Adderall for cocaine/meth addict???

[Girl27]

My bestfriend is a recovering (2 1/2 months clean) cocaine and crystal meth addict (among other addictions as has a typical addictive personality)  who has been seeing a phsychiatrist for a little over a month now. My PROBLEM  is I am seriously QUESTIONING this doctors approach to treatment. He hasn't ever suggested any type of NA or AA and now he has presribed him Adderall (with a a diagnosis of Adult Adhd)!!  WHY ON EARTH WOULD would you ever prescribe a highly addictive stimulant to someone who is addicted to stimulants?? Now perhaps the ADHD diagnosis is correct (hints the addictive personality,etc.) but EVERYTHING i have read on Adderall says "you should not take Adderall if you have a history of drug and/or alcohol abuse". Also, we have consulted another psychiatrist who agreed. It's not like he's been 2 years sober, it's only been near 2 months! A stuggling 2 months at that! I am so worried, please help.

[sweeterin]

I've had an adderall prescription for about five years now.  I continue to use it when I feel that I really need it (i.e., can't possibly finish a paper without it), but otherwise try to stay away from it due to my past experiences with it.  My feeling is that it's a nasty, nasty drug.  It's very easy to build a tolerance to it - after not too long the low doses don't work anymore.  I was taking 45 mgs up to 4 times a day... and I've known people who have had to take more in order to feel the effects.  When I was taking 45mgs at a time, I found that if I didn't take it I felt lethargic, depressed, and unable to concentrate whatsoever.  But then, when I did take it, I had tremendous headaches.  I decided to quit cold turkey and had horrible, horrible withdrawals.  

Adderall is a drug that they don't know much about, but it's a stimulant just like cocaine and meth that can cause many, many health problems that can land people in hospitals.  (Adderall = methamphetamine salts.)  

You are right that this psychiatrist's prescription of adderall is inappropriate.  

If you can, encourage you friend to try to conquer his addiction on his own.  The only thing I've found that works at all for me as a substitute is caffeine.  Coffee and soda can actually be pretty effective stimulants - just remember to drink plenty of water as they can also be dehydrating.

Good luck.

Your friend is lucky to have you in his life.
Best,
E

[JoJo437]

Indeed, Adderall is a very dangerous and highly addictive drug, however, please do not readily dismiss it before you consider the following.

ADHD, especially if left untreated, is a disorder that can cause severe emotional, social, legal and physical (health) problems. This is true in both adults and children. Have you ever wondered why your friend became a drug addict in the first place? I mean people don't just wake up and decide that; "Today is the day that I'm going to destroy my life with cocaine and crystal meth.!!"

Low self esteem, rejection and feelings of inferiority are all very commonplace in people with ADHD, especially if they remain untreated until adulthood; and that is why that many people who have ADHD have a history of some form of substance abuse, whether it is with alcohol or some other form of drug.

You must understand that ADHD restricts the amount of dopamine that is produced in the brain, and it is dopamine that allows us to feel good or happy in our lives. Needless to say, that having chemical control (Adderall) over how much dopamine your brain produces is very dangerous for any person for obvious reasons. But you must also consider the possibility that your friend was using illegal drugs because of this dopamine deficiency as well.

You must consult a third, or even forth, doctor before taking him off Adderall. If you were to withdraw the Adderall and as a result his dopamine levels fell to below average or normal levels again (which they most certainly would), you risk throwing him into a full blown "RELAPSE" with the coke and meth. Understand, your friend may need Adderall not as a drug to be different, but as a drug to be normal!!!

Adderall may help your friend to reclaim his/her life as it has with so many others; and if you are concerned about him/her abusing it, as you should be, there are alternatives such as supervised administration. Your friend can be given 1 pill per/day as prescribed his/her doctor. The prescription can be held by you, a friend, a family member, his/her doctors staff, a counselor, a sponsor, or some secret third party that no-one knows about.

