amphetamine sulfate

Amphetamine has a risk of misuse. Misusing amphetamine raises your risk for addiction and other serious side effects, such as high heart rate or blood pressure, depression, nightmares, aggressive behavior, and even thoughts of hurting yourself or others. In addition, if you take amphetamine regularly for a long period of time, you can start to rely on the medication to function normally. When you're physically dependent on the medication, you're more likely to have withdrawal symptoms, like irritability, nightmares, and sleep problems, if you suddenly stop taking the medication.

There have been reports of sudden death, stroke, and heart attack in people who took stimulants like amphetamine at normal doses. This medication can also raise your blood pressure and heart rate. Tell your provider if you have a history of heart problems before starting amphetamine to make sure it's safe for you to take. Your provider will check for heart problems before you start this medication. Tell your provider if you experience unexplained fainting, chest pain with physical activity, or irregular heartbeat while you're taking amphetamine.

Taking a stimulant like amphetamine can cause new or worsening mental health problems such as hallucinations (seeing things that aren't really there), aggressive behavior, unclear thinking, and mania. This can sometimes happen in someone who previously didn't have any mood problems. If you develop these mood or behavior symptoms while taking amphetamine, talk to your healthcare provider right away because you might have to stop taking it.

Stimulants like amphetamine have been linked to weight loss and a slowed growth rate (both height and weight) in children. Your child's provider will keep track of your child's growth closely to see if this becomes a problem. And if there's too much weight loss or if their growth rate is affected, the provider might pause or stop amphetamine treatment for your child. Talk to your child's provider if you notice a big amount of weight loss in your child or if you have concerns.

Although rare, stimulants like amphetamine can cause you to have seizures more easily, particularly if you've had seizures before. If this happens, seek medical help right away. You'll probably have to stop taking amphetamine.

Amphetamine can cause a condition called Raynaud's phenomenon, which can lower blood flow to your fingers and toes. This can cause your fingers and toes to change color from pale, to blue, to red and feel cold, numb, or painful. If this happens, it's usually mild and happens occasionally. But rarely, it can cause sores to form and the tissue to become damaged. Let your provider know if you experience any of these symptoms. Usually, they get better after your provider lowers your amphetamine dose or after you stop the medication.

Serotonin syndrome is a rare, but potentially life-threatening condition where there's too much serotonin in the brain. Serotonin is one of the chemicals in your brain responsible for your mood. Since amphetamine might raise your serotonin levels in the brain, your risk for this condition goes up if you use amphetamine with other medications that also affect serotonin levels. These medications can include antidepressants (e.g., sertraline (Zoloft), duloxetine (Cymbalta)), MAOIs (e.g., phenelzine (Nardil)), and certain migraine medications (e.g., sumatriptan (Imitrex)). Symptoms of serotonin syndrome include fast heart rate, sweating, muscle stiffness or spasms, high fever, changes in behavior, and confusion. Get medical help right away if you have any of these symptoms.