I have had my share of problems with these medications. The problem either being they did nothing to me, or it was so short lived I would have to constantly increase my dose. I've been on a higher dose of Adderall for a week and so far I am pleased.

My fear is now that I am finally satisfied with the results I am getting , it will all stop working soon like it did every other time in the past. I was reading that the maximum dose is 40 mg. I am not at 40mg...but I am close to that. I have only taken it for a month or so before I increased it to 30mg. If I need an increase in the future, this means I am out of luck past only 40mg? I don't think that is even fair being every single human body responds differently to medications. I genetically come from a family that has such a high tolerance to most medications.

Bottom line is I am thinking to myself "Why bother? I will be on this pill for a while until I'll inevitably need an increase. Then once that stops working I will have to go off of it and be back to square one." I know folks on antidepressants and they don't deal with this sort of thing. Once they find a dose that works for them, it lasts for a long time. My brother in law has been on the same dose of paxil for 5 years. With stimulants I feel like there will be constant increasing, then switch to another, then increase several times, then switch to another. Is this how it works with stimulants? I feel like I am just setting myself up to be let down. I want a permanent fix for my adhd. I want a steady pill that won't have to be increased a million times within a 6 month time span. Am I just thinking too negatively or is this the reality of stimulants?

40 mg isn't the maximum dose. I've been on 60 mg of Adderall IR per day, and I'm a small person. But I haven't needed an increase of Dex or Adderall, even though I was on the same dose of each for a few months. Instead of worrying so much, just take your meds as prescribed and see what happens. If you need an increase in a few months or years, then you can deal with it then. Usually, once you find the right dose, it works for a long time.

are you taking IR or XR?


The maximum recommended dosage is 60mgs IR (or 120mgs XR) per day.

You're not going to get a "permanent fix" because there isn't one (not right now, anyway).

I was on Adderall for about 8 years and for about 5-6 of those years was stable on 20mgs (IR) 2x a day (before that I took 20mgs in AM, and 10 mgs PM for 3-4 years). The only reason I had to switch to Strattera is because I also deal with high anxiety (stimulants and anxiety don't mix very well). Otherwise, i'd still be on Adderall.

What I'm getting at:
Not everyone develops tolerance. I suggest that you not think too far into the future and think about if your med is working for you today, if it worked for you yesterday.
When you notice it doesn't work as well, that's when you consider other meds or an increase, IMO. There are other meds you can try if Adderall doesn't work best with you.