Adderall: Academic Steroids

Adderall XR

There’s an old saying that claims time flies when you’re having fun. But nothing makes time fly faster than finals, in many New York University students’ opinion. Nearly everyone interviewed agreed: As work piles up, not all the hours in every day seem to hold 60 minutes. And, with papers to write and exams to study for, every student interviewed knew the importance of milking a day’s 24 hours for all they were worth. For some, this meant pulling all-nighters and settling in for the long-haul at NYU’s Bobst library. For others, however, prescription medication provided a quick fix. Costing as little as $2.50 a pop, Adderall, “the study drug,” was an easy solution. 

“It makes more things possible,” said one NYU sophomore, 20, majoring in linguistics, “Like a Scooby Snack. You experience a linear path of thought, and it yields results the first time. You really start to think ‘I can’t do anything without taking this miracle pill.’”

Adderall, or a combination of dextroamphetamine and amphetamine, is a prescription drug traditionally prescribed to treat attention-deficit disorders and narcolepsy, according to the Mayo Clinic, a nonprofit medical research group. But for many NYU students taking these pills without a prescription, Adderall has easily become their illegal substance of choice. These students, however, don’t always pop these pills for the high. Focus is what these students are after, and euphoria is just a side effect. 

“It’s amazing,” said one NYU sophomore, 19, majoring in English literature and earning a double minor in law and society and psychology. “I felt like I was the best version of me possible because, not only was I getting everything done, but I was doing everything faster and better.”

For this student, taking one 10 milligram pill of Adderall, a basic dose that cost her $5, made it much easier to finish the 800 pages of reading she was assigned on average each week. 

“It was the quality of the work and the whole processing everything that made it awesome,” she said. “I would read something and I would just process it instantly, and I’d remember it the next day, too. That would never happen if I did my homework without Adderall. I was like superwoman.”

Other students agree: Adderall is a magic pill. Not only does it allow students to work faster, but it can actually make studying fun. 

“It was weird,” said the linguistics major. “It made writing my paper euphoric. I wouldn’t stop revising it. I kept looking for more work to do.” 

For another NYU sophomore, 20, majoring in politics and minoring in English literature, taking Adderall allowed for efficiency: It made her “meticulous” when doing her work.

“It makes you concentrate,” she said, “So you go through things faster. If you’re doing something else, like cleaning your apartment, you’ll be doing it for four hours. Adderall makes you a perfectionist.” 

While some students taking Adderall without a prescription buy their pills through a third-party drug dealer, most find it cheapest to buy from a friend. Often, this friend will have a legitimate prescription and take Adderall to treat actual medical symptoms like ADHD. 

“She legitimately needs it,” said one NYU sophomore, 20, majoring in psychology and minoring in creative writing, when talking about who he gets his Adderall from. “But her doctor gave her a bunch extra. Just in case, but she never uses it all.” 

This student bought four 30 milligram pills off of his friend for $10. In his case, knowing someone clearly had its advantages. Students who buy from a third-party dealer can pay as much as $30 for a 30 milligram pill. 

It’s a steep price, but many students find the A they earn on a paper worth the expense. In some cases, students are unable to work without taking a pill first. Because Adderall is addictive, many students build up a tolerance to the medication. After a while, the 10 milligram pill they were taking no longer provides the focus these students need. Often, instead of quitting, students simply up their dosage. 

“When I try to write an essay or do an outline when I’m off it, I get really annoyed,” said the politics major. “It’s so much more comfortable, more fluid when you’re working on the pill. It puts you in a bubble and you don’t give a shit about anything else.”

When she started taking Adderall, this politics major initially took half of a 10 milligram pill. Now, she often needs the full 30 milligram capsule, which she buys from a friend. 

“It usually costs about $5. Sometimes more if [my friend] is running low.”

For some students, however, the toll that Adderall takes is more than financial. Often, that A a student earned on a paper also comes with serious health risks.

Blurred vision, lack of appetite, anxiety, and an irregular heartbeat are just four of the 43 known side effects of Adderall listed on the Mayo Clinic’s website. Many students taking Adderall, however, prefer to remain ignorant of the risks surrounding this central nervous system stimulant. None of the seven students interviewed who took Adderall did any research before taking their first dose.

“It was my first paper for [my philosophy class],” said the linguistics major, recalling his first time taking Adderall. “It was my first essay of my freshman year, and I was scared as shit. Someone told me there was a magic pill, and I figured ‘Why not?’” “I knew it was given to people with ADD,” he continued, “And I knew you weren’t supposed to take it past 5 p.m.”

