Adderall Mixed with Alcohol: A Deadly Concoction

Julie Buckner has a strong message for everyone to hear, “An ADHD drug killed my son.” The ADHD drug she is talking about is Adderall. Adderall was introduced in 1996 and is commonly prescribed to treat attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD. For awhile, it seemed like everyone had ADHD, and Adderall was being prescribed to everyone. Adderall is still a very prevalent and now teens and young adults have found a new way to get an advantage or high off of them. Authorities, state that more young people are buying these pills from friends with prescriptions and illegally using the stimulant. With Adderall being so easily accessible, more and more people are abusing this drug. The worst part is that they think the drug is safe and will not harm them, because it is prescribed by a doctor. This could not be farther from the truth.

Students sometimes use Adderall to enhance their concentration, in order to study better. In Josh Levine’s case, he crushed the prescription drug up and snorted the powder, in order to stay up later and drink more. Josh’s mother Julie Buckner says Adderall mixed with alcohol, “prevents your body from taking over and getting you to pass out when you’ve had too much to drink.” The drug will keep the user up and void of any feeling that comes along with drinking too much. Your body no longer knows when to stop, resulting in alcohol poisoning, and in her son’s case, death. “Josh had no clue that this could be lethal,” Julie stated, “These kids have no idea that they are playing with fire.”

Last July, Josh Levine was just 22 years old. He had moved to Chicago, after he graduated from the University of Michigan. He met up with some friends to go to a party. Julie Buckner is convinced that someone offered Josh the Adderall and he took it, not thinking of the consequences. Levine drank heavily at the party and left without his phone. He also lost his wallet and collapsed in a park. He was found unconscious in the park and taken to a Chicago hospital as a John Doe. His older brother Andrew, found him the next day in the hospital. Josh was brain dead from the amount of alcohol he had consumed, alcohol poisoning. Andrew had the hard task of calling their mother and delivering the bad news. Julie rushed to Chicago with her husband. Josh died July 21.

Since Josh’s death, Julie and her husband, Dave Buckner, have been working to set up a foundation in the Josh’s name that will promote awareness about the dangers of combining any type of stimulant and alcohol. Hopefully, her tragic loss will serve as a cautionary tale to others thinking about abusing and mixing drugs and alcohol. This is no positive outcome to mixing drugs and alcohol. There is no positive outcome to taking someone’s prescription drugs. The side effects and dangers are real.