Focalin Addiction!! (Page 3) (Top voted first)

My first semester in college was a disaster as I began at the age of 25 and only 3 months after leaving an all together different environment in the military where I served 4 tours in the Middle East. I never missed a class and yet my GPA at the end was a 1.75. I literally couldn’t absorb anything in class, fought off falling asleep more often than not, and couldn’t seem to apply my discipline to making myself sit and read. So, in the Fall of ’05 I began taking Focalin 10mg and the difference was night and day. Not only did I retain information from class, but I was able to sit down and read without losing focus, I actually enjoyed it, and my second semester GPA was a 3.63! Now it is the beginning of Fall 2008, I graduated in May, and have started an already successful career at a law firm. I know, what’s the problem right? Well, if you notice I’ve been on Focalin for 3 years now and to say I’m hooked on the drug would be an understatement. I’ve taken enough before to exhibit at least 3 of the listed signs of overdose such as, sweating, dizziness, jittery, etc… What’s worse is that my job requires me to sit at a desk all day…..ALL DAY and without Focalin that’s just not possible for me and I know that about myself, but I don’t just take it at work. I get urges to take it afterwards and have even stayed up for 3 and 4 days taking one pill after another every couple of hours and browsing the net, reading books, writing out goals, plans, what have you and I can’t seem to stop. Focalin used to make me so sociable and I’d love talking about a variety of things with different friends, people from my classes, and even strangers, but now I’m the opposite. I’m anti-social, and I’ll be as awake and as focused as you can imagine and yet I don’t want to do a thing. I won’t eat, but I’ll maybe write for a while, browse the net a bit, read some, but nothing sticks anymore like it used to. One task, one pill is a thing of the long gone past. If I stop using the drug my performance at work will drop considerably, making me the 1.75 GPA guy all over again, but if I keep on like this I fear my performance in life will drop drastically. I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place and any advice will be greatly appreciated. I need to find a way to taper off the amount because the 10mg twice a day I’m prescribed doesn’t even touch the tolerance I have built for Focalin over the last 3 years. Help!!

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You are always going to be add or adhd, you dont hsve to stop taking it. Ever. My hubby is in the mefical field and has been on it for 40 years, its proven safe up to 60. Add or hd is like diabetes, it does not go away. If the dose quits working switch to another stimulant.

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Ok sorry if this is way off the subject. But swim just took 30mgs of focalin Rx for the first time. Ever sence it kick in he said that he was feeling sick and feeling vary weird and he threw up. Hes now laying in bed sick and tierd still cant eat. Is there somthing wrong should i go to the ER??? Please help!

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Don't say your sorry for slipping back into it! Its extremly difficult...I've slipped back in several times. If there's any in my houuse I do one after the other till I'm actually scared I could die. Just keep trying. I kicked a 4 year coke addiction & this is as equaly dificult! Hang in there!

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Hey colin, I know exactly what your starting to experience. The thing is your lucky that 1) your obviously intelligent naturally w/o them & don't need em to survive... yet. 2) your young & only just started taking em so you can stop now before you turn out like me. I'm 29 now & was born very healthy & intelligent naturally but was labeled add & forcibly drugged w ritalin from the age of 8. Now I have drug abuse & addiction problems, cannot maintain employment, or even complete my bachelors degree(despite above average I.Q.). I used to HATE taking pills as a kid(they had to hide ritalin in ice cream against my will) now I can't go 5 minutes w/o thinking "what am I missing right now? What pill do I need to take to modulate my mood?" While carrying a pill caddy & bottle of water with me even as I walk around the house! These drugs are the closest thing to coke aside from coke itself & ofcourse introducing them to a growing/maturing mind will overexpress the dopamine pathways in reward & pleasure areas which program future drug seeking/abusing potential. These things cause addiction, Stop now! If u have to take these things wait atleast until your brain is fully developed, then maybe if u absolutely need em(but nobody does, mankind got on just fine prior to focalin) its a horrible crutch to give yourself for life. I can't go a day w/o adderall now after years of it but u can so stop pls. And as for the bi-polar, if everyone was unipolar(one monotonous boring mood all the time) we would all be zombies but being happy at times in the day & sad at others is umm actually just being human. Honestly I can't think of one person that has ever gone to a psych & been told they're a perfectly normal person w/o any disorder that doesn't need any meds, can you? It's all just big business pharmaceutical bs, they are a business w only one interest they're profit, they could care less about our health or how their drugs affect us.

