Long-Term Amphetamine Use

[xxpurplehazexx]

I'm getting kind of freaked out since I've been taking 20mg Adderall everyday for over 3 years. I may or may not have legitimate ADD; it's hard to tell since I've been depressed most of my life. I don't abuse it, but it can't be good for me. Has anyone else, ADD or not, been taking Adderall/Dexedrine everyday (or close to it) for over a year? How long? What has your experience been? I'm VERY curious, so there's no need to keep it concise.

p.s I'm feeling a tad paranoid

 

[AlphaMethylPhenyl]

Ok so I haven't taken it for over a year but at that dose if you're not abusing it I believe its mildly damaging at worst. Depression/ADD can be crushing diseases too, so think of the damage that those illnesses would cause.

That said:

http://www.jneurosci.org/content/19/21/9579.short
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1476-5381.1962.tb01186.x/abstract
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/...sCustomisedMessage=&userIsAuthenticated=false

What this tells you is that unless you're using meth/mdma or absuing your amphetamine or frequently have a high temperate you're safe. I could find nothing else after ten minutes, and amphetamine has been widely widely used throughout the world since the 1930's.

 

[pasha]

The general experience (as hard as it is to sum it up) is obtaining great clinical benefit from amphetamines at first, which sooner or later requires other drugs to counter-balance the side-effects which will inevitably follow (insomnia, anxiety, depression, depersonalization).

Dependence also plays a major factor in this, somewhere (early) in the timeline of using amphetamines, and one is lucky to be able to escape addiction, which will beg for abuse, in turn a massive tolerance hike, and a massive dosage increase.

The wisdom for me is mitigating the addiction that could ensue, and not using any drugs to balance the side-effects of amphetamines (especially benzodiazepines). As bleak as it sounds though, for most people (especially non-AD[H]D), it's a lose-lose situation IME.

 

[xxpurplehazexx]

The wisdom for me is mitigating the addiction that could ensue, and not using any drugs to balance the side-effects of amphetamines (especially benzodiazepines). As bleak as it sounds though, for most people (especially non-AD[H]D), it's a lose-lose situation IME.

Too late for that. I take 1.5mg Klonopin every night to balance out the Adderall and have ever since I started taking it, so now I obviously have a benzo tolerance too. I've been taking the Adderall a long time though and rarely abuse it. It's not like I take it to feel "high". Obviously what I'm doing is unhealthy, I just want to know the extent.

 

[pasha]

I outlined for you a possible pathway of amphetamine use. To which degree that it will unfold in your situation cannot possibly be predicted accurately.

If you want my advice, assume the worst especially when benzodiazepines are involved. It's a never ending cycle of downer vs upper in a war to try and regulate your cognition.

 

[xxpurplehazexx]

^^ Completely agree. I wish I had done more research on Adderall before I started taking it everyday and became dependent. It's too late now, though, so I just want to hear from other amphetaheads. It's not like I completely depend on the klonopin for sleep. Occassionally I can sleep without it if I've had a really long and tiring day. Anyway, I just really want to hear from people with personal experience. There have to be quite a few considering the ridiculous number of people who are put on ADHD meds as children.

 

[SDforever420]

Its never to late to quit dude. You worried about your well being proves that. You said your not even sure you have legitimate ADD so maybe you don't really need it. Like chromophobia said, side effects could possibly add up and lead to bigger problems. Trust me, it's not fun, I had everyone of those side effects he named. But that was after abusing them for 3 years.

If you consider quitting klonopin could be the tougher of the one's to kick.

 

[xxpurplehazexx]

So you were abusing them almost everyday for 3 years? My situation is weird since I actually pretty much hate amphetamines. I've been taking the same 20mg dose for years, and the side-effects keep getting more intolerable, while the therapeutic effects have become less noticeable. I don't even feel like myself when I'm not on amphetamines, though. I have basically zero motivation and get really depressed only a couple days after I stop taking them (because I ran out a little early or don't have another slip). I think I'm going to have to commit to tapering off them, which makes me anxious since I lack self-control and love having them in my possession.