Adderall anyone???
This is me hiding from the truth, I am addicted to adderall and since surgery it's become much worse. Am I alone? Thank you, sarah 
Hey Sarah,
Why were you prescribed Adderall? Curious, as I'm a LMHC and very familiar with the drug. Since it is a stimulant, you need to be careful to make sure that you are getting your caloric and protein intake to stay healthy. That is the most important thing right now.
It is not uncommon for WLS patients to pick up a new addiction, as we have forfeited a socially acceptable one (over eating).
The one you have chosen, if abused, can lead to renal failure, heart failure, death. Please keep reaching out, and find some professional help. I'm here if ya wanna chat.
Hugs,
Kathy
Why were you prescribed Adderall? Curious, as I'm a LMHC and very familiar with the drug. Since it is a stimulant, you need to be careful to make sure that you are getting your caloric and protein intake to stay healthy. That is the most important thing right now.
It is not uncommon for WLS patients to pick up a new addiction, as we have forfeited a socially acceptable one (over eating).
The one you have chosen, if abused, can lead to renal failure, heart failure, death. Please keep reaching out, and find some professional help. I'm here if ya wanna chat.
Hugs,
Kathy
Every morning in Africa
It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning inAfrica
It knows that it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve.
It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle
when the sun comes up you'd better be running.
RNY 2/9/09 Buh bye Gallbladder 8/28/09; 100% EWL (181 lbs.) on 2/19/10;
It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning in
It knows that it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve.
It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle
when the sun comes up you'd better be running.
RNY 2/9/09 Buh bye Gallbladder 8/28/09; 100% EWL (181 lbs.) on 2/19/10;
Hi Kathy,
I have been on that kind of stuff my whole life--- forgive me for being foolish sounding whats a LMHC?? I thank you for responding it's hard because it's not common or at least not alot of info where people admit to it. my email is [email protected]
I have been on that kind of stuff my whole life--- forgive me for being foolish sounding whats a LMHC?? I thank you for responding it's hard because it's not common or at least not alot of info where people admit to it. my email is [email protected]
Sarah Rushing
Hey Sarah,
Duh. I'm sorry. LMHC=Licensed Mental Health Counselor (State Credential for therapists).
Duh. I'm sorry. LMHC=Licensed Mental Health Counselor (State Credential for therapists).
Every morning in Africa
It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning inAfrica
It knows that it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve.
It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle
when the sun comes up you'd better be running.
RNY 2/9/09 Buh bye Gallbladder 8/28/09; 100% EWL (181 lbs.) on 2/19/10;
It knows it must outrun the fastest lion or it will be killed.
Every morning in
It knows that it must run faster than the slowest gazelle, or it will starve.
It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle
when the sun comes up you'd better be running.
RNY 2/9/09 Buh bye Gallbladder 8/28/09; 100% EWL (181 lbs.) on 2/19/10;
Hi Sarah!
I do not mean any disrespect to you and my intentions are not to embarrass you but I would like to know if you have much caffeine and whether or not you used to get much caffeine before your wls?
It is relevant to your question I promise. I have combined type, attention def. disorder and attention def. hyperactivity/impulsive disorder and I have had it my entire life. I am 36 years old now and I just started adderallXR. I will explain more once you have replied to my previous question(s).
-Jaime
I do not mean any disrespect to you and my intentions are not to embarrass you but I would like to know if you have much caffeine and whether or not you used to get much caffeine before your wls?
It is relevant to your question I promise. I have combined type, attention def. disorder and attention def. hyperactivity/impulsive disorder and I have had it my entire life. I am 36 years old now and I just started adderallXR. I will explain more once you have replied to my previous question(s).
-Jaime
What about pre-op?
I have had adhd my entire life, but I was never hyperactive in the traditional sense. I was impulsive.
I had my surgery in October 2008 and I have dropped an average of almost 9 lbs a week since then so I am down 192 lbs. I asked my PCP if I could get some meds or something because my memory, concentration, and all the things that used to be somewhat manageable, were terribly unmanageable now. He said, 'College isn't for everybody'. I was pissed. I said in today's economic status and job market you damn well better believe a college degree means something. When a CEO is delivering pizza's because he cannot find a job with his degree and qualifications what chance does someone without a degree have of making a living?
