hyper_critical

Epic post. Very happy for you. It continues to get better (though for me, the "straight line" up didn't start until after year 2). Thanks for sharing.

QO an all time great QA contributor. Congrats on the decade mark. You the man. If you're new...highly recommend looking back at his old posts.

Dear All, Yesterday, I had 8 years off Adderall (and all other substances). I'm 32 now. The life G-d has helped me build since getting clean is far beyond my wildest expectations. If you told me this is where I'd be back when I was a graveling, sickly 24 year old, up for weeks at a time, kidneys failing, living for the next ground-up 30xr, I would have laughed at you. Business owner, married (as of last year), kid on the way, homeowner, respected member of my community, having helped dozens of other young men get back on their feet...instead of being unable to look at my reflection in the mirror, I wake up each day with a positive outlook on what can happen and a knowledge deep in my soul that no matter what transpires, everything's going to be alright. If you're struggling with the decision about whether or when to quit, know this: if you're on this site, chances are very high that you're addicted to Adderall. Once that fatal neural pathway into is carved, you don't have a choice: quit or die. Use the resources on this site. Interact with others. Do whatever it is you have to do to get and stay clean. Nothing is more important. If I can be of help to any of you, don't hesitate to hit me up. With love and gratitude. David

I can 100% relate from early on. It gets SO much better. Every time I have felt hopeless since getting clean, EVERY TIME, a breakthrough was just around the corner. Hang on.

That's amazing, Drew. SO happy for you. It just gets better and better keep on truckin

Close call man. I had a trip scheduled to come back to the States March 12th. Was only supposed to be for 10 days to attend to some business. Alas...was perfect timing and I'm back in PA indefinitely now...

On April 13th, I had 7 years off Adderall (and all other substances). Life is incredible. If you get enough time off this stuff, you will be blown away by how much better a person you become. How much more emotionally available you are for those you love. How much MORE effective you are professionally. How much happier you can be. Quitting and STAYING quit has to be the #1 priority in your life. I don't post on here much anymore but still come back to read and reply if something jumps out. You need to do EVERYTHING you possibly can to be completely abstinent from amphetamines early on. I don't care what has to suffer over the short term. Long term, it'll pay off BIG TIME. Literally everything else is just conversation. Stop telling your loved ones that this time, "you'll only take it as prescribed. And if I ask for more don't give it to me." Then start shrieking at them when you start to withdrawal. Get help. Read the articles on this site. Go to rehab if you have to to get those first 30-90 days clean. Cut off your ties with your supplier...permanently (read; doctors). Stop BS'ing the ones who care about you. If you're on this site, it's 90%+ you're addicted to amphetamines, and you will NEVER go back to being able to use them successfully again. Your best friend has turned on you. You've carved the fatal neural pathway. There's no going back. Go ahead and grieve like I did. Sure. But that is a fact and you better deal with it or you'll never get off this train. I've seen so many people come and go from this site and IRL and relapse, it breaks my heart. Know beyond a shadow of a doubt that what I wrote above it true, and remember it every day, and you have a shot. Wishing you all love and the best in hoping you can join me out the other side. The grass truly is greener. But if you looks up my old posts, you'll certainly see I didn't always think so... Best, David P.S. Guess I forgot to write on my 6th anniversary. Some good stuff in my 5th post below:

Let us know when G-d willing you have a year off both.

MASSIVE upside on all those fronts. No BS. Took me a while tbh but I'm at a level far beyond where I ever was on Adderall. Sleep and exercise are critical, even if it's just a long walk every day or two. I work several x better in the first four hours of the day. So also have to calibrate and learn how to work effectively without stimulants. Keep after it.

And see: this is the lie. It's very likely instead of being a drug-addicted doctor, you'll fail miserably and never reach your goals. It wouldn't be fair to sugar coat it to you. You're a junkie in the grips of addiction. All this talk about a difficult break up and demands of school...you have to TAKE RESPONSIBILITY. It's going to get worse, never better. Don't believe me? Read the relapse posts on this forum. If AA worked for you at one point but you feel like you can't be open about your struggles, find a new sponsor. I get along just fine in there. I don't make it a blanket recommendation on here to do 12 step: many people on these forums get and stay clean off Adderall without it. But many people also blame it for their inability to stay clean which is a joke. The vast majority of people on here I've come across who criticize 12 step end up having problems with other substances down the road, or end up relapsing on Adderall. The ones who don't need it and life is going well don't feel the need to criticize it. Getting and staying off Adderall has to be priority #1. Hit me up in PM's if you want to talk more. Good luck.

Sorry to hear that. You may get a lot out of going to an Al-Anon meeting. Just go and share where you're at and I'm sure people with similar experience will come up to you and offer their suggestions. Good luck.

MFA and LT! Ha wow. Just checked into this site for the first time in a WHILE and saw you two getting after it. A-mazing! Live in the Middle East now and am pretty busy. Hope everyone's doing great. I'm like...a full fledged adult and have been clean longer than I used Adderall. Whoa.

You can kick it. Lot of crossover between alcoholism and Adderall addiction, although not all Adderallics are alcoholics (though far more of them than realize it, in my experience). AA's worked for me. Clean from all of it 6.5 years. Life has never been better. Not even close. Hit me up if you want to talk. Or just show up at a meeting and honestly share about where you're at. Nothing worse than being in that state of "can't live with it, can't live without it." Hugs and (no) drugs.

And, because you had the courage to come on here and share your story, you deserve for people to be honest with you: This will always get worse, and never better, the longer it goes on. Good luck.

This comes up a lot on these forums...so a search would probably yield some results. The bottom line from my perspective? It's gonna suck. And you can either spend hundreds/thousands of dollars on things that don't really work but give you the illusion of control, or you can save the money and just embrace it. Do it right, and this can be the last time you have to go through Adderall withdrawal. Exercise, eat right, give yourself a serious break early on. And if you still feel horrible after a few months, consider seeking some professional guidance. Good luck and stay close!!