Adderall and memory problems

I'm not on adderall at the moment. But my memory is getting horrible everyday. It actually feels like it hurts for me to try to rack my brain for a memory and I just draw a blank. The other day I had to ask my mom if cinnamon went on sweet potatoes! Like I feel like maybe I have a brain tumor. But then I know everyone in this group talks about memory issues. It's frustrating I know!

I have also noticed the this med makes me trip over my words and completely stop mid sentence because I forgot what I was going to say. I'm on the phone all day at work so that's embarrassing

when you put things in weird places like that, it's usually automatic behavior....as for normal memory going haywire....adderall was the worst culprit in doing that to me! It was horrible!

I forget things about Daily. Common with Narcolepsy. I'm just starting to write things down after 7yrs with N/C. I'm only on Xyrem right now with Effexor. I'm always miss placing things,forgetting things. Common with narcolepsy. My only suggestion is trying some supplements for the brain. Swanson website I use,good prices. Some people here use supplements,good luck.

Husband asks me to do something I say okay walk out of the room and never come back, totally forget about it until he asks again, sometimes more than once.Lost my keys in the house to my car, only set and never found them, probably threw them out. Had to have car rekeyed. Today spent half day looking for something I received in the mail, never found it. Needed it to pay a bill that was already late, but called them and worked around it. Gave up because I was having a panic attack looking. Still need to find something from insurance company, have to send to get new health insurance..So very important, can't find it. I write lists and lose them or forget to look at them. Have been working for over a year now to minimize and organize house to make things easier on me, it helps a lot if everything has a place. I am OCD about it, but it really helps as my house no longer looks like it belongs on hoarders. My bills and paperwork are still in shambles, I keep trying to organize them. No luck yet but bought a file folder hanger for my filing cabinet and I am determined to organize it once and for all. Problem is everyone wants things and I can not find them in time. I now take Adderal, used to take ritalin, modafinal and was no better. I think it got bad after taking xyrem, doctors disagree and say stopping it should have resulted in improvement, but it hasn't. I disagree with them
I am on adderal because I built up a tolerance to ritalin took up to 120mg a day at one point. New insurance restrictions limit me to 60mg. Now taking 60 of Adderal still not working well. I get very frustrated and upset with myself. Causes panic attacks and depression sometimes. Try getting tile I have one on my keys and one on my purse, the app on my phone. I allows me to locate items if I have at least one.

I've been thinking about why this is for a while now and I've come up with a theory that probably won't ever be proven scientifically but...I was thinking that maybe since people with N constantly have vivid dreams, then maybe somehow all of these dreams and hallucinations start to overload,crowd out or block our brains ability to normally function the memory part of the brain.

It's not the Adderall, you just described my daily life. We have learned to laugh about where we find things and without a doubt if anyone else misplaces things, it will always be blamed on me. Just like if I ever had a wreck, no matter what, I'd never convince my family that I wasn't asleep.

I have been experiencing major memory loss for a long time now. This is part of the reason I lost a very good job in 2010. I'm on disability now and I make in a month what I used to make in a week. It sucks.. but, I keep telling myself I could be a lot worse off. One thing I'm grateful for is that I don't have C.

My memory has gotten drastically worse as well. It's never been great but I feel like "10 second Tom" lol from the movie, 50 first dates, where he can only retain information for 10 seconds before he forgets it. It's that bad! I also have started writing things down in a notebook, I'm also thinking about using a voice recording app on my phone so I can quickly say something important because most of the time I get lost on the way to getting my notebook and forget I needed it in the first place. I don't forget as easily when I'm not on my stimulants medication (dextrostate) but then again when I'm not medicated I don't have energy to try and do anything that requires me to remember anything...

As far as being late for everything, I can related. I haven't been on time for anything since well, I can't remember when I wasn't late , but I wasn't like this before My condition expressed itself. For me it's either under estimating travel times or needing to do x y and z and having no concept of how much time has pasted and before I know it I should have left 15 minutes ago. I've tried changing my clocks in my house and car ahead 10 mins but all i'd do is know I had 10 extra mins. So what I have to do now is if I have to be somewhere at 1:00pm I write down I must be there at noon . I pretty much make my time to be there an hour before I do . So even if i'm 1/2 hour late, I still have time to go home and back if I forgot something and still be on time . And if I'm only 45 mins late, then I get there and sit in my car for 15 mins till I actually time I have to be there . Sometimes it sucks if I'm 15 mins late and have to wait 45 mins till my appt time. But realize if this is what it takes then I have to. I use to say I can't help it and I can't . But realized I have to start respecting other people's time because I'm not using n as an excuse to inconvenience others , if I have to be inconvenience myself I will understand that I can't help it. But honestly the amount I inconvenience others when i write the time down the time as an hour early, is a lot less then it use to be. And people notice and appreciate that. I really had to tell myself that it's about respecting other people time in order to find what worked for me. And owning that if I can't control being on time . Then I'll control what time I tell myself I have to be there. You just have to try different things until you find what works for you. But you might try it. if you can't help being late then just accommodate it by making your time to be there an hour before you have to so your impact is less when you are late.