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I am addicted to focalin. Where can I turn for help discretely?

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Medical marijuana high cbd low thc. It saved me, then I moved back to where it was illegal tx I'm now addicted to focalin among other pills I am prescribed. Mmj is a real true help! I've got to move out of here again. I just told my doc. I'm hooked, Going in tomorrow for new options.

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Well said!

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I started on 10mg a day. Was great the first day and the second then I noticed by mid day it's effects wearing down. I took another to see and bam back to feeling ok. I immediately called my doc. Here I am week 3andI get 40s chewing away like candy abusing the hell out of them. Going to see doc tomorrow, I told him I'm an addict, I don't know why he prescribed knowing that. I used to do meth, this is same stuff in small controlled doses. An addict just cannot use it. Go natural if you can. When I lived in New Mexico, medical marijuana kept me in line 2 years straight held down my job and could function, be creative and sociable. All you get is hungry if you abuse it. Good luck to all, I will post after Dr visit tomorrow.

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Hey Dave can you tell me more?like is that only thing you are addicted too, and do you have emotional problems like depression, anxiety. I take Vyvanse daily I abused adderall a good while, but I am x opiate addict 11 years, my psychiatrist knows, but I don't know how yours is, mine would only do it if mother came in and took responsibility for meds, been back on ADHD treatment 3 years been off pain meds 7 years, I also take Klonopin,1mg 3 times a day, Vyvanse 60mg , Zoloft 50mg , and I'm on Suboxone for opiate addiction, I know it doesn't sound like I'm doing any better but I haven't been this stable in a long time. I am 37 my mom brings meds every day. Got to do whatever you can where you stop abusing. Tell me more about your addiction

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James Tilley, your Mom ROCKS! Off topic but I just wanted to add that. Sprocket, wow, you've really been through the ringer haven't you? Hang in there kiddo. I think just sayin "I'm addicted" out loud is SUCH a big step. It takes balls, proves you're brave. If it hasn't happened already, one day you're gonna wake up and think "I won't abuse any controlled substance ever again". It's a true awakening, no joke at all. I hope you're doing allright since your last post where I got the vibe you were still in withdrawal. It takes a lot longer to feel free from that kind of thing than any Dr knows. Unless they've been through it themselves which would be quite rare indeed. Take care of yourself!!

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It has been a while since I posted but looking back it seems like people keep looking at a focalin addiction as a narrow view of a larger problem. I first posted cause i started taking meds for my add in 7th grade. To be clear I do have learning disorders and I do have add. Public schools failed me and i was directed to private school which fortunate my parents could afford so my prescriptions were not for no reason i do have add. However once I began adding focalin, it started slow with my need to take it before doing something of importance. Then it escalated to abusing the meds. At this point I would do it in-between classes, at work, out at night at bars, basically all the time. It did get to a point where I was hallucinating, and paranoid. i would recognize i was hallucinating but had no control to stop what was happening. At the same time i would get waves of depression. I dont blame the meds, its my own responsibility but I did become addicted to coke on my journey. The need became overwhelming and it consumed me, It convinced me that i needed it before i could become myself and before I could come forward with my real self and thoughts. In reality it meant that I had to be taking coke or focalin and often a mix of the two, in order to get up and function through the day. This led to a lack of sleep with only a few hours every 3 days or so. I am doing better now with zero coke use, but i still struggle with the use of add medications. Its a battle i hide from my family. So the struggle of what I can do and who i am, vs. what meds i need to be who i am is something i deal with personally. My life has shown me that any parent looking into this for their child needs to do so with extreme caution. The medication has drastically altered my life and interactions with my parents. Also the side effects become blurred with who you are and what they make you very quickly

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I'm currently in college as a freshman and started taking focalin my senior year of hs. It helps so much but I know I'm addicted to it. I don't know what to do.

