I recently got put on vyvanse for the first time in my life. I have always had ADHD but managed just fine up until graduate school.
I have found that sometimes vyvanse works WONDERFULLY (30mg) but sometimes it doesnt work at all! Is this just me? Does any one else experience this?
Previous to this I tried Adderall 20mg and it did absolutely nothing.
I find the same I’m on the maximum dose 70 mg and it takes up to 2 hours to work then if it works at all I’m lucky if I get 4.5 hours of it working before it fizzles out then some days it works well other days it like I’ve got brain fog? I find it works best for me taken on an empty stomach taken with 30mg of caffeine although caffeine isn’t recommended with stimulants I found the same with the concerta I took before? My adhd specialist even couldn’t explain why it didn’t work without caffeine. I’ve never heard anyone else need caffeine to make a stimulant work though. Maybe you need more than 30 mg or maybe concerta (methylphenidate) will work better for you. It worked like a miracle for me for a year though I needed double the usual dose (108mg which is high but worked great with no side effects ) I’m in the Uk and only have the option of the long acting drugs concerta or vyvanse ( it’s called elvanse here) I’m new to an adhd diagnosis at 53 being wrongly diagnosed as bipolar for 15 years and stimulants have been a miracle drug but worryingly I do seem to become tolerant to them quickly. I was first prescribed concerta ‘off label’ for depression which worked for a year then discovered I actually was adhd and still don’t have an answer to why concerta suddenly stopped working for me? I’ve just been prescribed 70 mg elvanse with strattera (atomoxetatine) which is an SNRI antidepressant for adhd which works on its own for some people but isn’t a stimulant so I’m hoping they work together. You don’t say who you’re seeing for your adhd ? It’s best to see an adhd specialist if you’re not, I’m just figuring it all out and researching a lot I’m not qualified to give advice just share my experience. I’ve been seeing psychiatrists for years but once I met an adhd specialist it changed my life for the better and you’ll get the best advice on what the best treatment will suit you which may be a lot of trial and error unfortunately!! Seems to be for me .
Good luck
These are my thoughts on this problem of vyvanse not working some days. I'm on 40mg of cymbalta (duloxotone, "off label" for ADHD, an SNRI), and on my second month of 30mg vyvanse.
This is all based on my own research and experience with the drug, I'm by no means an expert. Read this with a grain of salt.
I don't think it is uncommon for people to approach stimulants as drugs with magical qualities that will consistently achieve the same effect. It's important to remember that they don't give you abilities you don't already have. They are alleviating the symptoms of ADHD. Amphetamine, dextroamphetamine, etc. do not objectively improve the memory/focus of healthy people. It is ADHD that is retarding your focus, your memory, and creating anxiety in your life that exacerbates the symptoms of ADHD.
Some days I feel as if though it hardly works at all. I've noticed that this most often coincides with days that I am very tired. When I've been working long hours relying heavily on my ability to be alert and focused on the task at hand. When I go multiple nights getting little sleep and getting up early.
Vyvanse isn't putting me above the curve, just at parity with non-ADHD folks. Anyone getting less sleep and working more is going to get tired and begin to have their functioning impaired.
It doesn't help that vyvanse interferes with my sleep which results in me being tired more often. The worst are days when I get little sleep and then rely on vyvanse as a wakefulness agent.
A few tips:
- Avoid caffeine while taking vyvanse. It increases the speed at which you metabolize it. It already has a relatively short 6 hour half life, so caffeine doesn't help. Caffeine also raises your heart rate which is an effect you want to avoid as much as possible when taking a stimulant long term.
- Exercise. Dextroamphetamine isn't just a stimulant. It is also blocks the reuptake of the neurotransmitters dopamine, serotonin, and norepinehphrine among others. While it's active in your system you have an opportunity to naturally raise the levels of dopamine and many other beneficial nuerotransmitters more than drugs alone would. I like to take my vyvanse in the morning, wait an hour, then go on a brisk 1 hour walk with my dog.
I find that even a moderate level of exercise significantly enhances the effects of vyvanse. I feel the positive mood altering effects of exercise much more while on the drug. There is a much wider range of nuerotransmitters with different functions that you have access to once you start exercising. They stick around throughout the whole day.
- Get in a routine. Take your meds at the same time every day, go to sleep and wake up at the same time every day. Eat the same time every day. Give your body the best possible odds to incorporate this drug into its chemical routine, and create the most consistent effect you can.
Thanks for the advice. I wish I didn’t have to take caffeine. I only take 30 mg to make the strattera work straight away else I’d be waiting 2.5 hours for vyvanse to work ! I’m not bothered about being adhd I’ve had it a my life and managed but not diagnosed until 54 years old! My primary issue is still keeping out of depression. I couldn’t do more exercise if I had more hours . Within an hour of taking meds I go for a 2 hour brisk walk with my dog . I’m an ex bodybuilding so I still do a split routine at the gym 4-5 times a week . I’m also a carer for2 additional needs young adults 22, 16 so my life is very busy . I agree lack of sleep has an effect on the next day’s meds but I’ve always been an insomniac so do ok on 4 hours sleep. Since I last posted I’m getting longer with these 2 drugs sometimes from 9am to 7 pm. I’m taking a cocktail of L-Tyrosine Alpha GBC or DLPA and Tryptophan at night amongst others I won’t go into. I’m a super metaboliser, there’s nothing I don’t know about how these drugs work and if you sit around all day vyvanse is not gonna work for me. I need to get active . Thanks for your advice all very sensible... off to walk the dog
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Hello, I was just diagnosed, and prescribed vyvanse 30mg, first 2 weeks of taking it was the best I had since 2010, then, let's say it started working by surprise.After 4 years, would you care to update us on how it's going for you? And also, I read you used to be a bodybuilder, did you use to take a lot of stimulants back then? Would you say it helped you develop any sort of condition?
Hopefully this will help someone: adhd meds dont work when my estrogen is low (the days before my period) there isnt heavy research on this but dr. William dodson talks about it on ADDitude podcasts on spotify. I highly recommend everyone listen. Its the same reason meds poop out when women go through menopause.
Oh wow! How do I find this pod cast? I am going through menopause and am havi big a terrible time. Also DX with binge eating d/o, depression, anxiety. DX with adhd at 48. Started adderall last summer and my weight has jumped 50lbs bc now I binge eat all the time. The problem is that it helps remarkably with my adhd so I am fearful to go off of it but my health is suffering otherwise. I am really interested in hearing the correlation of menopause with treating adhd. Thanks!
I realize the post I'm commenting on is several months old. However, in case Challenged is still having this issue, have you tried switching to vyvanse? In addition to helping with adhd, it is prescribed to people with bulimia
1st week on vyvanse unsure 
Vyvanse makes my mind calm
Vyvanse making me more distracted? Hyperfocus?
New diagnosis- Not sure if my medication is working for me
Trying Vyvanse tomorrow
