Adderall and dexedrine together?

[Jetta]

Hi. I have recently begun taking adderall as the comedowns from dexedrine were interfereing with my work day and I was having difficulty figureing out when to take my dose for optimal benefit (my work schedule was shifting, so there was no "right" time that I could just remember for every day). Anyways, I have noticed that, while the adderall does help with some of my symptoms, it is of no help with others, like motivateing myself to get going. The dexedrine, on the other hand, was able to put the fire under my butt so I would take action on things that need to be done. It seems for me the two drugs would compliment each other, the adderall has helped me be able to maintain my attention which dexedrine didn't, and the dexedrine motivated me to take action to start those tasks I need to focus on where the adderall dosen't. This is especially true in the mornings, as I have great difficulty getting myself up and ready. I am better able to focus on getting ready for the day once I start, with the adderall. However, the dexedrine helped me to actually get started when I was on it.

I hope this is all making sense, if not just ask me to clarify. Anyways, because a bulk of my work problems came from my difficulty getting ready for the day in a timely manner, I was wondering if I should ask my doctor for a lower dose of dexedrine in the morning to take along with my adderall, as it seems if I were to combine the two all symptoms that throw a wrench into my getting ready for the day would be covered. But, I guess I am afraid that the doc will think this is crazy, as she would then have me on two potentially addictive amphetamines. Anyone else combine the two? Is there any scientific evidence either supporting or not supporting this notion? If I do ask her (my doc) I want to go in with as much information as possible to share with her, as sometimes this helps her to help me make the best decision. Any input is greatly appreciated.

[Andrew]

Hi Jetta.

Not all meds work the same, or have the same affect on everyone. What works for some, may not work for others. If, after you give it a chance, this med isn't for you, keep trying them until you find the correct mix of meds, dosage and frequency to match YOUR particular body's requirements.

Talk to your doctor about what you're feeling with this med, and have him/her work with you on dosage, frequency, and perhaps, a new med.

[Jetta]

Originally Posted by BIG

Hi Jetta.

Not all meds work the same, or have the same affect on everyone. What works for some, may not work for others. If, after you give it a chance, this med isn't for you, keep trying them until you find the correct mix of meds, dosage and frequency to match YOUR particular body's requirements.

Talk to your doctor about what you're feeling with this med, and have him/her work with you on dosage, frequency, and perhaps, a new med.

Hello Big and thanks for replying to my post. I know that meds are different for everyone, and I wasn't trying to use someone else's experiance to ultimately decide what is right for me. I guess I was just wondering if anyone, through personal experiance, knew if it was possible to combine the two or if in their experiance doctors frown upon that as it is, like I said, two different amphetamines. I was also wondering if anyone knew of any scientific articles/evidence about a combination of the two, whether findings were negative or not.

I do know that this will be a decision that is ultimately between me and my doc, fully agree with you on that. I just like to be well informed about what I'm suggesting to my doctor before I propse it, it saves both of us time if I can call her with "I think this will work because..." than if I just call with "I'm still having these symptoms and I don't know what to do". And so, I try to think about how I think the problem can be resolved before I make that call, and then we discuss my proposal (although my doctor has, historically, been willing to try what I propose may work). So I guess I was just looking for other information/ opinions/ frames of reference as I think about requesting this change myself.

Also, I guess what I'm trying to say is that it's not that I don't think adderall is for me, it helps with a number of my symptoms that dexedrine didn't. But, dexedrine helped with symptoms that adderall does not seem to be helping with. So it's like both drugs work, they just work on different componants of my ADHD, which is why I though a combination of the two may prove helpful. Then again, maybe I should give the adderall more time to see what is can fully do. Ah, I'm just thinking on the page now. But thanks once again for the advice, it is appreciated.

[Gregster]

Adderall and dexedrine are very similar, they are both amphetamines, which work in the same way - Dexedrine is dextroamphetamine, and Adderall contains dextroamphetamine - plus 3 other amphetamine salts that help make Adderall "smoother" than dexedrine - at least in theory - I haven't seen any studies that compare the two. So you wouldn't take Adderall and dexedrine together, unless you took half as much of each - but in practice, no (few) Dr's would do this - it'd be too easy to make a dosage mistake and take too much - and there would really be no point to it. I don't think you'll run into anyone who has taken them at the same time, at least not as prescribed by a doctor.
If the dexedrine works better for you, I'd think you'd want to stick to that, and maybe try an extended release version if the come down is too much?
Regards,
Greg

[Jetta]

It's not that I favor dexedrine, it's that dexedrine helped me with symptoms that adderall does not seem to be covering, and adderall is helping with symptoms that dexedrine did not. For example, dexedrine gave me that "jump start" to start doing nessasary tasks, however I still had difficulty finishing those tasks that I started. Adderall has helped me follow through once I begin a task if I can get myself started on it, but there is no "jump start" to begin the task in the first place. To sum it up, dexedrine helped with motivation, but not follow through, and adderal helps with follow through but not motivation. Does this make sense?

I know this may sound weird as both are amphetamines and they *should* effect my symptoms in similar ways. Maybe it is because adderall is smoother, no jump start to the day but a more mild crash later (if I "crash" at all). I guess perhaps I should try to decide which is better for me, being able to follow through on tasks, or being motivated to start tasks.

