Been taking Adderall 6 to 8 months now. On one hand it's been extremely positive for me I was able to stop taking 4 medications lithium and prozac I had been on many years for debilitating depression and they really never worked. Latuda was the last prescription for bipolar disorder and then I was taking something for anxiety. Shortly after starting the Adderall I slowly came out of the debilitating depressive state that I had been in for the majority of the last 15 years. I have not experienced a severe or even mild episode of depression since. I do get sad and for a lack of a better word normal kind of sad something I'm able to manage and get over quickly. I never had any skin issues prior to taking Adderall. I had been on it when I was much younger but stopped taking it and a few years after I started abusing illegal substances and due to substance abuse issues I was denied when I asked to be put back on the medication. However while receiving substance abuse treatment the doctor thought it would be beneficial for me to go back on Adderall as they are learning that not everyone who has had substance abuse issues will automatically abuse the medication. I have not abused Adderall and I'm extremely happy with that overall impact it's had on my day-to-day life. However it's had a horrible impact on my skin it seems about 30 minutes after I take my dose regardless of the dose my skin secretes dirt and blackheads Non-Stop the only area of my body affected is from the chest up I barely touch my face and I can feel what's coming out of my pores and see it and I have become hyper focused on it it's causing a huge problem for me because I don't like it and I don't like the fact that my eyes have aged drastically in the short time I've been taking it again. I have been on an antibiotic specifically for acne and it has had no impact it has not helped one bit and I've been on it for about 4 months I have been using a peroxide cream and I think I'm over using that so I'm going to reduce how much I use that because it actually causes my skin to become even more oily. My problem is I'm seriously considering discontinuing use of Adderall and I'm afraid that I will fall back into that severely debilitating depressive state of mind I was in for so long I'm very scared of that. And it's not that Adderall makes me not depressed it's that I'm able to do things and I'm able to focus on things and that is what's impacted my depression for example I can clean my house and I don't Thirty-One room while trying to clean another by just moving things around and not really cleaning it not just one example I keep my appointments that's another example it's just had so many minor impacts overall when combined helps me get over the depressive state of mind I was in for so long. So I know that is not the pill making me happy. But it help me in ways I can't even understand and those changes in my day-to-day life is what help me get out of my depressive state and my living my life makes me happy. So I can have this horrible skin that makes me disgusted with myself but a better quality of life overall. Or I can go back to that severely debilitating depressive state again. Some people may think I'm shallow because I am considering stopping Adderall do to the skin issues and that my vanity is going to make me depressed but it's not like that I don't know how to really explain it but I need help because neither of those options are good for me. I have seen some of the skin issues commonly associated with Adderall and this issue and I'm experiencing doesn't fall under those categories. So I don't know what to do. Please help
Adderall 6 to 8 months causing skin to secrete blackheads non-stop. Nothing works. Please help?
Question posted by ImShelby on 27 March 2018
Last updated on 19 August 2019 by sarahtindall
3 Answers
I realize this is an old post but I am so inline with what you said I just have to reply. I'm 36 and was diagnosed with ADD around the age of 12. My mom is the type to not believe in "mental" disorders so I was never medicated. Then around 15 or so I was starting to show signs of depression and have battled with it for years. I have been on so many different meds and none worked well enough for me to have a "normal" life. I didn't finish high school but did get my GED. I started college and am still just a few credits shy of my associate's (can't afford to finish right now). I've never held down a job longer than a year and I've had some really awesome jobs that it pains me to have lost. Most of my days were spent in bed sleeping for 20 hours of the day and for the 4 hours I was awake but still in the bed were spent self loathing.
