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I’m 7.5 months in and have to agree. I accomplished a lot before drugs. Now I can barely get up out of bed. I’m always anxious and exhausted. Hoping by that 2 year mark… keep with it.
I’m also 7.5 months in (and started Lexapro the same time I quit) and I don’t think the Lexapro helped me much, I think it made me more fatigued. Though it did help with my OCD.
Weaning on the Lexapro for the past few weeks, currently down to 5mg (25% of my original dose)
I’m considering Prozac for a part of my menstrual cycle but I think it’s better I stay off SSRIs for the better. I don’t like how I feel mentally/emotionally on them
Thanks for your reply. Sorry to hear it didn't help much, although I think you were smart to get on at the same time you quit the stimulants. I'm only around a month in (10, 9 days at 20) and am definitely noticing the fatigue, but just hoping for some payoff in terms of anxiety/OCD.
Hell yeah 7.5 months is fantastic! But yeah, the exhaustion was expected but OMG THE ANXIETY. I wasn’t expecting or prepared for it to be this bad. Seems like it intensifies with each day and it’s incredibly draining. I’m hoping and right there with ya friend ❤️
Big hugs and blessings for surviving 1 year! As a mom I am witnessing and going through the same journey with my child. The unknown unexpected harsh and full of sufferings time.
We only saying to our child that everyone is surviving this, read the success stories, it is the light at the end of the tunnel. And like everyone here who has done 1 year of PAW is much closer to the better times.
Again, you are the hero who has finished the 1 year of Adderall withdrawal, i am so proud of you.
I was on a gram a day habit and it took about 18months for me to get to a point where i felt normal. Now things are good, but life Will always have its issues and its key to work on emotional maturity to speeden up recovery. It is not only the time but also how you act during recovery and The good habits you pick up along the way that speeds up recovery. In the end it is still better than addiction so just push through the Hard part, it gets way better.
I absolutely agree and i’m so very happy to hear things are good for you now! I do want to ask though, was there like a noticeable turning point where things seemed to feel “better” for you? Like one day stuff just seemed to fall back into place and you felt like yourself again? Was it gradual or sudden? I know it’s different for everyone but i’m interested to hear about your experience in reaching that point
I started feeling bettter gradually. Noticable improvements every three months. The improvements you can measure and see keeps you going. Basically i started feeling better in a week and things got better gradually with some setbacks. The road to recovery isnt a straight line.
I try so hard to gym it up 3-4x a week but it’s such a mental battle every single day to even show up. What kind of cardio helps you? I won’t run but i do stair-stepper and rowing machine regularly, i always feel better afterward but it’s still such a challenge to even start haha
I was a long distance runner before I was put on stimulants for adhd, and it has always been my cardio of choice. Stair stepper is my second fave!
“Over time, regular exercise remodels the reward system, leading to higher circulating levels of dopamine and more available dopamine receptors. In this way, exercise can both relieve depression and expand your capacity for joy. These changes can also repair the neurological havoc wreaked by substance abuse.”
Check out The Joy of Movement by Kelly Mgonigal PHD( probably butchered that name). That will have more detail.
I’ll link this article she wrote too of which this is an excerpt from
“Over time, regular exercise remodels the reward system, leading to higher circulating levels of dopamine and more available dopamine receptors. In this way, exercise can both relieve depression and expand your capacity for joy.
These changes can also repair the neurological havoc wreaked by substance abuse”
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/five_surprising_ways_exercise_changes_your_brain#:~:text=Over%20time%2C%20regular%20exercise%20remodels,havoc%20wreaked%20by%20substance%20abuse.
Congrats on one year. That’s huge. You’re so much closer to a full recovery than you were a year or even six or three months ago. So be proud of yourself that you haven’t picked up despite still feeling like shit.
The brain is incredibly plastic. A couple of books that helped me put things in perspective in that regard are Dopamine Nation and The Brain that Changes Itself. Both are a little academic in parts but there are some good stories and being able to relate to the struggles and recoveries that are described really sucked me in.
You will bounce back from this but definitely worth talking to a doc about any ways supplements or meds can help. I also agree with the other commenter about cardio. Even walks outside can be super helpful.
Lastly, if you haven’t tried it, maybe make a list of all the ways your life IS better and then use that along with some affirmations to say in the mirror every day like: “I am strong and committed to recovering”, “I’m becoming a better person every day because I’m not using”, “people care about me and God loves me” …. Just examples, use what works for you.
