Myomancy ADHD, Dyslexia and Autism

Comments on: Vyvanse: What You Need To Know

1. I was once addictive to meth two years ago My biggest problem wasnt the addiction for the drug but not wanting to gain weight or be too tired to do anything.I liked the way the drug made me clean and not hungry. I tried this by a friend who was taking it and it was like I had all the benefits without being on an illegal drug.I think they ought to try this for addicts of the same to help get off the drug..Just a thought,thanks…

   Posted by: valerie ballinger August 7th, 2007 at 9:44 pm

2. my son is six years old and has adhd he takes vyvanse 50mg and he can”t stop moving his mouth and it makes him more hiper

   Posted by: joann August 10th, 2007 at 2:05 pm

3. My 9 year old Son was prescribed 30mg of Vyvanse as his first behavioral medication ever attempted. About 30 minutes after taking the dosage, he fell to the floor and complained of heaviness in his legs and inability to move. His resting pulse increased to 110 and he became very fidgety and nervous and anxious. I moved him to the bed and told him to try and relax and that everything would be fine. However, I was extremely concerned and we took him to the emergency room. While he didn’t have any life-threatening side effects, he was unable to walk on his own and unable to function normally for one full day. Very scary experience and I wouldn’t recommend anyone giving their children this high of a dosage to start, even though this is the recommended starting dosage. I blame the Doctor for prescribing this new medication and using my Son as a guinea pig so he can increase his drug kickback revenues.

   Posted by: Gary Thiemann August 11th, 2007 at 2:31 pm

4. We continue to treat the symptoms and ignore the causes. While there -are- many biogenetically irritable children, it appears to me from the trenches of working with the families of these children that there are many more “irritable children” who are irritable because of environmental influences in the home. Meds like Vyvanse provide a quick and, at least from my PoV, very dirty solution for parents who would be better off with short-term family therapy and parenting training. The parents aren’t really to blame. In most cases, they weren’t all that well parented themselves. Many are habituated to medicinal solutions for their own problems, but respond well to straightforward psychoeducation on topics like over-stimulation, drama triangulation and “child-whispering.” Do we give our pets dextroamphetamines for being a little hyper?

   Posted by: Rodger Garrett August 13th, 2007 at 8:59 pm

5. Hey Gary, that was my experience when I tried 20mg Focalin XR. The drug just hit me all at once and I was just high for about 30 minutes. I can’t say I disliked the feeling but I can imagine that such a feeling might be scary for a young kid.

   In response to Rodger, I can see how what you say can be true in many situations, however, some kids do live in a great environment with parents who do everything to help them stay on track and teachers who do as well, but they just can’t stay on track without the meds. When I was teaching, I had this great ADHD kid (adopted and was supposedly kind of a crack baby) who hated taking his meds but they did help him learn. Maybe he was taking too much though.

   I think that parents should know what they are giving to their kids. Try the drugs yourself before giving it to your kids, and it may help you to understand why they should or shouldn’t be given to them. I would recommend taking twice the amount prescribed to your child and seeing how it feels yourself before administering to him. Also if your kid feels really medicated by the recommended dose, why not try reducing the dosage and seeing how that works. When doses are too high kids get high, and I can imagine how scary the experience can be for them.

   Posted by: Brian August 15th, 2007 at 2:37 am

6. I have add, manic bipolar I, and anger explosiveness. I have been on 40mg of focalin for about a year. It helped at first, but after a while of working the time that it helped me focus was shortened tenfold. I start the vyvanse in the morning, but after reading this it worries me a bit at 70 mg. With that added to all the rest of my meds have me worried. I’ll get back with yall after I take it for a few days. I am almost 40 and panic at every little thing my body does. A twitch, muscle pain, chest hurting and many more. I’d like to know anymore adults take this meds along with other meds daily. Thanks, Bill

   Posted by: Bill August 22nd, 2007 at 11:01 pm

7. My doctor suggested Vyvanse as an alternative to Adderall IR. Knowing that Shire’s patent on Adderall is about to run out I knew this medication was suggested mostly at the drug manufacturer’s urging. Because of the free 30 day trial I accepted. I started Vyvanse 50mg and i’ve got to say that I like it much better than Adderall. I’ve tried both Adderall XR and IR and developed a tolerance to both quickly with severe drop-offs after 3PM. With Vyvanse I have the focus and MOTIVATION factor to super multitask. I am a bit concerned that i’ll develop a tolerance to these as well. I’ve had to take the 50mg and then empty half of another one to get through the day as i’ve experienced a drop off on these too. Perhaps it has something to do with adjusting to the meds.

   Posted by: Jill August 24th, 2007 at 5:08 pm

8. After reading the possible side effects in an ad directed toward mothers I couldn’t believe that ANYONE would allow it to be administered to their children. I’m not talking about side effects like dizziness or drymouth (although they are listed) but effects like hearing voices, worsening behavior and violent episodes. DON’T ask your doctor about VYVANSE and if it is offered as treatment find another doctor.

