What is Modalert (Provigil)?

Modalert is a prescription central nervous system a stimulant that helps people stay awake, enhance concentration, and combat fatigue.

It is commonly used to treat narcolepsy and shift work sleep disorder but doctors may also prescribe it off-label for many reasons, such as to treat ADHD, for airline pilots, or to treat excessive fatigue associated with medical conditions like cancer or multiple sclerosis (MS).

Researchers aren’t exactly sure how Modalert works, but they believe it stimulates the production of monoamines (a class of neurotransmitters), which includes dopamine, noradrenaline, and serotonin. Although Modalert 200 is a highly effective prescription medication, it has the same effect on dopamine centers of the brain as cocaine, methamphetamine, and amphetamines do.1 Like other stimulants, it also causes psychoactive and euphoric effects, which influence a person’s moods, thoughts, emotions, and perceptions.

Modalert 200 is commonly abused as a study drug by students, professionals, and others who are looking to fight fatigue and stay awake longer as well as enhance their focus and concentration. Although Provigil is a milder prescription stimulant than Adderall or others, it may still have the potential to cause psychological dependence if it’s abused.

The 2018 National Survey on Drug Abuse reports that prescription stimulant abuse is a big problem in the U.S. In 2018 alone, about 5.1 million Americans misused prescription stimulants like Provigil in the past year.