Adderall XR and Headaches: What Users Say

• Van...
• February 21, 2019

For ADHD "I have ADD and chronic fatigue. I had issues with not being able to focus, total attention deficit, anxiety, zero motivation, sleeping all the time, forgetting to use planner, messy house, no organization. Imagine being stuck inside the deepest fog within yourself and not being able to see clearly. I hated the way I felt. Enter Adderall... started out on 10mg XR adjusted to 30mg XR. Side effects: mild headache at back of head, weight loss and thirst. Headache went away, fog dissipated, as well as the fatigue, messy house, anxiety and attention disorder. I am able to focus, I tackle one thing at a time, I can prioritize, I can get up in the morning and not dread the day ahead of me. I smile a little more, laugh a little more, procrastinate less. I am able to give my children more of the attention they deserve. Adderall for me is not a cure-all or a wonder drug but it held my hand and pulled me from the thickest cloud of fog when nothing else could, and for that I am thankful."

• NHe...
• May 12, 2009

For ADHD "I was diagnosed with ADHD 6 years ago by my family physician. She put me on Effexor, which seemed to help at first, but over the next year, the side effects were not worth the results. Another doctor recently prescribed Adderall, and when that worked well, he gave Adderall XR. I am so much more centered, can concentrate, and my quality of life is so much better. I hate that it is thought of as a 'street drug,' and I hate that the price is so high. The generic did nothing for me except to make me agitated/jittery for a few hours, then crashed and had a headache."

• Anonymous
• June 9, 2009

For ADHD "I started taking Adderall XR 12 days ago, and I love it. I immediately started focusing better. I now feel great when I wake up knowing that I will be able to get things done that have been put off for so long. My memory and self-esteem have improved dramatically. The only side effects I am experiencing are dry mouth and mild headaches."

• Anonymous
• Taken for 2 to 5 years
• May 10, 2017

For ADHD "I take the extended release once a day. I recently got a dose increase for my extreme fatigue. It has been about 3 weeks, and I do not like the symptoms that occur with it. I feel like a zombie, I don't enjoy talking when I am on my medicine. I get extremely bad, frequent headaches, I am even more tired when it wears off, but I am unable to sleep. I get really irritable and moody. With the lower dose, the main problematic symptom I would have was the dry mouth, but that was manageable."

• sw3...
• August 11, 2010

For ADHD "Adderall XR has changed my life! For years, I have struggled with depression and anxiety, no motivation, mood swings, and couldn't focus on any task. I was diagnosed with ADD/Bipolar when I was 19-20ish (26 now and mom of 1). I have struggled through so many years not knowing after several doctors and tons of medicines or medication combinations. I was put on Vyvanse from 30-50mg over a period of 2 years. It worked well for me. In the beginning, I had dry mouth and palpitations. My coverage stopped paying for it. The doctor tried me on Strattera and Concerta (not together). After several months, I was just still always sick, with stomach cramps, headaches, etc. About 3 years now I've been on Adderall XR 30mg, and I still have dry mouth and loss of appetite. Other than that, it has helped me to be a 'normal' person and a loving, motivated mother."

• Anonymous
• October 28, 2011

For ADHD "I've been on Adderall since I was in high school, so about 5 years. It works well for my concentration and allows me to focus for an extended period of time, such as when studying. This medicine has definitely helped me, but it has a lot of side effects. For me, loss of appetite, euphoria, and dry mouth are the most common. Headaches are frequent, but nothing ibuprofen can't fix. I've been on and off antidepressants that affected the Adderall. When I was on Lexapro, taking Adderall would make me irritable, anxious, and paranoid, sometimes to a full-blown panic attack. Now I'm on Prozac, and the Adderall combination is fine. But I still get anxious and mildly irritable when the 'high' of the Adderall decreases."

• Anonymous
• September 30, 2010

For ADHD "I have been taking Adderall XR 30mg for about 7 months now, and I am starting to get concerned. I started out with 20mg, but was still very impulsive, so I upped the dose to 30mg. I can focus and listen really well, but I am noticing increasing negative effects. I noticed dizziness right away, but this improved after a few weeks. Then I started to notice myself constantly stumbling over words when talking. I have NEVER had that problem before. I began to get headaches every day about two months ago, and it is getting worse daily. That's a big concern to me because amphetamines are bad for the liver and kidneys as it is, and now I HAVE to take increasing doses of ibuprofen just to 'take the edge off' of the headaches."

• mik...
• September 19, 2009

For ADHD "I was diagnosed with ADD about 5 years ago; a year later, I started taking Concerta for 2-3 months; it gave me headaches and didn't help. Hearing good things about Adderall, I tried it and, wow, it was like magic. I felt awesome, I could actually think and focus, and everything was great with not-so-terrible side effects. The thing with Adderall for me was that I constantly had to change doses (I tried XR 10, 20, 30, and regular 5, 10). I jumped all over the spectrum because my biggest side effect was it affected my sleep, and I was soon diagnosed with moderate obstructive sleep apnea; may not be correlated, but it exploited this problem. After roughly 3.5 years, the side effects have increased and it doesn't help much. Looking into Desoxyn and Dexedrine."

• Anonymous
• December 9, 2009

For ADHD "First drug I started taking for ADD a month ago. Took the 20 mg, and it felt too intense and had a ton of side effects, but after 3-5 days, it was tolerable but still suffered from really bad headaches and dry mouth all day. Two weeks later, the headaches finally stopped, but dry mouth was horrible, I must have drank a gallon of water or more a day and had to have candy or gum all the time. But I could tell I was a little more productive at work. At night, I would catch myself daydreaming worse than before and wondered if I was worse without it. I felt it basically replaced my coffee and then some, but the dry mouth wasn't worth it. I am now going to start taking Wellbutrin since I am a little depressed too, and that drug is supposed to help with both."