I will say that 2 years on adderall in my 30s helped me learn how to organize myself in ways that I didn’t know before. I don’t take adderall most days anymore and see fundamental changes in my ability to control my attention when I’m not on stimulants. They can be beneficial.

That said, I don’t like reading for pleasure on stimulants. Stimulants make it harder to read for pleasure because stimulants change my brain’s reward drive. When I’m on a stimulant, I feel satisfaction and accomplishment for getting shit done. Reading isn’t conducive to “getting shit done” and therefore feels like a chore to complete on adderall.

I struggle to cook on adderall, too. Like, I can cook on adderall, but the aesthetic and creative pleasure of cooking is gone when I take adderall. It’s just another thing I had to get done and it’s tedious.