Reflection: Adderall Abuse on UGA campus

The presentation in class by Ms. Stinson about the abuse of prescription drugs on campus was very interesting to our group. This is something that I had not come in contact with a lot in High School, but once I got to college, it seemed like students all over campus were taking drugs that weren’t prescribed to them, such as Adderall or pain killers. Adderall is specifically one drug that is heavily abused on UGA’s campus. There are people taking it for a variety of reasons. While many people do take Adderall because it is prescribed to them, there is still a great number that take Adderall because they think it will improve their academic performance. A main reason is obviously to focus better while studying, since Adderall is intended to help aide people with ADD. However, it is also increasingly becoming a “party” drug that people take with alcohol or other drugs. I have seen people in the MLC exchange pills during study sessions when trying to pull all nighters or focus better for tests. When taken, its effects are appetite suppression, increased focus, and even euphoria. In Ms. Stinson’s presentation, she noted that Adderall could resemble cocaine’s effect on the brain, which is something that I was unaware of. The abuse of Adderall is definitely something that impacts all students’ lives at UGA. There is pressure when studying in groups of people to take a pill to help increase the focus of all group members, especially when they are going to be up for a long time working. A lot of students also question whether or not taking Adderall to study or focus for an exam is cheating if not prescribed to that student.

This is an issue of public health because there are significant short-term and long-term effects for the abuser as well as for people who are actually prescribed the drug because they need it. Some short-term effects can be insomnia, nervousness, headaches, and vomiting, and some long-term effects can be malnutrition, weight loss, fevers, headaches, and can even be fatal in extreme cases. There are severe and significant effects possible that many people who take the drug just to study don’t think about. For people who take Adderall as a “party” drug and mix it with alcohol, the effects can be even more severe and can cause serious long-term health problems.

I still have questions about how to control the abuse of Adderall on campus. I have heard of cases of people getting a prescription for Adderall just so they can sell it to people during high stress times like midterms and finals, and this is a very difficult situation to monitor. Other things to think about are how much are people tested for ADHD before receiving a prescription to Adderall, and if doctors should be more strict about prescribing the drug to college students. 

Mara Steine 

Megan Mazier 

Stephanie Perlman