About Adderall: Prescribed and Abused

Adderall is a prescription stimulant, so it is commonly used to treat ADHD. It is also used to treat narcolepsy. Narcolepsy is uncontrollable episodes of deep sleep. Adderall helps to increase alertness, attention, and energy. This medication can be prescribed as a tablet, capsule, or liquid form. And it is taken by mouth. If you are misusing a prescription stimulant, then it means the following. You are taking medicine in a way or dosage other than what is prescribed. Or you are taking someone else’s medicine or only taking medicine to get high. If misusing drugs, people can take them in various ways. People can swallow it like normal, or they can crush it. A capsule can be opened and the powder dissolved into a liquid if it is a capsule. Finally, people can inject it into a vein or be snorted or smoked.

This drug is typically taken to help improve mental performance. Teenagers and college students may misuse the drug to get better grades. In contrast, older adults may use them to improve their memory. But, taking Adderall or other prescription stimulants for anything other than ADHD or narcolepsy can lead to harmful effects. These effects include addiction, heart problems, or psychosis. This type of drug increases the activity in the brain. It makes certain chemicals come out more. Specifically, the ones that reinforce rewarding behaviors. Like dopamine, which is more often called the happy chemical. Another high chemical affects blood vessels, blood pressure, heart rate, blood sugar, and breathing. This chemical is called norepinephrine. Both chemicals are present in the brain at all times, but this drug increases the amount sent to your brain.

The Adderall Rush

Usually, those that take prescription stimulants feel a feeling of euphoria- also known as “the rush.” However, with the rush also comes other symptoms. Such as increased blood pressure and heart rate, increased breathing, increased blood sugar, more open breathing passages, and decreased blood flow. If taken in high doses, these drugs can also cause a dangerously high body temperature, an irregular heartbeat, heart failure, and seizures.

If there is repeated misuse of the drug, even in a short time, it can cause even more symptoms. Symptoms like psychosis, anger, or paranoia. It is also important to keep in mind that you should not share drug injection tools and equipment if it is injected. This is because having impaired judgment while on the drug can increase the risk of getting infectious diseases. Common diseases that users can contract by sharing injection equipment are HIV and hepatitis.

The Dangers of Introducing Alcohol to the Body

Brain

Drinking alcohol causes special effects on the brain. It interferes with the communication pathways in the brain. Which affects how the brain looks and works. This interference with the pathways can change your mood and behavior, making it hard to think clearly and offering a lack of coordination.

Heart

Drinking a lot over a long time or too much on a single occasion can damage the heart, causing problems including:

• Cardiomyopathy – Stretching and drooping of the heart muscle
• Arrhythmias – Irregular heartbeat
• Stroke
• High blood pressure

Liver:

Heavy drinking takes a toll on the liver and can lead to a variety of problems and liver inflammations, including:

• Steatosis, or fatty liver
• Alcoholic hepatitis
• Fibrosis
• Cirrhosis

Pancreas:

Alcohol causes the pancreas to produce toxic substances that can eventually lead to pancreatitis, a dangerous inflammation and swelling of the blood vessels in the pancreas that prevents proper digestion.”

Cancer and Alcohol Consumption

There have been several extensive research studies linking cancer to alcohol consumption. Thus, there be a strong link between alcohol and many different types of cancer. This is because alcohol is a known human carcinogen.

A carcinogen is a substance that causes a form of cancer. Research shows that the more alcohol a person drinks over time, the higher their risk of developing alcohol-associated cancer becomes.

This is especially for those that begin to drink alcohol regularly. There have been clear patterns found between alcohol drinking and the development of specific kinds of cancer.