I came across a post on Reddit where a commenter implied they were using non-prescription drugs to manage their ADHD when they couldn’t get a stimulant prescription for whatever reason.
Nobody would name the drug(s) for fear of being banned. From context it seemed some people were talking about a stimulant, and others marijuana. What might the stimulant be? Meth? If so, how would you dose that, and would it actually work?
I’m just curious, not intending to try it myself. I can get a prescription easily enough, and I have no desire to put myself in legal jeopardy. I am wondering if the meth version of amphetamine would work better, about the same, or not as well, though. I don’t know the effects first-hand, but if it’s anything like cocaine (I was an adult in the late 80s when coke was more popular), it doesn’t seem like it would be helpful.
I am quite familiar with the effects as well. 🙂 Nonetheless, it did sound like several people were discussing marijuana in particular and claimed that a low dose would help them focus. That’s certainly would not work for me.
You can’t say drug names on Reddit now??
That depends on the admins of a particular community, I think. In this case it was just strongly implied by a couple of people making comments that they would be banned if they mentioned whatever the drug was.
It’s definitely not marijuana, lol. That stuff is nice the moment I smoke or eat it, but then it just amplifies my ADHD symptoms.
It’s meth, or methamphetamine. Marketed as desoxyn. It has more euphoric properties and thus tends to be more addictive. If obtained on the black market there is risks of purity and legitimacy. It could be cut with baby powder or other fillers, cut with or replaced with another drug, and there may be harmful chemicals leftover from the manufacturing process. Meth itself isn’t more dangerous than Adderall or other amphetamines, just more addictive generally.
The risks in my mind are the shady people you’d have to deal with and the purity/legitimacy problem.
Probably meth, some might be using cocaine.
And yeah it’s a risky play. If you get found our you’re probably never getting a script again.
Cocaine does work, but it would be far cheaper illegally to buy Adderall.
Meth and amphetamine have much more addictive and severe side effects, plus the withdrawal effects too
The short story is that the difference is mostly one of dosage and metabolism. While there are some subtle differences between methamphetamines and amphetamines, see pharmacology section, they have nearly identical effects on most people.
The big difference between recreational and medicinal usage is dosage and duration. A lot of the pharmacology around ADHD medication is in trying to get a slow and steady release either via binders and packaging (IE Adderall XR) and/or prodrugs/salts (IE lisdexamphetamine aka Vyvanse).
Street drugs on the other hand usually don’t have the same level of quality control which makes dosing difficult and aren’t intended for the same level of consistency.
Someone could microdose meth and get similar results to a real shitty Adderall generic but it comes with a lot of risks and is generally not recommended.
Based on all of the comments here, I’m pretty sure they were talking about meth. I never knew that it was actually sold as an ADHD med.
I guess that explains why the Reddit mods ban discussion of it, though. People can be so desperate for a “cure” that they’d risk it. I know what an idiot I was about drugs when I was a teen and early twenty-something.
“Street drugs” exists due to individuals not having access to proper medical care, including and especially mental health, and being forced to self-medicate.
That is an interesting and I think very valid point.
Many people here in the US have absorbed decades of messaging from various war on drugs campaigns that imply anything not manufactured by a drug company his toxic. There’s also been a lot of messaging that self-medicating is only for losers. I think there is a large grain of truth around the concept of self-medicating, but the stigma attached to mental health issues makes it difficult for a lot of people to seek out the help they need.
Besides the legal issue, there’s also the problem of such drugs being highly addictive, highly damaging, and those who distribute such drugs not caring much for laws overall. So even if such drugs indeed trigger a part of the person ADHD would hinder, the risks far outweigh the benefits.
But about how they would work, I think you can compare any to caffeine:
Caffeine is a drug with stimulant effect that people use to circumvent tiredness. But the stimulus is not lasting, so the person needs to drink again after some hours. And as the body grows resistant to it, and the brain associates the product to the effect, you need to take in more and more, at the risk of getting abstinence otherwise.
I don’t find caffeine effective for ADHD, but amphetamine (Adderall) is. It is quite likely that the mechanism of action for methamphetamine is much more like other amphetamine formulations.
That said, I’m not even sure if they were talking about meth or something else.
I don’t know much about it or if it’s still prescribed but I’m pretty sure methamphetamine can be prescribed for ADHD (often under the brand name Desoxyn) in some countries. So I assume it must have some kind of useful effect like more commonly prescribed ADHD medications.
Street methamphetamine would probably be less consistent in effects because it is unlikely to be pure and would probably be cut with other substances so it would be hard to tell what was having what effect.
So ur telling man Walt n Jesse were operating a Desoxyn business for unmedicated people with adhd all along?
Also it’s crazy to me how such a drug so destructive can be used to treat a condition like adhd so effectively with little to no reported side-effects, puts into perspective how different my brain’s acc wired and how many dopamine receptors I’m missing
I mean, dose is a massive factor. The average meth addict is NOT using ~5-30mg per day like someone who is using a stimulant medicinally in order to perform their job functions or focus in school.
I’ve heard people saying cocaine worked well for them, even though you mention it wasn’t great for you. I unknowingly self medicated with waaaay too much caffeine and ephedrine in university.
I’m way too scared of the toxic drug supply to try street drugs nowadays. I guess the war on drugs is winning against me lol? If I was going to try street drugs now I’d want to have access to drug testing kits.
What might the stimulant be? Meth? If so, how would you dose that, and would it actually work?
Could be that if illegal, or cocaine, or anything really. It won’t work well since street drugs are inconsistent on top of not a medical professional involved to help with dosage.
Then there is the possibility of alterants, especially with meth.
Based on my deep knowledge of the methamphetamine trade (which comes entirely from watching “Breaking Bad” ), I’m sure you’re right.
