Stimulants Out of Adderall early, work this weekend, what do I do?!

[PhenethylTrypta]

I've been on Rx stimulants since I was 12 years old (now 29), starting with Ritalin, switched to Adderall in high school, XR in college, back to IR in my early twenties. I've never really had any issues with running out of Adderall early, never had problems with the doctor prescribing me Adderall or anything like that since I've been on medication for ADD (non-hyperactive) for 17 years and haven't asked for a raise in dosage for years since I was put on 2 x 20mg/daily.

The situation: I'm a musician, an audio engineer (I do freelancing from my home studio, mixing and mastering), a private guitar and piano instructor and now, since June, I've taken on a "real job" again for the first time since 2008 to insure a steady income and have some extra cash for audio gear, touring and all the other expenses that go into being in a band and developing/expanding an audio-post production suite. The real job has quickly become several jobs. It started off with catering/bar tending weddings on Saturdays. $150-200 (cash) for a day's work. Its fun and easy and I enjoy it. Then I volunteered to work Fridays setting up the weddings, close to doubling my Saturday pay. Then I find out they're having issues with their sound people, so I told them I'd be happy to pick up Friday nights as their sound guy, easy gig, I love mixing sound (live or in the studio). So wedding set-up just had to be moved to Thursdays/early Friday morning-afternoon/early evening so I could be finished in time to take care of the bands, set up, all the typical front of house shit you do as a live sound mixer. And most recently, a busboy up and left on them, they needed someone immediately and I told them I'd take care of it. Its extra money in my pocket, but its more than that. In the (less than) two months I've been there, I've been trusted to do things and know things that people who've worked there for years aren't trusted with. I've let it be known that if they ever need anything at any time no matter what they can count on me to take care of it. I'm treated like I'm a manager there who's been there longer than anyone else, and though I have no intentions of going after a management/supervising position there, I like the steady income and the extent to which they trust me and the way they treat me leads me to believe this can be a long-term job that will allow me to continue writing music, touring the country for a couple weeks here and there and knowing that I always have work and cash when I get home.

My problem: All of this extra work, 25-35 hours between thurs-sat or fri-sun, has led to me increasing my dose of adderall from 40mg daily to anywhere from 60-90mg daily depending on what I'm doing and how long I'm doing it for. On Saturdays, I start around 1 or 2pm and don't stop moving until around 12am. Because I'm on Adderall I don't have an appetite, I'm easily capable of getting through that time, 10-11hrs, without taking a meal break or even any short 5 or 10 minute breaks like everyone else does. A large part of how quickly they came to value me there and in turn trust me like they do has to do with what they see me doing, how fast and efficiently I'm doing everything, how I never seem to need a minute to rest or eat something (other than water, which I guzzle down like mad) and what other employees say after a wedding to me and to our boss, whose become a good friend in a short period of time.

I have two 20mg tablets left and I have a wedding to set up on Friday around 10am-6pm, a show to do sound for later on, 7:30pm until 2am, and a wedding to cater/bar tend the next day at 1pm until 12am. I can't tell my doctor about the mess I've made for myself, but even if I could, the place I go to, basically a community mental health clinic that accepts Medicaid here in my neighborhood, my psychiatrist is only there twice a month. I'm also on Klonopin 2mg/daily and though I'll be running out of that a little early as well, it'll only be a couple days or so, unlike the two weeks I'm running out of Adderall before I can fill a new script.

What are my options here? I don't have a GP, but I scheduled an appointment with one on July 31st. I did it all online and mentioned in the "notes" field before confirming the appointment that I've been prescribed stimulants for ADD since 1997, benzodiazepines since 2000/2001 and that my psychiatrist was prescribing Adderall, Klonopin and Remeron. I didn't mention that I was currently seeing a psychiatrist, but that I was seeing a psychiatrist who I've been seeing since I was around 17 or 18 years old, don't have insurance, couldn't afford to pay out of pocket and was referred to a mental health clinic in my area (all of which is true). At first the clinic didn't have an in-house psychiatrist and I was going to run out of meds, so I was told to go to the E.R. or go to a GP. I went to the E.R. and they prescribed a small amount of Klonopin (I had enough Adderall at the time and hadn't yet started this new job/jobs). I have documentation of my diagnoses, one or two prescription bottles and a pharmacy print out from walgreens showing that they dispensed 30 x 20mg Adderall in late April 2014. Should I go to the E.R. and tell them that I'm having difficulty finding a psychiatrist who takes Medicaid and that the mental health clinic I go to for psychotherapy doesn't have an in-house psychiatrist (which is what I told them when I had to go the E.R. to get an interim Klonopin script, which the E.R. Dr. just barely ended up writing, but said that had I brought in my Rx bottles it would have been a non-issue)? I would need 20-25 x 20mg tablets to get me through now until my refill, though I have a problem there as well since she post-dated an Adderall and Klonopin script for 8/10, when really 30 days from my last appointment would be 8/8, which is a Friday. If I can't refill until the 10th as its post-dated on the hard copies I'll need more medication from some other source (E.R., GP, ???), which I'm not even sure I can get or how I should go about doing this.

