completely recover. I think its key to always be on guard for new pills etc. 10 years from now when you have completly forgotten this part of your life and how hard it was it may be easy to try a new pill/ formula.  Before adderall  there were Dex, Ritalin, whatever Johnny Cash was on etc. Adderall is just a new package/ formula. I think this is the point of staying in recovery forever. 

 

  Adderall can easily be repackaged and rebranded into a new wonder drug.  Big pharm wants to create customer for life. I think being in recovery means dealing with the underlying problems that lead you to use  Adderall in the first place.

 

Personally I actually have ADHD, I've been accessed as having ADHD at a high level,  and struggle with some trivial tasks  and while excelling and complex tasks.   I think ADHD is a bullshit syndrome and prescribing stimulants to highly creative intelligent people will be remembered by history as a sort of intellectual blood letting. 

 

That being said great post my only edit would be to add a Asterix and some fine print to the recovered*.  

[Whittering]

Hmmm, I came back here to determine a timeline to figure out where I was and what I was doing when some things happened to my daughter that I was not aware of until now. I just read this. I've been off adderall since December 29, 2011, but took one pill the other day to clean my closet that needed to get cleaned. It made me feel so crappy and rushed, and anxious, and nervous, that I will not take one again.

 

I'm glad you are still here, Quit-once, helping everyone.

 

My husband finally got off the Adderall and returned to the sweet loving person I knew he was. I sometimes get nervous when he does laundry because that was always the tell-tale sign he was on Adderall. He would do all the laundry in one night and fold it and put it away. I do miss that. One of my teenagers was complaining the other day whining "why doesn't daddy every do laundry anymore?" 

 

 If she only knew.....

[Jon]

_{I grow all my own veggies in a greenhouse in the mountains.  I also have been practicing yoga at least weekly since I wrote this post over a year ago, and my dog is my exercise buddy.  I do not take any pills besides the supplements I choose to take, or not, depending on how I feel.} 

 

 

Quit-once, Can you tell me please how to properly use the quote feature? I can't seem to carry the title bar with the persons name tag and time of qoute followes by SAID:

 

You paint a pretty picture. I can see it. It is beautiful. Once my brain and my body recover some more, I will return to a meditation and yoga practice I had, while I was on the drug, believe it or not.

 

Just before quitting, I bought a juicer after seeing the documentary, Fat, Sick and nearly Dead by Joe Cross. I used organic vegetables only. It was a lot of work and haven't had the stamina to keep the practice afloat and surviving withdrawal.

 

When I gave up smoking cigars about 2 years ago, I replaced it with hydration. I have a nice water filter at home. It filters down to 20 microns. It take out the chlorine and the water tasts great! It's a 3M product called Filtrate, in case you are interested.

 

The exercise leg of the tripod will certainly be the last leg to set. Again, Stamina and time are major conflicts. I work about 60 hours a week, on average, and I have to muster all the energy I can to keep up with that. I walk when I can, but nothing formal or routine.

 

Well, Thank you for the update on your well being. It's very encouraging at day 40.

 

P.S. I happen to agree with zerokewl about putting an asterix next to Recovered*. It's a dangerous world out there for people like us. We have to remain vigilant....especially when cleaning out our closets!