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> I just wish the dosages were lower Two things. First, the first 1-2 days of ADHD meds can have a dramatic effect that have you thinking "this can't be right

> I just wish the dosages were lower Two things. First, the first 1-2 days of ADHD meds can have a dramatic effect that have you thinking "this can't be right". It's normal, expected, and goes away very quickly. You should be warned to expect it by the prescribing doctor. After 3 days or so you barely know you're taking them. Second, the dosage and effect on a non-ADHD person is entirely different to that an ADHD person will get. That's presuming it's the right med for them[0]. You will have a stimulating, speed, effect. An ADHD person (well most) will get little to no stimulation, and a calming effect, and might sit down to do their homework, or even just sit still for a couple of hours - for the first time ever. Amphetamines don't do that to normal neurology, thus you can't compare. The dosage is putting them closer to typical, but putting you far away from typical. If you were normal vision or long sighted and tried your friend's short sight prescription glasses you wouldn't wish their glasses were weaker, would you? Same principle. It's also common for one or other parent to discover they have it too after they have tried their child's meds. [0] Getting the right medication is a bit of a trial and error minefield, but should be a standard part of treatment. Not all doctors are as willing to switch medication or titrate dosage as they should be.

EggsOnToast 9y ago
This is a pretty solid description of the situation. I take adderall at the moment and I've been on adhd meds since a little before highschool. College was funny when I went to parties because I'd see people taking stimulants (prescription and otherwise) for fun and all I could think was "Why would anyone want to party on this stuff?"
- oldcynic 9y ago
  It's funny, the doctor brought that up after my diagnosis. If you've tried stimulants recreationally and they just didn't work, or if you just wanted to sit and chill, he saw that as a very strong indicator.
  - empath75 9y ago
    That’s so ridiculous. As someone who spent a lot of time in the rave scene— people respond to different dosages and settings in wildly different ways. Just because you did meth and wanted to chill and talk for a bit instead of go out dancing, that doesn’t mean you have adhd. You give ‘anybody’ speed and they’ll go on an apartment cleaning spree or just do homework on the right day, with the right dose.
    - oldcynic 9y ago
      Perhaps, but it's an anecdote the specialist volunteered when we were talking after I got the diagnosis. I guess he didn't think it that ridiculous.
    - spiralx 9y ago
      It was through taking speed at parties that eventually led to my diagnosis - it ended up being something I did almost exclusively not at parties and for the purpose of getting things done, because it just didn't give me the same high feeling that most people talk about, it made me feel calmer.
empath75 9y ago
The idea that people with adhd and without it respond differently to speed is utter nonsense, since there is no way to diagnose what adhd is.
- oldcynic 9y ago
  I think it's nonsense to think we don't know what ADHD is. There have been lots of studies using PET scans that show some brain regions tend to be smaller in ADHD, and develop later. Or finding differences in brain chemistry (dopamine and norepinephrine). Even started to show the genetic variation that leads to some growing out of it, and others not. Seems like it's becoming one of the better understood neurological disorders. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(17)30049-4/fulltext http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-03... https://www.technologyreview.com/s/408381/a-neurological-basis-for-adhd/ https://www.technologyreview.com/s/408381/a-neurological-bas...
  - goldenkey 9y ago
    That's like saying stupid people have different brain activity than smart people. Isn't that a given? So should we give stupid people stimulants so they can become an unnatural and unlasting form of themselves? What happens when they need to get off the stimulants -- and they forgot what it was like to actually try to focus because the stimulants screwed with their brains' dopaminergic reward system? Why should someone with a harder time focusing not improve their focus through actual lasting discipline? Speed isn't the antichrist but it sure as hell isn't some great therapeutic fix for people with some minorly bad stats.
jjeaff 9y ago
Another note is that body weight does not necessarily correlate to drug potency/dosage. Only in some drugs (like alcohol) does body weight make a difference.
throwaway1748 9y ago
Sure, but the procedure for testing vision is far more precise than how we diagnose issues with someone's mind. There's just no way to know 1) to what degree someone's neurology differs from the "norm" 2) if the adderall is truly having the effect of "normalizing" the patient's brain or if it just appears that way to an outside observer. These are dangerous stimulants that are shockingly similar to readily abused street drugs.
goldenkey 9y ago
Amphetamines affect physicality for everyone in similar ways. Heart rate, metabolism, blood pressure, etc. Please don't spread misinformation.
- oldcynic 9y ago
  OK, the specialist at the ADHD centre may have advised me incorrectly, and I am imagining the effects. Effects that are basically the opposite of what you and hnuser1234 describe in the thread above, and rather like huffmsa and many others have reported. For example, I have never once experienced "a cold robotic mind space" on medication, or anything close, even on the very first day. Which variant of ADHD do you have btw? Not surprising there are a range of effects, when it's fairly common to need to try 3 or 4 different drugs before finding one that works. For a minority, none work. Perhaps it's not "misinformation" but an attempt to honestly report what I gleaned from the specialist, and what I and others have experienced.
  - goldenkey 9y ago
    A stimulant isn't a therepeutic drug. It's a hard drug with straightforward effects. Increased pleasure and increased activity, via dopaminergic and norepinephrine pathways, respectively.[1] If you aren't having those effects you are most likely taking close to a maintanence dose, to avoid the rebound effect that comes with physical dependence. If a person has trouble sleeping due to self control issues, should they just patch it over with addictive drugs like benzodiazepenes? Or should they try to discipline themselves by adapting to their unique brain and body, for lasting change? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphetamine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphetamine

