Vyvanse Hunger and Lightheadedness

[adultadhder]

Hi all!

First post here. Curious to hear if this resonates with any of you and if you've found any solutions.

I started 30 mg of Vyvanse a month ago. Have taken about half the pills (got cold feet and felt irresponsible for medicating a few days in, I'm back on it now). First day was incredible. Focused, even a little hyper. My eating was completely controlled - I really struggle with binging and executive function interfering with feeding myself properly. A light bulb went off in my head when I was hungry and wasn't too hungry that I couldn't cook. I had the energy to make something nutritious. I fully lost interest in my meal when I was full and didn't snack at ALL while I was watching TV. Perfect!

Now, a few weeks later, most of that help isn't there. Focus is a little better (I can finally read a book!) but I'm still spacey and lose track of where I'm going and what I'm saying.

As far as eating, I've tried taking the pill early on an empty stomach and eating beforehand, and these last few days I'm feeling hungry the entire day, even after eating, and am quite lightheaded. Both of these subside (the stomachache turns into normal hunger) after about ten hours. To be fair, I know that I am low iron (as many of us are) and might not have had as much water as I should, and was probably a bit hungry - so is the medication just exasperating these things?

Does this sound familiar for anyone? If so, what solutions did you find worked for you? I'll take any ideas!

Thank you! Seeing my psych for a follow up this week - not sure how to lead him or what I want.

[BlessedLady]

You probably have low iron. If you are female and still having periods. That increases the possibility it is low iron. You can try taking one or two iron tablets (65 mg iron) a day and a see if you feel better. You can ask your doctor to test your iron. Be sure you drink plenty of water.

[adultadhder in reply to BlessedLady]

Hi, thanks for the reply! Yes, I'd had bloodwork done and I am low iron - I don't eat red meat.Thanks for the advice, I'll talk to my doctor about that!

[BlessedLady in reply to adultadhder]

You don't take NSAIDS for chronic pain do you? The reason I ask is they can cause gastric bleeding. I had to have a emergency blood transfusion due to gastric bleeding cause by Naproxen I had been prescribed for many years. I doubt that is the cause of your low iron. But it is Naproxen and some other NSAIDS are also OTC. So I wanted to mention it to be on the safe side

[adultadhder in reply to BlessedLady]

I don't. Thank you for checking, that's very serious. I hope you're doing well after all that, it sounds traumatic

[BlessedLady in reply to adultadhder]

Thank you. It happened in August 2020. I was Blessed with Great medical care. I was in the hospital for two days. Obviously, I no longer take NSAIDS. My pain management doctor increased my opiates.

[Reyrose]

when I started the same medication my psychiatrist said that if the dose was too low it might take a couple of weeks for that to become apparent with the body getting used to being on it and that kinda stuff. I started on 30mg, went up to 40 on my next checkup and 60 a few months after that (although this bigger leap was partly due to starting another med that has a tendency to worsen adhd) and have been settled on 60mg for about a year now. Another person I know on it started at 20mg and slowly went up to 50 over the first year and has been settled on 50mg for a few years now so could be that it’s just too low a dose.

One thing to keep in mind is that you will likely build a tolerance to it, even on my settled dose that works pretty well for me, it doesn’t have as big of an effect as it did that first ever week unless I’ve been off it for a good few days.

Also yeah making sure you’re drinking enough, getting the right nutrients and enough sleep all definitely can have an effect on the efficiency of the meds too. I also find that the evenings can be a bit rough with the meds wearing off if I haven’t eaten enough throughout the day, especially when I was first on them, this particular side effect has lessened for me over the time I’ve been taking them

[adultadhder in reply to Reyrose]

Thank you for sharing! I'm at the very beginning of my medication journey so hopefully I land in a good spot like you have.I'll have a chat with my doctor and try to get the right foods in my body. Thanks for the advice!

[NYCmom2]

For keeping track of your daily water drinking I highly recommend a water bottle with time marker. Amazon sells them for them for $14.

[adultadhder in reply to NYCmom2]

I'm usually so good about drinking water, not sure what my issue is as of late. I might try some Mio flavoring to mix it up

[Findmyway]

I was only diagnosed at 50 and have been taking Vyvanse 60mg for about a year - the first few weeks felt amazing but then you settle into just “normal” once your body adjusts. I think it’s important to have a realistic expectation of what the medication does/can do - it won’t automatically “fix” your adhd and the behaviours that go with it rather it helps your mind reach a state where it is receptive and capable of taking in and learning new information about how to manage your issues. The most significant thing for me was it stopped my brain racing constantly with a million random thoughts and as a result also reduced my chronic low level anxiety but I still struggle with organisation and motivation. That said i now feel more able to start consciously addressing these issues. Unfortunately after decades of living undiagnosed I have a lot of bad habits but after doing a lot of reading up about how adhd affects brain function I am starting to learn strategies that help me to compensate (I realised I need visual reminders and alarms to keep me on track). This is why it is reccommended to get counseling and/or life coaching along with medication. I still struggle with impulsivity but am more aware it now and try to practice making myself wait before making a decision. Eating generally wasn’t a major issue for me apart from really liking sweet things but I discovered that using a daily probiotic has helped to curb my cravings. .I’m sorry there is no easy answer but there is a wealth of good resources available online and YouTube. The CHADD organisation has some really good information about diet and supplements that may be beneficial as well as forums. Regular mindfulness meditation and exercise also helped me a lot too (I like Sam Harris’s waking up program for meditation). I know this may all sound like a lot but after reading Atomic habits (great book) I learnt it’s best to just start small by setting very specific realistic consistent regular goals and then commit to doing them (example - on Tuesday Wednesday and Friday at 6am I will go for a 15 minute walk, have your clothes and shoes out ready to go as a prompt and then mark it off on a calendar that you look at each day) or for food perhaps write down a set plan of what you will eat each day and how much..

helpful resources like additudemag.com/managing-ad...

Finally 30mg is a fairly low dose so you might want to discuss this with a doctor. Good luck.

[adultadhder in reply to Findmyway]

Thanks so much for sharing your journey. My poor mom is still diagnosed around your age. I'll pass some of these resources along to her.I've been working remote for a year (soon to be hybrid) and there's a constant struggle of seeing how far I can push it by getting extra sleep, etc. It's definitely not the ideal working conditions to maintain healthy habits, but I am hopeful that once I have to go into the office, it'll be easier to maintain a routine.

I have just been upped to 40 mg so hopefully that helps to maintain my focus and assists with the binge eating. Fingers crossed!

Thanks again for your thoughtful response.

[Adhdnana in reply to Findmyway]

Thank you for all of this information. I really needed to hear this this morning! I am looking forward to checking into your resources!

[Schutt2023]

My eating disorder resurfaced and was enraged with this medication. I have to go a leafier route for my hunger. If you live in a state where medical is legal, you could always look into edibles!

[AuDHD3245]

The 30's are designed to get the drug into your system. The strengths goes up to 70mg, so after a few weeks your body will begin to resist the effect. I'd ask for 50mg or 60mg next