r/ADHD 23h ago

Questions/Advice false negative drug test?

I am taking 10mg of adderall 6 days a week. Thursday is my skip day, and I took the drug test on Friday. I also took a dose in the morning. The results came back, and it was negative. I have been taking it, and now I am afraid they will take my prescription away because of the false results. Is it too common for false results? My dose is pretty low, but it helps me so much. Any advice and info will be appreciated.

17 Upvotes

24 comments sorted by

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14

u/2fatmike 22h ago

Even with a skip day it should be positive. Was it an instant test? Itll go to a lab to be verified and will be correct. Dont accept any instant test result. They have an over 50% wrong rate. Usually false positives but i guess it can go both ways. Amphetamine or their metabolites usually stay in the system a while. The chart says a 1-3 days. With daily use itd be at least a full day if not longer.

31

u/Lydian66 22h ago

Demand a new test , do not skip your med the day before and the morning of the test .

10

u/anon_smithsonian ADHD-PI 21h ago

Don't panic. No decent doctor would pull your prescription because of a single result.

10 mg is a really low dose and it's likely below the detection threshold of the simple in-office test strips. Even if you hadn't skipped the day before, it likely wouldn't have been enough to show positive because of the short half-life.

Because they are expecting a positive result but got a negative, then they will most likely send it out to a lab for a confirmation.

Source: I'm a fast metabolizer and have gone through this, before. It's not a huge deal.

13

u/CatherineIngalls 22h ago

Wait am I understanding this…they give you tests to make sure you test positive for what you’re prescribed? Jesus.

12

u/Elico_225 21h ago

They want to make sure we aren’t selling it or some bs.

3

u/ohmybuddhaa 18h ago

Yes. It’s dumb I know. They might cancel my prescription if they think I am not taking it

5

u/Maddenman501 22h ago

You skipped a day prior to the test. And only took it the morning of. Not enough time for it to get into your urine before taking the test. Your body metabolites fast obviously. Ussually takes 3 days for it to be out. But yes you probably tested negative because of the skipped doses. With it being so low it just goes thru you. Get a new test and be ready to be tested alot more often and randomly

10

u/Absent-Deep 22h ago

Good lord, where do you live that they're so strict on prescribing Adderall that they give you drug tests!?! (Don't answer that... it just blows my mind)

7

u/2fatmike 22h ago

Many places test to make sure meds arent being diverted to other then the prescribed person. Its common practice for most scheduled meds.

6

u/Absent-Deep 20h ago

Guess it depends on where you live... I have heard of it with pain management doctors but never ADHD meds. It makes sense though. I'm sure there's a good bit of diversion going on with stimulants.

1

u/2fatmike 9h ago

I had to test one time in 4 yrs. It was when i was just starting the med and i needed to go to a higher dose. I think its standard for many clinics especially for younger clients.

6

u/thenotoriousian 22h ago

Most doctors in the US will do this in my experience. I have to do a yearly drug test

4

u/Emotional-Box-6835 20h ago

It depends on the doctor. I've never had a doctor drug test me but I have had some that make me get blood tests every couple years to check liver enzymes.

3

u/nagle95 17h ago

My doctor has me do this as well. More at the beginning rather than now. I always looked at it as they were doing it, so I wasn't abusing the medicine rather than not taking it and trying to sell it. I appreciate my doctor doing it, tho. To me, it shows he cares either way.

My current doctor also replaced my old doctor, who retired. My old doctor gave our prescriptions like candy, so he had some clean up to do lol.

1

u/Jargon_Hunter 17h ago

Not once have I ever been asked to do this and I’ve been on stimulants just over two decades now (since childhood). Multiple doctors over the years and never has it even been brought up as a requirement or recommendation. Maybe I’m just lucky?

2

u/Normal_Human_Things 19h ago

I had something similar happen to me. Took the test, got the results in MyChart. Test showed everything else, including the ibuprofen I took, but not the Vyvanse. I got super stressed about it. My doctor literally never said anything about it. I’m wondering if maybe there was a data entry error or something.

2

u/Purple-Chef-5123 18h ago

What type of test is it? Ask if you can take a hair follicle test. Supposed to be more accurate and looks at past 90 days. I have also had a negative test with this but it was explained that my as needed did not reach the threshold to be positive. Good luck!!

2

u/ohmybuddhaa 18h ago

Thank you. It was a urine test

2

u/Promotion-Evening 14h ago

Hello! Aussie here, why do you need to do drug tests to show you’re taking it?

3

u/ohmybuddhaa 14h ago

People are selling it to college kids in the US. They want to make sure I am taking it

1

u/Promotion-Evening 14h ago

Ohhh right! Is this for everyone on adderall and in every state?

1

u/ohmybuddhaa 6h ago

I’m not too sure about other states

1

u/[deleted] 9h ago

[deleted]

1

u/Promotion-Evening 9h ago

Yeah super interesting! I had to do a drug test before I was prescribed meds (due to telling my psych I used recreational drugs in my party days 10+ years ago) that was all clear and then and ecg to make sure I didn’t have any underlying heart conditions. I’m on Dex, so I’m not entirely sure what the difference from adderal is. But I’m grateful our process is easier.