What are side effects of Adderall XR?

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Adderall has a very bad rap but if you really need it then starting at small doses you may notice a bit of loss of appetite and trouble sleeping depending on when you take your dose. Everyone is different. I take 15 mg XR and it works wonderfully. The key to this medicine is taking the smallest dosage that will work. If you take too much you can have all kind of awful side effects such as anxiety, Nervousness, heart palpatations, headache and more. If this happens my dr said it means you are either taking too much or you do not have ADD. This is a very safe medication if not abused.

Your side effects will be largely based on your individual body chemistry. As some people have already suggested, it is highly addictive and can be easily abused. By the time I realized I couldn't function well enough in my high paced schedule without it to help me focus, I was in college and had been clean and sober for several years. I was prescribed 40mg a day but started at 20 to check it out. It made me more ADD then before, so I take 10mg a day when needed, typically on week days or when a lot is going on and it has not been habit forming. Though I do notice if I don't take it on a hectic day. Symptoms I experienced were insomnia (to be fair, have had problems in the past), loss of appetite, dehydration and high energy (hence the insomnia). Though I don't need to take it everyday, I have to be careful to take the one dose shortly after waking up because it lasts me almost the entire day and it is hard to mentally and physically wind down if you want to turn in early or anything. Again, it depends on your body chemistry, but I have known people who must take it with food or they get an upset stomach. I can't tell you from experience because I had a loss of appetite and lost a bunch of weight the first few months. You won't crash at the end of the day or if you suddenly stop taking it if you take the right dose for you. I suggest (talk to your doctor first) take very small doses, gradually increasing every couple of days to see which dose helps you the most. If you aren't taking too much for your body then you shouldn't have too many negative side effects. It's really helped me focus and I have a lot of demands and deadlines. Good luck and be careful

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The only one I have had so far is constipation. Other than that, it seems to be working....I am also taking Paxil at night.

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heart attack, strokes

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to me it was headache nausea but i cant take my Ritalin cause it don't work and if anybody tells you cant build a tolerance for Ritalin then they are wrong. i did and i became addicted to it because i would take so much of it and couple days ago i just stopped taking it !!!BAD IDEA!!!

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I am prescribed to 20mg of Adderall XR, but i will normally take 40 to 60 or sometimes a lot more (up to 250), or some of my mom's Ritalin LA. The major thing I notice when i take it is my loss of appetite, that is why a lot of girls like it. also at night when i come down from it, i have a really bad crash, mostly because I've been abusing it and mixing it with other meds (Seroquel, Lexapro, Zoloft) and pretty high doses. So when i crash, its like i have borderline personality disorder. all of my emotions are extremely sensitive and triggered by certain things. many times i will get depressed and suicide thoughts, other times i will get angry and pissed off over the smallest things (i.e. my parents tell me to do my homework) and i flip out. I love Adderall when I'm on it (right now) but i hate what it does to me after it wears off.

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Weight loss, heart racing, dry mouth are some of the side affects I have. I take 45mg per day for narcolepsy. The only other side affect I have is addiction to it. When I don't have it I sleep for hours and I just get that drunk feeling. It is an amphetamine which is the same thing as cocaine.

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First off, for the person that posted that they sometimes take 250mg of Adderall XR, there is NO WAY IN THIS WORLD YOU TOOK THAT MUCH!!! It's not possible. The dose they save for narcoleptic' is 125mg or so. You didn't take 250mg of Adderall. THATS A FACT! Now, I take 90mg daily in 30mg doses. Adderall XR. For the person that posted that amphetamine is just like cocaine, wrong! Adderall is in the same class as cocaine, it's a class 2 drug. Highly watched by the FDA. But it's similar to speed. If you don't have symptoms to knull the effect, it will be like taking speed. That is in part why it's highly abused, and half life is short. Meaning it leaves the system rather quickly. The side effects can range from irritability, upset stomach, constipation, weight loss, weight gain, ringing in the ears, bad taste in the mouth, diarrhea, increased heartbeat, increase in blood pressure, dizziness, leg cramps, muscle tension. It affects people differently, if you notice anything not normal for you. I would contact your doctor. Adderall is not a medication to be taken lightly. It's highly addictive, and highly abused, I would be aware of your moods, and how your reacting to things while taking this medication. It can change how your reacting to things. It can also affect your hearing. I notice that since I have been taking it I hear things louder.. It seems to be a bit bothersome. Sounds are keen. There are pros and con's.... you can also have insomnia.

