I was just prescribed adderall for Adult Add and I am not sure what I am supposed to be feeling.

I started taking it on the 22nd. I am taking 20mg IR two times a day and since I started it I have been really really calm almost to calm. I mean I am just really relaxed, almost a euphoria feeling.

The other day I was studying for an exam, although I was able to read with out any distraction, something I have never really been able to do. I almost felt like a zombie. Just reading for the sake of reading and not really retaining the material. It's like I have no personality or something.

**Background: I was diagnosed with ADD when I was about 15, however was never really prescribed medication, due to the fact that my mother was against it.

I managed to get through high school, I think it had a lot to do with my girlfriend at the time who was very supportive.

I continued on to college, and was able to get through with a good gpa 3.4 and only getting 2 c's in two course I just really hated.

I have always been the type to put things off to the last minute and have always had a really hard time reading and staying focused. How I have managed to get this far is amazing. I think it was a lot of rote memorization, and cramming before tests.

Now that I have begun grad school, I have found that what got me through high school and college isn't going to cut it for grad school. So deciding to take control of my life I went to my doctor, and explain my life story. He decided to then prescribe me adderall to hopefully help with my Adult Add.

Hi Tech Guy!
If you're feeling calm and can read (and retain) that's GOOD. And it should get better as the weeks go by. The "zombie" effect seems pretty natural in the beginning, although if it doesn't disappear, I would ask for an increase, XR with IR boosts, or perhaps try a different med.
I started on Adderall XR 20 MG about 2 1/2 months ago, increased to 30MG six weeks ago. For the first three weeks I really didn't really "feel" it, so I know what you are experiencing, I think. I hyperfocused much worse than usual (on the 'Net until 2:00 or 3:00 am) even though I took the Adderall early in the AM. For me, it takes forever to start working and lasts MUCH longer than 9 hours, although it stops completely in the afternoon, so maybe I should subtract those hours. ;)
Finally, after taking Adderall for 3 weeks or so, the p-doc (after I begged and pleaded) added two 5 MG "boosts" of d-amp, one in the AM and one in early afternoon. Wish I could say they have helped, bu they seem like placebos. Manufactured by CoPharm if anyone knows of them, supposedly generic for Adderall.
After going up to 30 MG XR, I noticed that I was focusing somewhat on the right things (though not nearly as much as I should) and feeling a bit "perkier' than usual. My mornings have been more productive than, but afternoons are just bummers.
I wish I could say that I could sit calmly with a book and read. Reading has always been an anchor in my life and I cannot get past the same page, which I tend to read and reread without realizing it until about the tenth time.
With the Add XR, I feel a real crash -- and become very tired -- between 3:00/4:00 and 6:00, then the XR again kicks in, but during the second "kick" (not the best choice of words), I feel no physical energy boost -- just zombielike or as in a trance. I usually head to the computer and hyperfocus the rest of the night and on into the mornings on nothing at all worthwhile.
Adderall has given me no trouble sleeping; actually, I have trouble waking up in the AM. Have to set my alarm to take my XR at least two hours before needing to wake up in order to be wide awake and out of the house as needed.
As I mentioned earlier, I asked my p-doc (who is a nurse practitioner) for a couple of 5 mg boosts, one in the AM, one in early afternoon. She RELUCTANTLY agreed. I've been prescribed Dex Spans and reg Dex in the past and did much better. When I mention Dex to her, she gets very uptight and says that she "doesn't like to mix meds." If she switched me to all Dex, she wouldn't be "mixing," but I hate to push for fear of sounding like I'm "looking for drugs."
I've had a VERY hard time finding anyone to prescribe anything for adult ADD here in the central part of Indiana, so I guess I should be thankful for what I'm getting, but I am either underdosed or need to be back on Dex.
Have also noticed the Adderall gives me a moderate to severe stomach ache, one of the not-unusual side effects. Hate to mention this to the p-doc for fear she will try tossing me back onto Rit or one its' cousins, which never worked for me at all.
Does anyone know which -- Adderall or Dex or Desoxyn -- has the LEAST adverse side effects (such as the stomach thing, heart problems, etc.)?? My doc is scared to death of heart-related problems, and I think that's why she is so conservative with the Adderall XR. If I were getting 60 MG a day instead of 30, I'm sure I would be more normal and productive.
I've also noticed I've had moments (not many) when I've felt depressed and on Sunday just went into a crying jag. It stopped after a couple of hours and I felt fine again. Conversely, I've noticed I can become aggravated much easier than before going back on Adderall.
When I was a child they were not yet using the term ADHD, and I was diagnosed as "hyperkinetic." By the time I was 12, they were calling it ADHD and noted mine was primarily the Inattentive Type. Between 5 and 12, I was very hyper, but the hyperactivity had slowed down by 12. However, also by 12, I was often "misbehaving," and so the doctor added "conduct disorder" to the ADHD. I thought the conduct problem would go away with age -- mine should have gone away decades ago -- but since I've been pulled off huge dosages of Prozac after 12 years and am back on ADD meds, I not only feel more normal, but I find myself having FEELINGS that the antidepressants simply kept masked. I hate to talk to my therapist about this. I am seeing this one for the first time today. Fourth therapist in a year (not my fault ;). I just fear he will get with my doc and she will want to prescribe antidepressants.
BTW, when I found myself in the crying jag on Sunday, it was the first time in six or seven years that I have even cried at all -- and was because one of my cats is in liver failure and is going to have to be put down. So there was a reason ... not just crying for the sake of crying.
Hope this helps someone who may be experiencing similar problems and if anyone has any suggestions for me, any and all are most appreciated. Cate
Cate

Sounds like the way I felt when I was first tweaking my dose. Try taking less and see if you feel less zombified. 20mg is kind of a high starting dose anyway. Most doctors usually start at 10mg and work their way up from there.