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I decided to write my research paper on the misuse of Adderall on college campuses

because it interested me. I was first drawn to this topic because of a woman I worked with at
home. She was telling me one day how her daughter in kindergarten was prescribed to Adderall
and she refused to allow her to take it. She said how it is highly addictive to people that are
prescribed to it at a young age. She decided to do more natural ways to help her daughter with
her problem and she said that it worked. After she explained her daughters situation to me I
realized that many people are prescribed to it and I didn't have much knowledge on the drug.
When I came to school, I learned about just how many people around me used it. I was so naive
and didn't believe that tons of students misused it for faulty reasons. As soon as I had the
opportunity to research a topic that interested me, I knew this would be it. I decided to make
students my target audience because I want them to realize how bad it is for them and how many
of their peers are using this drug.
I believe the blog posts really helped me with this paper. It helped me categorize my
topics and examples as well as giving me a bunch of sources without even noticing how many I
used. Strengths in my final draft were putting everything together so that it flowed. I used more
examples so that it personally relates to the audience rather than statistic after statistic.
I also made went to the writing center when I was just about done to have someone look over my
paper. I knew that my citations were not completely correct and along with a couple concerns on
whether my conclusion was okay or not. She told me that my paper was very informal and that I

need to stop using I and you a lot so I tried to change all of that also. I removed all of those
words and put in words like their and them to make it more formal.
I can't say that I can think of anything that needs attention or revision on my paper. I had
plenty of people read it over to give me a different perspective. I also ended up adding every
possible thing I could to have it the way I wanted it to be. I feel that I explained what Adderall is,
its side effects, why students take it and alternatives very well.
In the end, I would definitely day I enjoyed writing this paper especially because of the
smooth process. In the past when I have written research papers, I was just told to write. There
weren't many steps leading up to it that helped me get a real idea of what I wanted to write.
Writing about the misuse of Adderall helped me learn so much about the drug and students in
general. I am happy that I now have enough knowledge to educate my peers as to why they
should not abuse this drug. I think that my overall research was very successful and that I
showed that in my paper.

Palak Patel
Dr.Amy Lynch-Biniek
English 023
Abuse of Adderall on College Campuses

A student is sitting in the library on a Thursday, stressed over their English research
paper, as well as their biggest accounting exam all due tomorrow. Their friend comes up to them
and offers them the "Get Ahead" drug that all the students have been using to get their work done
in one night, also known as Adderall. The students first instinct is to remember that their parents
always reminded them not to do drugs. But then again, they think that it is their only options to
get the GPA their parents are expecting them to get. Next thing you know, their buying Adderall
every day after that night in the library, because a year down the road, theyre now addicted.

Being easily influenced by their peers is not an uncommon thing on college campuses.
Little do students realize the side effects to this substance and the long run negativities that come
with this drug. Although it may not largely affect someones health right now, it will completely
damage them in the long run.
Adderall is a medication made up of dextroamphetamine and amphetamine that is
prescribed to patients with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, also known as ADHD. ADHD
is a common childhood disorder that usually makes its way into adulthood. Although this
medication is approved by the Food and Drug Administration, FDA, it has some psychiatric and
neurocognitive side effects. Some side effects include loss of appetitive, abdominal pain, weight
loss, headache, nausea, anxiety and nervousness. Some rare neuropsychiatric side effects include
mood changes, aggressive behaviors and worsening irritability. These side effects greatly affect
people that are prescribed to it, so imagine what is does to people that are not. (Narine, 2013)
Since Adderall helps patients with ADHD stay concentrated and focused, it helps people without
it ten times more.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration
[DEA], http://www.dea.gov/druginfo/ds.shtml all drugs are classified into different 5 different
Schedules depending on their dosages and potential for dependency. Schedule I is the most
dangerous and most abused and Schedule V being the least. Adderall being a Schedule II drug
doesn't only have a high potential for abuse, but it can also lead to psychological or physical
dependence. Many students have heard of cocaine and automatically think how bad it is for
them, little do they know, Adderall is equally as addictive as Cocaine is (DEA).

