ADHD stimulant meds-Dishonest performance enhancer or useful tool for students?

www.westernu.edu/pharmacy/
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All4MyDaughter said:
I like my new avatar. :love:
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Can't seem to get it right I am afraid. It's a step up for sure. I really thought you would like the potted badies from way back when, I guess not huh?
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owlegrad said:
Thanks for the encouragement friend! I have heard about this P90X business (on SDN I think, a sign I am on here too much?), is that a good place to start? Isn't it expensive? I guess I could google it, but I would appreciate it if you would share your insight on the matter.
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P90X was my first workout routine, and honestly it was very hard. The trainer has a saying; "Do your best and forget the rest." and that is exactly what I did.

It does take a lot of commitment, about an hour to an hour and a half a day 6 days a week for 12 weeks. After finishing a workout I feel amazing! What I liked the most about it is no one could see me struggling to do push ups in my own home.

It's not too expensive, depending where you buy it $100 to $200. I have heard some people say they downloaded the videos as well, but then they didn't receive the nutrition plan, which is very important in my opinion. Good luck with what you decide, you won't regret it!
 
All4MyDaughter said:
Did I miss some cute babies somewhere? Am I having a senior moment?
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I think it was in the offtopic. Here for your convenience. You can't tell here, but all the signs have the prices for various potted babies.

2300-8256.jpg
 
cjflahave said:
P90X was my first workout routine, and honestly it was very hard. The trainer has a saying; "Do your best and forget the rest." and that is exactly what I did.

It does take a lot of commitment, about an hour to an hour and a half a day 6 days a week for 12 weeks. After finishing a workout I feel amazing! What I liked the most about it is no one could see me struggling to do push ups in my own home.

It's not too expensive, depending where you buy it $100 to $200. I have heard some people say they downloaded the videos as well, but then they didn't receive the nutrition plan, which is very important in my opinion. Good luck with what you decide, you won't regret it!
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Thanks!
 
I'm addicted to cold turkey. And when I tell people I'm quitting cold turkey, they ask what I'm quiting. And I'm like I'm freaking quitting cold turkey -Zach Galfianakis
(^ in regards to addiction)



I'll take a B "clean"
Then run the risk of an A with a " mental performance enhancer."

Just takes one time to get busted and it be put on your record and every application (job, school, whatever) you have to go through the hassle of explaining your a big fat cheater. No arguing that.
 
All4MyDaughter said:
Do you have your current avatar saved somewhere? Just in case I decide to haxor you tonight before I fall asleep?
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Yup!

Not that I can condone that kind of behaviour mind you. Alright it's bedtime, I should have been asleep an hour ago.
 
bwg08 said:
I'm addicted to cold turkey. And when I tell people I'm quitting cold turkey, they ask what I'm quiting. And I'm like I'm freaking quitting cold turkey -Zach Galfianakis
(^ in regards to addiction)



I'll take a B "clean"
Then run the risk of an A with a " mental performance enhancer."

Just takes one time to get busted and it be put on your record and every application (job, school, whatever) you have to go through the hassle of explaining your a big fat cheater. No arguing that.
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Hilarious quote!

How do you get caught taking a prescribed medication?
 
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owlegrad said:
Hilarious quote!

How do you get caught taking a prescribed medication?
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People who "have" this disorder go and sell their meds to kids for an outrageous price per pill
 
Okay so I knew this kid that took adderall this one time *ahem ahem*

And he had the hardest time studying b/c... well... sure, it made him focus... but it made him focus on the WRONG things... like cleaning up his freaking house and organizing his online music collection! wth!
 
Day 1 without caffeine:

No issues thus far, but I'm typically not a morning coffee/coke drinker. I tend to do my damage at lunchtime, which is forthcoming. I do have a mild headache, but I'm going to pretend it's because I'm listening to my iPod too loud.

More to follow.
 
All4MyDaughter said:
I think the use of ADHD meds to enhance academic performance (in a patient without a legit diagnosis) is pretty much exactly the same thing as the use of anabolic steroids by athletes. I don't see much difference. :shrug:
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I have no problem with either. It shouldn't be about what you can be by yourself. It should be what you, modern science, and cascades of neurotransmitters can do. :thumbup:
 
All4MyDaughter said:
Isn't it cute? :love:

My husband saw me fooling with the picture today and grumpily said, "Stop looking at that; we aren't getting a hamster!" :laugh:
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I really need to learn my rodents. I thought it was a rat. :laugh:

I am going to leave it up for today in the spirit of things, but I have a good one for tomorrow.
 
owlegrad said:
I really need to learn my rodents. I thought it was a rat. :laugh:

I am going to leave it up for today in the spirit of things, but I have a good one for tomorrow.
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Do you see a scary long yucky tail?? NO RAT!!!

