According to the Food and Drug Administration, a black box warning was warranted for Strattera (generic name atomoxitine) due to the increased possibility in children and adolescents for suicidal thoughts or attempts. A black box warning is the most serious warning that FDA places on a drug after reports of adverse effects are received. But this is not the only stimulant associated with suicide thoughts or attempts.
In 2004, according to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 333 people were seen in emergency rooms for suicidality related to methylphenidate (Ritalin) use and 388 were seen for suicidality related to amphetamine-dextroamphetamine (Adderall) abuse.
In 2010, college student Richard Fee learned to fake the symptoms of ADHD so he could get Adderall. By 2011, he became violently delusional and was confined to a psychiatric hospital. Ironically, when he was released, he was given another 90-days worth of the drug. Two weeks after this supply ran out, he hung himself.
In 2012 in Fresno, California, a woman videoed herself smoking methamphetamine just before she killed her two children, a cousin and then herself.
There’s an overwhelming amount of evidence to show that the abuse of illicit or prescription stimulants can be terribly damaging or even deadly. Some people tolerate the abuse of these drugs for a while but then fall ill or die suddenly when the body reaches the tipping point.
The true tragedy is that millions of people, most of them young adults, are abusing these drugs without any idea of the physical or mental harm that is possible. If you care about someone who is abusing any of these stimulants, warn them of the risk they are taking with every dose.
If they are addicted and so can’t control their use, the Narconon drug rehabilitation program can help.
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