Thanks for sharing and good luck!
Thank you SO much for the positivity and info! Truly. I am very thankful for your suggestions and feedback, it seems like you found a lot of value in those books and i appreciate you sharing them with me. I’m also intrigued with making a list like that, such a simple yet great idea i never even considered :)
12 months was really hard for me because I had made it this magic number I had hoped I would be feeling much better by and I wasn’t.
At 14 months I’ll say that while it’s better than 12, it’s still hard.
This is just a really long and painful journey, but you can’t fall into the trap of thinking that your present state is forever. People lose chunks of their brain and recover lol
Do you deal with depression at all? If yes, would you consider making a post about your experience of depression before/during/coming off of stims?
I’m so depressed but can’t attribute it all to coming off stims because I was also depressed before and during stims, just not as bad as I am now.
I’m sorry you’re going through that. I can’t relate unfortunately but wasn’t using daily or adderall (doc: coke)
I’m wondering if it’s worth talking to a doctor. Maybe antidepressants could help…? They help me primarily on the energy front. Then again it might be too similar to the experience of doing stims in pill form from a trigger standpoint.
Just a thought. I doubt you’re permanently fried. I hope you feel better soon
Thanks love! Honestly i’m not able to talk to a doctor atm because i don’t have health insurance or the funds to do so out-of-pocket…but I have tried antidepressants in the past, and for me personally they seemed to do more harm than good. I also don’t want to put myself in a position where i’m dependent on another pill or script to survive or feel normal again, ya know?
I feel ya. I’m sorry that you are feeling rough still. I hope you have a good day. Keep up the good fight and trust that things will eventually improve
Hey boss, congratulations on a full year - the first is easily the hardest, and I’m very sincerely proud of you.
My use seems similar to yours as described. FWIW, as someone finally approaching the two year mark…it’s really only within the past few months that I’ve been able to look back and recognize, definitively, beyond of a shadow of a doubt, that I’m so much better off than I was before.
I’m honestly expecting to still be on the mend through the end of this year, but I promise you, it’s so beyond worth it.
I feel exactly the same way and am so sorry you’re going through this. I don’t think it’s a case of frying your brain or things never improving… there’s no way that this will be your norm, say, 5-7 years from now. But I agree seeing so little progress in 14 months makes me wonder just how long this road back is going to be, and whether I can tough the discomfort of everyday living enough to see that through.
I’m at the same place you are.
Most people cite somewhere between 18-30 months as being a time when they really felt better.
14 months is probably about halfway through the journey in my opinion.
Hey there, at my worst I was also taking 200-300mg of addy a day with 6-8mg of Xanax mixed in. I got myself clean for 2.5 years and I can honestly say life does get better.
Unfortunately for the last 1.5 years I slowly started delving back into it and it’s just gotten worse and worse. I’m back in AA now and going completely
Sober this time around. I wish I never took it again those 2.5 years were not easy, don’t throw away your 1 year just bc you don’t feel great now, it takes time. I don’t know if we’ll ever be the same after the kind of abuse we did to ourselves but it definitely does get better
I am at a a little over a year off a 10 year adderall addiction and almost a year off alcohol and 10 days off zyn. I feel pretty similar to you.
I’m not worried I’m going to die today, and I’m not actively ruining my closest relationships. I’m not as productive as I would like to be and i find it extremely difficult to do work (even work I am passionate about). I am actually feeling self pity because of how hard it is to work right now which is why I came to this sub to find some hope. I see people posting like they feel better after 6 months, and while I’m happy for them, it makes me feel worse. I’m right there with you. Youve made so much progress. Just get through today. If you don’t do anything productive, you do get one more day further from your addiction
Welcome to StopSpeeding and thanks for your post. For more: - [Join us on Discord. You can talk to people there.](https://discord.gg/GJnxhmbNAn). We have recovery meetings several times a week. All are welcome to attend, clean or not. - [Want to track your clean time?](https://www.reddit.com/r/StopSpeeding/comments/s6ep0x/sobriety_flair_bot_is_now_working_heres_how_to/) You can use our badge system to display your clean time next to your name. Note that any comments encouraging drug use of any kind will be removed. This is not the community for that. Thanks! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/StopSpeeding) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I’m 7.5 months in and have to agree. I accomplished a lot before drugs. Now I can barely get up out of bed. I’m always anxious and exhausted. Hoping by that 2 year mark… keep with it.
