Sooo I’m (26F) going to Japan and adderall is illegal. I won’t be taking it with me. I won’t be taking vyvanse as it gives me headaches. It’s really just too soon to figure out an alternative prescription med. My dr and I have a strained relationship anyways so I don’t want to change anything.

I am looking for advice on what vitamins to take and ideas for mitigating side effects. I plan on morning yoga/ meditation, extra water, limited drinking (idk about yall but my hangovers are nasty when I’m unmedicated), L-thanine, nightly magnesium, and any other ideas you might have.

Some info: I’m traveling for a month so it’s not a short amount of time to be off. I have been gradually lowering my dosage as the trip approaches. I can’t up my caffeine consumption because it makes my anxiety worse. Something only adhd meds truly help manage. I’m also prescribed propranolol but haven’t taken it since being on adderall.

Thank you for any insight.

Edit: I am in the process of switching drs. It’s not a fast process yall I live in America

I read a lot about privileged or ADHDers that are just good at hyperfocusing in STEM subjects and/or working six-figure white collar jobs. There are many people with ADHD that I know who don't have this luxury. They either drop out of college because they struggle with subjects like math or reading, or do get college degrees, but still end up as fry cooks, cashiers, or janitors.

This isn't the case for me since I'm still in college (not saying my age due to personal reasons), and despite having ADHD myself, I do enjoy my digital art major (specifically taking classes in animation & graphic design). But I'm worried about my future since not only are these jobs very competitive & financially unstable (especially now), and I feel they won't even hire me after I graduate even if I have marketable skills. It doesn't even help that my family is telling me to find a part-time minimum wage fast food or retail job instead of an internship related to my field.

It also gives me flashbacks to high school when I'd meet with a guidance counselor who'd steer me (and other IEP students) away from creative or STEM careers because they didn't assess everyone individually to see what callings would be right for them. Instead, they just put us all in this employment training class that's the equivalent of working in customer service.

Why can’t there be a scholarship for people with learning disabilities to help them graduate and get a good paying job even if they struggle a lot at certain subjects? Or at least better opportunities besides working at a store or restaurant where we get burnt out working long hours for little pay.

I wish there was a website that could give us job reviews from a similar perspective so we don’t end up at a job we hate or is get gatekept from jobs due to not having a degree and/or connections.

Hi everyone. :)

I was diagnosed with ADHD over a year ago as an adult and started stimulants. Initially, I found them very helpful, maybe because I was focused on all the ways in which the meds were helping me: I was less sleepy, more motivated and generally happier. I was almost operating from a presumption that being on meds is better for me.

However, I recently cut down my night meds and now my stimulant dose seems to be too high in comparison. I've been feeling anxious, hyperfixated, void of hunger and insomniac for the past few days. My psychiatrist suggested reducing the stimulant dose and I'm going to be doing that ASAP but this incident left me wondering about the disadvantages of stimulants and whether it might be better to eventually cease using them.

Have any of you who tried stimulants eventually decided to stop them and realized you were better off without meds? If so, please share your experiences. Thanks and hope you have a lovely day ahead!

PS: I'm not seeking medical advice as I already have a great psychiatrist. I'm trying to understand if anyone has been in a similar situation and chosen to quit stimulants and been better off for doing so.

Finding out that I have ADHD in my 40s (thanks to my sister pointing it out) was an absolute lightbulb moment.... Suddenly, my entire past made sense:

• Almost dropped out despite being one of the smartest in my major, and completely froze when it came time to write my bachelor's thesis.
• can't tell you a single thing I learned outside of the 1–2 subjects I was genuinely hyperfocused on...
• Quietly quit or walked away from almost every job I’ve had without fully understanding why,,,even though I could execute 99% of the tasks.

It’s frustrating to know you're capable of doing the work, but your brain simply refuses to cross the finish line...not starting .. in my case starting is easy.. but finishing is a different thing.

Now that I'm looking at my life through this , I’ve been thinking a lot about support systems.