My first marriage fell apart and my daughter who is now 12 and has ADHD (but is medicated) was so sick of my inability to be a mom that I really believe she hated me and wished she had a "normal" mom. About 3 years ago I went to my primary care doctor and flat out told her that if something didn't change I was gonna lose yet another job and that even on the days I could get out of bed my brain felt like it was in a thick fog. It was so hard to think straight and function. She looked at me and said honey you have ADD. No tests or anything, she was so sure of her diagnosis. I told her I was diagnosed as a kid but never actually treated it. She started me on Adderall 10mg twice a day and OMG I was so amazed. About 30 min after I took it in the mornings I could "feel" my brain fog clear and I became productive!! I was awesome at work, I would come home and actually cook dinner instead of hitting the drive thru and then clean up and get my daughter and myself ready for the next day. I find interests in so many things now and have an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. I'm married again and it's so freaking awesome. My daughter and I have a fantastic relationship now and she doesn't seem to hate me anymore. Plus my husband and I have a 2 year old together and he's an amazing little fireball but I'm so capable of being a proper parent now!! I wonder if I truly had depression or if it was just the negative effect of my ADD not being treated. But I'm off the antidepressants and mood stabilizers and the only medication I now take is Adderall XR 20mg twice a day. I actually love life and want to get up early and start my day!! But for the past few months I have noticed my skin has become super oily but just my face and I mean like Deepwater Horizon oil spill but on my face rather than the ocean. At first it was just oily but not really causing breakouts other than a blackhead or actual pimple right before my period. I could totally deal with that. But just in this past week my face has become a blackhead/pimple/cystic acne producing machine. I wash my face and wear very little make up and what I do wear is Clinique which is supposed to be non-codemengetic. I'll see one that can be popped but like 5 of its buddies show up after in protest. But to kick me while I'm down it's not just my face. My back and it's my whole entire back is producing pimples and cystic acne as well. However my back doesn't seem to be oily like my face. I'm at a loss. I simply cannot stop treating my ADD, I refuse to go back to a miserable life not worth living. I have come too far for that. I can just deal with the acne or at least try to accept it if I absolutely have to but I really don't want to. I want the best of both worlds, I want my cake and I want to eat it too!! My husband of course isn't bothered by my drastically altered appearance but I am and frankly its becoming painful to boot. I am not sure what to do at this point. Surely someone has figured out a way to treat this nasty side effect. Ok I'm done rambling. Since it's been so long since your original post, have you had any luck? What did you end up deciding to do?
Had you or your doctor considered using a different ADHD medication such as Ritalin (which is Methylphenidate I think) that may give you the same effect but without the skin issues? I know from experience that Amphetamine gives me the worst greasy skin for example.
Good luck.
I apologize because this isn’t going to be much help but I take vyvanse, which is an amphetamine as well, and I too noticed black heads of my face that were never a problem before as well. I’ve tried many different cleansers and when I diligently wash my face every morning and night I see a difference where it isn’t as bad but that is the only thing to help. I just so happened to find a good combination of cleaners and facial moisturizers that actually work well for my skin. I as well suffer from dibiliatating depression and vyvanse helps me more so than my antidepressants. I believe for the same reasons yours do, because I am much more productive while on it than off so I’m not willing to get off them because my depression will get so bad I become suicidal. I’d rather have some blackheads on my face than rather feel like dying everyday.
I’ve been able to keep the blackheads to a minimum but if your’s are somewhat severe I’d suggest seeing a dermatologist and ask their opinion. Hope that helped a little bit? Good luck to you and I will keep you in my thoughts and prayers that your depression stays at bay and you find the answers you’re looking for!
Thank you! Now I know Im not alone with this issue. I dont understand we're all of the blackheads and dirt is coming from I'm clean person I've showered all the time I don't understand and I'm going crazy because I'm hyper focused on it I did notice that once I drink water like a couple bottles of water or a couple cups of water like maybe three or four and that helped a lot I think I think part of the problem is because the Adderall amphetamine dehydrates my body and so now I'm drinking much more water because before I was not drinking any I just drink coffee all day which also dehydrates but knowing that I'm not the only one having this problem helps a lot not that I want other people to go through this this is an issue and I'm not just weird. Thank you I don't know if we're allowed to talk or email directly I'm not sure what the rules here I guess I should read the I guess I should read the guidelines alright well good evening
Related topics
adderall, acne, skin, medication
Further information
- Adderall uses and safety info
- Adderall information for Healthcare Professionals (includes dosage details)
- Side effects of Adderall (detailed)
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