ta_339393

Methamphetamine is an ADHD drug. I take it for my ADHD, with a legal prescription of course.

Ironically it's the most subtle and gentle of all the ADHD stimulants, at least at therapeutic doses. It has a bad reputation because of the abuse of illicitly manufactured meth available on the black market but it's completely unwarranted.

I asked my psychiatrist about it after doing a lot of research on my own.

I have tried all the other ADHD stimulants and formulations but it wasn't that none of them worked for me or that I required a high dose (I take what is considered an average therapeutic dose).

If you think meth is way more potent than dextroamphetamine, you'd be in for a big surprise. Meth is a very subtle and gentle stimulant, so subtle I often forget I even took a stimulant. This is probably because of the lack of PNS stimulation at these low doses. It's also a little bit more effective than dex because of slightly higher CNS stimulation but the lack of side effects is probably the best feature of meth. It just feels really natural, hard to describe completely.

It is considered a second line medicine because it's thought to be more addictive but I can assure you this is completely unfounded and has to be due to the stigma created by illicit meth abuse. IMO, it is a superior medicine and should be a first line treatment for ADHD.

Metabolism plays a big role in determining the effective dose.

There are people who can take what are considered high therapeutic doses and feel very little effects because of the way their body metabolizes the chemical, which of course has nothing to do with whether they have ADHD or not.

Levoamphetamine is more active on the PNS, while not that active on the CNS, which causes more side effects but some people swear by it as being the best medicine. It made me feel anxious while pure dextroamphetmine did not.

However these days I take methamphetamine which feels more subtle and has even less side effects.

There are no negative effects on health by taking them at prescribed doses unless you already have an existing cardiac condition or something similar. You can safely take these drugs your entire life without complications.

There is a potential for abuse but studies have shown that people on stimulant therapy are LESS likely to abuse drugs, including stimulants.

Very good points.

They really make us jump through a lot of hoops just to get the medicine we need to live a somewhat normal life, all in the name of preventing drug abuse. I don't believe it actually does anything significant to prevent abuse, those who want to abuse drugs will always find a way.

There's so much of a stigma associated with low dose amphetamines and it's completely unfounded. I really noticed this when I switched from dextroamphetamine to methamphetamine (Desoxyn). Since my insurance wouldn't cover the brand name drug, I get the Mylan generic that says "METHAMPHETAMINE" on the label and I could really notice a difference in the way I was treated at the pharmacy. It was like they immediately assumed I was some dangerous drug addict. I'd try to be friendly with them and all I would get is really robotic responses.

It's ridiculous that they assume methamphetamine is this much more dangerous or addictive of a drug, it's not. In fact it's the best stimulant I have ever used. Way more effective than dextroamphetamine with fewer side effects.

Luckily I have a good psychiatrist that is setup to handle the monthly refills in a sane manor and doesn't treat me like a drug addict when I'm just looking to improve my life.

That's not true, I have ADHD and I still feel stimulated when I take my medicine just like anyone else would. The difference is that it also gives me symptom relief as well.

Over time you will develop more of a tolerance to these stimulating effects, at least to a degree, but the therapeutic benefits will continue for as long as you take them.

Perhaps I misunderstood your comment, you said that people with ADHD react differently and I was assuming you meant they do not respond in the same manor as someone else who just took a stimulant.

Often you hear this saying that people with ADHD feel relaxed when they take a stimulant and don't feel any increased energy or mood lift, which of course is false. That's what I was referring to.

There is, it's called Evekeo.

In the past (up until the 60s or 70s I believe), there was also a racemic mixture available on the market as well.

As one who takes methamphetamine (generic Desoxyn) for ADHD, I can't help but take issue with the sensationalism in this article.

If someone takes the same low dose I do but doesn't actually have ADHD, how could they be considered "cracked out?" simply because they are faking a diagnosis?

We know that low-dose amphetamines improve cognition in healthy individuals regardless of whether or not you have ADHD. We also know that amphetamines are very safe at therapeutic level doses and that you can take them your entire life without any problems. We also know that stimulant therapy actually reduces the chances of someone abusing drugs, even stimulants.

Why shouldn't all healthy people have a chance to reap the benefits from them? Why should you have to have a disability in order to be able to access the benefits from these drugs?

There's just no logic to the way society currently views stimulants. It's safe for me to use amphetamines to help with my ADHD symptoms but if someone without ADHD uses them in the same manor, then it's dangerous.

This is false and a common myth. If this was true then we would have the perfect test for ADHD, just give someone some stimulants and see how they react.

It does improve cognition in low doses with very little side effects and no real long term danger unless you already have a cardiac condition.

Also there have been studies that show that people on low-dose therapeutic amphetamines are less likely to abuse drugs, including stimulants.

Actually Adderall is not racemic, since that would mean a 50/50 mix of the dextrorotatory and levorotatory enantiomers. Adderall is 75% dextroamphetamine and 25% levoamphetamine in four different salts.

That is a myth, the effects are the same regardless of whether or not you have ADHD otherwise we'd be able to test for ADHD by simply giving someone amphetamines and seeing how they respond. Almost anyone who takes low-dose amphetamines will experience enhanced cognition. It just happens that this enhancement also alleviates symptoms of ADHD.

As you pointed out the problem with the article is that it makes no distinction between therapeutic low-dose usage and abuse level usage.

If you have never taken ADHD stimulants before then you might experience a little bit of euphoria the first few days of stimulant therapy, due to lack of tolerance, but I doubt it would be an impairment to driving.

Source: I've been taking methamphetamine (prescribed) for ADHD for quite some time. I experienced a little euphoria the first week when I initially started treatment on amphetamines but it was nothing even close to what I would consider impairment.