Hey all,
I'm a 22year old college student who was recent diagnosed with ADD in November 2005. Currently I'm taking Adderall XR 30mg once in the morning. Maybe its just the stress of classes, but often I feel "uneasy" on it. This is a new symptom that has just started within the last few weeks. It can seem hard to catch a breath as if theres pressure on my chest - which appear to be some signs of anxiety. I've never really felt this before, and I'm going to talk with my doctor about it. I have heard of some people having anxiety/panic attacks while on the Adderall and I'm wondering if anyone here has ever tried taking a benzo like Xanax in a small dose to conteract these effects.
I know my Psy. is against the benzos and would not prescribe, but Im just curious if theres some out there who take adderall and a benzo in combination.
Overall I feel its a great medication, but every medication has their side affects and it seems anxiety is a popular one with the stimulants.
thanks for the input,
Kyle
I tried Adderall, once, and I can't tolerate it for just that reason. It sent my anxiety through the roof. Felt like I had an 8 hour panic attack. I was very uneasy, anxious, wanting to crawl out of my skin.
While I do have xanax for panic attacks, I don't take it with my ADHD meds unless I absolutely have to (as in having a panic attack). The reason is that my doctor says it basically counteracts what the stimulants are trying to do. Which really makes sense, since Xanex slows things down.
If you are really happy with Adderall, a better option might be to see if you could add in an anti-depressant to help with anxiety. Not sure if your doc would be okay with that since the Adderall seems to be causing it, but you never know.
On the other hand, a different stimulant might work just as well for you, without the anxiety issues. I can handle Concerta just fine, in fact it has actually decreased my anxiety. So you just never really know how each med will affect you.
Speak with your doc for sure, but my personal opinion (and my doc's) is that it's really not productive to take a stimulant and a benzodiazepine together.
Hope you find the right meds