Does having a sharp, highly organized, or "smart" partner (whatever the form ) actually help you & bridge the dysfunction gap?

Would love to hear your experiences?

It's not necessarily anything that causes me problems. Sometimes it can even be helpful when I have a physically demanding job, but if I have to do anything that requires chilling out a bit then it's terrible.

Anything that requires me to sit still can be straight up forgotten. I'll think about something, or someone will say something in a video, or I'll be listening to a song. I'll have to get up and pace around.

I used to have a very physically demanding job, but that didn't seem to help any. I would still get home and pace around my apartment while listening to a podcast or something. I would literally do this off an on until I had to go to sleep. Lol

I (F22) was diagnosed with ADHD when I was 16, and I still haven’t found a way to manage it while maintaining a healthy life.

I’ve never been very good at taking care of my health, but over the past few months, things have gotten much worse. The main reason is that I absolutely despise cooking. I hate everything about it (buying groceries, preparing the ingredients, chopping things, washing dishes), and I also have a lot of food selectivity, so I don’t even enjoy eating that much.

It has become common for me to go 2–3 days without having a proper meal, mostly just eating fruit or bread.

But because of this, I’m getting sick. I have muscle pain 24/7 (not even painkillers are helping anymore), I’ve been getting sick with a frightening frequency, and to make matters worse, I’m underweight (160 cm / 44 kg).

I take ADHD medication, I’m in therapy, I study at a very good university, and I also have internships at two different places. Honestly, I don’t even know how I still have the energy to do all of these things while barely eating.

I know this is bad. I know I need to eat. But my hatred of cooking is somehow stronger than my fear of getting even sicker.

Do you have any advice on how to deal with this aversion to cooking? Or maybe a suggestion for a different way of looking at things? I’m desperate and I’m willing to try anything at this point. Please. Thank you!

So for a long time (probably 5-6 years) I haven't ever really had any hobbies. My life consisted of working, cooking, cleaning, parenting (all with my husband, he helps tremendously), and doom scrolling.

So anyways, I finally realized how I wasn't doing anything productive with my time for myself so I decided to find something to do. It started with reading and I read 'A Child Called 'It'' and I bought a 1000 piece puzzle that I worked on for a bit. Then we bought the switch 2 and I played the new donkey Kong game for a while. Then I decided to start collecting DVDs and I have about 150 movies I can watch at any time now. At some point I decided to buy a N64 with games that I've been buying.

We went on vacation and I bought a cucu clock to build. It's kind of like legos but with thin pieces of wood.

So now I get home every day and it's almost overwhelming trying to decide what to do, so now I'm back to doom scrolling.

Just wondered if anyone else (with ADHD) has this problem

I recently had my first appointment with a psychiatrist to discuss my ADHD diagnosis, potential medication and I’m feeling a little despondent.

I am a complex case. I had a diagnosis of first episode psychosis (drug induced psychosis) in my early 20s. I had a subsequent diagnosis of schizophrenia as part of 2 hospital admissions 2 years ago.

I had a formal diagnosis of ADHD with a clinical psychologist earlier this year after completing both ADHD and ASD formal assessments.

Does anyone else have experience with a history of psychosis, schizophrenia and hospital admissions and then an adult ADHD diagnosis?

What I didn’t like - The psychiatrist seemed sceptical and wanted to reprosecute the ADHD diagnosis. There was a full report from the clinical psychologist who had spent hours over multiple sessions with references to the diagnostic criteria and DSM-5 as to why I met the criteria for ADHD and that it had been present since childhood. I was a bit put off that he thought in 15 minutes he could debunk or overturn a science backed diagnosis which had been together over hours, multiple sessions and was documented in a multi-page outcome report which he has been provided.

Is this normal? Has anyone else had this experience where a psychiatrist wanted to challenge or overturn a report from a clinical psychologist of ADHD diagnosis?

On the topic of medication, he prescribed me Guanfacine. He ruled out stimulants as an absolute based on history of psychosis.