edit If you would read what the one person wrote HE DID NOT SAY HE WAS PRESCRIBED 250 mg! He said he was prescribed 20 mg and has taken up to 250mg at a time! Before you call somebody a liar you need to make sure you have your facts straight. I am on 10mg 2 times a day and have taken way more than 250mg in a day. But that does not mean that is what the Dr put me on I chose just as the other person did to take more than what was prescribed.

Edit: Taking 250mg is not impossible. My prescribed dose from my psychiatrist is 270mg daily. I take 3 30mg pills three times a day. While this is definitely on the extreme upper end of the spectrum, it is not impossible. Just because something seems extreme to you, don't immediately cast out the possibility of it being true.

- Upeer

Edit: One of my patients takes 300mg a day and it bairly helps her, but i believe she uses it as a drug instead of a aid.

Edit: 2-14-09: Wait, you're a Dr. and you spelled barely.... Bairly! Where do you live and what office should I not go to?

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Well I took Adderall XR for 2 years and could NOT get off of it. It's highly addictive like crack. Why I'm so highly against it. Be careful. The stuff will make you go insane after a while. I just go on with my ADD over that *bleep*..

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I've been taking Adderall XR 20mg for the last year very successfully. The only side effects that I have had are constant dry mouth (which can be combated by drinking a large amount of water), halitosis, and occasional insomnia. I have not had any trouble building up a tolerance because I do not take it on Fridays or weekends. I have found by taking it responsibly (and quitting smoking) that it has worked very well with only minimal side effects.

weakened immune system- a day or so after i have stopped taking Adderall i always get a cold or sore throat, in addition to feeling achy and sh!tty.

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Just as a warning if you take Adderall XR be careful and you must take it daily. I missed a few days (and I have been taking it for 3 years) I could not pay attention to anything, my thoughts were racing, it was hard to focus, and I had the worst headache of my life!

--For the person who takes 270mg per day. Either A. there's no possible way, or B. your doctor is doing something extremely illegal. I asked my doctor about upping my dosage and told him I read online about a doctor that had prescribed 200+mg to some of his patients, his response was "no way possible". He then showed me an article about a doctor here in Dallas that prescribed 200mg of adderall to a patient and got his medical license revoked!! He then called in a fellow doctor who works in the same office and asked him what the highest dosage was he had ever given a patient...the other doctor said 90mg was the absolute highest he would ever feel safe giving a patient. So yeah, your doctor is doing something completely illegal and will get his license removed, or your lying.

Upeer - I'm the person that you are referring to. I have had the aforementioned dosage prescribed to me by my psychiatrist and later my family doctor. I was talking 90 mg (3 30mg Capsules) 3 times per day for a total of 270mg. At my own request I have now reduced my dosage to 180 mg per day. I find this dosage slightly less effective than the 270, but I am trying to use only the minimum required. Also, for the person that mentioned Dry mouth, Halitosis and Insomnia. I experience all of these side effects as well. It's inconvenient, but much less so than living with ADHD unmedicated. For the person above me that is concerned about the legality of my prescription, I can assure you that it is perfectly legal. While I don't know the circumstances surrounding the license revocation that you mentioned, in my state prescribing the dosage that I am on is not a crime.

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Adderall XR has been really addictive to me. I cannot make it through the day without taking it. I don't have to take much (only 60 mg or on a really bad day 90), but taking it without needing it did not work out well for me. I am not completely dependent on it.

Other side effects I've had are loss of appetite, insomnia & the speeding feeling. I would not advice it for use the way college students do...just so be able to stay up for finals and focus better.

First answer by ID0406372248. Last edit by Krissy-Leigh. Contributor trust: 0 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 121 [recommend question]