I'd hate myself if I had to call out of work because I'd be letting down these people who think so highly of me, which is the shittiest feeling I know. I can't stand the idea of letting down someone who trusts you. I value other people's trust in me more than most things in life, equal to or sometimes even more than music, which is the world to me. I can't take off work, but I also can't work without Adderall. Being on it for almost two decades, and being on close to 100mg more or less daily for the last two months makes walking, standing even talking a near-impossible feat. I have no illusions about my situation. I'm absolutely dependent and while I don't at all mind the idea of being on stimulants and benzo's for the rest of my life, I don't think I need to be on such a high dose especially for such lengths of time. I need to taper my dose down while I'm not working and manage my medication properly in conjunction with my life, but right now I just need to figure out how to not damage the trust I've earned, not lose the respect I've worked so hard for, and show up on Friday with the medication in my system needed to function at the level I've been functioning at.

Long post, I'm sorry. But I just wanted anyone who might have the ability to point me in the right direction to have the full story. So...anyone?

 

[drewbocop]

Um, well seeing as Adderall is a Schedule II med, your options aren't many... you'd be hard-pressed to get anyone to write you a one-off. You're in music man, don't you have any connects at all? Can't you find one? Use some of that cash now that you're in a pinch.

But the reason why no one at all has responded to this is because at some point today you're going to get the ol' "We're not here to tell you how to get drugs/what to do when you're out of drugs."

 

[Dependence03]

Amphetamine dependence sucks my friend. I have also been on a similar dose, for almost equal amount of time. I don't know what to tell you, other than try to score some from 'the street' (perhaps a friend or another musician?). PM me, if you'd like. Not many people will read your long post unfortunately; human nature. Plus there isn't much to say. If you can't work, I think it would be better to call out sick..than to have your job know that you are usually on "speed" while working (to you it may be medication, but to them it is simply speed & possibly worse than "letting them down" by calling in sick). Good luck, & keep your head up. You're not in a seriously bad bind, it could really be a lot worse!

 

[pinpoint]

Perhaps order some Ethylphenidate. Everyone is right though, it's a CII med so getting an early refill is out of the question. Nothing else anyone can really say other than try a similar RC via express shipping or score some more Adderall on the black market.

 

[Ksa]

Try pseudoephedrine and nicotine. So, 60mg pseudoephedrine as if it was Adderall, and then chew 2mg nicotine gum with menthol as needed. It may surprise you how close to Adderall that can get. What I do is I buy 4mg nicotine gum to save money and just bite off half of it at a time.

 

[Tommyboy]

If you were to see a doctor and he changed the dose then you can get it filled right away. It's when it's the same prescription (medication, dosage, and quantity) that you have to wait the full amount of time to get it filled (well 2-3 days short of a month is usually allowed) but that's all I'm going to say on that topic.

 

[InterestingFACT]

Bottom line is that what you're doing isn't sustainable. If you need the adderall to maintain this level of productivity, then you're just going to need double that amount in a few months and double that amount a few months from then. Long term, you need to work on reorganizing your schedule to something more manageable.

In the meantime, there are plenty of over the counter stimulants (pseudo, yohimbine, etc) but they're not going to motivate you the way adderall does. Consider asking any friends who also have adhd? I always have loads of extra pills at the end of each month, personally. Or give the black market or the RC market a shot.

 

[QueenPickle]

Decided to leave this site. Too many adults acting like spoiled children. I wish all of you nothing but the best. Please be very careful who you listen to when desperately seeking advice.... Be safe!!!

