I've been taking 20mg of adderall twice a day for about 4 months now, and the side effects are beginning to bother me. At first I loved it, it made me more social, I could focus more, pretty much my brain was running like a computer for weeks. But then I started to notice the side effects.. Loss of the sense of well-being from my normal dose, headaches, weight loss, feeling jittery, mood swings, so on. So, I've been thinking about talking to my doctor about trying Dexedrine- I've heard that it has less side effects, and think that it could give me the mental stimulation I've been looking for. So, would dexedrine provide more mental stimulation, and less side effects? Any and all advice is appreciated and welcome!
The effects you are feeling would indicate that you don't need either, but are rather using the drug other than for its intended purpose. Justa thought
Dexedrine (100% dextro-amphetamine) acts more on the dopamine transporter whereas levo-amphetamine (which constitutes 25 % of Adderall's make-up) is almost exclusively a norepinephrine transporter enhancer (increase NOR). All of the horrible cardiac side-effects are mainly from NOR release, so, yes, Dexedrine is better for one's heart than Adderall. I actually cannot take Adderall because of my high blood pressure, but I am going to get on Vyvanse (an abuse-proof 'prodrug' of dextroamphetamine) this week because it is only d-amphetamine. Now, techinically, the dopamine transporter also recycles some NOR, so, even a pure dopamine releasing agent or dopamine reuptake inhibitor will potentiate NOR, but not to the level of levo-amphetamine or racemic amphetamine salts would.
Nuvigil and Provigil are non-traditional stimulants. I have never tried either, but I know some about their pharmacological profiles. They don't block dopamine reuptake to the degree of Methylphendiate nor do they release it like amphetamine. They are weak dopamine receptor agonists, which leads to their wakefullness-promoting properties. Alternative theories suggest that it works as a Histamine-agonist (recall, histamine-antagonists like Benadryl make you very tired). This could explain its relative lack of abuse potential compared to Methylphenidate and amphetamine products. I was always able to obtain scripts for the more powerful stuff (Ritalin and Adderall and now Vyvanse [Dextro-amphetamine]) so I never took the -vigil drugs. However, I would love to try them some day and I know that they benefit many people.
Took my first Vyvanse (dextro amphetamine 'prodrug' I am now prescribed) today. Hands down my new favorite stimulant! Way better than Adderall for euphoria.
