Prolonged tolerance to stimulants?

[ZayKayWill]

So I've been taking ADHD medication since I was 6 years old. Didn't start taking it every day till maybe 3 years ago, though. I started off with Adderall first, but I was starting to become very dependent on it (in case you haven't noticed from my other topic), so I switched to Concerta. It always worked great for me until maybe 3 or 4 months ago. It feels as if my medication has completely stopped working...and don't get me wrong I'm aware of what tolerance is, but it feels as if the tolerance I'm experiencing is permanent...I'll take even like a 2 week break and will feel as if nothing is happening. I've even taken an Adderall in place of Concerta and still haven't felt anything...has this happened to anyone else? This has been happening for the past 3 or 4 months. I'll always give it at least a 1 or 2 week break but still it feels as if the medication doesn't work at all. It's starting to scare/depress me. What makes it even worse is that I really need to study for my GRE to get into grad school and it feels practically impossible without meds. I hate this.

 

[Bal0n]

A one or two week break should be sufficient for short term tolerance reduction, but given that you have been taking Adderall probably for the majority of your life (I assume you're over 12), you can expect to have build up a substantial longer term tolerance by now. I know it has been speculated this is due to 'rewiring' of your dopaminergic neurons. In any case, long term stimulant tolerance can be a bitch and it doesn't seem to be so easy to reduce.

Taking a long break will probably help somewhat, as will upping the dose.

 

[haleyhaleyhaley]

i don't have any actual advice, but i'm in the same boat here. same meds, except switch concerta with vyvanse. it's been maybe 6 months and i even tried going back on the adderall. i asked my doctor about it and she said it's pretty common, but so far nothing has worked. hopefully they'll start working for you again soon. maybe try vyvanse or ritalin? sometimes it's just that the meds need to be changed.

 

[snazzy_sn]

Try switching meds for awhile.

 

[ZayKayWill]

i don't have any actual advice, but i'm in the same boat here. same meds, except switch concerta with vyvanse. it's been maybe 6 months and i even tried going back on the adderall. i asked my doctor about it and she said it's pretty common, but so far nothing has worked. hopefully they'll start working for you again soon. maybe try vyvanse or ritalin? sometimes it's just that the meds need to be changed.

Glad it's not just me then...