 

[Transcendence]

Your best options for pharm bought goods are ephedrine (ask for bronkaid at your pharmacy, it's one of those over the counter but behind the counter deals) and nicotine (if you don't want to smoke then there are some good OTC sublingual pills that taste fresh). Ephedrine is no d-amp but it was the basis for the initial synthesis of d-amp and gives more motivation than coffee but without the jitters. Pseudoephedrine is maybe better than nothing but the whole point of pseudoephedrine was to retain the decongestant properties of ephedrine without the same degree of psychoactive effect, so I don't know why you'd go for pseudo when you can just as easily get ephedrine at the same place. Ephedrine will give you energy and motivation but not necessarily the focus that amphetamine provides. Nicotine provides focus. Problem is you need to keep dosing. If you're nicotine naive, maybe try a medium strength patch if you don't want to keep dosing.

I've never tried ethylphenidate but people report that it's like a methylphenidate with little or no recreational potential, which should be ok in your case. If you can find an online source and overnight it, that would be your best RC option. There are hundreds of other technically legal stimulants available for purchase online, but most of them are either very questionable in their safety profile or just generally shitty. From what I've read here, ethylphenidate isn't great for fun but it's functionally about as useful as methylphenidate.

Like others have said, there are no early refills on sch II or III meds but Tommy is correct in that if you decide that you need to make a dosage adjustment, you won't have to wait for the end of the month to get a refill obviously. But if you have a good relationship with your doctor this isn't a smart decision because he or she will likely see through it. You don't want to get labeled as a drug seeker. I won't give suggestions on how to obtain adderall illicitly but as I'm sure you know it's not that difficult...

What I really want to say is; it sounds like you have good things going for you professionally and I understand you don't want to disappoint anyone or screw it up, but consider this episode (however it plays out) to be a wake up call. You have ambition and integrity and that's really great, but you need to realize when you're over your head: this is it. The poster above got it right: what you are doing is not sustainable. And "sustainable" via stimulant abuse is not actually sustainable. This time you ran out early. Even if supply is not a problem in the future you will end crashing and burning with amphetamine psychosis. I've seen it happen to two of my close friends and it's not fun.

What you need to understand about the professional world is that you need to set your own boundaries because no one else will do it for you. I've experienced this issue myself. I take pride in my work as you do and if someone gives me a task I'm always on it and make the best of it. But unless you speak up, manage your time better and set boundaries, your manager will see you taking on all these tasks and keep on piling them on because he or she will almost always assume that you're coping well unless you COMMUNICATE. If your boss is decent at all he or she won't think any less of you for doing this, they'll be more impressed if anything. If they react negatively then it's someone you don't want to be working for anyway.

 

[QueenPickle]

Decided to leave this site. Too many adults acting like spoiled children. I wish all of you nothing but the best. Please be very careful who you listen to when desperately seeking advice.... Be safe!!!

 

[Tommyboy]

Maybe I was wrong, I thought this place was more about harm reduction but the poster above me is recommending something contraindicated in every possible medical journal and encouraging stuff that has the potential of bringing on a psychotic episode. (I speak from personal experience). If ADD or ADHD was so easily cured with OTC stuff, cold medicine, etc---- nobody would need ADD/ADHD meds. Your post count doesn't make you wiser. Why don't you recommend he throw on a few nicotine patches and smoke while wearing them? lol (Yeah, in case my sarcasm was lost on anyone-- don't do that unless you have a death wish.)

The staff here can't be on top of every single post at all times, so if you see something that goes against HR then quote and correct the poster, and if it's that dangerous of advice then report the post. Just because a post with bad advice hasn't been moderated yet doesn't mean that this site is any less of a harm reduction forum.

 

[The Doc.]

All I know is something has to change this is gonna happen every month if you keep dosing so much and running out. I mean this is how people get addicted to meth cause they are forced to go to the streets for their fix. Have you tried working without the stims? Mabye try to work like a human being and not a robot, eventually your body's going to give and say no more ive had enough if you keep this up no eating, no breaks, and this is not a practical way to be humans were not meant to run this way.

 

[Transcendence]

Maybe I was wrong, I thought this place was more about harm reduction but the poster above me is recommending something contraindicated in every possible medical journal and encouraging stuff that has the potential of bringing on a psychotic episode. (I speak from personal experience). If ADD or ADHD was so easily cured with OTC stuff, cold medicine, etc---- nobody would need ADD/ADHD meds. Your post count doesn't make you wiser. Why don't you recommend he throw on a few nicotine patches and smoke while wearing them? lol (Yeah, in case my sarcasm was lost on anyone-- don't do that unless you have a death wish.)