As many people are aware of, it is hard to adjust to the college life. Students no longer
have someone there to doing their laundry, cook their food, making sure they did their
homework, or even making sure theyre staying out of trouble, they are officially all on their own
now. It gets complicated when theyre trying to juggle school work, along with a social life,
physical and mental health, as well as outside of school activities. Many students procrastinate
till the very last second; therefore, due to all the stress they face, students result to the misuse of
Adderall. Adderall not only helps people stay focused on the topic of study, but it helps them
stay up late. People may ask, why do students would want to abuse this drug? What does it have
to do with academics, body image or concentration? The answer to that is, everything. There are
four factors as to why college students abuse Adderall, 1. Pressure to succeed; 2. Socio-cultural
expectations; 3. Collegiate lifestyle; 4. Accessibility to prescription stimulants.
Students face an immense amount of pressure from their parents, guidance counselors,
peers, professors, just about anyone, expecting them to succeed to their highest potential. From
when they are in middle school, they are pressured to do extremely well in their classes in order
to get into college prep or advanced placement classes in high school. As soon as they reach high
school, the pressure begins to sky rocket as everyone around them is talking about, and/or
looking into what colleges to apply to. There is extreme competition with getting into a good
university as well as competing with their peers to be top of their class (Narine,
2013).Nonetheless, competitive parents never make it easier for students to handle stress. Parents
want their children to be top of the class, so that they can show off to other parents. Aside from
the pressure we put on ourselves to succeed, outsiders, such as social media and professors
drown us with standards that we must meet. Sometimes it gets a little too hard to meet
everyones high expectations.

Many students sometimes seem to think that they must meet socio-cultural expectations
to have a perfect body. For example, it is extremely difficult for a student to maintain and ideal
body image while having a ton of things on their plate as it. When seeing friends abuse drugs that
suppress their appetite and prevents them from eating, students figure it is the easy way out.
Thirdly, college lifestyle automatically influences a student a little more to use drugs.
When in a party environment, it is extremely easy for students to get influenced to misuse
substances to fit in. Peer pressure is a very common thing; although many learn not to fall under
peer pressure as a child, it gets a lot harder in college. In college, people are trying to impress
everyone and make friends; most people will do whatever it takes to fit in with new people and
put themselves out there, disregarding the consequences.
Finally, it is extremely easy for students to have access to prescription drugs because so
many of their peers are using it. It is not very difficult to find someone to sell them prescription
stimulants on a college campus because there are so many students prescribed to a variety of
drugs. Adderall is not a very uncommon drug on campuses so it makes it easier for students to
find someone prescribed to it. Students that are prescribed to it are easily willing to sell it to get
some extra cash because they know they can sell one little capsule for a decent amount of money.
Students will sell one capsule of Adderall for $5.00 which doesn't seem to be much for how
much it ends up helping them.
Besides academic reasons, many students abuse this drug for an entirely different reason,
weight loss. In a recent survey on non-medical use of prescription drugs, many people answered
questions regarding weight loss, eating disorders and body image. People reported most people
that used this drug for weight purposes, suffered with body image concerns and eating disorder

symptoms. Vomiting for weight loss as well as the use of laxatives or diet pills, are associated
with NMUPS for weight loss. A side effect of Adderall is appetite suppression and substantial
weight loss. People often feel pressured to abuse drugs for the wrong reasons due to society.
College settings tend to draw an image of a "perfect body" and students tend to set high
expectations for them which are nearly impossible to achieve. These expectations result to
insecurities and dissatisfaction, mainly in women. Unrealistic media-image causes people to take
extreme measures to look ideal for society (Jeffers, 2014). According to Leigh Bell, BA, writer
for Eating Disorder Hope, those who abuse substances due to poor body image may lead to
decreased self-esteem, depression and greater chance of other substance abuse (Leigh Bell).
What people don't realize is that their image will never be nearly as important as their health is.
Adderall is strictly used for medical purposes and although weight loss is a side effect that
appeals to many people, it can result negatively. Often, many student athletes result to the use of
Adderall because of the pressures they face with keeping their BMI to a certain expectation.
Some may even compare Adderall to steroids because in a way, aren't they both methods of
cheating in order to accomplish ones goal?
There are many examples of students misusing Adderall and it ending extremely badly.
For example, freshmen honors student, Aly shared with NBC News Amy Robach, that after
being advised to use Adderall by a friend, she got addicted within weeks. You
become dependent on it, because youll use it one night to study for a test like I did and the next
thing you know, youre using it every night to study for a test, she told Robach. While Aly was
abusing this drug she faced many side effects such as mood swings, insomnia, panic attacks,
depression. Soon her grades started to go down and she lost everything. It snuck up on me, she
told Robach. I went from being on an academic scholarship at a great university to being on

