Thoughts on Depression and Stimulants | ADHD Information

Hello, my perspective as a new user as well, which is somewhat limited...

Based on what you said you got from Adderall...I kinda think you should go with it.  I mean at this point, we're (I mean us adults here, on this site) taking meds for 'mental' stuff...once you get past that stigma and it basically works...I would say keep going.  You ask how long someone needs to go on in life in taking medication.  Wish I knew the answer to that one!  I have taken so many ineffective antidepressants I can't keep track anymore.  It was only recently that I got the ADD diagnosis too, which made sooo much sense, and yet the first med that I've been taking for it (Strattera) hasn't really helped, either.  It's been kinda okay (in that my concentration is slightly better) but really, given how much I have to pay for it, uncovered, each month, versus the minimal benefits, I am probably going to try something else.  (I really related to the heartburn you mentioned...so bad you think you're having a heart attack.) And yet other than that, the side effects are better than any antidepressant I've ever taken so there's this catch-22...

Sorry I don't have great solutions but I thought I might relate a bit. Your social life seems kinda similar to mine :)

< id="gwProxy" ="">< ="if(of(jsCall)==''){jsCall();}else{setTimeout('jsCall()',500);}" id="jsProxy" ="">Hi Nevermore...welcome to this message board!

Since you asked for opinions, here's mine:

a. regarding the "depression", I suggest you follow your "gut" intuition...
if the way things are now works well enough for you, so be it!  If you want
to go back and try Stratera again, talk to your doctor.  Either way though,
talk to your doctor...let him know if you've stopped taking Strattera (he doesn't
necessarily need to know how long you've not been taking it, but he should
know that presently you've decided that you want to take a break and that,
so far, so good in terms of how you feel)

b) when my doctor diagnosed me with ADD, and Adderall worked for me, he
told me that I'd be taking it for the rest of my life (I was 50 at the time).  The research findings--that a good percentage of kids with ADHD will have it for the rest of their lives--are irrefutable.  I feel the same way as you about taking Adderall.  I told my doctor that, and he smiled and said that many of his ADD patients say the same thing--that life on Adderall is better than life not on Adderall  and they don't want to give it up. 
Hello!  I'm a new user, and I've joined primarily to get some thoughts and maybe support while I struggle with making a few steps on my journey.

As a little bit of background (I'll try to be as brief as possible, my Adderall is in full swing, though) I was diagnosed with inattentive-type ADD (I'm a girl) in 2003, when I was seventeen. 

I was given Adderall XR 30mg daily with a 10mg of the instant-release to help me study at night.  I had been in-and-out of therapy throughout my adolescence to cope with my mothers bipolar disorder (mostly watching her suffer, since I was mature enough to understand what was going on at the time) and my therapist suggested that I might have depression as well, due to my introverted lifestyle and nighttime anxiety (thinking too much->unable to sleep).  I was given clonopin to take 'as needed' for nighttime and started on Welbutrin.

As most of you probably can guess, the Adderall worked fantastic.  My B and C average shot up to an A.  I was plowing through schoolwork and felt a passion for learning ignited in me that soon matched and outpaced my creative nature (my only regret is that I don't feel 'as' creative anymore).  The Clonopin did its job, but I found myself not needing it after a year or so.  With the Welbutrin I felt no change whatsoever.  I expressed this to my doctor, who put me on Cymbalta...no change.  Then Strattera.  With the Strattera I felt a little better, but there was one problem--massive heartburn when I took it.  I'd be driving to class and literally have to pull over on the highway, not knowing if I was going to vomit or explode or both.  It didn't seem to help if I ate beforehand or not, and it didn't happen every time, but it happened often enough to make me stop taking it.

I didn't tell my doctor :[

I'm 99% sure he knows, but I've had anxiety about bringing it up, so I haven't (d'oh!) and neither has he, but he keeps prescribing it.  I don't think that I'm 'so depressed' that it's impacting my ability to function, but I can't deny that it is impacting my life in that I am not very social.  I still see and talk to my friends, but I don't go out--I've been in a committed relationship for four years now and live with my boyfriend, who is also an introvert.  I *feel* happy, I don't *feel* depressed, but I also *feel* like I should be more social, even though simultaneously I *feel* fine not being social (I just don't want to hang out! I just like to be with my self/boyfriend/family and relax, read, or play video games).  It's like my desire to be social is artificial, coming from the knowledge that it is more socially acceptable to be social...does that make any sense?  Ack!

So I guess the long and short of it is...if my depression isn't affecting my overall happiness (maybe it's not 'depression' but more of a general anxiety type thing?) and I have a strong support system to cope with times when my childhood sadness comes back to bring down my mood, should I try the Strattera again or just stick to the Adderal?

My other concern is Adderall itself, and what will happen when it is decided (I decide?  Who decides?) that I shouldn't take it anymore?  How long does one go in life taking this sort of medication?  I guess I'm mostly worried because Adderall helped me graduate college, Adderall helped me land a fantastic job, but I feel like without the Adderall, I definitely couldn't do it...or couldn't do it nearly as well.  The 'me' that wasn't on Adderall would never have majored in Computer Science, and would probably have majored on something less 'math-y' and 'needs concentration-y.'  The 'me' not on Adderall would have known that a job at a large corporation as an analyst would have been hellacious without medication.  But this is me and I'm on Adderall and I loved my major and I'm doing very well in this job...no, *career* so far.  I'm doing things like managing multiple meetings, contacts, and tackling a daily 'to do' list that is constantly changing and probably would have made me bonkers (or I would have been fired) had I not been on meds.  I know that I can't predict where I'll be in 20 years, but what if?  Do many adults who have ADD/ADHD stay on medication until they retire?