couple Adderall concerns... | ADHD Information

So I started taking Adderall last Saturday, the um... 5th, 5 days ago.   
Nothing out of the ordinary, physically. After being clinically depressed
and suffering from anxiety among other things, I can not express how
much of a godsend Adderall appeared to be on Monday when I showed
up to school chipper, and happy. Not afraid of what people were saying,
willingly raising my hand in class, stuff like that. So okay yesterday I kept
having this little urge thinger to chew on my top lip, sounds weird but I've
met a lot of people in forums with ADD and stuff who do the same thing
on meds. So yea it's after school yesterday after I made up my AP. Bio
test which completely raped me and left me for dead, I'm still in an
awesome mood, happy with things, pumped... getting all my missing
work in all my classes done and ENJOYING it, and I went to the band room
and decided I WANTED to practice my french horn... I never practice, I
hate playing it, I haven't practiced it willingly since 5th grade when I first
started (10th now). So I practiced rigorously for about an hour or so, the
dry mouth effect was messing with it a little but it was alright. My top lip
was a little sore due to me chewing on it and stuff, and pressing against
the mouthpiece continuously for over an hour didn't really relieve that.
Last night before I went to bed I looked at it in the mirror and I
discovered my lips were a little bit swollen, among being sore. The area
in my mouth like, back where the rows of my teeth end is kinda sore too.
It's not killing me, it's just uncomfortable.

The effects of Adderall on my life are so incredible... I could never say
how much it's doing for me in just 5 or 6 days.   I've completely turned
around. But this lip thing is bugging me, because apparently swelling of
the face, lips, tongue or eyelids is a "serious side-effect" and indicates
allergies. Wouldn't that allergy have showed up before 5 days though...
plus it makes sense that my lips, well pretty much my top lip the only one
I was chewing on, got irritated and inflamed a little bit after I was
pressing down so hard on it with my mouthpiece pretty much non-stop
for a while. I have no known allergies to anything, at all... I have a pretty
strong immune system you could say. EVERYTHING about this medication
is so awesome, it's not the "false feeling of well-being" or euphoria, its
that I'm doing my homework and getting stuff done, making my parents
proud and no longer risking my future. I don't know if I should be
concerned about this or not, I have no problems breathing, no wheezing,
no shortness of breath, nothing going on in my airways or throat. Just
this mouth thing. If I puff out my cheeks to their full extent it's a little
sore too. Soo... is this just a thing that will resolve itself, or should I be
freaking out?

Another side effect that I haven't seen anyone else experience... Insomnia
is a really common side effect, and I've never been a big sleeper. I'll stay
up late screwing around then go to bed around 1 or so, then get up for
school and be tired and irritable, go figure, then repeat the process. But
since last night, I was NOT tired at all, I went to bed around 3:45 and I
wasn't tired then... I woke up before my dad came in to wake me up,
totally not something I'd ever do lol. But what's beyond me is that I
SHOULD be extremely tired, as I haven't gotten more than 6 hours of
sleep a night since last Thursday, and rarely more than that on other
occasions, as well as about 3 hours last night, but I got up and was just,
awake. Chipper, in a totally good mood, pumped for the day, couldn't
wait to get to school... I've NEVER woken up and been that upbeat, not
even on weekends when I sleep for 13 hours and get up at like 1:30pm.
Totally beyond me.

So, can anyone relate to the lip thing, or the sleep thing? I don't want to
get off Adderall, I really don't... and no, not because I'm psychologically
addicted or something, I just don't want to go back to being the imperfect
child in the family who never does homework and fails classes. This
Adderall has totally changed my perspectives, and my life. rev_kareline38421.9959606482Ah, I am relieved! After searching long and hard about allergic reactions
to medications and such, and found virtually nothing helping me along in
my quest for understanding, I finally decided to try googling stuff
pertaining to muscle soreness in the lower face area region thing from
overplaying any brass instrument. It's actually quite common among
brass players, (trumpet, trombone, tuba) I've played French horn for 5 1/2
years now... never had the motivation to practice so much till I started
taking Adderall! Swelling in the lips from pressure and soreness in your
cheeks from the large quantity of well, exercise from constantly blowing
air I suppose... and well, changes in embouchure and stuff gets really
tiring after playing for a while.

