Did Mrs. Murphy Abuse the Stimulant Benzedrine? Or Did She Have ADHD?

Gina Pera's Adult ADHD Roller Coaster

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Welcome to an historical—and musical—perspective on the early stimulant Benzedrine and how its legendary misuse might have created lasting stigma around ADHD and neurostimulants.

Harry “The Hipster” Gibson wrote and performed Who Put the Benzedrine in Mrs. Murphy’s Ovaltine in 1944.

Some medical historians would place 1944 smack in the middle of the “amphetamine epidemic” in the U.S.. (It happened elsewhere, too. In the UK, a 1960 study of retail prescriptions showed 3% were for amphetamines.).

Click on this ADHD Roller Coaster blog post to watch the vintage video gem (classic animation by Max Flesicher, song written and performed by Gibson).

My online training is here—and providing Adults with ADHD and their loved ones the education and support they need—but is almost impossible to find.

Thanks for listening! Gina Pera, Adult ADHD Author and Educator
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Gina Pera
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