I am a recovering alcoholic who currently takes Adderall and who is also enrolled in cognitive therapy for my ADHD. I hope to one day retire the drugs completely as well. I did not begin taking Adderall until I was over two years sober however, but that two year period was hell as I was constantly battling against this dopamine deficiency in my brain (bad moods-irritability-resentment-fear).

I am somewhat comfortable, yet hesitant, in taking Adderall because I understand today that my alcohol abuse was directly linked to my ADHD, and Adderall is a management tool that I use to cope with my disorder while alcohol was something I used for a totally different reason. That is to say that I used alcohol to hide from life, I use Adderall to live it!!

Through cognitive therapy, which your friend should definately be involved in, I am learning to raise the dopamine levels in my brain naturally and without any drugs at all. I'll repeat that "YOU CAN LEARN TO RAISE THE DOPAMINE LEVELS IN YOUR BRAIN NATURALLY THROUGH COGNITIVE THERAPY".

This process, however, takes time and many hours of disciplined effort before you see the results, but you will see them if you stick with it!

In closing, you friend is definately in a sticky situation in that giving addictive drugs to a recovering drug addict seems ridiculous at first, however, please allow for the possibility that he/she may need this drug to gain a foolthold on his/her situation. Also, drugs taken under a doctors care and supervision for a bona fide medical disorder is different from buying stuff from slippery-pete down at the local tavern for a Saturday Night rush.

If drug abuse begins, the doctor can withdraw the prescription. In the meantime however, If your friend is;

1. Taking a modest, doctor recommended, amount of Adderall to deal with ADHD symptoms:
2.

[JoJo437]

"Sorry-finger hit "Post Comment" in error" continue....
2. Is enrolled in cognitive therapy with the intention of eliminating, or minimizing, the drugs use entirely.
3. Is pursuing support through NA or AA or some other support group and is;
4. Surrounded by loved ones, family and friends for support and monotoring...

Depriving him/her of Adderall may not be helping him/her, but may in fact be pushing him/her back towards the edge of insanity.

This is just food for thought.

[woozy]

Well, it's known that meth and coke destroy dopamine receptors yet it's not well known if the brain recovers completely though it's likely different for any individual. My concern is that your friend's abuse has caused a depletion of dopamine and NOW has symptoms of ADHD. Anyone who knows the addictive personality, knows that it takes tremendous resolve to overcome an addiction, like you JoJo. You remained sober for 2 years before seeking out treatment. And alcohol is a depressant rather than a stimulant, and I don't think it hammers the dopamine receptors nearly as effectively as coke and meth. I would really be hesitant to prescribe adderall to someone so recently out of woods so to speak. There are other medications that address ADHD without the high abuse potential, for instance Wellbutrin, or Strattera, and Wellbutrin mildly boosts dopamine also. When I was prescribed Adderall, my doctors tried both Wellbutrin and Strattera first and then screened me for addiction vigorously before prescribing this drug. I would say, like JoJo, one must first show a commitment to not abusing drugs before one gets a prescription for Adderall. I personally think it's a bad idea at this juncture. An addictive person is often treating themselves for many things..either concurrent with ADHD or not. Though I do think, on the other hand, that if your friend starts abusing the drug it may become apparent fairly quickly. But my husband has abused adderall in the past and has managed to snowball me by just toughing it out to the next prescription. There's nothing like a future guaranteed high to keep you focused and determined while going through withdrawal. And my husband as very bad ADHD..which doesn't seem to be helped by Adderall any more. And he will abuse drugs given the opportunity, so I don't think Adderall was a miracle cure for him at all. So, after that tangent, I will just say I think that doctor is being a bit reckless, to put it mildly, and I don't blame you for your concern.

[trebby]

I have been trying to research all the "ADHD" drugs since my son has been prescribed "Vyanase" for ADHD with effects much like those of cocaine. I have found out that Ritalin and most of these drugs have the same amphetamine salts used to make meth. I can just imagine the future of our children being introduced to the drugs so early. The pharmaceutical companies and the drug dealers are making a killing out of killing our future. Its such a tradegy and it is legal!!!!