academic probation within six months, to being asked to withdraw from that university after a
year all because of Adderall. She said that it was so sudden she didn't even realize how quickly
it changed her life (Carroll). Aly is just one of many students that have experienced such
circumstances due to drugs in college.
Many students may argue, how else will they get all of their work done? As everyone is
aware of the difficulties of juggling everything as a college student, college perfectionist and
professional life coach, Maria Pascucci shared with campuscalm.com a couple tips on how to
manage stress as a college student. First, she shares how important time management is, people
are personally in charge of their lives and how they manage their time. Many students are
constantly making up excuses as to why they don't have time, but have they ever asked
themselves, what if I didn't take that nap every day, or binge watch Netflix every night? Her
other point being, they must learn to prioritize their school work over all else. Another way to
reduce stress is simply going to class. There are so many students that skip class numerous times,
then afterword face the stress of catching up with notes, class discussions and simply just being
lost in that class. One of her most valid points is getting enough sleep; "Sleep deprivation has the
same effect on you as alcohol, your reaction time is slow, you can't think clearly, you gain
weight, and you can get depressed" (Pascucci). Rather than taking naps and going to bed late, it
is far healthier and less stressful to go to sleep early. Pascucci advises college students to avoid
disruptions while trying to sleep by using headphones, a sleep mask, a fan, or a note on the door.
Lastly, most students need to realize that they cannot last through college if they
procrastinate over every assignment. According to a February 2007 College Health Services
survey, two-thirds of students say they have procrastinated so much that it affected their results

on an exam, paper, or any other grade. Some ways to prevent procrastination include, breaking
down tasks, take breaks, know what time is best for you to get things done, and study with a
friend (Pascucci). If a student starts their assignment the night before it is due, they will be
extremely stressed out. Therefore, they must plan out how much they will study throughout the
week and stick to that schedule. If they study for 45 minutes then take a 15 minute break, it will
help them study with an open, refreshed mind. What many students disregard is that they must be
aware of when they are personally, the most refreshed and attentive. If they are not a morning
person and they attempt to study in the morning, it will not work out well. Finally, if they have a
study buddy, they will stay motivated to do their work. There are plenty of techniques that
students can use to help them manage stress. If these didn't help, there are always places on
campus that they can go to, or just talk to an advisor for tips on how to juggle everything.
As previously stated, many students are unaware of the side effects Adderall has on them
when they are misusing it for the wrong reasons. Whether it is because of the pressures as a
college student, losing weight or just outside influences, students don't fully think it through
before using these medications. There is always another alternative. Now that this drug has
become more apparent and research has been bought forward, it is extremely important to
consider the consequences when misusing this drug. There are many different ways of managing
stress and there are always options of reaching out for help when people are too overwhelmed.

Source Cited

Carroll, Linda. "'Steroids for School': College Students Get Hooked on 'smart Drugs'"
TODAY.com. N.p., 13 May 2011. Web. 11 Apr. 2016.

Drug Enforcement Administration. " Drug Scheduling." DEA. Web. 19 Apr. 2016.

"Free ArticlesFor College Students." College Student Stress, Time Management Tips,
Procrastination, Depression, Anxiety. Maria Pascucci. Web. 19 Apr. 2016.

Jeffers, Amy J., and Eric G. Benotsch. "Non-Medical Use Of Prescription Stimulants For
Weight Loss, Disordered Eating, And Body Image." Eating Behaviors 15.3
(2014): 414-418. Academic Search Complete. Web. 25 Mar. 2016.

Bell, Leigh. "Drug Use and Body Image." Eating Disorder Hope RSS. 5 July 2015.
Web. 28 Apr. 2016.

Narine, Chiranjir, Sajjad R. Sarwar, and Theodor B. Rais. "Adderall-Induced Trichotillomania:

A Case Report." Innovations In Clinical Neuroscience10.7/8 (2013): 13-14 2p. CINAHL
Complete. Web. 22 Mar. 2016.

Yanes, Arianna. "Just Say Yes? The Rise of 'study Drugs' in College." N.p., 18 Apr. 2014. Web.