Okay, so i've always been a slacker, and my parents won't let me take ADD medecine, although I've been diagnosed with ADD before.
for as long as I can remember.Until Today. For the last month or so, I've been trying to get an appointment with my familys' preferred pyschiatrist. The actual appointment is october 7th, due to extremely bad . Ive been going crazy, because my grades are plumetting, and I can't get my work done. So I had two assignments, both math(my worst subject) related. One was due yesterday, one was due today, and i hadn't done either of them. this was.. 8 this morning. So I had an idea, my friend takes adderall, and I knew it would help me get my work done, but I'd never taken it before. He brought me three 10mg Adderall IRs, which I took before second period. During third period, I got both math assignments done, all while participating in class. Then, at lunch, I went to the math room, got the assignment that was assigned today, which is due tomorrow, and did it. Then from there I went to physics, Where I did all the work in less than 10 minutes. doing all the work from math also helped me finish a quiz we had during that class, without almost any effort.


I'm not stupid, and I know this can help me, but I can't explain to my mother how much this changed my outlook on life, because she'd FREAK out that I was taking somebody elses perscription medicine.

I'm reluctant to wait until the 7th for my appointment, because I'm sure they'll try to give me strattera, which everyone I know says doesn't work.

Any thoughts?

I moved your post to the Adderal section- you'll probably have better luck with answers here.

That's great to hear that you're doing good on Adderal :) I would say wait until the 7th for now, and then tell your psychiatrist you tried Adderal once. They make a promise to you not to tell your parents unless you're hurting yourself or commiting suicide, right? That's how it worked when I went to counseling.

Good luck with the meds!

P.S- welcome to the forums! :D

welcome to ADDF, finallyme!

first off, please don't ever take someone elses prescription. it's illegal and can get you into trouble. second, we condone that at ADDF. Specifically in this post: http://www.addforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25108

I understand you are frustrated, but it's not your prescription.



OK - that being said .. i'll get to your post.
why won't your parents want you take ADHD meds?

Strattera works for some people, so if that's what you are prescribed, then give it a try. it can't hurt to try. you never know it may just work for you :)

If i were you, before your appointment, I'd make a list of things that are difficult for you. Also, research your (medication) options and present it to your doc.
We have great med forums http://www.addforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=18

being informed can help you assist your doc in making a med decision.

Meds definitely help, but also you need to work on your coping skills because meds aren't a cure and don't help with all the ADHD traits.

Homework is difficult to do because it's boring, but you need to make sure you get it done. You can't count on meds to help you all the time. Again, meds do help, but i'm guessing it's not that you can't get your homework done - you just don't do it. you didn't do it because of procrastination? With meds you still can procrastinate. Which, again, why it's important to learn coping skills.

I've been there. School was so hard for me, pre-diagnosis. Again, meds do help, helped me SO much, but meds aren't everything. Even with meds, I still had to work harder than most everyone in my class.

Sorry to harp, but i just don't want you thinking that ADHD meds will automatically fix everything.

In the mean time, get your studying/homework done.

When I was in school I had to study before turning on the TV or computer or anything fun. Often times I gave myself time limits. I'd study for 1/2 hour, take a 15 minute break, study 1/2 hour, 15 minute break = i kept with that cycle (using a timer) until all homework/studying was done.

good luck! please let us know how your appointment went!

Strattera works for a lot of people. It worked for me until bad side effects forced me to stop taking it.

Sometimes a medication works for one person but not another. It varies a bit from person to person.

IF your doc puts you on strattera take it exactly as the doctor tells you. If you increase the dose too soon you run a risk of having bad side effects.

Me :D

Okay, so i've always been a slacker, and my parents won't let me take ADD medecine, although I've been diagnosed with ADD before.
for as long as I can remember.Until Today. For the last month or so, I've been trying to get an appointment with my familys' preferred pyschiatrist. The actual appointment is october 7th, due to extremely bad . Ive been going crazy, because my grades are plumetting, and I can't get my work done. So I had two assignments, both math(my worst subject) related. One was due yesterday, one was due today, and i hadn't done either of them. this was.. 8 this morning. So I had an idea, my friend takes adderall, and I knew it would help me get my work done, but I'd never taken it before. He brought me three 10mg Adderall IRs, which I took before second period. During third period, I got both math assignments done, all while participating in class. Then, at lunch, I went to the math room, got the assignment that was assigned today, which is due tomorrow, and did it. Then from there I went to physics, Where I did all the work in less than 10 minutes. doing all the work from math also helped me finish a quiz we had during that class, without almost any effort.


I'm not stupid, and I know this can help me, but I can't explain to my mother how much this changed my outlook on life, because she'd FREAK out that I was taking somebody elses perscription medicine.

I'm reluctant to wait until the 7th for my appointment, because I'm sure they'll try to give me strattera, which everyone I know says doesn't work.

Any thoughts?

My advice, from experience, is don't get hung up on the fact that you "need" one specific medication. Talk to the doctor and get guidance from him, and give whatever he suggests a go. It might be adderall or it might not. If it doesn't work, you can try others.

It's great that you're are getting an appointment, and Oct 7th is relatively soon, so I'd say just sit tight, then talk honestly with the doctor and see what he says. You already know how very, very dangerous it is to take someone else's meds, so I won't reiterate that point. :p

Good luck, and I hope you find something that works for you!

Thanks everyone, I'll try to just relax. Honestly, I've tried the giving myself time limits thing, but I'm just a terrible procrastinator.

And yeah, I know I'm not supposed to take others perscriptions, since its dangerous/illegal/etc, but I'd go as far as to say that it saved me from losing my mind, so I'm pretty positive about the whole thing.


Me

we condone that at ADDF
You mean we don't condone it. Sorry. It was bothering me. I say you know meds will help but at the same time you know what you need to work on. I'm happy you found something that works. I wouldn't tell the doc u tried someone else's pe rscription. Iheard they refuse patients because of it. But tell him you did some "research". But you should actually do some incase he asks what u like about it.

Go to your School's Disability Office?