As a therapist, I’ve always known that mixing mood stabilizing drugs with booze is not a good thing. I’ve now done some research that shows that this is also true of the pairing of ADHD medication with drinking. Pairing Adderall with alcohol can be downright life-threatening.
The Dangers
What’s true is that individuals have been known, in some cases, to take prescribed or even un- prescribed, Adderall with alcohol, to keep the party going longer. Adderall, being a stimulant, can hinder the user’s ability to determine if they are “too tired or too intoxicated,” and therein lies the danger. The user may think that because Adderall is a stimulant and alcohol is a depressant, they neutralize each other. The truth is, the stimulant can block the depressant effect of the alcohol, with the potential bottom line result of overconsumption, leading to alcohol poisoning. In one known extreme case, it led to a heart attack.
One poster on a HealthCentral forum (December, 2009) gave an account of an experience of taking 30 mg. of Adderall, followed by one drink, and ended up in the hospital because they couldn’t stop vomiting. In other situations, posters reported falling asleep after imbibing, feeling just slightly tipsy, and then awakening to chills, sweats and shaking that were so severe that they also ended up in the hospital. These accounts are anecdotal, but are still worth consideration.
Clearly, this is not something to be taken lightly. Based on the findings, it is hard to know what the exact mix is that causes the toxicity level to be dangerous. Everyone is different in terms of how the medication and alcohol will have their effect.
In the name of safety, it is important to report the use of alcohol of someone who is taking ADHD medication to the prescribing physician.
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Comments
Adderall horror story
Submitted by Susannamon on
Maybe his system just couldn't handle it....
Submitted by c ur self on
You are describing schizophrenic behavior the inability to distinguish between what is real and what is not. Self medication is very unwise, one trip to a qualified Doctor w/his symptoms and he would have taken him right off the meds...Your husband's desire to abuse the adderall is the problem here not the adderall...
One man's poison is another's hope....If my wife didn't take her adderall she couldn't hold down a public job...I've seen her on it and I've seen her off it...With her add she is much better off to have that blue tongue she sticks out at me from time to time....I'm so sorry you had your marriage and health so negatively impacted by your husband...I hope things are better for you now.
Well, I'm glad that it helped
Submitted by Susannamon on
meds and alcohol effects can mimic other disorders
Submitted by overwhelmedwife on
Unless my H is schizophrenic, my h has some of those same behaviors when under the influence of booze, Rx's, and anti-anxiety meds.
I have gotten phone calls in the middle of night from H, when I'm in another bedroom, with him yelling, "who are you in bed with. Let me talk to the bastard" ? huh? I'm in the house with YOU. The reason I'd be sleeping in the other room is because earlier, before H fell asleep, he would be yelling about something else, so I'd go sleep in the guest room. Then I'd get these crazy 3 am phone calls. He would be completely out of control.
H has broken chairs and thrown things in anger.
Maybe he is schizophrenic? He does sometimes BELIEVE that certain things happened....that never did. I used to think that he had dreams that seemed so real that he thought they were real. But, maybe he has some kind of schizophrenia. I know that as a child he was put on phenobarbital and went regularly to see a psychiatrist ....but he was never told why.
Wow.....Are You Sure He Even Has ADHD??????
Submitted by kellyj on
Sounds like he might not from your description," because he had problems concentrating on daily tasks or work. "
Did he get evaluated by the doctor or did the doctor just prescribe him Adderall base on what your husband told him? There are doctors who will do this. Doctors have become drug dealers in a sense and it can be to their benefit. Look at how Elvis and Michael Jackson turned out! I've seen this too first hand....(not your story but prescribing Adderall to people who say or THINK they have ADHD but may not need stimulant medication at all)
I'm saying this for two reasons.
The first one being what was told to me by my prescribing physician. The first thing she asked me when I walked into her office was .." out of all drugs you've taken in your life...pick the one that made you feel the best." Not high or euphoric....just good.
That was easy for me. I immediately told her the story of a close friend in Jr High School who's dad was a pharmacist. Back then non-pharmacists could be hired to fill prescription bottles with pills for the pharmacist. My friend worked for his dad doing this. The law stated that if you drop any on the floor they must be destroyed. In my friends case, these didn't all make it into the garbage.
Long story short....my friend and I experimented with lots of pills. He even had an official drug book (one pharmacists use)....to look up each one, doses etc......It was the early 70's and I was 15 years old.....if you have seen "That 70's Show" or the movie "Dazed and Confused" there is a reason that period of history is so associated with drugs. Most everyone I knew (including me) smoked a lot of pot and tired everything under the sun just to see what would happen. Yes...even athlete's, cheer leaders, book worms, Muffy and Chet from the tennis club......everyone! lol
Anyway...I remember taking what were called back then " Black Beauties " which were 12 hr capsules of time release speed. I recall being a little disappointed (back then) in that I never felt very high but I did feel really great....clear headed and very good.
I also remember using Cocaine occasionally in my twenties when it was offered to me. It seemed to show up every where during that time....parties, clubs, social gatherings. Some one always seemed to appear with it here and there so you didn't need to go find it. I remember at the time thinking...."what's the big deal? eh, to each his own." Again, I would just feel clear and rather sober while everyone around me seemed rather euphoric and extremely talkative. I'm always that way so it felt weird to the quiet one in the room and being annoyed at seemingly retarded conversations that were being discussed, the endless chatter and everyone talking at the same time.