EggsOnToast 9y ago

This is a pretty solid description of the situation. I take adderall at the moment and I've been on adhd meds since a little before highschool. College was funny when I went to parties because I'd see people taking stimulants (prescription and otherwise) for fun and all I could think was "Why would anyone want to party on this stuff?"

oldcynic 9y ago
It's funny, the doctor brought that up after my diagnosis. If you've tried stimulants recreationally and they just didn't work, or if you just wanted to sit and chill, he saw that as a very strong indicator.
- empath75 9y ago
  That’s so ridiculous. As someone who spent a lot of time in the rave scene— people respond to different dosages and settings in wildly different ways. Just because you did meth and wanted to chill and talk for a bit instead of go out dancing, that doesn’t mean you have adhd. You give ‘anybody’ speed and they’ll go on an apartment cleaning spree or just do homework on the right day, with the right dose.
  - oldcynic 9y ago
    Perhaps, but it's an anecdote the specialist volunteered when we were talking after I got the diagnosis. I guess he didn't think it that ridiculous.
  - spiralx 9y ago
    It was through taking speed at parties that eventually led to my diagnosis - it ended up being something I did almost exclusively not at parties and for the purpose of getting things done, because it just didn't give me the same high feeling that most people talk about, it made me feel calmer.

empath75 9y ago

The idea that people with adhd and without it respond differently to speed is utter nonsense, since there is no way to diagnose what adhd is.

oldcynic 9y ago
I think it's nonsense to think we don't know what ADHD is. There have been lots of studies using PET scans that show some brain regions tend to be smaller in ADHD, and develop later. Or finding differences in brain chemistry (dopamine and norepinephrine). Even started to show the genetic variation that leads to some growing out of it, and others not. Seems like it's becoming one of the better understood neurological disorders. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-0366(17)30049-4/fulltext http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lanpsy/article/PIIS2215-03... https://www.technologyreview.com/s/408381/a-neurological-basis-for-adhd/ https://www.technologyreview.com/s/408381/a-neurological-bas...
- goldenkey 9y ago
  That's like saying stupid people have different brain activity than smart people. Isn't that a given? So should we give stupid people stimulants so they can become an unnatural and unlasting form of themselves? What happens when they need to get off the stimulants -- and they forgot what it was like to actually try to focus because the stimulants screwed with their brains' dopaminergic reward system? Why should someone with a harder time focusing not improve their focus through actual lasting discipline? Speed isn't the antichrist but it sure as hell isn't some great therapeutic fix for people with some minorly bad stats.

jjeaff 9y ago

Another note is that body weight does not necessarily correlate to drug potency/dosage. Only in some drugs (like alcohol) does body weight make a difference.

throwaway1748 9y ago

Sure, but the procedure for testing vision is far more precise than how we diagnose issues with someone's mind. There's just no way to know 1) to what degree someone's neurology differs from the "norm" 2) if the adderall is truly having the effect of "normalizing" the patient's brain or if it just appears that way to an outside observer. These are dangerous stimulants that are shockingly similar to readily abused street drugs.

goldenkey 9y ago

Amphetamines affect physicality for everyone in similar ways. Heart rate, metabolism, blood pressure, etc. Please don't spread misinformation.

oldcynic 9y ago
OK, the specialist at the ADHD centre may have advised me incorrectly, and I am imagining the effects. Effects that are basically the opposite of what you and hnuser1234 describe in the thread above, and rather like huffmsa and many others have reported. For example, I have never once experienced "a cold robotic mind space" on medication, or anything close, even on the very first day. Which variant of ADHD do you have btw? Not surprising there are a range of effects, when it's fairly common to need to try 3 or 4 different drugs before finding one that works. For a minority, none work. Perhaps it's not "misinformation" but an attempt to honestly report what I gleaned from the specialist, and what I and others have experienced.
- goldenkey 9y ago
  A stimulant isn't a therepeutic drug. It's a hard drug with straightforward effects. Increased pleasure and increased activity, via dopaminergic and norepinephrine pathways, respectively.[1] If you aren't having those effects you are most likely taking close to a maintanence dose, to avoid the rebound effect that comes with physical dependence. If a person has trouble sleeping due to self control issues, should they just patch it over with addictive drugs like benzodiazepenes? Or should they try to discipline themselves by adapting to their unique brain and body, for lasting change? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphetamine https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amphetamine