I still set all of my clocks ahead 12 min. I also have explained to all the places I need to be on time, dentist, dr, hair stylist, ECT and they write times on the appointment cards that are from 20 min to an hour earlier than they really schedule it for. That way my brain doesn't know what time I'm really supposed to be there. It has really worked. I'm very lucky to have the job I have, I get to make my own schedule sort of, I have to be there mon-fri, and I can only clock in on the 15 marks and have to stay 8.5 hours from when I get there, but if I'm hoping to get there at 730 and it's a bad day then I can punch in at 815 and go home around 5. I also write everything down, my work is "paperless" and I get Corp always asking me how they can eliminate the files I use, but I have to have the physical paper in front of me, typing something means nothing to me, for some reason if I write something on paper, then read it, I can remember it more

My memory is worsening day by day and that scares me. Forgetting where I put things, what i'm saying, etc. I'm alone most times and that really freaks me out and I try explaining things to people, but they just don't get it.

m the most forgetful when i didnt sleep well the night before. Taking adderall will keep me awake but in zombie mode. I cant sleep more than 6-7 hours or else im tired all day. I actually feel better on 4 hours of sleep rather than 8!

Before my first sleep appointment I told my doctor and my therapist I was afraid I was developing dementia or something. I do all of those things too. How can I forget what I'm doing or looking for in the act of doing it? I was getting lost while driving in familiar places too. It's so frustrating. I am brand new to medication. I was on no medications at all until about a year ago when I tried a couple antidepressants and now I take modafinil (started a couple months ago). Medications might have an effect on memory problems too, but all of this is unfortunately N related stuff.

I'd like to suggest trying brain/memory supplements. Some members here use them,I use some. It's not a cure. I think they help. I like Swanson vitamins,been using them for years. Reasonable prices,search brain support. One I like is DMAE,it's a precursor to Acetylcholine,a key neurotransmitter. It's known to enhance mental concentration. Ginkgo Biloba,is well known to help memory. Something to consider. Good luck.

I don't believe it's the Adderall, but rather symptoms of narcolepsy. I take Effexor & have the same issues, but had them before as well. I "lose" everything. I put food in the dishwasher, mail in the fridge, keys in the trash, etc...I forget appointments, repeat myself constantly, forget to do chores, etc. I blame it all on the lack of restorative sleep/rest. It's amazing we even function at all.

I do the same exact thing. I doubt it is the med. i do that regardless of the med I am on or even not taking any. Making a note, setting an alarm does not work! I see the note and do not recognize it as something I have to do... Alarms! I have set alarms and when they go off, I simply turn them off! I take no action!

Perfect example. I had an appointment at 7am the other day. I had an alarm set for 6:40 that said "Leave for MD appointment at Mayo". I get up every morning at about 5:15. I was ready for the day by 6AM. I was just doing busy type of things.... Nothing important. I had all my stuff to take with me all ready by my purse and keys. The alarm went off at 6:40. I just turned it off!

All the stimulants in the world won't help with the automatic behavior, microsleeps, etc if you aren't getting good sleep at nighttime (good as in as good as we can do!!). Do you take xyrem or something else? I was EXACTLY like you (and still am but to much lesser extent) before using xyrem. And if I don't use it twice per night then it still happens. I went gluten free 3 years ago and that has helped TREMENDOUSLY (though there are several in this group that think gluten free diets are fads).

Mine came back but I can't remember how ....

Jk. I have had some memories return with Xyrem. Also my memory has improved significantly since treatment. I feel like I can remember better up to age 16 or so, then foggy til about 36 (20 years), then again good memory w Xyrem til now. Lol. I'm going to have this 20 year fog where I remember little, and then hopefully be good w everything else.

i forget a lot, too. importance of the matter, is irrelevant. not only day to day, but i'm missing significant chunks of my past. i love to reminiscence, to listen to others' stories about their life, but, i can't offer too much because it's just "gone". as a writer, that's particularly damning. either i'm expected to forget or am treated like i'm being intentionally dismissive--which is totally not who i am. on the plus side, it has helped me forget some painful details of my past, too, and to truly treasure a moment, particularly the clear ones. best of luck to all of you, i know it's so, so hard.