A mum-of-three has revealed she was hooked on up to 300mg of Adderall a day – more than seven times the recommended adult dose – in a terrifying addiction that should have killed her.
Shannon Anderson, 37, was living on the edge as her drug use spiralled out of control, leaving her paranoid, sleep-deprived and physically deteriorating.
At her lowest point, her body was under such strain that her jugular vein visibly pulsed through her neck – something even her mum noticed.
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Now celebrating an incredible 10 years sober, Shannon has opened up about the harrowing reality of her addiction and the moment she realised it was “life or death”.
The mum even started working as a sober coach – using her story to help others battling similar demons.
“After one pill, I was essentially hooked,” Shannon told Need To Know.
“The second that pill kicked in, a euphoria washed over me I had never felt before.
“Eventually, the addiction really took over and my tolerance had grown so much that I ultimately needed Adderall to function in my life.”
Shannon also revealed just how easy it was for her to first get hold of the powerful drug.
She said: “When I went to get on Adderall probably 15 years ago, it was extremely easy to get.
“You go to a doctor, say you have trouble focusing and that you think you have ADHD. They send you to get ‘tested’.
“You basically just sit in a room with a camera and a computer and have to press a space bar at certain times on the screen.
“Miss it a few times and voila, you have ADHD and get prescribed controlled substances.”
Before turning her life around, Shannon’s addiction took a brutal toll on both her mind and body.
She would “move my jaw from side-to-side like a crack addict” – a symptom she still experiences today.
Shannon, now married to husband Mark, 44, and mum to Greyson, six, Harrison, four and Sutton, two, soon realised just how severe her addiction had become.
She said: “I could take at least 300mg in a day. I vividly remember the first time popping five 30mg XR pills in my mouth at once and doing that again later that day.”
The side effects were devastating.
She said: “I developed chronic dry eye because I would take so many stimulants that I would forget to blink and not sleep.
“I began getting chronic hives and I couldn’t get them to go away without steroids.
“I would move my jaw side-to-side like a crack addict and it’s something I still do today when I am concentrating on something.
“My blood would be pumping so hard throughout my body that one time my mum even commented on why she could see my jugular vein pulsing through my neck.
“My pupils would literally become as big as my iris to the point that people would comment on that too.
“As for the paranoia and lack of sleep, Adderall or stimulants make you extremely anxious.
“With lack of sleep added into the mix, you start to hallucinate.”
Shannon, from Kansas City, Missouri, said the turning point came when she could no longer deny the truth.
She said: “I was talking to intravenous drug addicts and that’s when I had this spiritual awakening.
“My experience was similar to theirs – I got the drug and could no longer say no.
“I kept seeing myself as different and not an addict, but that moment made me realise I was an addict.
“The substance doesn’t matter.
“That’s when I knew it was life or death.”
Determined to change, she began attending 12-step meetings.
Shannon said: “It was there where I could really be honest.
“It was imperative I had sober support around me.
“After starting my Sober is Chic business and taking it to social media, the amount of people I have met who are just like me is astounding.
“This is definitely an epidemic.”
She also warned the problem may now be even easier to fall into.
Shannon said: “I’ve had clients that have shared the same experiences.
“I’ve had family members reach out to me on social media saying their loved ones were able to get them through virtual appointments – which wasn’t a thing when I was using.
“So they were able to have multiple doctors prescribe them.”
But Shannon insists the issue goes beyond individuals.
She said: “On the flip side, I have had people comment on my content saying ‘I am the reason that there are shortages at the pharmacy and why doctors are hesitant to prescribe’.
“Neither of those things was ever my experience.
“I think it is probably just a result of the overprescribing of this medication.”
But recovery came with its own challenges.
Shannon said: “I had randomly had panic attacks in my active addiction but when I got sober, the panic attacks came on so often.
“I remembered learning that I could breathe through and walk through any panic attack.
“I was so used to taking something when those feelings came on before.
“This was new territory for me.”
Despite everything, Shannon insists there is hope.
She added: “You can do this.
“Stop telling yourself you can’t.
“Your addiction will kill you.
“And if it doesn’t, you will live a miserable existence until something else does.
“My course or coaching will help show you the way.
“It’s life or death and it’s time to choose life.”
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