Ever since childhood, I have struggled with poor grades and academic performance. I was determined, and sought tutoring to make a C. My teachers didn't "understand why" an intelligent kid had such a hard time making good grades and my parents asked the same question. My mother refused to investigate it any farther than "that's just the way it is", perhaps because she felt guilty of birthing a mentally disabled child.

After struggling with college for six years to get my bachelors degree, I talked to a school doctor about my difficulties in school.

I am now prescribed 15 MG of generic adderall daily, but feel like there may be an alternative to this medication that would perhaps benefit me more.

This is why:

When I take it, I feel foggy-headed. This is common, on or off adderall, however on it, I seem to make sense of things without me being attached to what I am learning. I can put two and two together but can't explain how I did it. Before, I never had enough time to put two and two together because everyone was moving too quickly for me. Now that I can move more quickly and efficiently, I still feel like my depth of learning is compromised. This is the main reason I do not like taking this drug.

At the same time, my grades have increased in score, (though I am still not an A student) I tend to stay on top of assignments because I am able to complete them efficiently. I have always been organized with the use of a calendar, but I often fell off the schedule because I had issues completing assignments due to a lack of focus or general understanding regardless of the amount of study time.

Reading has always been difficult because I miss key concepts, am unable to skim, and spend fruitless hours gathering little information I could easily paraphrase. I still feel I am superficially reading, but am able to work that into materials that I now pick up in class because I CAN pay attention.

I feel tired. I could easily lie down and take a nap. I have noticed that I am cold on adderrall, and have somewhat bad circulation and live in a very cold climate, so generally if I study in a warm place, I can concentrate more easily, however, this seems to be seasonal. Nonetheless, I am notably more tired after taking the pill, regardless of sleep or quality of daily nutrition (which is usually very good). This sensation is zombie-like. I'm calm, yet tired, productive yet there is a lack of true consciousness (or self awareness) during productivity.

In any case, I am confused. I feel like this "solution" was somewhat misplaced or rushed, and that I might benefit from someTHING else, be it a different prescription or other resources. I can easily see I have benefited from this but at the same time feel like it's not the right fit.

Has anyone else experiences similar qualms? Has anyone chosen different routes or perhaps found that this was not