It started with my sister calling me in tears.
"Mike, I need help. I think I'm addicted to my ADHD medication."
Lisa had been on Adderall for three years. Started at 10mg. Now she was taking 60mg daily just to feel normal.
"I can't function without it," she sobbed. "But when I take it, I'm not myself. I'm like a robot who can focus but feels nothing."
The worst part? She'd tried to quit twice. Both times, the withdrawal was so brutal she ended up back on it within a week.
Brain fog. Crushing fatigue. Depression so deep she couldn't get out of bed.
"Is this what you helped create?" she asked.
I had no answer. Because yes, it was exactly what I'd helped create.
That night, I did something I'd never done in 12 years of pharmaceutical consulting:
I actually read the long-term studies on stimulant medications.
What I found made me question everything.