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Stimulants Adderall replacement??

MissAmazingRachel

Greenlighter
Joined
Nov 9, 2013
Messages
41
Location
Colorado
Hi kids,

I've been on Adderall for my ADD since January - I'm scripted for 60mg a day, but, I usually only take 20-40mg, sometimes skipping a day - and due to the INSANE COST to see my psychiatrist for refills, I'll be going off of it for awhile, starting tomorrow.
(A note - the Adderall works decently, but, not great - from 1-10, I'd say it helps me focus/concentrate/be a damn adult at about a 6. I've never gotten that OMFG IM GOING TO CLEAN THE WHOLE HOUSE GO TO COLLEGE DO ALL THE CLASSES CURE CANCER energy-burst from it, though, which is kind of a bummer)

I've heard/read some positive things about Wellbutrin XL, but, there's just so many conflicting reports...'poor man's cocaine/OH THATS BULLSHIT' 'can produce effects similar to Adderall/Provigil and the like/NO IT CANT ITS JUST AN ANTIDEPRESSANT'...wtf, which is it??

Aside from the one time I tried coke, like, 10 years ago, Adderall is the only stimulant I've ever been on - a lot of the accounts I've read were from people who were highly experienced/regular users of meth, coke, crack, etc, so, I'm sure Wellbutrin would be like candy to them...

Anyone have any experience, here?
 
Candy only not in the sense that it wouldn't get you high. Not as in very enjoyable.
 
^basically

There are currently no medications licensed to treat stimulant withdrawal, or ones which can readily substitute for them. Going the self-medication route will probably end you up worse than you were before - i.e. try to stay away from research chemicals as they not only are untested but have dubious efficacy.

People have all kinds of effects from all kinds of drugs. Wellbutrin is to my knowledge the closest drug which can fulfill the same therapeutic purpose as a stimulant, but I didn't find it to be effective for much... I've read about people really finding the drug useful, giving them energy and medicating their depression well; others find it simply dulls their emotions. It's really a toss-up ("you don't know until you try"). If you can see a psychiatrist any way, which it sounds like the problem is that you can't, do that. Otherwise I'd look into intense exercise and meditation. Fish oil can't hurt too and it's been shown to be at least mildly useful in helping with concentration.

Best of Luck.
 
It really doesn't get any better than amphetamines, as far as drugs Rx'd for ADD etc. in the U.S.
Stay away from wellbutrin.
As the above poster said, nootropics are a promising new forefront of the fight against ADD(if it's even real)
 
...I'm not going through any withdrawals, lol, just wanted to know how effective wellbutrin would be in treating ADD.
They sound pretty awful, though.

I tried the Wellbutrin, and, I'm not really noticing anything...guess it just takes time.
 
...I'm not going through any withdrawals, lol, just wanted to know how effective wellbutrin would be in treating ADD.
They sound pretty awful, though.

I tried the Wellbutrin, and, I'm not really noticing anything...guess it just takes time.

I'd say stay away from ritalin if I were you, that is poor mans cocaine lol. If you have experience with stimulants like adderall for ADD then ritalin will give you all the negative effects of them and make you feel horrible. At least that's in my experience.

As for Wellbitrin XL I'm scripted 300mg's of that daily for depression and it helps me for that. As for a ADD med replacement I don't think it work out to great as really if you have experience with adderall you'll find Wellbutrin does next to nothing. I have ADD as well and took wellbutrin XL before being scripted Adderall and the Wellbutrin XL never helped me focus or anything, it helped with depression but that's about it.
 
I've read you need over 200mg to get a significant dopaminergic response. Anything under is primarily adrenergic (a lot of norepinephrine).
 
Problem with Wellies is only the Bupropion metabolite is a Dopamine reuptake inhibitor. Once it gets metabolized into hydroxybupropion then it becomes primarily adrenergic. You need a CYP2D6 inhibitor like Bioperine, milk thistle or Prozac to keep it in it's Dopaminergic state. Trust me I'm in the same boat; I've been on 70mg of Addy for 4 years and now I'm in constant search of a replacement . Tried every nootropic, wellbutrin 3 times...hoping to find a decent US vendor for RC's because that is the last option besides street ice.
 
If cost is an issue and you don't plan on seeing your provider, Wellbutrin is out of the question then I would assume. Took it for about 6 months made me cranky and worn down. The only thing I can come up with to mimic adderall is coke, meth, or some rc's
 
You may want to consider Vyvanse if you do wind up continuing to see your psychiatrist. Sometimes people with ADHD respond better to Vyvanse, but most seem to find Adderall more helpful (albeit having more of an "edge" to it. I'd think of Vyvanse as a smoother but slightly weaker version of Adderall)
 
Wellbutrin isn't going to really help if you were on that high of a dose of Amphetamine Salts. I would have some suggestions, but we really can't tell you what to ask your doctor for here. It's a form of sourcing.
 
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