Yup! At my job as a mental health counselor where we assess people, if we start detecting hints of what we think might be ADHD, it’s actually something my supervisor trained me to do, to just ask “So when that sort of thing happens, do you ever drink coffee or soda to calm down?” or “Does coffee actually help you wake up, or does it just not do anything?” because it’s such a commonly known fact about ADHD for people in the mental health field.
One of the prevailing theories explaining ADHD is that it’s caused by a lack of certain neurotransmitters, specifically norepinephrine and serotonin. Everybody has a background level of these neurotransmitters, and when they see or do something novel or interesting, those neurotransmitters increase, and then decrease back down to normal levels. Because people with ADHD have less of these than they should, they are constantly looking for something new and interesting to give them that jolt back to normal levels. That’s why they’re so easily distracted and why they hyperfocus on things that interest them.
Stimulant drugs, like caffeine, cause your brain to make more of those neurotransmitters. So while neurotypical people might get a buzz off caffeine, people with ADHD just get bumped up closer to normal levels, and so, if anything, feel calmer. That’s why they prescribe what are basically amphetamines as treatment for ADHD and why ADHD meds are so bad for people who don’t have ADHD.
I can drink 3 cups of coffee and go straight to sleep, this is just one example of what is fundamentaly wrong with me as a person
God I really thought this was common knowledge, I forget that unless you are successfully diagnosed or are a person who studies it, that adhd isnt like, a well understood thing
Cuz like, yeah caffeine calms my brain a bit so if I have a huge soda from like circle k before bed I’ll pass out, if I’m super spastic and hyper, coffee or soda brings my brain down to a level where I can focus and be calm.
I have ADHD and I drink coffee and tea to regulate my anxiety.
They’re not just ‘basically amphetamines’ that you’re prescribed, but sometimes literal amphetamines. I’m prescribed dextroamphetamine for my ADHD. And while they say not to take them too close to bedtime, I’ve absolutely woken up, taken my morning meds, and gone back to bed for a nap on several occasions. Which is … not a neurotypical response to amphetamines.
My adhd meds are LITERALLY “amphetamine salts”, it’s not basically anything it is explicitly exactly that.
Some people I know have extended release doses to take in the morning before they start their day, and a low fast release dose to take before bed to help get their brains to quiet down long enough for them to sleep.
I have also literally drunk coffee or other caffeinated beverages in order to go to sleep, because it helps quiet my mind down. (and also before tests or things I’d need to focus for, before I got my meds, because I’d focus better but it wouldn’t make me awake or hyper just able to pay attention.)
that feel when your doctor proscribes you something containing the word “meth”
it doesn’t have the word “meth” in it because meth comes from the prefix to “methamphetamine” which is an illegal and harmful variant of amphetamine.
it’s… actually a prescription for a drug that includes everything BUT the word “meth”, if you get straight adderall.
