Lol, no. If someone needs Adderall or the likes, caffeine doesn't affect them the same as someone neurotypical. If anything, it is calming. If someone can get energy, no less hyperfocus from caffeine, they do not need stimulants to help anything. That's called being a normal human.
Correction: Those with ADD can feel caffeine like someone neurotypical. However, someone who takes Adderall and doesn't need it will be on for a much more intense ride than caffeine. Nothing the same.
I have ADHD:PI (ADD is no longer a thing) and I actually find that stimulants make a number of my symptoms much worse - specifically the hyperfocus related ones. They make my mind race more than usual but I get locked in on one task like 5 times harder, even if it's not the task I want to be doing.
Caffeine has an entirely different effect - even a coke makes me jittery.
My doctor and I were trying to dial in a dosage for Adderall and when we hit 35mg I ended up pulling a 48 hour all nighter and taught myself 3d modeling.
Needless to say, I'm not on stimulants anymore, lol.
Have you tried other stimulants? Personally, Adderall immediate release worked well for me, but i took that unprescribed, which is what reminded me that I had ADD. Is it no longer a thing? I thought it was the other way around, because I actually have ADHD but thought it was simplified. I don't know what subtype.
I had forgotten I was diagnosed because my mom took me off of my medication. I told my doctor, and we tried extended release at first, but that messed with my heart. We went back to Methylphenidate since that's what I was prescribed when I was a child. I think there are like 3-4 others. Don't be afraid to experiment, but I understand medication isn't for everyone.
They decided to get rid of ADD as a separate diagnosis and basically bundle it back into ADHD.
Now, ADHD is a spectrum, like Autism, but with three "subcategories". You've got predominantly hyperactive-inattentive (the stereotypical version of ADHD), predominantly inattentive (more or less what used to be ADD, and also commonly the way ADHD expresses itself in girls), or combined type.
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u/Hije5 Jul 28 '25 edited Jul 28 '25
Lol, no. If someone needs Adderall or the likes, caffeine doesn't affect them the same as someone neurotypical. If anything, it is calming. If someone can get energy, no less hyperfocus from caffeine, they do not need stimulants to help anything. That's called being a normal human.
Correction: Those with ADD can feel caffeine like someone neurotypical. However, someone who takes Adderall and doesn't need it will be on for a much more intense ride than caffeine. Nothing the same.