Out of Reach: Non-prescribed Adderall usage among SM East students has increased

*Names changed to protect the identity of students

Sophomore Evan Kelting, a prescribed Adderall user with ADHD, has experienced the benefits of the stimulant firsthand after consulting with his doctor over the summer.

Adderall is an anti-hyperactivity drug commonly used to treat Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder; it uses a chemical called amphetamine to cause alertness for the user, usually helping users focus in an educational environment, according to Healthline. 

“Last year I had a lot of B’s and C’s and a couple of A’s,” Kelting said. “But this year, since I got on Adderall, I’ve felt so much more focused in class. I got straight As last semester.”

While Kelting went through the process of professionally diagnosing his ADHD to become prescribed — a process that took him less than a month — he has seen students using Adderall without a prescription.

“Right before tests, I’ve seen people give each other quick-release Adderall,” Kelting said. “In class, I’ll just see people take it before they have something important [who are] very clearly not prescribed on the medication. I think people have easier ways to get [Adderall] — I feel like I’ve seen more and more people using un-prescribed [now] than I’ve seen ever before.” 

Out of 222 SM East students, a fifth have used Adderall without a prescription, according to a March Instagram poll of SM East students.

Twenty-three-percent of responding SM East students on a 234-student Instagram poll said they take Adderall. That leaves only 3-4% of students answering the poll who are actually medically prescribed Adderall when compared to the previous poll of non-prescription users.

Junior Sally Sue* has a daily prescription for 15 mg of Adderall — a relatively low dosage. But when she took her March ACT, she took 30 mg in hopes of achieving a higher test score. 

“I took more than usual, and then I started getting really compulsive, and I would aggressively itch my nose or my lips, and they got really raw,” Sue said. 

The spontaneous side effects experienced by Sue are unmonitored by professionals and have a potential health risk for her because the dosage consumed was unprescribed. Adderall usage can have side effects such as damage to nerve cells, seizures, psychosis, stroke, extreme lack of appetite and abnormal heart rhythms, according to American Addiction Centers.

Sue’s sister is also on Adderall and distributes it to her friends before drinking to enhance the effects of alcohol — a common usage of the drug, according to AAC. 

Sue has seen Adderall used as a stimulant with alcohol by SM East students as well, and believes students don’t treat Adderall as a serious drug because of its prevalence. 

“[So many kids] have ADHD, and [are] probably on [Adderall] or a form of it,” Sue said. “So I think no one really sees it as an actual drug.”

Prescribed students with access to Adderall who distribute it to non-prescribed students will require more refills for their personal prescription, driving rates and demand as there is less supply. 

The drug has become increasingly unavailable, caused by high prescription and refill rates, especially in Kansas City. Doctors established an official shortage in 2023, which has only worsened since January 2026, according to KMBC and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists.

Junior Piper Kiehne is currently medically prescribed 50 mg of Adderall, and went from failing classes her freshman year and first semester as a sophomore, to straight A’s in her second semester sophomore year after taking the drug. 

Kiehne has been approached by other students asking if she’d sell them her Adderall, and although she declined, she’s seen others give out their Adderall before parties and big tests as well.

“I definitely think that people just giving [Adderall] out contributes to [the shortage], but I also think it’s really easy to get prescribed with it,” Kiehne said. “I don’t think they do that much in-depth ADHD testing to get prescribed."

Students such as Kiehne, Sue and Kelting plan on taking Adderall for the rest of their academic career, although Kiehne worries it may become more difficult to obtain the drug as demand increases among her peers.