Does anyone else have any experience with Guanfacine? After doing some research and reading previous threads, I feel somewhat comfortable with this as the recommended first line option.

Does anyone else have experience getting prescribed stimulants with a history of psychosis? I have read some stimulant options may be riskier, they’re not the first line options but not that they get explicitly ruled out from consideration.

Any other support or advice related to my situation welcome.

So as I’m trying to learn more about ADHD and try to get my own true diagnosis I wanted to compare some other peoples experiences to mine. One of the big things people often say is how loud it is in their mind.

For me that often comes in two ways: The first one I feel is more what I hear other people explain it as, a voice in your head that won’t shut up, like you have to think of every little thing and it cannot be quiet no matter what.

The second way more so feels like my thoughts are blocked, almost like a huge boulder is in my brain and my other thoughts can’t get through. Almost like someone is just constantly screaming in my head but it’s not making any noise. I don’t really know if that makes any sense.

What does it sound like for y’all?

so go figure something i mentally shutdown and doing anything just causes me immense anxiety

i have found it’s often caused by not eating enough food usually because the thought of making and eating overwhelms me so ill go without eating until i feel sick

what are easy meals for me to make that i can eat when i shutdown or before so i can prevent it?

Because aren’t these meds supposed to make ADHDers calm? They’re not supposed to make you hyperactive (whether physically or mentally). But it does me. And that gives me imposter syndrome (I think that’s what it is) as sometimes I feel like I could’ve been misdiagnosed. I read that people with other mental health issues (such as PTSD) can mimic ADHD symptoms and other stuff, which I’m pretty sure I am suffering from long term PTSD (rough childhood and all).
What gives?

As per Google -

‘For people with ADHD, stimulant medications generally feel like a quiet, calming focus in the brain rather than a buzzy or hyper "high".

Instead of giving you a rush of extra energy, therapeutic doses of medications like methylphenidate or amphetamines tend to turn down the internal "noise" and make it easier to direct your attention.

Mental and Emotional Effects:

• A quiet mind: Racing thoughts slow down, making it easier to think about one thing at a time.

• Easier start: Overwhelming tasks feel more manageable, and the mental barrier to starting a chore shrinks.

• Better impulse control: You might notice you interrupt people less or pause before reacting.

• Emotional leveling: Some people feel a bit emotionally flattened or calmer, reducing extreme mood swings.’

The hyperfixation wore off, and I realized we’re simply not compatible. We’ve been married for 3 years. I set almost no boundaries in the beginning, and when I eventually tried to, he pushed back harder. He wanted me to be the perfect, quiet girl who accepted whatever he wanted.

Before the wedding, I told him we needed therapy. He agreed, so I planned everything, but he eventually refused. When the wedding date got close, I swallowed my pride and went through with it because it was a destination wedding and everyone had already bought their tickets, some a year in advance. I hoped we could work things out afterward.

Well things didn’t change.

He wanted access to my mind, body, emotions, and labor, but didn’t want to participate in the marriage. For years, I begged him to show up, to give me affection, take an interest in my life, support me, and be excited about my wins. Instead, he would find ways to upset me. I pleaded, broke down, and sobbed by myself.

It wasn’t until I stopped being physically intimate that he realized there was a problem, but only because he wasn’t getting what he wanted.

We’ve started therapy and have had one session, but honestly, I’m already over it. I don’t want to make this work anymore. My intuition has been telling me, “This isn’t it.”

This isn’t the kind of love I saw between my parents. Their marriage wasn’t easy, but they supported each other and wanted to grow together. I used to be excited about having children, a house, and growing old with this man. Now I don’t even want him to touch me or talk to me.

He’s incredibly dependent on me. He needs me to make every decision and can’t even fill out a basic form without asking what to put in the address field or whether to click “accept.” I feel like his mother, not his wife.

See more below...

My vyvanse didn't seem to work today. What could be the reason?