Look closely at the picture and how it seems he's holding the gun at the bottom with his little tail. Although I'm not TOTALLY sure that's his tail. It could be *cough cough* something else! :scared:
 
All4MyDaughter said:
Do you see a scary long yucky tail?? NO RAT!!!

Look closely at the picture and how it seems he's holding the gun at the bottom with his little tail. Although I'm not TOTALLY sure that's his tail. It could be *cough cough* something else! :scared:
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Well at least we can be sure he is a male member of the rodent family.
 
So I just started reading this topic so a quick question. Doesn't exedrin have caffeine in it? So wouldn't you quitting caffeine and treating the headaches with exedrin actually be feeding the habit you are trying to quit?

I just thought that was amusing...

Glad to see not much else has changed. ^^
 
Jabberwocky12 said:
So I just started reading this topic so a quick question. Doesn't exedrin have caffeine in it? So wouldn't you quitting caffeine and treating the headaches with exedrin actually be feeding the habit you are trying to quit?

I just thought that was amusing...

Glad to see not much else has changed. ^^
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That's why I thought it was clever! I wasn't really trying to quit caffiene so much though as I was trying to quit soda. But I figure in for a penny in for a pound. Glad I did too - I hate how much power it had over me. Now I drink water or juice. Or crystal light, some of those are pretty good.
 
Quitting soda in the short term is the easy part. You get headaches for a bit at first and maybe feel tired but then that goes away pretty quickly. The problem is the cravings. Some cue will set you off and you'll just want one. Then you end up drinking one because you figure what is the harm with just one. Then gradually you start drinking more and more until you are back to where you started.

I tried several times to quit and it never worked. Finally, I decided to treat soda like an alcoholic would treat alcohol even though I never intended to give it up for my whole life. I decided that I wouldn't drink a single drop for a year. After that, I would drink it on rare occasions. If I found myself drinking it on a regular basis, I'd give it up completely again.

I made it through the whole year and I'm in the rare occasion phase. The cravings are gone for the most part and I don't feel like I need to drink them anymore though it is nice to have one once in awhile. The first part of the year when I didn't drink at all was hard though. Soda is everywhere when you start having those cravings. My classmates would be drinking them right next to me and the vending machine is right in the lunch room. It took a lot of willpower to get through it. Good luck to anyone trying to quit.
 
Day 2 without caffeine:

I've had a persistent, dull headache since yesterday. I feel a bit more tired than usual as well. When I got home yesterday I took a nap, which is fairly unusual. So the physical side effects of "caffeine withdrawal" are noticeable, but just annoying more than anything. More annoying is the fact that it messes with my routines. I'm really used to having some type of caffeinated beverage with lunch if I'm out (on campus, at work, etc.). I think that, like diastole mentioned, overcoming the cues that make you want it (for me, I had just finished an exam yesterday AND it was lunchtime, both cues calling for a reward of caffeine) will be more difficult than the physical withdrawal.
 
As a side note to all of this - and I am not making this up at all - the WVU school of pharmacy actually MADE me go to the student health psychiatrist and get evaluated for ADHD. And they didn't let me go back on rotations until I was on Adderall.
 
R2pharmD2 said:
Day 2 without caffeine:

I've had a persistent, dull headache since yesterday. I feel a bit more tired than usual as well. When I got home yesterday I took a nap, which is fairly unusual. So the physical side effects of "caffeine withdrawal" are noticeable, but just annoying more than anything. More annoying is the fact that it messes with my routines. I'm really used to having some type of caffeinated beverage with lunch if I'm out (on campus, at work, etc.). I think that, like diastole mentioned, overcoming the cues that make you want it (for me, I had just finished an exam yesterday AND it was lunchtime, both cues calling for a reward of caffeine) will be more difficult than the physical withdrawal.
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I usually go through 8-10 cans of Coke Zero a day...and reading this just made me realize that I've gone 3 days without caffeine, too. Powerade Zero was on sale for $0.50 a bottle and I went buck wild on it. The grape is freaking awesome.

I'm not feeling anything, though...caffeine doesn't make me hyper as hell, though. I got neurotransmitter problems, apparently...fml...
 