Thanks for the reply though, I thought that perhaps it might be considered unwise to mix the two, even at lower doses, but I was unsure and thought I'd ask if anyone else was more educated on the subject.


ps- I was on extended release dexedrine before, but since it only lasted about 8hrs in my system and I was working 14hr days, doseing was difficult. Esepcially when my shift varied and I had to try to accound for when the med would begin working and when I'd reach my low. I definately felt the highs (or point where I jumped up and started doing what I had to do for the day, as I never really felt "high") and lows much stronger on dexedrine

[imatotalmess]

hi.
I actually take adderall and dexedrine together so I figured I could add my 2 cents on the subject.

At first I was taking adderall alone and I really felt that it worked well, but it seemed to take awhile before it 'kicked in'. (well over an hour sometimes). So my doc prescribed dexedrine to replace some of the adderall, on the assumption that for many people, dexedrine is faster acting. The stronger initial kick of dexedrine might be what motivates you to get going when you take it.

In the morning instead of taking 15mg adderall, I take 10mg adderall + 5mg dexedrine. In the afternoon I just take my normal dose of adderall. I think Gregster smartly noted how the two meds are very similar, and that's why few people would take them together out of fear of taking too much. But if you keep the total dosage the same as if you take just one or the other, I bet you'd be ok. Of course talk to your doctor.

Take care!

[Jetta]

Originally Posted by imatotalmess

hi.
I actually take adderall and dexedrine together so I figured I could add my 2 cents on the subject.

At first I was taking adderall alone and I really felt that it worked well, but it seemed to take awhile before it 'kicked in'. (well over an hour sometimes). So my doc prescribed dexedrine to replace some of the adderall, on the assumption that for many people, dexedrine is faster acting. The stronger initial kick of dexedrine might be what motivates you to get going when you take it.

In the morning instead of taking 15mg adderall, I take 10mg adderall + 5mg dexedrine. In the afternoon I just take my normal dose of adderall. I think Gregster smartly noted how the two meds are very similar, and that's why few people would take them together out of fear of taking too much. But if you keep the total dosage the same as if you take just one or the other, I bet you'd be ok. Of course talk to your doctor.

Take care!

Thank you so much for this resonse! I think you are right that the dexedrine acted faster in my system, I definately felt more speedy when I was on it. Whcih is why I think I felt more motivated to get going on things that I wouldn normally ignore, but then I wouldn't finish them, because my brain still jumped from thing to thing and so I'd begin another tedious chore that needed to be done and that I needed extra motivation to do, but before I finished the last task. With the adderall I am much more able to calmly finish a task once I get started, but am lacking that motivation to get started. So thank you for letting me know that I am not alone in this feeling. For some reason I need that extra fast acting "kick", especially in the morning.

What you are doing sounds like it may work for me as well, although I do know all our bodies are different. I will discuss this possibility with my doctor during my next appointment. We're still working on finding the right adderal dose for me, and I want to be on the adderall for awhile before I go making any more changes. But if at the next appointment I am still having the same problems, I will definately bring this possability up.

Once again, thanks you so much for replying to my question!

[douglasbrooker]

Originally Posted by Jetta

It seems for me the two drugs would compliment each other, the adderall has helped me be able to maintain my attention which dexedrine didn't, and the dexedrine motivated me to take action to start those tasks I need to focus on where the adderall dosen't. This is especially true in the mornings, as I have great difficulty getting myself up and ready. I am better able to focus on getting ready for the day once I start, with the adderall. However, the dexedrine helped me to actually get started when I was on it.

I had an opportunity recently to have both 5mg dexedrine tablets and 30mg adderall xr caps. While adderall gives a general lift throughout the day, taking about 10mg of dex in the middle of it gives a smooth but definitely more pronounced effect in which you are more sharp and initiate things more confidently. In general I like dex the best. I think for me I may approach my doctor for a combo of dex spansules and dex tablets. I just like the effect of basic dex over everything else. And I've used everything.

[cualexander]

This is an interesting topic because I was about to write a thread on this subject. I am about to go back to my Doctor soon to get a new combination and I was wondering if anyone could offer some advice.

I currently take Adderall XR 25mg in the morning, and then a half of a 30mg generic Adderall in the afternoon and possibly another half later on if I have to do a lot of things. What if I changed to this combination though.

Adderall XR 15mg + Dex 10 mg in the mornings

Then supplement later on with Adderall generic as needed. Would that kick things off a little better for me? I seem to have problems getting things started on Adderall, and if Dex works a little better for this like people say, I might give it a shot. Dex is really cheap too right?

[douglasbrooker]

You might even want to just switch to dexedrine altogether, and get a combo of the 15mg dexedrine spansules, say 30 of them, and about 60 or 80 of the 5mg tablets, and play with that.

Dexedrine is about 150% stronger than adderall, mg per mg, so keep that in mind, but the effect is more or less the same.

Personally, I like the adderally xr as an all-day formulation. But I like dexedrine better as a single dose without time release. So maybe I'm weird, but I may hit my own doctor up for 30 30mg adderall XRs, and about 60 Dexedrine 5mg tabs. Right now I get 120 Dexedrine 5mg tabs a month, and basically that's enough.

It's fun to play with the different combos though.