However I'm still a little confused, well not confused, but like... I don't
know if this sleeping thing will go away or not. It's the meds think I'm
some sort of pseudo-narcoleptic, so what it's doing is keeping me awake,
and then when I do fall asleep and wake up like 2 hours later, I'm totally
energized and not tired at all. Like, it's almost 1 right now and I'm just,
yea not tired lol. I've read that Adderall can "hide the effects of extreme
tiredness." I am concerned that after a certain extent of sleep deprivation
is reached that it might start like getting at me. Something like after 20
hours of sleep deprivation one might start hallucinating, among other
things...

Ohhh, yea.... appetite is a problem. I know loss of appetite is a common
side effect, but I'm 16, 5'3" and 102lbs... losing weight really wouldn't be
the healthiest thing. Any tips on how I keep my weight healthy?rev_kareline38422.0009375

hello,

i don't know if your still on this posting, as you put this up some months ago..but reading it i had some thoughts that i wanted to share with you:

one is that, at sixteen it is completely natural to feel feelings of insecurity.  i can say this from my own experience of going through high school and that of many of my friends.  it is normal to feel inhibited to say what you think, scared sometimes and yes, even be depressed.  the reasons of this can come from many factors but mostly it's just the course of trying to find out who you really are.  even the most seemingly confident people you pass everyday are privatly sharing some your most secret grapplings.  i believe that if you ask, one day you will find this to be true.

i also want to say that, being happy is not always synonomous with being healthy or "normal."  your going to have many ups and downs in life, sometimes internal and at other times external.  just let yourself feel what you feel.  take it easy, love yourself and be gentle.  as you keep moving forward you'll find that the old adage is true:  "life is a journey not a destination."  or in my own words: happinesss is an experience not a permanent state.  emotions (notice the word motion) are in constant flux.  don't get to attached to them.  don't be afraid to feel.  you feel for a reason: to teach you more about yourself.

i am telling you this because i sensed that you equate health with happiness and it seems like, you believe that not feeling like your on top of the world means that your missing something. 

i know that it isn't always easy to tell from t.v. shows, mtv and societal pressures to be perfect, but life is not "perfect."  well, perhaps it is...but, not in the sense that we sometimes identify with what we think perfect means.  sometimes, our greatest healings come from our biggest challenges and fears. 

build your confidence from within...don't depend on a pill. i am not saying to drop your meds but don't expect to much from them.  you still choose who you are.  you choose. no one/nothing else owns that power.  look for your own answers and trust yourself.  be yourself whoever that is.  and maybe right now, at this time in your life it isn't someone who is always on top of everything, smiling and laughing all the time and totally unafraid.  most of our greatest heros have crossed through intense battles with themselves and their own fears.  honor yourself and who you are.

Your post was a while ago, but I thought I would add to it if you are still checking it.  I was on Adderall for over a year and had the dry mouth, want to chew on the mouth and I would bite my cheek while chewing on food, etc.  I put up with it for a long time because of the amazing difference in my life.  I can see that you have the same feelings. 

I tried an herbal formula I found at the local health food store that had Ginko in it.  This really helped me with the ADD symptoms and did not cause the mouth problems.  Some say that herbal stuff is risky, but so is medication.

There is also I book you could look into that seems to make a lot of sense to me.  It is called Stopping ADHD.  They have you do exercises to decrease your symptoms.

Good luck.  I hope school went well for you.

 

bump

Adderall is not suppose to make an ADD person a happy high so to speak.  It is suppose to level them out like a person not on any drugs.

If a person takes Adderall, and is not an ADD'er, it will make them like the drug as if its a drug that they dont want to stop.  Im not saying you are not an ADD'er,..but may I ask what you were taking before you were placed on adderall??