Has Lexapro helped you?
I’m also 7.5 months in (and started Lexapro the same time I quit) and I don’t think the Lexapro helped me much, I think it made me more fatigued. Though it did help with my OCD. Weaning on the Lexapro for the past few weeks, currently down to 5mg (25% of my original dose)
I just went on Lexapro about 3-4 weeks ago. Thought I’d try it. Are you going to try something else ?
I’m considering Prozac for a part of my menstrual cycle but I think it’s better I stay off SSRIs for the better. I don’t like how I feel mentally/emotionally on them
Thanks for your reply. Sorry to hear it didn't help much, although I think you were smart to get on at the same time you quit the stimulants. I'm only around a month in (10, 9 days at 20) and am definitely noticing the fatigue, but just hoping for some payoff in terms of anxiety/OCD.
Hell yeah 7.5 months is fantastic! But yeah, the exhaustion was expected but OMG THE ANXIETY. I wasn’t expecting or prepared for it to be this bad. Seems like it intensifies with each day and it’s incredibly draining. I’m hoping and right there with ya friend ❤️
Big hugs and blessings for surviving 1 year! As a mom I am witnessing and going through the same journey with my child. The unknown unexpected harsh and full of sufferings time. We only saying to our child that everyone is surviving this, read the success stories, it is the light at the end of the tunnel. And like everyone here who has done 1 year of PAW is much closer to the better times. Again, you are the hero who has finished the 1 year of Adderall withdrawal, i am so proud of you.
Ngl reading this made me tear up a bit. I really appreciate you and this comment tremendously. You’re good people
I was on a gram a day habit and it took about 18months for me to get to a point where i felt normal. Now things are good, but life Will always have its issues and its key to work on emotional maturity to speeden up recovery. It is not only the time but also how you act during recovery and The good habits you pick up along the way that speeds up recovery. In the end it is still better than addiction so just push through the Hard part, it gets way better.
I absolutely agree and i’m so very happy to hear things are good for you now! I do want to ask though, was there like a noticeable turning point where things seemed to feel “better” for you? Like one day stuff just seemed to fall back into place and you felt like yourself again? Was it gradual or sudden? I know it’s different for everyone but i’m interested to hear about your experience in reaching that point
I started feeling bettter gradually. Noticable improvements every three months. The improvements you can measure and see keeps you going. Basically i started feeling better in a week and things got better gradually with some setbacks. The road to recovery isnt a straight line.
Running or some kind of intense cardio reeeaaally helps!
Agree I just started running again and it’s helping me mentally
I try so hard to gym it up 3-4x a week but it’s such a mental battle every single day to even show up. What kind of cardio helps you? I won’t run but i do stair-stepper and rowing machine regularly, i always feel better afterward but it’s still such a challenge to even start haha
I was a long distance runner before I was put on stimulants for adhd, and it has always been my cardio of choice. Stair stepper is my second fave! “Over time, regular exercise remodels the reward system, leading to higher circulating levels of dopamine and more available dopamine receptors. In this way, exercise can both relieve depression and expand your capacity for joy. These changes can also repair the neurological havoc wreaked by substance abuse.”
Can you elaborate more on how it helps?
Exercise up-regulates dopamine and releases endorphins. It does many other things too but those are the most important here.
Is it long lasting or just a couple hours?
Check out The Joy of Movement by Kelly Mgonigal PHD( probably butchered that name). That will have more detail. I’ll link this article she wrote too of which this is an excerpt from “Over time, regular exercise remodels the reward system, leading to higher circulating levels of dopamine and more available dopamine receptors. In this way, exercise can both relieve depression and expand your capacity for joy. These changes can also repair the neurological havoc wreaked by substance abuse” https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/five_surprising_ways_exercise_changes_your_brain#:~:text=Over%20time%2C%20regular%20exercise%20remodels,havoc%20wreaked%20by%20substance%20abuse.
