time for help

[canes2315]

Whats up everyone? I have come to the conclusion I need help and advice hopefully from people who have gone through this before. I am 22 years old and a biology major in college. I still have awhile until I graduate. I have been prescribed adderall for a solid 4 years now, and I have had enough! The only thing is, im afraid of is I will screw up in school if i stop it. I take it to study and go to class. I was thinking about maybe making a "adderall schedule" and taking it like 3 days a week instead of 5 and making those 3 days my "study days". Biology is a tough major and for a person will ADD like me, who cant pay attention to anything, makes it even tougher. Does anyone have any advice or suggestions?! Its must appreciated!

[BeHereNow]

Hi Canes, welcome! I know someone who had an adderall schedule like that and she was able to make it work really well. She only took it 2 or 3 days a week, a non-negotiable low dosage (much less than her prescribed dosage), in the morning, and that was IT. She did have to get rid of the rest of her pills to force herself to conserve those few. She made it work, and weaned herself off adderall that way.

She was really good at controlling it, and she hated adderall so much she only took a little bit on her adderall schedule to help her get through really tough work days. Eventually she stopped altogether.

Some of us here, though, do not have that in us. For me, I was either on it hardcore or off it: I was taking high doses every day and sometimes taking breaks when I ran out. I didn't have that kind of self control. But, if you think you can make a very low dose schedule work for you, then that sounds like it might be worth a try.

It's hard to quit adderall in school, especially since you've been on it for so long. You kind of have to re-learn how to focus. Of course, you DO have the brain power to function on your own. I think adderall is meant to be a set of training wheels to help you get used to functioning, focusing, and taking care of business, so that you can eventually go without it... Of course if you read the stories here you can see how it doesn't really always serve that purpose........ Also, in some ways adderall can make the quality of your work worse....... You CAN function as a student without it! Many of us on here are going through that struggle together right now. We've been trading some tricks and stuff and it's been really helpful.

So the question is whether you are truly ready to quit, whether you reallly WANT to quit, and whether adderall is a problem for you.

[Greg]

canes, welcome to the boards. Trying to control Adderall in college led to an addiction that ruined my life, so youre not going to hear anything from me but RUN from this drug while you can. yesterday I forced myself to spend four hours in the library and I only got through two chapters and I had to force myself to read and I kept looking on my phone and walking up and down the book aisles. I think of each time I sit down to study without Adderall as an opportunity to train myself, and like MFA once mentioned, grow brand new Adderall independent brain synapses and connections. and important skills to get through life. I mean I don't think getting distracted and finding things difficult to understand necessarily means you have to take something as an answer to your problems. you are on these quitting Adderall boards and so im thinking you've already entered the addiction phase and I think its time to pull the plug on this because youre playing with your future and with fire by staying on it despite wanting to quit. because it will only get worse.

[quit-once]

Canes,

I didn't read anything negative about adderall in your post, except that you have had enough. I am not sure how far that will take you on a journey to quit. It sounds like you are having a hard time letting go of it, and you haven't experienced the horrors of the addiction....yet. You might not be ready to quit. Are you thinking this is something you simply should do because you cant stay on it for the rest of your life? Is there more to your adderall story?

Regarding your proposed "adderall schedule" of three days per week instead of five: What the hell, go ahead and try it. It takes a minimum of at least three days in a row off of it for the full effect to start working again when you begin your next binge. Maybe it will work for you, but if it does not, are you ready to bag the adderall for good? I suggest you read the post entitled "Eitght stages of amphetamine addiction" in the announcements forum, and see what level you are running on.

So the question is whether you are truly READY to quit, whether you really WANT to quit, and whether adderall is a problem for you (whether you really NEED to quit).

[Motivation_Follows_Action]

canes,

I know there is a lot of stuff out there on having a "manageable" adderall schedule, and that's where this site differs. All of us on these boards tend to agree with or have experienced the following:

1) Adderall is a highly addictive drug, much more than commonly advertised

2) All of us at some point became addicted to the drug to the point where it ruled our lives

3) All of us, if we could have our time again would NEVER TOUCH THE STUFF

4) It is far better to experience success through old fashioned means of discipline, hard work and consistency. These are lifelong habits that once cultivated will propel you in to success and happiness much later down the line

I don't think you will find anyone here who will support you in your "controlled adderall use" approach. That's not because it doesn't work at all for anyone, it's just that it didn't work for us. There are PLENTY of forums out there for people like you, this one is specially for those of us who realized adderall when taken even in small doses has the capacity for taking over our sanity and effectiveness as humans. And that's why we're here.

Good luck!

[olivia115]

My first degree is in biology and I had just started taking adderall my junior year. To be honest my grades were just about the same as before. I managed to do a bit more partying in my adderall days than before but I found my grades to be the same. How did you do in high school? You might even find you learn more off of adderall because you'll likely retain a lot more. I feel like I can barely remember anything very cleary from the days when I used adderall.

I just quit using adderall in the middle of a nursing program that I'm in. I was terrified all my grades would go to shit...but they didn't. I definitely had a harder time getting myself awake and to class and just being there...being present was a challenge for a while. (For me exercise, esp weight lifting and eating my fruits and veggies helped me expedite this process) It takes a lot longer to do everything and you might look like a slob for a while. Go to every extra help session you can, maybe even get tutoring for the first few weeks. Essentially take advantage of everything you can that's available because you'll need it. I can't say you'll get all As but if you find ways to drill the info into your head as much as possible it's likely to help.

[Greg]

My first degree is in biology and I had just started taking adderall my junior year. To be honest my grades were just about the same as before. I managed to do a bit more partying in my adderall days than before but I found my grades to be the same. How did you do in high school? You might even find you learn more off of adderall because you'll likely retain a lot more. I feel like I can barely remember anything very cleary from the days when I used adderall.

I just quit using adderall in the middle of a nursing program that I'm in. I was terrified all my grades would go to shit...but they didn't. I definitely had a harder time getting myself awake and to class and just being there...being present was a challenge for a while. (For me exercise, esp weight lifting and eating my fruits and veggies helped me expedite this process) It takes a lot longer to do everything and you might look like a slob for a while. Go to every extra help session you can, maybe even get tutoring for the first few weeks. Essentially take advantage of everything you can that's available because you'll need it. I can't say you'll get all As but if you find ways to drill the info into your head as much as possible it's likely to help.