WVUPharm2007 said:
I usually go through 8-10 cans of Coke Zero a day...and reading this just made me realize that I've gone 3 days without caffeine, too. Powerade Zero was on sale for $0.50 a bottle and I went buck wild on it. The grape is freaking awesome.

I'm not feeling anything, though...caffeine doesn't make me hyper as hell, though. I got neurotransmitter problems, apparently...fml...
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Caffeine doesn't work for me either. I can consume 600mg of caffeine gum and nothing... besides the diuretic effect :eek:
 
VeraShield said:
Caffeine doesn't work for me either. I can consume 600mg of caffeine gum and nothing... besides the diuretic effect :eek:
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What? In one dose? If so, something is seriously wrong. My caffeine addiction starting when I first started bodybuilding and taking NO-Xplode (look it up).

Took it only before workouts. Then started taking it to stay up for all-nighters. Then started taking it to wake up in the morning. And the rest is history...
 
R2pharmD2 said:
Day 2 without caffeine:

I've had a persistent, dull headache since yesterday. I feel a bit more tired than usual as well. When I got home yesterday I took a nap, which is fairly unusual. So the physical side effects of "caffeine withdrawal" are noticeable, but just annoying more than anything. More annoying is the fact that it messes with my routines. I'm really used to having some type of caffeinated beverage with lunch if I'm out (on campus, at work, etc.). I think that, like diastole mentioned, overcoming the cues that make you want it (for me, I had just finished an exam yesterday AND it was lunchtime, both cues calling for a reward of caffeine) will be more difficult than the physical withdrawal.
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Keep it up buddy! It gets harder, than easier, then (according to diastole, hasn't happened to me, yet) it gets harder again. :laugh:

Speaking of diastole, you are exactly where I want to be. It's not that I never want to drink another soda, I simply want to be in control of it. Soda at a movie? Sure, why not ($7.50 price aside)? 4 sodas a day or else I get a headache/can't function, no. So far it ain't so bad after the first week, except like you say it is everywhere. I can't go to school, eat, work, watch TV, hang out, etc. without seeing soda somewhere. Sleep is about my only reprieve.

My triggers haven't been so bad yet. One unexpected side effect I have noticed is that several places want to sell you water instead of giving it to you. I can't bring myself to buy a bottle of water for more than the price of a fountain soda, so I either have to remember to bring my own water from home (filtered, not bottled) or I am faced with a dilemma. On the other hand, I suspect I am saving hundreds of dollars per year in soda costs, so yeah me!
 
wow... how appropriate. I am experience some pain/discomfort in my joints. I'm definitely not ruling out the chronic caffeine ingestion.
 
I think cocaine is a better alternative 0_o
 
Lots of interesting conversations in this thread.

I love coffee; I can't imagine giving it up, though I suppose I could if I absolutely had to. I can't drink it too late at night or I'll never get to sleep, but it's wonderful in the morning. Makes me feel like this: :), even when I hate mornings. It's also nice to get a cup of drip coffee and set up to study at the local coffee shop. I love that being a coffee drinker means I have a great excuse to study at coffee shops, which are often open late, anyway. I've never been a pop person; just sparkling water (a great pop substitute, if you're looking for one).

I think, as people trying to get into pharmacy school (or already practicing), it would be wise to avoid taking anything that could get you in trouble or cause you to lose your license. Whether you agree or not that ADHD drugs could be a helpful study aid for people without ADHD doesn't change the fact that they could also cause you major legal troubles if you take them when they aren't prescribed for you. Then again, I've always been a stickler for rules.
 
Alright, I am going to show my naivety here. Is taking Adderall without a prescription for the purposes for studying common? I didn't think it was hard to get a "valid" prescription for such, am I miss-informed?
 
owlegrad said:
Alright, I am going to show my naivety here. Is taking Adderall without a prescription for the purposes for studying common? I didn't think it was hard to get a "valid" prescription for such, am I miss-informed?
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I've definitely met people who did, though I haven't heard of anybody doing this for a long time now (like, since ADHD drugs were kind of new, still).
 
pharmschooler said:
I've definitely met people who did, though I haven't heard of anybody doing this for a long time now (like, since ADHD drugs were kind of new, still).
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I knew more people who did it in undergrad classes (when I went back to do my prereqs) than people who are doing it now in pharmacy school. But it may be that pharmacy students just aren't stupid enough to brag about it publicly. :laugh:
 
What about the high "sugar" concentration aspect of the soda/coke/cola?

