Adderall Depression – Dealing With It After Stopping The Medication

Adderall is a drug that is meant for treatment of narcolepsy and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or ADHD. It brings together amphetamine and dextroamphetamine which are stimulants and works towards correcting imbalances in the brain. When it is used in the treatment of ADHD, this medication helps the patient in exercising greater restraint over behavioral issues and also helps in increase his attention span. In the case of treating narcolepsy which is also called as a sleeping disorder, it can help a patient stay alert during the daytime. This is a serious drug and therefore should only be used under instructions from a doctor who is qualified to prescribe the same.

The big debate that inevitably gets associated with Adderall is its effect on or link with depression. One of the uses, albeit not wide spread, of Adderall is in fact the treatment of depression. The primary reason why this medication as prescribed for treatment resistant depression is the fact that it is able to increase alertness and attention deficit. Patients who use Adderall give feedback of having better concentration ability and even a better sense of being able to enjoy heightened alertness. Unfortunately, the story is not as simple as this. Adderall can also cause depression in a few cases.

 Challenge Begins

The biggest challenge perhaps occurs when a doctor asks a patient to stop the use of Adderall. There have been many instances of patients reporting problems with this particular process. Symptoms that are associated with the post-Adderall phase include quite a few of the signs that go into making a person depressed. For instance, an individual can feel acute anxiety, a general feeling of being worthless or undervalued, a desire to sleep through most of the day and severe ennui. All these symptoms and signs among others can go into making an individual feel depressed.

Side effects

Depending on the severity of the Adderalldepression, doctors can use other medication to help an individual deal with it. Counseling and family support is also pretty critical when it comes to dealing with the side-effects of stopping Adderall usage. Ideally an individual should be weaned off Adderall rather than asked to stop abruptly. Also it is important for an individual to focus on the fact that he can deal with the depression that he feels by focusing on the fact that Adderall was not prescribed in the first place to cure depression but rather for conditions such as ADHD. All this will help him keep away from an addiction to a new kind of drug in place of Adderall.