What he didn’t know, however, was that Adderall would make his heart feel like it was beating outside of his chest.

“I felt like I was going to die,” he said. “My body wanted to shut down, but my brain wouldn’t stop.” 

The euphoria from working, however, canceled out any major concerns that he had for his health at the time. 

“I knew something wasn’t right, but I just kept working. I couldn’t sleep. It was probably one of the worst experiences of my life.”

Since then, the linguistics major has not taken Adderall again. “It was my first and only time,” he said. 

Other students, however, are willing to put up with the heart palpitations, a side effect experienced by all but two of the students interviewed who had taken Adderall.

“It’s not good for you, and I know that,” said a NYU sophomore, 20, majoring in journalism and Middle Eastern studies. “But it helps. You take it, and you want to do your work so badly. For me, it’s a last resort kind of thing. But it’s nice to know that there’s an option.” “It’s not a good option,” she later admitted, “But it’s there.” 

Along with the heart palpitations, this student had also experienced a loss of appetite after taking Adderall. “Some people don’t eat when they’re on Adderall, and that makes their crash worse.”

For many, the crash that ends every high from the pills is the worst side effect. 

“You just don’t want to work anymore,” said the journalism and Middle Eastern studies major. “You go from very, very high to very, very low really quickly.” 

Other students have experienced headaches and mood swings that often range in the extreme. 

“I feel like it takes a toll on my social life,” said the student majoring in English literature. “When I have the lows and the crashes, I isolate myself. I get really moody and reclusive and snappy. There was one week where I didn’t even see anyone because I just wanted to sit in the corner and cry.”

In this student’s case, one 10 milligram pill of Adderall can sometimes lead to a week of depression. 

Other students supplement Adderall with marijuana to deal with the crash. 

“Weed makes you mellow,” said the philosophy major. “It balances out the low you feel when coming off of Adderall. It makes it easier.” 

Health risks aside, there is also the ethical question for taking Adderall to help with academics. Taking Adderall without a prescription is illegal, and some students think that it gives others an unfair advantage. 

“I think it’s unfair,” said a NYU student studying international relations who preferred not to be named because friends of hers take Adderall. “It’s almost like taking steroids, and that’s illegal.” “We all have focus issues,” she added, “But I don’t take anything to get my work done.”

Many students, however -- even those not taking Adderall -- are hesitant to call this self-medication cheating. 

“I don’t think it’s cheating,” said John Wang, a junior at NYU studying finance. “Taking steroids is more like cheating because it magnifies the amount of work you put in. Adderall doesn’t magnify your intelligence, it just helps you work faster. It’s abuse, that’s for sure. But I wouldn’t call it cheating.” 

All of the students interviewed who take Adderall agreed. No one felt smarter after taking Adderall, just more productive. 

“Your ideas are still your ideas,” said the politics major. “It doesn’t put them in your head. It doesn’t make you smarter. It just makes you focus.”

Other students are quick to point out the similarities between Adderall and caffeine. 

“There are some people who will chug seven 5-hour ENERGY drinks and be up for three days. It’s pretty much the same thing,” the journalism and Middle Eastern studies major said. “Adderall just gives you the motivation and the extra push that you might not have on your own. It’s not an intelligence thing, it’s a will-power thing.”

Another NYU student majoring in Spanish and Russian who asked to be called Alexandria said that taking Adderall was like drinking coffee. “They’re both stimulants,” she said. “Does that mean you’re cheating by taking coffee before a morning class? With Adderall, you’re still doing the work of your own volition.”

Students not on Adderall agree: If taking a stimulant is cheating, then there probably shouldn’t be a Red Bull car parked outside of Bobst the Saturday before finals week. 

“You just have to do whatever you need to to get through this,” said Dawoon Lee, a political science major, a cup of coffee in hand. “They’re taking a risk taking those pills. There are side effects. There are consequences. And they know that.”

Making Time With Adderall

Adderall XR Capsules

With only 24 hours in a day, many New York University students are having trouble finding the time to finish all of their schoolwork. And it’s understandable. With a required four classes each semester and an average of two hours of homework every night, most NYU students spend a minimum of 20 hours each week studying or in class. And that’s not counting the time students spend on internships or working at a part-time job. For many, the hours start to add up quickly.

“This semester, I have way more than I can do,” said Chole Moffett, a NYU junior majoring in comparative literature. On average, Moffett spends 10 hours each week working on homework for her classes. “There’s usually more than is feasible to get done, and I usually don’t get it done.” 

