Why do I experience severe brain fog and zombie focus after taking Vyvanse for 4~5 hours?

[Nandamuri1]

TL;DR: After prescribed to take Vyvanse for 4~5 hours, started to have severe brain fog and zombie focus, would like to get your advice.

English is not my native language, so I hope you will point out if I have expressed myself unclearly. I apologize if any expressions offend you, but that was not my intention.

A week ago, I was switched to Vyvanse 30mg because Ritalin LA 30mg causes me insomnia. In my area, doctors are not very responsible and they usually prescribes the medication and leaves the patient alone. I have asked him for help several times, but no valid information was given to me.

I usually take Vyvanse 30mg after breakfast with protein, and at first the medication works well: full of motivation, clear thinking, I can focus on any task I want to focus on. But after about 4-5 hours, I gradually started to have trouble thinking, and then it got worse. After about 7-8 hours, I begin:

1. I can't think, my head is like a thick fog, I can't even remember what I just read.

2. Zombie focus/high focus, I have no control over what I focus on, for example I will format a word document until I am exhausted, even though I don't want to.

3. Moderate intensity of fatigue, mild depression and agitation.

May I ask if these are manifestations of Vyvanse crash? It seems like most adhder will experience 3 but not 1 and 2. Why I don't experience these brain fogs on Ritalin LA 20mg, and what would you suggest for a solution?

Supplement: I eat high protein foods for breakfast and lunch and drink plenty of water. On the advice of healthunlocked, I take 500mg of l-tyrosine on an empty stomach and near the "Vyvanse crash", which seems to help, but the effect is not very obvious. I also take a daily multivitamin after breakfast, 1g of fish oil, 1g of magnesium threonate, 500mg of Acetly-L-Carnitine and 150mg of ALA, but these don't seem to help. I heard that Obsessive-compulsive disorder may be caused by low 5-htp, do you think this is possible?

In any case, thanks for your help!

[mandyholly]

Hi you really need to speak to an ADHD specialist. I started taking 70 mg elvanse as it’s known in the uk over 2 years ago, switched from an extremely high dose (108 mg a day) of concerta that suddenly stopped working after 7 months of working well . I have never had a day that 70 mg elvanse has lasted longer than exactly 4.5 hours, 70 mg is the highest dose, seems I’m very resistant to stimulant medication and have to take 80 mg of strattera a day also which makes elvanse work for for me for 6-8 hours which still isn’t long compared to others so I’ve recently been prescribed 10 mg dexadrine to take as a booster at 3 pm which on a good day will work until bedtime. I find everyone seems to need different doses of elvanse, your dose could still be increased as it sounds like it’s not lasting long enough although I can only share my experience I’m not a professional, sounds like you’re crashing and getting rebound symptoms too early after 4.5 hours like I used to do. I feel elvanse doesn’t work well for me personally if I eat before taking it or eat anything but protein while it is still working. I also don’t drink anything with citric acid in it, eat or drink citrus fruits or caffeine which can interfere with elvanse absorption. In the uk we only have concerta or elvanse as extended release medications. I’m sorry your doctor is not listening to you which is so important while starting a new medication.

[Mini-S8]

Maybe this is not the best possible medication or dose for you. I’d speak with your specialist/doctor if you are concerned. X

[acrononymous]

Hi Nandamuri1,You expressed yourself very clearly and did not say anything offensive. Your English is very good!

I just weaned off of Vyvanse because of the same issues that you are having. It is the Vyvanse crash. I also hyper focused on the most irrelevant things until exhausted.

For me, it took about 2.5 hours for the Vyvanse to get into my system enough to make a difference. I would take it at 6 am, be functional til about 1 pm, then get very tired and foggy. By 5 pm I was beyond exhausted, grumpy, and agitated. My doctor increased my dose and I started my day agitated and it got worse as the day went on, til about 7pm when I would start feeling like myself again.

I'm waiting to find out what I'll be trying next.