'Take Your Pills" documentary on Netflix

[Anonymous]

I watched this last night. I thought the documentary itself was a bit unorganized. I had no idea that Adderall was so common though and thought it was interesting.

[Anonymous]

Ooh thanks for the rec, I want to watch this! What did it say about adderall?? It seriously is INSANE how many people take adderall these days, it's an epidemic

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Ooh thanks for the rec, I want to watch this! What did it say about adderall?? It seriously is INSANE how many people take adderall these days, it's an epidemic

+1 I'm keen to watch this too. It's an epidemic for sure.

[Anonymous]

I was disappointed about this too. They didn't even discuss the long term effects ADHD pills in the body. One kid mentioned about liver failure. I wish they delved into physiology, even for just a bit.

I guess a follow up documentary is needed, I know a lot of kids use these drugs to enhance performance but what becomes of them 10-20 years later.

[Anonymous]

OP here, there were moments in the film when I was watching it and thought, "I want to try it." Adderall sounds like a miracle drug. They interviewed a few college kids who were all taking Adderall to improve academic performance. The film made it seem as if this is a widespread thing in colleges today and that most high achieving students use it to get an edge at some point. That at many colleges there is a black market for pills, especially during crunch times. I had no idea!

There was very little discussion of the long term effects of the drug (other than one person who was hospitalized after a period of heavy use) and that was disappointing though a couple of the people interviewed were no longer using the drug (ex NFL player and a recent college grad who had been on the drug since childhood.)

I have not ever discussed this with my friends an family and have no idea of how many are on Adderall or other psychotropic meds. Its none of my business, its just interesting as the documentary mentions a 10% ADHD/ADD rate for children in our country.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here, there were moments in the film when I was watching it and thought, "I want to try it." Adderall sounds like a miracle drug. They interviewed a few college kids who were all taking Adderall to improve academic performance. The film made it seem as if this is a widespread thing in colleges today and that most high achieving students use it to get an edge at some point. That at many colleges there is a black market for pills, especially during crunch times. I had no idea!

There was very little discussion of the long term effects of the drug (other than one person who was hospitalized after a period of heavy use) and that was disappointing though a couple of the people interviewed were no longer using the drug (ex NFL player and a recent college grad who had been on the drug since childhood.)

I have not ever discussed this with my friends an family and have no idea of how many are on Adderall or other psychotropic meds. Its none of my business, its just interesting as the documentary mentions a 10% ADHD/ADD rate for children in our country.

Honestly it IS kind of a miracle drug...it's legal speed, no way around it. Remember the myth they tell you when you're younger, about how if you DON't have ADD aderalk will have the opposite effect on you? Total lie. Anyone who takes it will be more driven, focused, motivated, organized...more awake and alert, have less of an appetite, better able to focus on and be motivated to complete all the annoying little tasks in life that we don't feel like doing, as well as to stay awake and cram / complete the big projects. It really kind of is a miracle drug...I also think it is dangerous and wildly overprescribed. When a quarter of the school is prescribed legal speed you almost feel like you're at a disadvantage if you DON't have it. And yes, it is pretty widely available and exchanged/bought among students like its nbd (...and with how commonly it's prescribed, let's hope it IS nbd. But I have my doubts)

[Anonymous]

I know at least one adult who takes it just for improved performance. They rave about it, and AFAIK at least sometimes get it illegally.

However, I think the worst thing is all the kids on it. A parent can feed their kids junk food, food dyes and colorings that so many kids are known to get hyper from, and then they can put them on Adderall to keep their butt in their chair and keep up at school. I really feel like it's abuse. I think you should need to prove that NOTHING else will work for your child before getting this type of prescription, including things that are undesirable for the kids and/or inconvenient for the parents.

It's a sad, sad reflection on this country that people are more inclined to force their child to take speed than to put them on a special diet containing only real food.

[Anonymous]

I graduated in college in 2005 and so many of my classmates took adderol as a study mechanism. It was especially orevelant among the prep school kids.

[Anonymous]

I would like to watch this but am hesitant because our teen was just diagnosed with adhd combo and after learning about adhd, it's clear DC has it. I'm sure it will have me second guessing using drugs but DC is so much happier being able to finally focus. The medicine is amazing. Grades went up immediately because learning could occur as well as focus.

DC only wants to take it for school days, never on weekends or holidays unless has homework. I do worry about college and I do hear from older cousins that pretty much everyone uses it. DC uses an extended release version not Adderall which is shorter acting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I graduated in college in 2005 and so many of my classmates took adderol as a study mechanism. It was especially orevelant among the prep school kids.

+2

My cousin did a combined bachelors/masters around this time and said the only way she got through her last year was by taking Adderall.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would like to watch this but am hesitant because our teen was just diagnosed with adhd combo and after learning about adhd, it's clear DC has it. I'm sure it will have me second guessing using drugs but DC is so much happier being able to finally focus. The medicine is amazing. Grades went up immediately because learning could occur as well as focus.

DC only wants to take it for school days, never on weekends or holidays unless has homework. I do worry about college and I do hear from older cousins that pretty much everyone uses it. DC uses an extended release version not Adderall which is shorter acting.

I have a child that is the same way. The medicine is vital to being able to function. I would never have her on it if it wasn’t needed. I of course worry about life by term affects, but this is where we are in the here and now. We’ll see what happens after she finishes puberty.

[Anonymous]

Lifelong, not life by term. Ugh, iPhone ;p

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would like to watch this but am hesitant because our teen was just diagnosed with adhd combo and after learning about adhd, it's clear DC has it. I'm sure it will have me second guessing using drugs but DC is so much happier being able to finally focus. The medicine is amazing. Grades went up immediately because learning could occur as well as focus.

DC only wants to take it for school days, never on weekends or holidays unless has homework. I do worry about college and I do hear from older cousins that pretty much everyone uses it. DC uses an extended release version not Adderall which is shorter acting.

To be fair...like PPs said, pretty much anyone who starts taking this regularly will have their grades go up immediately. It's legal speed

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I would like to watch this but am hesitant because our teen was just diagnosed with adhd combo and after learning about adhd, it's clear DC has it. I'm sure it will have me second guessing using drugs but DC is so much happier being able to finally focus. The medicine is amazing. Grades went up immediately because learning could occur as well as focus.

DC only wants to take it for school days, never on weekends or holidays unless has homework. I do worry about college and I do hear from older cousins that pretty much everyone uses it. DC uses an extended release version not Adderall which is shorter acting.

To be fair...like PPs said, pretty much anyone who starts taking this regularly will have their grades go up immediately. It's legal speed

So are you suggesting that people with ADHD not take it and suffer with their inability to focus, sit still, not chat with their neighbor, drive teachers nuts, get sent to do a lap in the hallway to work out the excess energy? It's a hard decision that no parent I know of with a kid/teen with this diagnosis takes lightly. DS has an Ivy league level brain but couldn't organize the amazing connections he was making verbally on paper. His sister has no ADHD and had no trouble with this and also performs at a high level but can get those thoughts out in an organized fashion. My hope is that DS avoids the alcoholism or other drug choice other families members with undiagnosed adhd had. Time will tell and it's certainly a calculated risk - not a choice I'd wish on anyone. Taking it to get an edge if you don't have adhd is just plain stupid.

[Anonymous]

It was shocking to me when I was hanging with the boy moms at a bday party when my son was 8 and found out he was the only boy not on ADHD meds. Out of a class of 23 split as evenly as possible. They kind of looked at me like I was crazy or something or in denial. A boy that age not on meds was unheard of in their circles.