IMDb RATING
6.3/10
5.8K
YOUR RATING
Every era gets the drug it deserves. In America today, where competition is ceaseless from school to the workforce and everyone wants a performance edge, Adderall and other prescription stim... Read allEvery era gets the drug it deserves. In America today, where competition is ceaseless from school to the workforce and everyone wants a performance edge, Adderall and other prescription stimulants are the defining drugs of this generation.Every era gets the drug it deserves. In America today, where competition is ceaseless from school to the workforce and everyone wants a performance edge, Adderall and other prescription stimulants are the defining drugs of this generation.
- Awards
- 5 nominations total
Jasper Holt-Teza
- Self - College Senior
- (as Jasper)
Eben Britton
- Self - Former NFL Player
- (as Eben)
Brit Britton
- Self - Eben's Wife
- (as Brit)
Featured reviews
This documentary supposedly explores the different sides of taking stimulants like Adderall and Ritalin, except it spends most of its 90 minutes with interviews about how Adderall gives you an edge and an advantage. The negative effects are barely explored, so in the end, it felt practically like an Adderall informercial. It was professionally made though and has some interesting info.
This well-meaning documentary mixes old, outdated information with some current data using a template of "just say no" filtered through a dozen other perspectives, leaving a muddied view of ADHD treatment of a neuro-developmental disorder. The focus shifts between abuse of medically-indicated pharmaceuticals and street drugs, while stigmatizing ADHD itself. It contains valuable information but woven in with shame and little distinction between ADHD sufferers and thise without ADHD. Ultimately, it just makes a mess of the issue. For valuable information and resources, try YouTube Creator "How to ADHD."
The film does a wonderful job of fear mongering and justifying the stigma around people using adderall. It is difficult enough for those suffering from adhd (especially adults) to seek help without feeling like they will be treated as drug seekers. Most of the experiences of the interviewees in this documentary are a poor representation of people prescribed adderall and the documentarian should be ashamed at the misinformation spewed out of this film.
This documentary, while edited well, is a very shoddily written one. Not only is it incredibly repetitive, with the interviewed individuals all saying some iteration of "I don't have ADHD but wanted to perform better so I abused a substance and voila, I became amazing," but it also does its best to downplay the significance and necessity of the drug it fails to demonize. Very few times in the documentary do they acknowledge that they're talking about substance abuse, not the evils of a perfectly helpful medicine, and they keep describing it as some miracle drug that makes literally every person who takes it ever hyper-productive and jittery instead of a drug that has harmful affects if abused, just like any other medication on the market.
Fun fact: people with ADHD have trouble sitting still or paying attention because their frontal lobes aren't as active and may even be physically smaller than people who don't have ADHD. Stimulants help "wake up" their frontal lobes so that they can perform basic tasks like homework, hygiene, driving, and even just taking out the trash sometime in the next six months. A lot of folks with ADHD who don't have access to medication often self-medicate by consuming large amounts of caffeine, a less effective but more accessible stimulant, and when they DO have access to medication, INCLUDING Adderall, they behave and perform like "normal" people, not like people on meth or speed.
If this documentary had done more to provide a cautionary tale to those who wish to abuse the drug while also highlighting its usefulness to those who actually need it, it would have been a more rounded and less irrelevant documentary. Unfortunately, it failed to provide, and many MANY people who have ADHD will continue to be stigmatized due to scare tacticians like the folks who put this documentary together.
I think this was supposed to be a cautionary documentary about the dangers of legalized amphetamine, but 87 minutes into it and I'm still waiting to hear any negative affects of adderall. I noted Jasper, with minimal medical background, accusing it of "screwing with your liver" and "there was too many enzymes or something". Dr. Farah threw in a sentence about "cardiovascular risks" and "psychotic episodes". Did I miss the other parts in which they explained these risks or offered any case studies or examples?? Huge omission.
Addiction? Not a danger in itself, just could possibly lead to dangers if you need to undertake extreme measures to obtain more. Dehydration and injuries? Possibly, but that can come with any extreme diet or exercise required at the pro level.
Really enjoyed the stories but can someone please explain the real detriments to adderall?
Addiction? Not a danger in itself, just could possibly lead to dangers if you need to undertake extreme measures to obtain more. Dehydration and injuries? Possibly, but that can come with any extreme diet or exercise required at the pro level.
Really enjoyed the stories but can someone please explain the real detriments to adderall?
Did you know
- TriviaChristina Schwarzenegger, daughter of Arnold Schwarzenegger, is the executive producer of the show. Her mom, Maria Shriver is co-producer (executive).
- ConnectionsFeatures The Simpsons: Brother's Little Helper (1999)
- How long is Take Your Pills?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Runtime
- 1h 27m(87 min)
- Color
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content