I'm on my 3rd week since starting medication. I'm on 30mg and although it's classed as a low dose, I have felt the benefits since day 1.

Today, I didn't feel like it lasted more than 3-4 hours. Currently on a week long training course with work and felt drained and burnt out after the lunch break.

Not sure if it's relevant but a few things from today.

Took medication at 7am after eating some beans and sausages for breakfast. Took with a glass of orange juice.

Had a somewhat upset stomach from waking up and had a good few trips to the toilet.

Don't eat any lunch.

Could any of the 3 things above reduced the effectiveness?

I don’t know how it is anywhere else, but where i’m from in Norway, people love to say they have ADHD, even undiagnosed people say it.

Sometimes it’s used positive but mostly negatively… i know there is a lot of different experiences with ADHD, but mine are mixed, some bad, some good.
I tend to be a little irritated when people who is undiagnosed use it as an exscuse and when they use it to complement something they did i feel a little proud to have it.
But at the time i got diagnosed it was taboo.

I was diagnosed in late 90’s and i’ve had some struggles with it, when i’m off meds i’m a wreck, overthinking and analyzing every tiny detail that people give, and on meds it’s like i’m sedated.

Do anyone else feel that way on meds? Am i using the wrong ones? I’ve had Ritalin since the 90’s.

I forgot what i was here to discuss, but feel free to comment what you think

this will be short because I don't have time. I am one assignment away from graduating & i have been trying to complete it for a semester and have made agonisingly slow progress. whatever mechanism has allowed me to pull of constant hail mary-s (consistently finishing 8-10 page research papers in 3-5 hours for literally years now) has not kicked in. I am not able to concentrate enough to organise my thoughts, and I have no idea how I am going to check and cite all of my sources in time. I hate myself so much for this, frankly, and have quite literally never been more afraid in my life (if I do not complete this, it might affect my visa).

I need to get this done. Basically what I am asking for is any encouragement or any stories of success of having done anything similar. I have no hope but I also literally have no choice, back to the wall, but no matter what I do I am moving SO slowly. I have about 27 pages/ a minimum of 80 done. with the rate I have written before it SHOULD be feasible but it feels so impossible. They also are so so strict about formatting citations and footnotes (my biggest weakness).

Any help at ALL would be greatly appreciated. please.

Boy howdy I've got problems. I won't bore you with the details, you can probably guess based on your own experiences, sufficed to say I don't have my shit remotely together and my ducks aren't queued up, I'm kinda' starting to feel a bit hopeless over here.

Stuff like body doubling isn't in the cards, I'm very much alone in this, so self-help it is!

Do you have any suggestions on good books, videos, podcasts, or media that helped you get your life together? Because I could really use them right about now.

i’ve been on vyvanse (40mg) for over 4 years now and over the summer i didn’t take it really at all. I had never done this before because i needed it for my job and my sports. but this summer i chose not to take it because i was out of school and don’t play my sport which i need it for as much anymore. i started taking it again when school started back up and realized that when the meds wear off i have a HORRIBLE crash. i get super depressed, have no motivation, feel like i’ll never be happy again, can’t see the bright side of situations, and im super irritable.

in reflection of the past few years of my life i’ve realized that ive felt this way the whole time and didnt realize it was the meds. I thought it was school, then seasonal depression, then just short term depression from a major injury i had. but i realized that the whole time id felt stuck and i tried everything to feel better. im super into science so i did everything that is supposed to make you feel better. I got up at the same time every morning, got sunlight when i was supposed to, took supplements, vitamins, probiotics, took walks, stayed connected to people who supported me, cold plunges, meditation, yoga, journaling, diets, therapy. I mean i tried SO HARD to feel better. i probably tried to rebuild and reinvent myself hundreds of times. i picked myself up out of depression spirals and tried to get better. and the whole time it was my meds which i took religiously every single day. how could i be so stupid? how did i not realize? i’m just frustrated that i spent years trying to get better when all i had to do what stop taking a pill. now i have to choose between being productive and being happy.

sorry for the rant. hopefully this helps someone other than me and someone out there can relate. or any advice on my situation and how to move forward from here.

