Pulling an all-nighter to do last minute studying before the big exam day is a common occurrence for some students, but a few take it to the extreme: popping pills that keep them awake and focused.Dani, a freshman in biology, said she has taken Adderall and Ritalin to help her stay awake to study.”They really do help you focus,” Dani said. “You can sit down for hours and just focus. If you want to do an all-nighter, it helps you stay up longer.”Lisa Tichavsky, instructor for Social Deviance, said she asks her classes each semester about their use of prescription medications and is very surprised at what her students tell her.”We have a section in this class about drugs,” Tichavsky said. “Someone said Ritalin was passé, and Adderall was more popular. I asked how many students have taken one of these drugs and about two-thirds of the class raised their hands.” While medications like Ritalin and Adderall are beneficial for people who have disorders such as ADHD, Tichavsky said most students who are taking them do not have prescriptions or are obtaining prescriptions under false pretenses.”I ask them how they go about getting these; they said it’s easy, you can get a pill for $2,” Tichavsky said. She said students will look up the symptoms of disorders treated by the prescriptions, go to the doctor and pretend to have the symptoms.”The most disturbing thing I’ve been told is they go to the Student Health Center and complain of these symptoms they found online and get a prescription,” Tichavsky said.Dani said she gets the pills from friends who either do not need the medication anymore or do not use the medication often, but said she has stopped taking the pills.”I took it about once every other week for the first time I was here,” Dani said. “I don’t take it anymore. It was really just to give me a good start.”She said although they helped her stay up all night, she did experience some negative side effects, such as loss of appetite while on the medication and lack of energy after it wears off.”The day afterwards, I’ll feel really tired,” Dani said. “My stomach will hurt and I’ll feel low on energy for a long time. I know a lot of people take Adderall to lose weight because it curbs your appetite.”Dani said that while the medication keeps a person alert, the taking of it has very little effect on how well the person does academically. ”It has no effect on your actual brain function. It helps you focus better,” Dani said. “It’s not going to make your grades better; you need to actually do something school-wise.”Tichavsky said she has not seen a significant change in students’ grades, though it is difficult to tell if someone is actually taking the pills.”My grade distribution is fairly average,” Tichavsky said. “I would suspect that it probably doesn’t have as much of an effect as they think.” Rachel Williams, a freshman in elementary education, said she has a friend who takes fish oil pills to stay awake, but she does not approve of her friend’s choice. ”There are other ways to stay healthy. You can improve your diet,” Williams said. “I guess she’s still taking them, so I guess she thinks they’re working for her. I guess it’s just like an easy way out.”Tichavsky said students tell her they need to take the medications, whether prescription or over-the-counter, because it is the only way they can possibly do all their homework and cram for their exams. Tichavsky said she disagrees; there is a much better way to do well in school.

“There’s another solution to getting good grades that doesn’t involve risking your life or having a jail sentence,” Tichavsky said. “Study.”