ADHD or ADD

It simply boils down to one simple thing. Will the meds cause a driver to pop a positive on a DOT drug test? If not don't worry about it. If so you had better have it approved by the FMCSA ME that did your physical. Otherwise its a positive. I do not know if this is an issue or not as it relates to testing. However be advised amphetamines are prohibited and tested for.

 

This is very true. Thanks for pointing this out. People with AD/HD are low in dopamine (and differences in other neurotransmitters) Stimulants that could keep a neuro-typical (a person without AD/HD) person overstimulated do so because neuro-typical people already have sufficient dopamine/neurotransmitter levels and the stimulants give them an effective overdose in those levels.

Conversely, a person with AD/HD with low levels, may use the same stimulant and only get up to normal or near normal level. Which why people with AD/HD can feel more "normal" and calm on stimulants than without them.

How can a stimulant calm the AD/HD brain? These low levels of neurotransmitters occur in the pre-frontal cortex and memory portions of the brain. When a person with AD/HD has trouble concentration/focusing--"trying harder" makes it even more difficult, simply increasing anxiety and thus the difficulty in focusing increases (not with all, but this is very common). Raising the dopamine level helps with focusing and concentration thus also helps to remove the anxiety, so it can be calming.

A common saying among AD/HD doctors is "a person with AD/HD can still take a nap on Adderall."

Without getting into genetic variants, causes, Hunter/Gatherer theories etc. several posts before yours in this thread seek to perpetuate AD/HD stereotypes/myths, and here are 31 busted myths about AD/HD.
31 ADHD Myths in 31 Days — Debunked.