For Moffett, finding a way to do the bare minimum amount of work and still pass has become an art form. 

Moffett is not alone in finding it difficult to finish her homework. Alex Merrill, a NYU sophomore studying pre-med estimates that she spends roughly 20 hours each week studying, and sometimes that’s still not enough. 

“I can’t even add up the hours,” Merrill said as she lifted a dense biology book from her backpack. The text, a requirement for all pre-med students, had nearly enough pages to be considered a lethal weapon. “Drop this, and you’ll really do some damage,” Merrill joked. 

Setting the book beside her on the worn leather couch in NYU’s Bobst Library, Merrill prepared for the long haul. “I’ve got a paper due tomorrow,” she said, “So I’ll probably be here all night.” 

An overnight stay at Bobst is, for many NYU students, nothing unheard of. For students like Merrill, it is expected. “It’s a lot,” she said, “But I guess that’s what you assume in college.”

But not every student shares this opinion. For some, prescription medication is an easy fix. 

Adderall, or a combination of dextroamphetamine and amphetamine, is traditionally used as a prescription treatment for attention deficit disorders, narcolepsy, depression, and obesity, according to DrugEnquirer and adderall.net. But for many NYU students taking these pills without a prescription, Adderall has easily become their illegal substance of choice. These students, however, don’t pop these pills for the high. For many NYU students, Adderall is a study drug.

While the occasional student does take Adderall recreationally, the majority of NYU students using Adderall do so for the extreme focus provided by the pills. According to Merrill, eight of her friends who are also studying pre-med all take Adderall before every exam. 

For one NYU sophomore majoring in English literature and earning a double minor in law and society and psychology, taking Adderall made it much easier to finish the 800 pages of reading she was assigned on average each week. 

“It was amazing,” she said, recalling the high she felt after first taking one 10 milligram pill. “I felt like I was the best version of me possible because, not only was I getting everything done, but I was doing everything faster and better.” 

On Adderall, this student was able to finish a five page paper in under 30 minutes, a task that, without the medication, would have taken her the better part of the afternoon. 

“It was the quality of the work and the whole processing everything that made it awesome,” she said. “I would read something and I would just process it instantly, and I’d remember it the next day too. That would never happen if I did my homework without Adderall. I was like superwoman.” 

30 Milligram Tablets of Adderall

Ten milligrams, for many, is a very basic dose of Adderall. And, at $5 a pop, it almost seems affordable, too. The problem, however, is that Adderall and its combination of amphetamines have, according to DrugEnquirer’s website, “a high potential for abuse.” 

Essentially, after taking 10 milligram pills for a couple of weeks, many students build up a tolerance, and the initial 10 milligrams no longer makes the cut. Instead of quitting, students often up their dose, buying pills up to 30 milligrams in weight and spending roughly $30 per pill. Often, the habit quickly becomes costly to maintain; but many students find the A they earn on a paper worth the expense. 

Not all students, however, view Adderall as a miracle pill. 

“I don’t think it’s cheating,” said Dayra Pardo, a psychology major who spends five hours on homework each day, “Because it’s not doing the work for you. But I don’t know if it’s right,” she added.

Many students not abusing the substance have a much firmer response. 

“I think it’s unfair,” said a NYU student studying international relations who preferred not to be named because friends of hers take Adderall. “It’s almost like taking steroids, and that’s illegal.” “We all have focus issues,” she added, “But I don’t take anything to get my work done.”

Bryant Park Defies Mayor’s Statistics

Parks in New York aren’t as “acceptable” as Mayor Bloomberg would like them: the current 83 percent success rate didn’t quite reach the Mayor’s goal of 85 percent, said the May 2010 Mayor’s Management Report. In Bryant Park, however, no one was complaining. This 9.6 acre park was, in their eyes, a haven. 

“I like the little pieces of green,” said Miriam Talamni, an office worker from one of the buildings surrounding Bryant Park. Sitting alone at a one of the park’s green tables, Talamni nursed a cup of coffee, enjoying her Saturday afternoon break and the late-February sun. “Concrete’s nice,” she added, “But so are trees.” 

Even hardened New-Yorkers need a break from the pavement. 

Talamni is not alone in loving the “green” of the city. Lisa McCarty, a frequent visitor to New York, said the city’s parks were what she liked best. Nowhere but New York can McCarty find such a compelling combination of urban congestion and green space. Only seven blocks south of Times Square, Bryant Park is truly at the heart of the city.

