I'm not sure which med you are on, but I've been on adderall for about 12 years. Started during 1st year of a phd program.
In my experience with adderall... everything initially good about this particular Rx eventually fades away. Amphetamine makes you feel great. At the beginning really, really, great. It certainly helped me focus on whatever was in front of me, whether it was math homework or an iphone game. It became very important to ensure the right thing(s) were in front of me before taking meds (e.g. homework textbook or open IDE; not, for example, wikipedia, or email, or HN). Not getting enough sleep was the most acute negative effect of the meds. The battle for sleep continues to this day. The meds do suppress my appetite - they still do. It didn't help me lose as much weight as I'd hoped; turns out staring at a computer screen doesn't require a ton of calories.
These days I take as little Rx as possible, and I feel a lot better. I attribute a portion of this mood improvement to using a treadmill desk, which I started using ~2 years ago. I walk about 15-20 miles a day, while working (coding/writing/etc). I feel like it helps me focus, because I am "burning off" pent-up ADHD restlessness while working. And probably most helpful of all, I'm tired at the end of the day, so I fall asleep much easier.
I was on Adderall for roughly 10 years, and it really didn't make me feel great. I tried taking larger doses when I was going through my 'experiment with all the new drugs' phase in high school, and didn't really get the euphoria I hear about. In general, Adderall in any dose makes me sweaty, smelly, and antisocial.
I hated taking it. Yet it would in fact improve my performance. For 3 years since my last filled prescription circa 2012 I had enough adderall to just take it whenever I felt like I 'needed it', which was rarely, because I hated taking it so much. Since I've run out, I do have issues with ADD still, but fortunately have been able to cope as an adult in my (now) 30s.
I do think having it on hand is really great for some people, but I don't think 'feeling great' is a unanimous experience.
With he sleep thing, I experienced the opposite. The ability to just lay down, decide to sleep, and sleep, combined with a bit of a chemical cue from the comedown really helped to regulate the insomnia I had struggled with since adolescence.
I may have been overenthusiastic in my wording. I don't feel great, I just don't feel shite now because I'm able to do the work instead of sit there stressing about it all day. My happiness balance was in the overdraft, it is now just above 0.
I'm on the one the US would call Ritalin. If indeed a tolerance does appear then that will be disappointing and I'll have to figure it out from there. Unfortunately I don't tend to get anything other than "I'm physically tired now" from exercise
I had a similar experience, but after the 1st year both the positives and negatives wore off (now it doesn't feel like I'm taking anything it just feels normal) and I was simply left with the ability to choose my focus (about 80%).
Now if I don't take my adderall on a given day I have trouble focusing and by midday I get pretty restless and antsy.
Sure I have a few nuggets. I went through a couple cheap treadmills before I finally took the advice of another long-term treadmill desk user and bought a lifespan fitness:
It's an incredible sturdy and reliable treadmill. It has built in shock absorption and can autodetect your steps. Although I wear a clip-on fitbit to sync steps to my phone (wrist fitbit isnt going to work well to count steps since your hands will be typing or whatever).
I transitioned from a standing desk to a treadmill desk and was surprised that walking is actually much easier to sustain for long periods than standing. I started very slow. 1.2 mph. I gradually (and naturally) have made my way up to 2.4 mph.
If you get one, make sure to get good shoes! Something that a marathoner would use (e.g. Brooks, Asic, etc).
Getting a treadmill desk is among the best decisions I've ever made.
In my experience with adderall... everything initially good about this particular Rx eventually fades away. Amphetamine makes you feel great. At the beginning really, really, great. It certainly helped me focus on whatever was in front of me, whether it was math homework or an iphone game. It became very important to ensure the right thing(s) were in front of me before taking meds (e.g. homework textbook or open IDE; not, for example, wikipedia, or email, or HN). Not getting enough sleep was the most acute negative effect of the meds. The battle for sleep continues to this day. The meds do suppress my appetite - they still do. It didn't help me lose as much weight as I'd hoped; turns out staring at a computer screen doesn't require a ton of calories.
These days I take as little Rx as possible, and I feel a lot better. I attribute a portion of this mood improvement to using a treadmill desk, which I started using ~2 years ago. I walk about 15-20 miles a day, while working (coding/writing/etc). I feel like it helps me focus, because I am "burning off" pent-up ADHD restlessness while working. And probably most helpful of all, I'm tired at the end of the day, so I fall asleep much easier.