So I went and saw my surgeon and asked if my weight loss would have altered the chemicals or something in my body to make the adhd worse. He told me no way and it had nothing to do with weight. He advised testing. My insurance will not pay for that sort of testing and it was going to cost $2500.00 and up. So I figured I hit a dead end.
My wife, a special education teacher for the last 14 years, said to try the universities student disabilities/counseling center. I contacted them and they met me and it took 4 weeks of testing and I have a slew wrong with me, most of the issues I have learned to cope with and can manage. The adhd has gotten so bad because pre-op I was 'self-medicating' with food/drink. I drank 3-6 bottles of soda daily plus anywhere from 1-2 pots of coffee, I make strong coffee. I was also eating lots of chocolate and other foods that had stimulants in them and I didn't even realize I was craving these types of foods.
I quit drinking all that in September per my surgeons and nutritionists recommendation. I have yet to drink a single soda, I only drink decaf coffee and decaf tea, I use no sugar. I have not used a single grain of sugar since October (week before they tell you have sugar stuff during liquid diet for energy).
Opps, I take that back, if we are out and I want something to drink besides water I will get unsweetened tea but it has only happened 3-4 times. Normally I carry a container of decaf unsweetened tea with me everywhere, or crystal light (walmart brand) so I have something. I will occasionally buy bottled water but I hate paying for something that is free. lol.
My symptoms got worse and unmanageable due to the lack of self-medication. I was worried about taking pills because I am on codeine for intestinal problems (everything from water to meat shoots through me within 30-60 minutes and the codeine stopped that from happening).
Anyway, I just started the adderallxr 20mg and I do not notice a difference. So they bumped it to 30mg, still nothing noticeable.
I see my psych. Dr today at the university and my NEW PCP Friday for the second time to talk about dosage. I am not sure how I am suppose to feel when on adderall or what it is suppose to do. I feel the same when taking it.
Depending on if you self medicated with some other stimulant or not, my thought is maybe you need a higher dosage to compensate for your lack of natural stimulants.
I hope my issues help you determine something about your medication. I would talk with your surgeon and tell him how you feel and talk with your Dr that prescribes the adderall, concerta is suppose to be great. My insurance doesn't cover it but yours might.
Good luck,
-Jaime
I have had adhd my entire life, but I was never hyperactive in the traditional sense. I was impulsive.
I had my surgery in October 2008 and I have dropped an average of almost 9 lbs a week since then so I am down 192 lbs. I asked my PCP if I could get some meds or something because my memory, concentration, and all the things that used to be somewhat manageable, were terribly unmanageable now. He said, 'College isn't for everybody'. I was pissed. I said in today's economic status and job market you damn well better believe a college degree means something. When a CEO is delivering pizza's because he cannot find a job with his degree and qualifications what chance does someone without a degree have of making a living?
So I went and saw my surgeon and asked if my weight loss would have altered the chemicals or something in my body to make the adhd worse. He told me no way and it had nothing to do with weight. He advised testing. My insurance will not pay for that sort of testing and it was going to cost $2500.00 and up. So I figured I hit a dead end.
My wife, a special education teacher for the last 14 years, said to try the universities student disabilities/counseling center. I contacted them and they met me and it took 4 weeks of testing and I have a slew wrong with me, most of the issues I have learned to cope with and can manage. The adhd has gotten so bad because pre-op I was 'self-medicating' with food/drink. I drank 3-6 bottles of soda daily plus anywhere from 1-2 pots of coffee, I make strong coffee. I was also eating lots of chocolate and other foods that had stimulants in them and I didn't even realize I was craving these types of foods.
I quit drinking all that in September per my surgeons and nutritionists recommendation. I have yet to drink a single soda, I only drink decaf coffee and decaf tea, I use no sugar. I have not used a single grain of sugar since October (week before they tell you have sugar stuff during liquid diet for energy).
Opps, I take that back, if we are out and I want something to drink besides water I will get unsweetened tea but it has only happened 3-4 times. Normally I carry a container of decaf unsweetened tea with me everywhere, or crystal light (walmart brand) so I have something. I will occasionally buy bottled water but I hate paying for something that is free. lol.