For such a central space, Bryant Park was surprisingly spotless. With no garbage surrounding the tables, the park seemed to defy statistics in the May 2010 Mayor’s report.

As of 2006, the report suggests, the city’s parks are growing dirtier every year. In 2006, 93 percent of the city’s parks were rated “‘acceptable’ for cleanliness.” That figure has since dropped to 88 percent in 2010. 

Visitors to Bryant Park, however, would be hard pressed to find even a cigarette butt on the ground. The only thing floating between the park’s tables was an occasional pigeon. 

Though it is a haven, in reality, very little of Bryant Park was actually green. Despite the warm wind and a high of 43 degrees, the park’s ice skating rink -- the Citi Pond -- was still open, covering a lawn that sits at the park’s center. The trees surrounding the park were leafless, and cobblestone walkways travel at right angles around the park. There was, in the end, very little space for the would-be color. 

The skating rink that covered the lawn, however, did not go unappreciated. The ice, at noon, was packed: the fanciest skating anyone had space for was to travel clockwise with the crowd around the edge of the 170-by-100-foot rink. 

It was the last Saturday of the season where Bryant Park’s visitors could kick off their shoes at Citi Pond and strap on a pair of ice skates -- $13 if visitors need the rink to supply their blades of glory. 

On Sunday, February 27th, the rink closed for the season. This year was, according to Citi Pond’s website, the best season yet: over 300,000 skaters took a turn around the ice.

One week later, Bryant Park was still more brown than green. Tables around the fountain, however, remained crowded: a group of 12 people stood because they couldn’t find a seat. 

With the Stephen A. Schwarzman Public Library as a backdrop, visitors watched as construction workers pulled down a building’s metal skeleton, the last official marker of the ice rink. Afternoon conversations mixed with the breeze and the sound of a single backhoe. Even the 58 degree weather couldn’t summon leaves: two plastic bags were all that blew in the trees’ branches.

Still, visitors to Bryant Park seemed happy, as a mother and her two sons posed for a picture in front of the construction. In the end, green or not, the park remains a sanctuary. 

Walking Through Central Park and the 22nd Precinct

Central Park 

It’s an old New York truism and the command of many mothers: Do not walk through Central Park at night. Male or female, young or old, no one interviewed was willing to enter the park after sun-set. This, in their opinion, was common sense.

“I’ve never had an incident,” said Jools Antiniadis, a 30 year resident of New York and frequent visitor to Central Park. “But I still never cross the park at night.”

Nearly everyone interviewed agreed with Antiniadis: Walking through Central Park after dark is asking for trouble. “Why expose myself to that threat?” Antiniadis asked. 

But is this an accurate perception?

The park’s dangerous atmosphere is an impression often fueled by television. Over its seven seasons, CSI: NY has aired eight episodes dramatizing victims’ murders in Central Park, according to episode synopses on IMDb. That’s eight TV murders since September of 2004. 

“It makes you weary,” said Tom Troyer, a tourist visiting from Toronto when asked about the impact of television. “But in a city like New York you always have to be aware of the dangers.”

The problem: Over the past seven years, there have been no actual murders in Central Park. The park, in fact, and the 22nd Precinct have the lowest crime rate in the city, according to CompStat reports released by the NYPD.

In the last 28 days there have been only four reported crimes and 12 misdemeanors in Central Park, a figure many who were interviewed considered impressive, especially for the largest park in Manhattan. Central Park and the 22nd Precinct cover 840 acres, according to the 22nd Precinct’s website. That’s roughly the size of 150 city blocks. 

With 58 miles of pedestrian paths and 690 acres of land available to visitors, the fact that central park has had no cases of murder, rape, felony assault, burglary, or grand larceny auto this year is indeed impressive. To date, CompStat reports released by the 22nd Precinct show only four robberies and four incidents of grand larceny this year. That’s four fewer cases than reported during the same time period in 2010. 

But do these statistics hold any value? Are people feeling any safer when walking through the park?

When asked if she feels safe in Central Park, Vicki Samuelson answered “absolutely.” Samuelson has lived in New York all her life. The park, she said, has been much safer since the city cleaned up the underbrush. “Before, you couldn’t see people. You didn’t know who was coming.” Now, she said, the park is open and bright. 

Peter Schon also agrees: Central Park is much safer. Schon’s experience with the park’s more dangerous perception is, perhaps, more personal than most. In 1987, Schon was attacked in Central Park at 10 p.m. while walking with his girlfriend. “I was jumped by about 12 kids. They tried to separate the two of us,” said Schon.