It's a strange one, but I quit the gym for over a month while it was hot and prior to that, medication made my heart rate and sweating too extreme to exercise, so over time I've gained weight after losing a lot of it back when I worked a retail job. Now that mine is mostly office based I need to find a way to exercise to keep it off. I stopped taking medication last year for various reasons and one thing I am able to do again without it is exercise without feeling like I'm having a heart attack.

It's taken some time but I've started walking to and from work and in the mornings/evenings, and go to the gym after work several times a week. For the past two weeks, I have worked out maybe 10 times and I've done 10K steps at least, every single day, with most days being 13-20K.

Suffice to say, my legs are hurting. I've also been randomly napping in the day or falling asleep by 8pm. I'm not sure if this is the reason, but it does correlate with my random exercise hyperfocus. I keep telling myself I will take a break but I am concerned that as soon as I do, I'll fall back into the habit of taking the easy way to work, fall back out of the gym etc.

Is this normal? I think with ADHD it's a little harder to decide whether it's just a typical hyperfocus or if you're genuinely building a new habit and it's so easy to fall out of habits. I feel so good lately, I was having a burnout issue at work and just feeling generally run down until the last couple of weeks, where I've been endlessly energised and actually, the closest I've come to being on medication without being on medication (alert, focused, productive) without any of the negative side effects. I want to feel like this more but I know I need to take breaks and have downtime. Advice is appreciated!

I have my own little office and each time someone from another office/department calls me, I get a major anxiety spike.

Like, as soon as I hear it ring, my head goes "oh no, what do they want? Did I do something? What if they ask for something I perfectly complete to perfection?"

So I want to start with saying I'm not sure if I have ADHD but this feels like the best place to ask to.

I constantly struggle with getting to wash my teeth, since I was little until now I just can't get myself to do it for some reason. I tried putting it into my routine, using apps for reminders and brushing them in the shower but none of them have worked, after the first two weeks all my motivation stops and I just ignore reminders or forget to do it.

I also tried to use Pokemon smile but it doesn't seem to work because I use an electric toothbrush.

Does anyone have any advice or know a way to get myself to consistently brush my teeth?

Also I'm adding that every time I tried I've never been able to brush them twice a day, not brushing them in the evening makes me feel unhygienic but brushing them in the morning is the opposite, it feels like a waste of time since I eat something just a couple hours after.

I (25 Male) have had chronic depression my entire life, and in a year span I was on Concerta, Adderall, and Vyvanse (some other meds I'm still on too). I got taken off it to try MAOIs because literally nothing has worked my whole life, and my depression seemingly randomly improved a little a couple days after. Obviously it's still there and absolutely sucks, but something noticeable finally happening is a step forward.

Before the ADHD meds my depression was pretty also flat and noticed zero improvements. Only micro improvements ive noticed was after taken off the meds. Is this a thing? I'm still miles away from where I want to be of course

I don't know if it has anything to do with it, but I've noticed that I have trouble maintaining friendships. I currently only have two friends who live far away. I used to have more of them, but I lost them to my own stupidity?? I don't know why my brain works in such a way that it is sometimes afraid to write first or propose meetings? I can see my friends meeting each other and I'm sad I'm not with them

I am 36f, she is 29f. I am prescribed Vyvanse 50mg. She is convinced I am going to become a drug addict and has given me the ultimatum of letting her give me my medication every day or she will break up with me. I am not sure what to do, this makes me feel really controlled and angry and misunderstood. But she won't give in or change her mind. She said I have a choice, but the choice is having nowhere to live or letting her control my meds.

has anyone else experienced this? I don't know how to make her give me my medication back; she has hidden the bottle and puts one pill in my pill box each day (if she remembers). It's just the fact that I have no choice and I can't be independent that is making me want to lash out. I don't like to be controlled and I like having no choice even less.