My symptoms got worse and unmanageable due to the lack of self-medication. I was worried about taking pills because I am on codeine for intestinal problems (everything from water to meat shoots through me within 30-60 minutes and the codeine stopped that from happening).
Anyway, I just started the adderallxr 20mg and I do not notice a difference. So they bumped it to 30mg, still nothing noticeable.
I see my psych. Dr today at the university and my NEW PCP Friday for the second time to talk about dosage. I am not sure how I am suppose to feel when on adderall or what it is suppose to do. I feel the same when taking it.
Depending on if you self medicated with some other stimulant or not, my thought is maybe you need a higher dosage to compensate for your lack of natural stimulants.
I hope my issues help you determine something about your medication. I would talk with your surgeon and tell him how you feel and talk with your Dr that prescribes the adderall, concerta is suppose to be great. My insurance doesn't cover it but yours might.
Good luck,
-Jaime
i've been on and off aderall for about 10 years--after a year or so on ritalin (another add med.) ironically, even though i have had a severe case of ADD (which is basically ADHD minus being too hyper) ever since i was born, it was never dieagnosed until i was 23 y.o. and in my last year of law school. when i was put on add meds, the difference was dramatic..for example i went from a 3.2 to a 3.9 GPA in one semester just because i was able to focus.
having said that, i know first hand how addictive addrall can be for some me (like me, for example.) it helps me focus, i am able to function better and be more organized, it has (for me) rather positive side effects--it supresses my appetite, and since i used to have a huge weight problem, reduced appetite is a big bonus and helps me fit into my size 2 jeans. also, i'm prone to depression and, while traditional anti-depressants don't seem to work, adderall does the trick.
so, in a sense it's a wonder drug. in my case, because i'm a "fast metabolizer" and my add is pretty bad, i'm on 60mg/day (regular release--i try to avoid XR meds because, post RNY, they may not be as effective--my dr.advice don't want to bore you guys with details). i'm on 60 mg a day but i honestly wish i had more of it. i've been known to take an extra pill or two if i had a big project at work ot needed an extra pick me up--no one ver knew. the problem with that is that if you do that frequently, you run out before you can get a re-fill and end up having to go without it for a week or more and feeling particularly tired and sluggish. so i try to be very careful about "budgeting" my adderall and not going over the prescribed dose. doesn't always happen but i'm working on it. for me, the benefits currently outweigh the negative factors. i took a year-long break from adderall recently and only went back on it about 3 months ago. i have to admit it helps me a lot but also it is very addictive.
having said that, i know first hand how addictive addrall can be for some me (like me, for example.) it helps me focus, i am able to function better and be more organized, it has (for me) rather positive side effects--it supresses my appetite, and since i used to have a huge weight problem, reduced appetite is a big bonus and helps me fit into my size 2 jeans. also, i'm prone to depression and, while traditional anti-depressants don't seem to work, adderall does the trick.
so, in a sense it's a wonder drug. in my case, because i'm a "fast metabolizer" and my add is pretty bad, i'm on 60mg/day (regular release--i try to avoid XR meds because, post RNY, they may not be as effective--my dr.advice don't want to bore you guys with details). i'm on 60 mg a day but i honestly wish i had more of it. i've been known to take an extra pill or two if i had a big project at work ot needed an extra pick me up--no one ver knew. the problem with that is that if you do that frequently, you run out before you can get a re-fill and end up having to go without it for a week or more and feeling particularly tired and sluggish. so i try to be very careful about "budgeting" my adderall and not going over the prescribed dose. doesn't always happen but i'm working on it. for me, the benefits currently outweigh the negative factors. i took a year-long break from adderall recently and only went back on it about 3 months ago. i have to admit it helps me a lot but also it is very addictive.
Not to start a "which wls is best" thing because I decided on the ds simply because my surgeon talked to me about all 3 and for the amount of weight I needed to lose the ds was my best option for surgery. That being said, I am glad now that I decided to agree with my surgeons recommendation because I can take time released medications.
I still do not notice a difference when taking the medicatin but I have not been on it long. I see the doctor tomorrow and I would imagine he will adjust the dosage. He told me it can take a while to find the right dose.
-Jaime
I still do not notice a difference when taking the medicatin but I have not been on it long. I see the doctor tomorrow and I would imagine he will adjust the dosage. He told me it can take a while to find the right dose.
-Jaime
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