Adderall: Necessity or Nemesis?
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| photo from: http://bowdoinorient.com/article/4895 |
The college experience comes complete with homework, tests, part-time jobs, internships, frat parties, dating and two-for-one beer nights. To accomplish all of the above there are two possible paths: prioritizing, or popping an “Addy.”
Since Adderall stepped out on the scene in 1996, it has become increasingly popular with the college crowd. According to IMS Health Inc. data, practically “14 million monthly prescriptions were written for Americans ages 20 to 39 in 2011.” Four years ago that number was 5.6 million.
“I call Adderall my focus factor,” said Taylor, a 24-year-old business management student, who has attention deficit disorder, or ADD.
When prescribed to individuals with ADD or ADHD, the drug calms them down. Conversely, students taking Adderall illegally experience a jump that gives them energy and focus, thus allowing them to complete hefty workloads. Common side effects include dry mouth, irritability, rapid heart rate and headaches.
Jackie, a 42-year-old advertising student, said she took her 18-year-old daughter off Adderall when she noticed her severe mood swings.
Jackie, a 42-year-old advertising student, said she took her 18-year-old daughter off Adderall when she noticed her severe mood swings.
“When it wore off, she would have such a negative attitude. She just wasn’t herself,” Jackie said. “One thing it did do, though, was dry up her sinuses.”
Another side effect of Adderall is loss of appetite. Students see this as an added benefit of the drug. It is common to see someone slightly overweight one semester return after summer break with a whole new leaner-looking body. However, Taylor said when students come off the drug they may experience a craving to eat more than normal.
“I can feel it when it stops working,” Taylor said. “I feel all slouchy and lazy and want to eat everything, but that usually goes away after about an hour.”
Whereas throngs of students have jumped on the Adderall bandwagon, there are still those students who have figured out how to get everything done without it.
“I understand that people are always looking for a competitive edge and may look at this product as such to get a quick fix. However, I would hope that improving organizational and study skills would be the final path that is taken,” said Dr. Marelle Yongue, director of Student Health Services at a Louisiana University.
Assiduous students prioritize their homework over going out, keep the extracurricular activities to a minimum and set their own deadlines to complete projects. They are not procrastinators waiting until the last minute to study for tests and write their papers. When finals week begins, they can be found in the library, sans Adderall, getting their studying done the old-fashioned way.
“I never took it. When I had homework to do, I would just go upstairs and get it done,” said Chelsea, a 26-year-old nursing graduate. “If you’re serious about school, you just can’t go out all the time.”
Incoming freshmen who have previously skated through elementary and high school with exemplary grades can get a sharp slap in the face. Never having to study leads to lackluster study habits.
“Nursing is a hard major and a lot of my classmates took Adderall to help them study, especially during finals week,” said Chelsea, who now works at a behavioral hospital in southern Louisiana.
Taylor has heard classmates brag about faking ADHD symptoms to get a prescription for Adderall.
“You just have to know what to say. It’s not hard nowadays. Anyone can get it because it’s easy for anyone to act distracted,” Taylor said.
If that doesn’t work, one can always ask around their campus for a local dealer. A dealer is usually a student who has ADHD and sells their Adderall to students. Chelsea said she has heard of Adderall being sold for $25 a pill!
“I have a prescription but I only take it sometimes,” said a 19-year-old general education major, who chose to remain anonymous. “I always have some to sell so I can make money on the side. It gets really good around finals when everybody wants some.”
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| photo from: http://prescription-drug.addictionblog.org/can-you-get-addicted-to-adderall/ |
But what about addiction? Studies show that people both prescribed and not prescribed can become addicted to Adderall.
“A lot of our patients who have drug-abuse problems started with the small stuff like Adderall or pain pills. You should never take something that isn’t prescribed to you,” warned Chelsea.
People taking Adderall for an extended period of time may begin to believe that they cannot focus without it. PrescriptionDrugAbuse.org states that people can experience withdrawal symptoms like depression, extreme hunger, high blood pressure, nightmares, panic attacks and seizures if they suddenly stop taking it.
“Eventually it becomes not enough and they work their way up to worse things like cocaine and meth. It’s a real problem,” Cheslea added.
Another additional anxiety is theft. Students who take Adderall and leave their purses, wallets or book sacks unattended, open the door for others to steal it.
“Last semester I left my purse on a table at a bar and the next day I realized my entire bottle of Adderall was gone,” said Taylor. “It was a week before finals and I had just filled my prescription. I didn’t know what I was going to do. Luckily, my friend takes a dose similar to mine and she gave me three or four to get me through finals week.”