1) Exactly where in my post did I even indirectly imply that any of my suggestions would treat, never mind cure ADHD? Of course ADHD cannot be treated with over the counter medication. There is no magic solution for the TS. That is a nice way of saying he is fucked because he abused prescription medication he was physically dependent on with no backup stock or plan. The poster wanted advice for helping to alleviate the shitty time he'll be having if he turns up for work this weekend. The drugs I listed were medications that are not good solutions to this problem, but will make him feel at least a little better than if he went into work with nothing at all on hand.

2) Can you provide a source for your claim that these medications are contraindicated in any, never mind every, medical journal for persons with ADHD? I don't believe you can, because they are not.

3) My post count is irrelevant; not only did I never mention my post count here or anywhere else, almost the entirety of those posts where made by my son. Your last sentence doesn't make much sense either. I never recommended smoking at all, and I certainly would not advise anyone to fatally overdose on nicotine. That would be an uncomfortable way to die and it would make your family members sad as well. I also speak from personal experience on this matter, as I am posting from my dead kid's bluelight account.

 

[QueenPickle]

...

 

[Effect]

I'm facing the same situation as you. I have a final tonight and a ton of work to do before 6:30PM tonight or I'm fucked. I ran out early this month too. I'm gonna hope caffeine & nicotine will help somewhat, but I'm not counting on it.

 

[Ksa]

IMO--You would be SO MUCH better off booking an appointment with a shrink, not a GP and not the E.R. That is what they specialize in. They also tend to be the ones with a stronger understanding of how much it sucks and the dangers (if any) of going C/T off different groups of medicines. Most states and cities have clinics based on a sliding scale but even if they don't, you can find a Psychiatrist that will do intake for less than 100.00 and subsequent visits around 40.00.

Unfortunately I have to disagree. It is more beneficial to him to run out of his medication than to be prescribed additional amounts every-time he does so. He is already prescribed enough.

Maybe I was wrong, I thought this place was more about harm reduction but the poster above me is recommending something contraindicated in every possible medical journal and encouraging stuff that has the potential of bringing on a psychotic episode. (I speak from personal experience). If ADD or ADHD was so easily cured with OTC stuff, cold medicine, etc---- nobody would need ADD/ADHD meds. Your post count doesn't make you wiser. Why don't you recommend he throw on a few nicotine patches and smoke while wearing them? lol (Yeah, in case my sarcasm was lost on anyone-- don't do that unless you have a death wish.)

Nicotine IS ADHD treatment because it increases dopamine. Psychotic episode from ephedrine+nicotine? You're nuts. Probably even drinking water gives you an episode.

 

[Ksa]

I'm facing the same situation as you. I have a final tonight and a ton of work to do before 6:30PM tonight or I'm fucked. I ran out early this month too. I'm gonna hope caffeine & nicotine will help somewhat, but I'm not counting on it.

I like to compare nicotine to dextro-ampheramine or Adderall by using an automatic transmission car. When you start the engine and take your foot off the brake, the car goes forward at 5mph, that's nicotine. Dextroamphetamine does the same thing during the early onset stages, but it is the accelerator, with it, the sky is the limit, you can go 200mph also if you press hard enough. So yes, nicotine has a limitation but it's surely much much better than nothing.

 

[Effect]

I like to compare nicotine to dextro-ampheramine or Adderall by using an automatic transmission car. When you start the engine and take your foot off the brake, the car goes forward at 5mph, that's nicotine. Dextroamphetamine does the same thing during the early onset stages, but it is the accelerator, with it, the sky is the limit, you can go 200mph also if you press hard enough. So yes, nicotine has a limitation but it's surely much much better than nothing.

Thanks for the input man. It's funny this thread was posted today cause I searched the same subject in the archives and got a thread from 2011 about nearly the same subject and you were recommending the same thing. It's worth a shot to me.

 

[QueenPickle]

Decided to leave this site. Too many adults acting like spoiled children. I wish all of you nothing but the best. Please be very careful who you listen to when desperately seeking advice.... Be safe!!!



Perhaps the ever knowledgeable KSA can donate in my place... I suppose I should thank you before I pissed away 100 bucks.

 

[InterestingFACT]

I am going to respect the board and not get in to a public pissing match with you because you seem to lack any common sense so this will be my last post in this thread.


Here is one source. I refuse to waste any more of my time trying to prove a point to you, feel free to google the other 10,000 pages of results yourself. I am not sure if we can post links, but this is from a legit medical site with Medical Staff Posting (Doctors): (1) "Ephedrine is chemically related to amphetamine (adderall), but they are different enough that Ephedrine has little or no benefit with respect to adhd." (2) Ephedrine is a dangerous stimulant that has been linked to brain & cardiac problems. (3) Short term ( a couple of days) use as a decongestant is ok, however you shouldn't take it long term, even if you are healthy as it can cause severe cardiac damage.