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Hi I HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM, however, I am now on xanax (I KNOW ANOTHER DRUG) soooooo what at least when i take a piece I CALM down and craving goes away!!! YOU are AWESOME for your honesty and i bet you are the BEST attorney congrats. I am in nursing so thank GOD i do NOT SIT!! I find adderall is better. I am not so jittery although i am sick, been nauseous every day I take this, and with adderall i am NOT!!?? My suggestion is to get a TEMPORARY RX of a benzo, (xanax, adavan, klonopin, or valium) to bring you down slowly and then cravings go away.. TO JUST Stop on your own is not only NEXT to impossible without committing a felony lol jk or come down slow and STOP!!! i hope I did not give you another addiction, trust me if you are liking that UP feeling you will NOT get addicted to benzos. No fun sleeping!!! IT SAVED ME. I HOPE IT SAVES U. I LIKE ADDERALL MUCH BETTER XXOO

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im 13 im not going to abuse the ritalin i was prescribed but can someone tell me if its addictive if taking the prescribed amount the way ur supposed to i have had them all focalin concerta adderall and i havent abused them i take 10 ml of ritalin 2 times a day will i get addicted over time.

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I'm 17 years old and I tried focalin for my first time a couple days ago and i cant seem to stop taking it. My younger friend is prescribed 10 mg and gave me 6 of them. I took them and i never felt so much better but now I've been taking them non stop and I'm worried about myself cause i have had a recent drug problem with other prescription drugs. My boyfriends worried about me the way it is and i just dont have the heart to tell him about my use of focalin. I'm not a good student and im trying so hard to get good grades and focalin was my last resort it felt like. i feel like im ruining my life and relationship all because of a drug i just cant put down.

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Iv been doing adderall rx for a while one day I railed 5 lines and was up for a few days and I did all my homework I'm 14

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This message is to everybody..but especially to Mark and Jeremy. I cannot tell you how it made me feel to read your posts and to know that I am not alone. Jeremy, my situation with Focalin is very very much like yours. I am a college graduate with two degrees, and cannot believe I have landed myself in the position I am in now with this stupid drug. And yes, I say stupid..... or maybe it is just stupid to me because I cannot control my urges to take it and cannot handle how I am when I do. I have dealt with prescription stimulant addiction for just about three years now, and it has come to the point that it is hell. I managed to stop taking it about three weeks ago, then slipped and started taking it again two days ago. I hate it. I hate myself for slipping. I hate myself for ever getting addicted. And the bad thing about it is, that no one around me can really tell when I am taking it, no matter how much I have taken. But it truly affects me in negative ways..........my irritability level skyrockets. I have flushed most of the pills I had left down the toilet today, and saved just a few to help me taper off tomorrow....but I wonder if I will be able to stop myself from taking the pills I have left all at once.......I doubt it. I am completely dreading the withdrawal. It was complete hell. I have never experienced anything like that in my life, ever. I had gone so far into the withdrawal and was doing well before I started taking it again. I am so sorry I slipped. Now that I know what it was like without the Focalin, and now that I am remembering how badly the Focalin affected me, I pray I will be able to stop taking it and stop seeking it out in the next couple of days. This is a scary situation. I have never been a drug user or have never drank much alcohol in my life. Focalin is one scary medication. Thank you so much to everyone for posting your stories. They have truly helped me. I know I will defeat this addiction, and get back on the right happy path again..............

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I'm Andrew, and my girlfriend's son is being prescribed focalin for focusing in school, he is only 8 years old, I am extremely concerned about his well being experimenting with this stimulant. How can it even be legal to prescribe a narcotic drug to minors?

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Addiction is not a disease. And I am sick of people saying that. I have a disease that I have never caused. I have no choice and I have horrendous pain everyday. I never chose to consume anything to get it. Calling addiction a disease Is a copout for making better choices!

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You both need to discuss this with your respective doctors, only they know your medical history and will be able to help you find the best solution.

If your doctor tries to just cut you off, cold turkey, then it is definitely time to find a new doctor! They are educated about dependence and addiction.

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