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Comment by TrackerFF | Hacker News Reader

I'm on Ritalin - which works for me. Where I'm from (Norway), getting a diagnosis is no walk in the park. Very extensive process, if you're adult.

At least the doctors I've seen, have all been very precautious in prescribing anything other than the basics. If Ritalin doesn't work for you, they'll obviously try something other...but my doctor told be straight up that it is a red flag when some patients will ask specifically for Adderall, as the potential for misuse is much higher. And for him, it was a last resort.

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That's interesting. I'm in the US and my doctor prescribed Adderall for me. While I'd obviously never argue that a drug can't be abused, for me personally, I can't imagine abusing Adderall more than, say, ibuprofen. It's not that it's unpleasant to take it, but that it has zero pleasant qualities, either, except that now I can pay attention to things that don't fascinate me. It doesn't feel good. It doesn't (seem to) change my mood. Maybe I feel a little more awake after I take it, but that's also the same time of day when I have my morning coffee, and I can't tell you which has more of an alertness effect on me.

It's a stimulant. I have no doubt that someone's found a way to abuse it. But for me, I can't for the life of me imagine why anyone would want to. Other drugs like coffee or beer are much more pleasant. If I realize I forgot to take my daily Adderall, oops! Guess I might not get as much work done today as I'd planned, but not to the point where I'd go back home to get it, and I certainly wouldn't feel a craving or desire to.

I’ve only taken it once.

I woke up feeling sick, stiff, and lethargic while staying with a friend in NYC in 2008. My friend said “I’ve got just the thing” and gave me one of his adderall.

20 minutes later I was feeling better than I’ve ever felt in my life. We had one of the most exciting, memorable days in my life, just pinging all over the city. That night we went out to a club, where I somehow charmed a girl way out of my league.

We met up the next day and she was very disappointed.

That is to say, it was quite pleasant for me.

I sometimes think I have undiagnosed ADHD (my daughter has it), but this would seem like evidence against it, as it was undeniably stimulating.

The previous poster habitually drinks coffee, and thus already has tolerance to the stimulant effects / increased neurotransmission.

I’m not buying that. An enormous percentage of the US population drinks coffee. I’m not an unusual case study here.

Not all of the stimulants work the same way. When (if?) you build up a tolerance to one, you change to a different med. I expect the same applies to the caffeine -> adderall change.

Coffee is not just caffeine. It contains biologically relevant amounts of monoamine oxidase inhibitors.

An untrained dose of amphetamine will hit you hard even if you have ADHD, especially if it’s higher than the entry level dose, so I would say it gives you zero information about whether you have the condition.

Funny story though. I have a similar story after my friend walked up to me in a club with a line of coke on his hand. Then I proceeded to charm the girl that became my next girlfriend.

I’m not so sure about that. My very first dose of Adderall was anticlimactic. I was bracing for the rush from an energy drink or something, and instead felt… nothing. I was just able to focus on work better that day.

Also, cocaine and amphetamines are very different drugs. They’re both stimulants, but that’s about all they have in common.

> the rush from an energy drink

I must be dead inside.

(I probably need a caffeine tolerance break...)

You see this in ADHD groups where someone will start stimulant medication for the first time and say "This is incredible. I can't believe this is what everyone else feels like all the time"

And the crowd emerges to reinforce that, no, you're euphoric, this isn't normal, after about a week it'll go away and you'll just feel normal but more productive and have better executive function.

And that's on a starter dose, the parent commenter probably took 2-3x that

> I can't imagine abusing Adderall more than, say, ibuprofen. It's not that it's unpleasant to take it, but that it has zero pleasant qualities, either, except that now I can pay attention to things that don't fascinate me. It doesn't feel good. It doesn't (seem to) change my mood.

Years before I was diagnosed with ADHD, I was offered some cocaine. It did not effect me like everybody else. I assume that it's a similar deal with adderal. You and I are who the medication is _meant_ for. For more neurotypical people, it's not a "leveling" effect, it's - apparently - an elation.

I do believe you’re right. I truly mean that I don’t feel anything different when I take it, just more focused. There’s no high, no racing heart, no hyper alertness, or any of the other stereotypical stimulant reactions. I just get more work done than usual, then go home and sleep normally that evening.

And FWIW I’m very glad for this. I don’t want it to feel good. I just want to be able to pay rent, not get high on the meds that make it possible.

As I understand it, it's really only abusable by people who don't have ADHD. It's a stimulant, similar to cocaine in that way. In people with ADHD, it's calming.

Urg, short acting Ritalin is the absolute worst. There are so much better stimulant meds out there.

Would you care to give any examples?

Vyvanse

> is a red flag when some patients will ask specifically for Adderall, as the potential for misuse is much higher. And for him, it was a last resort.

This is so stupid. It's so much better of a medication, the potential for addiction and abuse at therapeutic doses is minimal to none, and yet healthcare systems around the globe are continuing to avoid prescribing it. Ugh.

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