Not to mention the FDA has outlawed how many versions of it? Soon enough, I anticipate it being yanked off the market all together.


A sad number of people that try to self medicate with OTC medications tend to OVERDOSE trying to achieve the same effects as their controlled counter-parts.


I would think before you post because there just might be that ONE time that a drug-naive person asks a question and then runs off and takes a box of cold medicine, throws on a few nicotine patches and slams some caffeine.


I'm sorry you lost your son but that also means you are not the addict and you haven't been there and done that. And if you have, and both you and your son were addicts together, that is truly sad and I do NOT mean that in a bitchy way. (And I am truly sorry you lost him as I lost the only best friend I've ever had in my life to drugs).


Never tell someone to start nicotine that is a non-smoker. Nicotine may be legal but it is one of the hardest drugs to kick. The ridiculous amount of people diagnosed with cancer, specifically cancers of the pulmonary process that continue smoking after their DX should tell you something.


Telling someone to self-medicate with cold medicine (with ANYTHING) when they don't have a cold is also ridiculous. You don't see my logic in this statement?


Do you have ADHD? I do and have for more than 2 decades and I am fairly certain it's safe to say that I have tried EVERYTHING and some with horrible outcomes. I've lived a rough life and I've experienced more than everyone I know combined and I don't mean that in a positive, unicorns and sunshine way. I'm lucky to be alive. Just be careful what kind of advice you dish out. (Even if you have personally experienced it or not because what works for one might NOT (in a very bad way) for the next.

Telling someone to self-medicate with OTC is not harm reduction Maam. Threads on how to shoot properly (if you must) Well, those actually are geared towards 'harm reduction' as offensive as they might be to some blue-lighters. If you can't stop someone, the best you can do is try to make it less dangerous. (THIS is how my friend John died).

"What should I take" threads are not allowed on bluelight. That being said, this is a "harm reduction" forum, not a "harm elimination" forum. That means that the users here should assume that others WILL make bad choices about drugs, and will seek to advise them how to minimize the harm that results from those bad choices. Saying "don't do it, it's stupid" really doesn't help anyone here--because we all know that he is going to do something about it regardless of what you say.

Ephedrine isn't a good ADHD treatment, but it is a stimulant. The OP is asking how to get through a day without a stimulant while he is dependent on stimulants. Of course ephedrine will not have the focusing or motivating effect that adderall has, but it might just keep him awake. In light of that, it is a sane TEMPORARY measure. The OP has already been advised about the un sustainability of his/her behavior in the longer term.

I think you need to take a step back and consider your attitude. Great, you have adhd. Great, you've been through the mill. So have a lot of people on this site. You can respectfully disagree with someone, but don't expect anyone to give you a second thought if you carry on with such vitriolic behavior.

As a side note. Nicotine itself is about as addictive as caffeine. Nicotine gum, patches, etc do not warrant excessive risk of addiction. SMOKING is both highly addictive--because of the rapid ROA and the presence of mono amine oxidase inhibitors--and highly toxic--because of the combustion process. However nicotine itself is probably the most legitimately recommendable "OTC" ADHD treatment mentioned yet. It's naturally rate-limited by nausea long before you incur any cardiovascular risk, it's action on the cholinergic system enhances memory formation and attentiveness, and it's mild dopaminergic action helps with focus and motivation.

I already expressed my recommendation above. However I'll reiterate it for clarity. Personally speaking, I wouldn't recommend the use of any OTC stimulant for this purpose except perhaps to keep you awake and functional at a minimum. Accept that you will not be as productive as "usual" and consider that a warning sign that you are walking down a dangerous path. If you need to explain why you're a poorer worker than usual, make up an excuse about feeling a bit sick or something. But MOST IMPORTANTLY you need to not do this again with your next script. At the end of the day there's no substitute for sleep or food. Try getting extra hours of shut eye before work and try eating larger nutritious meals before and after work. Further, consider bringing nutrient bars, bananas, or other similar nutritious and portable foods to eat during your working hours. Finally, there's some evidence to suggest that magnesium supplementation (or use of stronger nmda antagonists, but I can't recommend that) may help to slow the buildup of amphetamine tolerance. If you attempt this, get a chelated form for better absorption.