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Old Apr 04, 2006, 05:05 PM
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adeline adeline is offline
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Member Since: Jan 2006
Location: South
Posts: 94
Since just about anyone will get the motivation/concentration benefits of Adderall, the effectiveness of the med by no means signifies that you do or don't have ADHD (there's a thriving drug market for it on college campuses and even on Wallstreet). I have the same doubts as you; my deep-down thoughts are that I'm not, but it helps tremendously with my reading, bulimia, and depression, so it's performing a necesscary function anyhow.

Why did you think you had ADHD in the first place? What are some of the areas in your life that are disrupted by your symptoms? The definition of a mental disorder is something that either causes severe mental distress or impairment in functioning. If either of these apply to you, I'd say you probably have ADHD.

I know alot of adults who stopped taking stimulants after grade-school, or college... it's really just up to you as to how you weight the benefits and the costs (i.e. any heart conditions? concerns about LT affects of stimulant therapy? feeling sort of "cracked out," or unlike your usual self? out of pocket costs? etc). To me, Adderall is well worth it, but I understand why lots of adults tend to pewter off of it in time.

Sometimes I too get the feeling that Adderall should be doing more for me, that it does for other people. In reality, I believe that this is a combination of too high of expectations, and not trying hard enough to direct my attention to meaningful/mandatory things. Cognitive Behavioral therapy can help discipline -- after all, no pill is a magic bullet, so some of our initial problems will remain. I've learned things like DON'T START CLEANING UNLESS YOU HAVE LOTS OF FREE TIME .

Sleep is crucial for concentration, but I'm not sure how low self-confidence plays into it (like by causing lack of motivation from feelings of incompetence?). Also, other meds can REALLY mess with the it's effect, setting it off from it's optimal performance.

Do you feel like the dose that you're on is sufficient for you? It could be that you're not at a very effective dose... I'm prescribed 60mg, but usually only take 20-40mg a day... but it's nice to have the security of that extra 20mg a day in case I need it.

Good luck! I hope I haven't put you to sleep with my novella.

Jess