As a stimulant, I find caffeine to be very poor. As a diuretic, I find it acceptable in addition to tremors if too much is present.

Way back when, just before a final exam, I stayed up all night (my first time). I drank tea, went to the store and purchased no-doze (followed directions), went to my exam, purchased a snickers and Pepsi before I went in. Could not sit still during the exam (toe-tapped War and Piece in morse code in less than an hour), took another exam a couple hours later, which I did not remember anything past getting the test, made my way home and slept from approximately 1 PM until the next morning.

I know, cool story bro... However, I never felt it gave me any real benefit. So never took caffeine pills again.

High fructose corn syrup. Now there is a major problem.
 
rxlea said:
Misusing adderall (and ritalin, provigil, et. al) is more common than you think.
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But do more people get it "off the street" or from a presciber? I don't know why the distiction means so much to me, but it does. One is diversion, the other is just off label use. Well, I guess I do know why it means so much to me. :laugh:
 
owlegrad said:
But do more people get it "off the street" or from a presciber? I don't know why the distiction means so much to me, but it does. One is diversion, the other is just off label use. Well, I guess I do know why it means so much to me. :laugh:
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Maybe because one is legal and one is not? Because one can torpedo your career and the other only kind of endangers your health?

I know some people who use their legally prescribed stimulants in a manner other than the doctor intended. But I don't currently know anyone obtaining it illegally and I don't know any dealers. In the past, I knew both.
 
All4MyDaughter said:
Maybe because one is legal and one is not? Because one can torpedo your career and the other only kind of endangers your health?

I know some people who use their legally prescribed stimulants in a manner other than the doctor intended. But I don't currently know anyone obtaining it illegally and I don't know any dealers. In the past, I knew both.
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Correct. ;)
 
All4MyDaughter said:
Maybe because one is legal and one is not? Because one can torpedo your career and the other only kind of endangers your health?

I know some people who use their legally prescribed stimulants in a manner other than the doctor intended. But I don't currently know anyone obtaining it illegally and I don't know any dealers. In the past, I knew both.
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This.

It just isn't worth it to screw your career to stay up all night for one A on a test... seriously.

My doc was very explicit about how/when to use my medication. I am glad I am sticking to her plan! Seriously, I don't want to end up a "crack head"
 
2411t said:
Okay so I knew this kid that took adderall this one time *ahem ahem*

And he had the hardest time studying b/c... well... sure, it made him focus... but it made him focus on the WRONG things... like cleaning up his freaking house and organizing his online music collection! wth!
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:laugh: My dad has ADHD and his doctor always warns his about this apparent phenomena, but that doesn't happen to him. I think people who are down towards the more "severe" end of the attention deficit spectrum probably get the most benefits from the medication without other side effects... lol

Also... I think it's more common for students in undergrad to do it the illegal way and take things that aren't prescribed to them, but in my opinion it seems there there is actually a higher percentage of professional students who use sympathiomemetic medication; they're just smarter about it and get a prescription. Does it give people an advantage over students who chose not to do it... sure it probably does, but that's just the way it is. I don't think it's any of my business what my classmates do when they legally visit their doctors and get a prescription based on the doctor's professional judgement.
 
Day 3 without caffeine:

No noticeable side effects today. Maybe a mild headache this morning, but that could possibly be attributed to the previous night's alcohol intake :)

I was over at a friend's and he asked if I wanted a soda or a beer. Initially I said soda until I remembered my no caffeine obligations :laugh:
 
R2pharmD2 said:
Day 3 without caffeine:

No noticeable side effects today. Maybe a mild headache this morning, but that could possibly be attributed to the previous night's alcohol intake :)

I was over at a friend's and he asked if I wanted a soda or a beer. Initially I said soda until I remembered my no caffeine obligations :laugh:
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Ah yes, the sacrafices we make in the name of research.:laugh:
 
End of week without caffeine:

I was unreasonably excited to get my first coffee in a week today. My week without caffeine has taught me that, while the physical symptoms of withdrawal were very mild (at least in my case), the psychological part was definitely tougher to deal with. I think it was easier to give it up for a week knowing I'd regain my caffeine privileges than it would have been to give up or dramatically limit my caffeine intake permanently. So I'd say it was a bit tougher than I expected, but still doable without majorly impacting my life.

More addicting than Adderall? I'd still say probably not. Any volunteers willing to give up their Adderall for a week in the name of science though? :laugh:
 
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