Was I in some kind of ADHD purgatory for being like this the rest of the time and being surrounded by everyone else who had switched roles with me as a form of punishment for all the times I put my friends through similar situations.....no drugs needed! Maybe? lol
So to make the same point my prescribing physician made to me that day in her office when she said ," one of the best litmus tests to see if someone has ADHD is to give them stimulants and see what happens. She told me she tried speed once in college to study and said " I was bouncing off the walls and only took a small dose." She told me if she had done any of the things I described in my stories she would be a basket case compared to how you felt....rather unaffected, clear headed and sober. I told her back then I just thought I had a strong constitution and needed higher doses for the drugs to work......even then, I didn't like the effect of being "wired" which made me feel very uncomfortable. I've never had any real issues with drugs or alcohol and used them back then sparingly for recreation in my younger days.
Adderall is the perfect drug for me and I have no desire or curiosity to take anything else as it works like it should and has since I first started using it. My alcohol consumption has actually gone down from my normal beer after work to less than 6 beers a week.
So from the outside looking at your story ( with some drug experience myself lol )....if I was looking at your husbands behavior I'd say straight up that Adderall is a bad choice for him. I question his diagnosis ( based on my own experience with it and in reference to everything I just said from my past or have read about. Or else the doctor prescribing it is a schmuck and is not monitoring him or even validating his need for it.
Or at the very least....if he hadn't ever used drugs recreationally before and this was his first adventure in pharmaceuticals I'd say it sounds like he got lost inside Disneyland and needs to find the exit.....(like a child's first trip there and not ever wanting to leave).
I'm guessing he doesn't have ADHD and is using speed to self medicate some other issues. Back in the day they used to say "speed kills" and there was a reason for it.
J
You're absolutely right: I
Submitted by Susannamon on
I am So Sorry
Submitted by kellyj on
for everything you have gone through. I didn't want to minimize what you said but I have seen drugs take hold of people (alcohol of course too) and ruin peoples lives. I won't belabor my point any more but to add something to what you were saying...I've seen a situation similar to yours with a friend who insisted he has ADHD but like your husband went off the deep end taking Adderall.
It's not for everyone and my mentioning experimenting with drugs did give me some insight before I started taking Adderall. When you first start taking any drug your body needs to acclimate and adjust to it. The first week I was on it I felt like I had a free pass to party....at least for a few days. The first thing I did was start drinking on it and there is no denying that it was fun for a while. But like I said....I was aware of what was happening and quickly put a stop to it. Actually, after only a couple of weeks the thrill was gone and it started settling in. Now I don't even know it is there unless I suddenly stop or accidently run out. I know it then for sure. Ouch!
I think it is good that you shared your story. Drugs are a tricky thing and each person responds and behaves differently on them. It's good to put out there the pros and the cons too.
I hope you can recover from your ordeal...you're young and time is on your side. Who cares if you are a little grey.....speaking for myself I find a touch of it quite attractive even on younger men and women.
J
Thank for making me smile( I
Submitted by Susannamon on
Same identical experience with my wife
Submitted by will2544 on
My soon to be ex-wife is an alcoholic drug addict. I have sent her to 6 rehabs for various substances over the past 20 years of marriage. AT the last rehab facility, an idiot bought her lies and diagnosed her with ADHD. She may be OCD but never showed signs of ADHD. She has been on Vyvance, Ritalin and Aderrall over the last 4.5 years. She immediately lost a ton of weight and was 900 miles per hour. Her thought processes and sanity have slowly been eroded to the point she is insane at times. She is on a cocktail of drugs. She takes Aderrall, Clonapin, Cymbalta, Prevacid of course to intensify and opiates when she can get her hands on them. She has stolen and taken an entire month of my pain medication in 10 days while I was on a trip with my daughter. When she takes the aderrall she wants to drink very heavily and things get out of control. She pulled a loaded .45 cal pistol on me, because she was angry, in front of our 11 yr old daughter who was terrified. She has put holes in the walls, broken doors of the hinges and anything else she can throw, kick or hit at the time. I could handle her other addictions, at least she was nice most of the time. This is a drug that has turned her into a demon. I have had to call the police on her and they ended up arresting her for disorderly conduct after she began screaming racist remarks at one of the three male officers it took to arrest her. She is 140 lbs and 6'7". The police were called on her at her parents home after she flipped out on them and tore the curtains down. She began stripping her clothes off for some reason and the officers had to make her dress again. She believes her own lies and will deny them even when caught red handed. She has gotten so drunk while on the aderrall that she has defecated herself in her sleep on three occasions that I am aware of. This medication is going to kil her. Nothing matters to her any more but her bitterness and anger. She has chronicled every negative thing I have said or done for the last 4 years. Who the hell does that? Most of the things were taken so out of context that it is ridiculous. It made her focus alright, on any and every negative thing she could think or make up about me. I loved this woman with all of my soul. I have done everything I could do to get her help. I have lost this fight and probably stayed in it way too long, and yet, somehow all of her current problems are my fault
I wish you all of the happiness in the world
Submitted by Susannamon on