Adderall = cheating?

[discensdentibus]

@tonywonder beat me to it. There is scientific literature out there suggesting that for people who don't have ADD, taking ADD medication provides minimal benefit, and tolerance buildup/dependency is really quick (ie you are digging yourself a hole). It is true that ADD medication can have far greater benefits to a person who has ADD/ADHD, but that does not in any way put them at an advantage over someone who does not have ADD and decide not abuse meds. Yes, it can increase their focus, but it is still up to the person to focus on the more important task at hand.

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[CardiothoracicSurgery]

I strongly advise all of you to not seek Adderall, though I'm not a medical profession and this is merely my opinion, I strongly disagree with the use of Adderall for both therapeutical and recreational use. Personally, I would like the FDA to review their studies on the harms of Adderall and reconsider their stance on allowing it to stay on the market. Adderal is an analog of meth, which strikes me the most concern. After taking two 25mg pills during a two day trial, I began to feel the aftermaths more so than the supposed benefits. I only agreed to take adderall only to see if it was of any help, and turns out, it was the complete opposite. For those of you wondering, ADDERALL DOES NOT help with MCAT, especially NOT VERBAL REASONING. I felt like an actual tweaker! Though I felt highly alert, I was unable to concentrate because everything went 100 miles per hour, so I didn't catch the information passage information during verbal reasoning practice. It severely shot my verbal reasoning practice score way down. It's not something you want.

Sometimes, the symptoms of ADHD could derive from external factors, such as stress, lack of sleep, poor diet, etc, but mine was a combination of all those added with a high intact of caffeine. I'm glad I don't have ADHD, but please don't ever crack open a DSM-V and self-diagnose yourself. Don't just talk to your doctor, ASK QUESTIONS! Ask her, "If I was ADHD, how would I know for sure?" "If you really suspect ADHD, is there possible an alternative cause to my behavior." Whatever you do, don't ask questions that would lead her into prescribing you anything close to adderal. Listen, if you could make it this far in reading my reply, then I doubt you're ADHD.

I had a roommate with ADHD. His long term use of Adderal,Ritalin, Vyvanse, definitely made him socially awkward, aggressive, provocative, uncouth, unhygienic, and overall a terrible person. I don't blame him.
I really hope many of you will decide to wean off that medication and hopefully soon.

As of right now, my head is still spinning from the aftermaths of taking adderall from yesterday. I absolutely HATE that drug and wish everyone else would too. I disposed the rest of the pills properly. Please find alternatives to your ADHD symptoms. Cognitive Behavior Therapy (without medication) can be a long journey but the benefits are worthwhile. As far as I'm concerned, Adderal and its ilk is just a short term means to no ends.

Stay healthy. I know there's some typos or errors on here, but I wrote this with a headache.
- See more at: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...-meds-for-ad-h-d.301565/#sthash.VBLKN3gC.dpuf

 

[getintodentalschool]

Do it. If athletes use steroids to get to pro level, we should be able to use stimulants to get to where we want to get

 

[Cello]

There are other non-medicinal ways to enhance your concentration and cognitive abilities and unlike drugs they are not unethical.

 

[the4thmolar]

I have used adderall during my 3rd year of undergrad and I strongly recommend everyone to not use it. My grades did not significantly increase.. it just motivated me to cram rather than study continuously. The bad thing was that after deciding to stop using it at the end of the year(due to the fact that it gave me diarrhea, abdominal pain, acne, and that it is unethical, AND the fear of being dependent on it) I realized that I could no longer concentrate effectively. My grades plummeted during the first term of my 4th year and through really hard work during the second term I was able to bring up my grades a bit. What happened to me in 4th year actually made me stay one more year in undergrad so that I could bring my grades up and apply to dental schools.

Don't think of adderall as "cheating". Everyone cheats. Something being unethical rarely stops people from doing it when it seems like it will help them without consequences.
Treat adderall like cocaine, heroine or any other drugs you know. You think you are strong enough to not become dependent on it but that's not true. It will bring you more BAD than GOOD.

Who cares if people get into dental school/med school by taking tons of adderall. They will face the consequences later like I did in my 4th year. Also the longer you take, the worse it is.

So for those of you thinking of taking it, don't make the mistake I made.
Those who have friends who are taking it.. be a good friend and advocate them not to take it. This is what you'll do as a health care practitioner later anyways.
For those who are taking it, get off of it as fast as you can. It will ruin you in long term.

 

[SRTfour]

I take adderall and have for three years now. I was diagnosed with ADHD when I was younger but thought I would be fine without it, that changed during undergrad. With ADHD, the amount of energy I had while trying to study made it impossible to focus for more than 10 minutes. To get a task done that would take anyone else 20 minutes, wound up taking me hours.

If you don't actually have ADHD or ADD you will be overwhelmed by the effects, as it simply balances out neurotransmitters in those with ADHD to a normal level.

My GPA went from a 3.2 to a 3.9 in one semester.

My recommendation is to decide for yourself how bad your ADD/ADHD really is and go from there, keep in mind that only people with bad experiences will be posting them here. Also, keep the amount you take as low as possible. I've been taking 10mg daily and have been fine with no noticeable side effects, besides the occasional grumpiness (which I would have even if i wasn't on adderall). The mindset of a lot of people posting about adderall is very skewed and does not represent the majority of users as a whole.

Oh, and the whole "natural" debate... with that logic mercury and lead are great for you, they are natural and organic!

 

[getintodentalschool]

my gpa went from a 4.0 to a 4.0 by taking ads couple times a semester when i really needed to study, and the rest of the time I just enjoyed my time with ADHD.

 

[doc4kids93]

Until you actually understand that ADHD is an actual DISABILITY, not a made-up term for lazy people. For people who really do have ADHD, it's nearly impossible to concentrate for a long period of time. You read passages, but your mind isn't there, and you realize you were daydreaming. It's very frustrating.

In these cases, I don't think adderall is cheating if a person is struggling with something they have no real control over (inability to focus can sometimes be due to a real chemical imbalance).

If you're able to concentrate like a normal person and you're taking adderall, yes it's cheating.


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[2th_fairy2016]

Until you actually understand that ADHD is an actual DISABILITY, not a made-up term for lazy people. For people who really do have ADHD, it's nearly impossible to concentrate for a long period of time. You read passages, but your mind isn't there, and you realize you were daydreaming. It's very frustrating.

In these cases, I don't think adderall is cheating if a person is struggling with something they have no real control over (inability to focus can sometimes be due to a real chemical imbalance).

If you're able to concentrate like a normal person and you're taking adderall, yes it's cheating.


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Seriously? This is from 2 years ago lol Get out of here pre-med

 

[JLT223]

In these cases, I don't think adderall is cheating if a person is struggling with something they have no real control over (inability to focus can sometimes be due to a real chemical imbalance).

Duh?

 

[Likkriue]

Seriously? This is from 2 years ago lol Get out of here pre-med

Take it easy bro! He's just trying to farm his post count.