During the attack, Schon had a broken bottle thrust against his neck while jewelry was taken from his girlfriend. “I’m still not sure why they let us go. I guess I talked my way out of it,” he said.

Today, Schon was visiting the park with his wife and his two children. “Now that they’ve cleaned the park up,” he said, “I have no problem bringing my kids.” 

Even with a cleaner park, Schon still wouldn’t brave the paths in the evening. “That’s something I’m never going to do again.”

For Martha, a New York City mother who preferred not to give her last name, the park’s sense of community is what makes it safe. Every year, anywhere between 16 and 20 million people visit Central Park, the 22nd Precinct’s website reports. For many, the park’s 21 official playgrounds are a major attraction. 

“People watch out for each other,” said Martha; and many who were interviewed agreed with her, Harriet Hunter in particular. 

“There’s people around,” Hunter said. “Enough people to make you feel safe.”

For Zenaida Cabrera, a lifelong New Yorker, the change in Central Park is harder to pinpoint. “Before,” she recalls, “there were a lot of homeless people and drug addicts. You would always think more than three times before going [to the park].” Today, however, the atmosphere is different. “You don’t see anything out of the ordinary,” Cabrera said. 

One thing that is unusual is Central Park’s apparent lack of police men. After spending three hours conducting interviews, the reporter of this article saw no members of New York City law enforcement in the park. When the 22nd Precinct office was contacted, the police man who answered declined to comment. 

$1 Books at the Strand: The Value of a Good Book

The Strand Bookstore -- 828 Broadway, New York, NY

For $13 you could go see the top box-office movie at Regal Union Square Stadium 14 off of Broadway. A “footlong” sandwich from a Subway would cost you $5, as long as you choose from the five combinations of the month. And, for $1.29, you could buy the most downloaded song of the day from iTunes: Today, the chart-topper is S&M Remix by Rihanna -- 4 minutes and 17 seconds of entertainment. 

Or, for $1, you could buy a book from the Strand. The choice, according to everyone interviewed, was simple. 

“In a price-conscious economy, you don’t find these deals every day,” said Eric S. as he perused the books lining the north side of 12th Street. At 11 a.m., Eric was one of seven souls braving the rain, in search of a deal for $1. In his hands, he held three hardcovers, and he was still searching for more. “I find amazing things out here,” he said.

And it’s true: An amazing deal is exactly what buying a $1 book from the Strand is. Take, for instance, the hardcover copy of Speech-less by Matt Latimer -- $1 at the Strand, $17.50 from Barnes and Noble. Or Notes Left Behind by Brooke and Keith Desserich -- the Strand’s $1 vs. Barnes and Noble’s $14.12. 

At the Strand, $10 savings are not unusual. For Henry Ludmer, these deals are expected. 

Ludmer, a book collector, buys hundreds of books each year. “I couldn’t afford to do that anywhere else,” he said. 

Ludmer, who lives in the West Village, doesn’t think it’s fun to look inside the store: The hunt through the carts, for him, is the best part of the experience. “I’ve been coming here since the 1970s,” he said, “And I plan to buy a book a day ‘till I die.”

For $1, a book a day does not sound unreasonable. Like Ludmer, Ging Wong is willing to pay the Strand’s price. “I don’t like going to the library,” Wong explained, leafing through a paperback. “[At the library] you have to return a book even if you’re not done. For $1 I can keep my book. 

Like many of the Strand’s customers, Wong and Ludmer both remember a time when walking down Broadway and 12th Street meant walking through Book Row. The Stand was then one of 48 bookshops between Union Square and Astor Place. Today, however, the Strand is, according to its website, the last of this tradition. 

The $1 carts have been a feature offered by the Strand since it opened in 1927, said Zach Barocas, one of the managers at the Strand. Every morning, Strand employees restock the outdoor shelves, filling them with “the other books,” or books that don’t sell at full price or have been damaged. These, said to Barocas, are the books other stores would throw away. But for $1, shoppers at the Strand are willing to make the purchase. 

“For $1,” Barocas said, “I can deal with a coffee stain.” 

Like many customers, Barocas is a big fan of the carts. When browsing, he tends to look for books of poetry or hard fiction. His favorite find, so far, was a hardcover copy of Thomas McGrath’s Letter to an Imaginary Friend. The same book is sold used on Amazon.com. The price, however, started at $24.99. 

“Everything is out there,” Barocas said. “You just start at one end and move to the other, and see what you come up with.”