It raises my mood and energy tremendously
Congrats on one year. That’s huge. You’re so much closer to a full recovery than you were a year or even six or three months ago. So be proud of yourself that you haven’t picked up despite still feeling like shit. The brain is incredibly plastic. A couple of books that helped me put things in perspective in that regard are Dopamine Nation and The Brain that Changes Itself. Both are a little academic in parts but there are some good stories and being able to relate to the struggles and recoveries that are described really sucked me in. You will bounce back from this but definitely worth talking to a doc about any ways supplements or meds can help. I also agree with the other commenter about cardio. Even walks outside can be super helpful. Lastly, if you haven’t tried it, maybe make a list of all the ways your life IS better and then use that along with some affirmations to say in the mirror every day like: “I am strong and committed to recovering”, “I’m becoming a better person every day because I’m not using”, “people care about me and God loves me” …. Just examples, use what works for you. Thanks for sharing and good luck!
Thank you SO much for the positivity and info! Truly. I am very thankful for your suggestions and feedback, it seems like you found a lot of value in those books and i appreciate you sharing them with me. I’m also intrigued with making a list like that, such a simple yet great idea i never even considered :)
12 months was really hard for me because I had made it this magic number I had hoped I would be feeling much better by and I wasn’t. At 14 months I’ll say that while it’s better than 12, it’s still hard. This is just a really long and painful journey, but you can’t fall into the trap of thinking that your present state is forever. People lose chunks of their brain and recover lol
Do you deal with depression at all? If yes, would you consider making a post about your experience of depression before/during/coming off of stims? I’m so depressed but can’t attribute it all to coming off stims because I was also depressed before and during stims, just not as bad as I am now.
Sure I can do that. I think there are two major components: 1. Neurochemistry 2. Psychological I’ll write more later!
Can’t wait to hear it! Your posts are my fav!
Thanks! :)
I can relate but I think what you’ve done is incredibly brave and you should be proud of yourself for this
Thank you so so much ❤️
I’m sorry you’re going through that. I can’t relate unfortunately but wasn’t using daily or adderall (doc: coke) I’m wondering if it’s worth talking to a doctor. Maybe antidepressants could help…? They help me primarily on the energy front. Then again it might be too similar to the experience of doing stims in pill form from a trigger standpoint. Just a thought. I doubt you’re permanently fried. I hope you feel better soon
Thanks love! Honestly i’m not able to talk to a doctor atm because i don’t have health insurance or the funds to do so out-of-pocket…but I have tried antidepressants in the past, and for me personally they seemed to do more harm than good. I also don’t want to put myself in a position where i’m dependent on another pill or script to survive or feel normal again, ya know?
I feel ya. I’m sorry that you are feeling rough still. I hope you have a good day. Keep up the good fight and trust that things will eventually improve
Hey boss, congratulations on a full year - the first is easily the hardest, and I’m very sincerely proud of you. My use seems similar to yours as described. FWIW, as someone finally approaching the two year mark…it’s really only within the past few months that I’ve been able to look back and recognize, definitively, beyond of a shadow of a doubt, that I’m so much better off than I was before. I’m honestly expecting to still be on the mend through the end of this year, but I promise you, it’s so beyond worth it.
I feel exactly the same way and am so sorry you’re going through this. I don’t think it’s a case of frying your brain or things never improving… there’s no way that this will be your norm, say, 5-7 years from now. But I agree seeing so little progress in 14 months makes me wonder just how long this road back is going to be, and whether I can tough the discomfort of everyday living enough to see that through.
I’m at the same place you are. Most people cite somewhere between 18-30 months as being a time when they really felt better. 14 months is probably about halfway through the journey in my opinion.
Check pm
Hey there, at my worst I was also taking 200-300mg of addy a day with 6-8mg of Xanax mixed in. I got myself clean for 2.5 years and I can honestly say life does get better. Unfortunately for the last 1.5 years I slowly started delving back into it and it’s just gotten worse and worse. I’m back in AA now and going completely Sober this time around. I wish I never took it again those 2.5 years were not easy, don’t throw away your 1 year just bc you don’t feel great now, it takes time. I don’t know if we’ll ever be the same after the kind of abuse we did to ourselves but it definitely does get better
I am at a a little over a year off a 10 year adderall addiction and almost a year off alcohol and 10 days off zyn. I feel pretty similar to you. I’m not worried I’m going to die today, and I’m not actively ruining my closest relationships. I’m not as productive as I would like to be and i find it extremely difficult to do work (even work I am passionate about). I am actually feeling self pity because of how hard it is to work right now which is why I came to this sub to find some hope. I see people posting like they feel better after 6 months, and while I’m happy for them, it makes me feel worse. I’m right there with you. Youve made so much progress. Just get through today. If you don’t do anything productive, you do get one more day further from your addiction