   Posted by: Joe August 24th, 2007 at 8:03 pm

9. I am a 43 year old female diagnosed with adhd in November 2006. My Doctor has tried me on several different stimulants all of which I have not been 100% satisfied with. I had side effects with all of them that were bothersome and not quite the amount of focus. We even tried different dosages etc… I started taking Vyvanse 30mg ( lowest dose ) 10 days ago, and am very very pleased with the results. No side effects, more focus and concentration. After the first week we upped the dose slighlty and things are very very well. I really like this medication. I don’t feel jittery, or hyperfocused, which is how I felt on Adderall and Dex. I get an even feeling all day long as opposed to the ups and downs. For me this medication so far is better thaen the other ADHD medications I have taken.

   Posted by: Sandy August 24th, 2007 at 9:12 pm

10. I was diagnosed ADHD in March and was taking adderall. At first it seemed to do some good, but I noticed after 4 months I was spiraling backwards. I talked to my docotr at my last appoitnment and she recommended I try the Vyvanse. I have been on it for two weeks, and I have never, in my 38 years, had such a “clear” head. I have accomplished more in these last two weeks thatn I would in a two or three month period. My son was diagnosed ADHD about a year ago (which is what prompted me to talk to my doctor about it). I have always joked that we were AHDH, but didn’t take it seriously until his grades starting dropping in 4th grade. When he started meds in the beginning of 5th it seemed to be trial and error. He tried 3 until we tried Focalin, which seemed to work the best. Though, he still has problems with following directions, following through with things, and organization. These last two weeks being on this vyvanse has really opened my eyes to how the focalin really isn’t the right ne for him, and I will be contacting his doctor to have him switched over.
    Not all meds are right for all people! My son started with Stratera, went to Concerta, then to Adderall, then finally to the Focalin. He had different adverse reactions to each one, enough to make the doctor try a new one. Because this seems to be working so well for me, I think it will be goor for him too.

    Posted by: Debbie August 24th, 2007 at 11:08 pm

11. Vyvanse is quite interesting. It helps you read quicker but not so much comprehension. It can make you talk in a whisper at times. Some times it gives you an out of body experience. You look at your legs and don’t really know how they are moving. It takes a lot of your cares and stores them in the back of your head, and takes away anxiety. At the peak of it’s performance it feels like it is Christmas and makes your heart feel warm. Somebody could come punch you in the face and it wouldn’t bother you that much. It lets you choose what you want to focus on. It makes you much nicer.

    Posted by: Luke August 31st, 2007 at 12:17 am

12. It is very interesting to read some of the uneducated comments that have been posted on this website. The man who made the comment that parents are to blame is, to be honest, down right stupid. That is one of the biggest myths about ADHD out there. I bet he doesn’t have ADHD, because if he did he would know that parenting is NOT the only solution. Of course, medication isn’t going to solve ADHD 100% by itself. I have been diagnosed with ADHD and have done a lot of research on the topic. Shire didn’t bring Vyvanse to market just because Adderall XR is going off the market in over 2 years. They did because of the benefits that it gives patients. I have tried other stimulants in the past (Focalin XR, Concerta, Adderall XR) and none have even come close to how well Vyvanse works. Focalin XR and Concerta lasted maybe 6-8 hours at the most. Adderall XR would last about 10 hours. Vyvanse works for 12 hours and it doesn’t vary from day to day. Also, I have not had ANY side effects from Vyvanse where as with other stimulants I would get side effects. To Joe who wrote the comment on side effects, I am sorry to say you know nothing about how studies are set up and where these side effects are coming from. For example if a kid were to get the flu during a study and vomit, even though it has NOTHING to do with the medication, it has to be reported as a side effect. So, again you are putting out information that is totally false. Maybe you should educate yourself before telling other people that they should get a new doctor if they offer you Vyvanse. If you have ADHD and your doctor doesn’t offer you Vyvanse, I would then question whether this doctor is a doctor you should be seeing. Based on the results that I have seen with Vyvanse, I would recommend anyone with ADHD talk to there doctor about trying it.

    Posted by: Jenny September 4th, 2007 at 9:15 pm

13. I was really comforted to read what Luke wrote about his “quite interesting” esperience with this drug. I, as many of you have mentioned, have an addictive personality and about 90% of the time, can tolerate much more than the average Joe. I have found that there is a slight loophole in my drinking you under the table type mentality. I am incredibly soft and sensitive to any SSRI. Zoloft, one of the pansys in anitdepressant drugs, sent me straight into serotonin sydrome. Today I took my first dose of Vyvanse (30mg). I did not notice any difference in over an hour, relying on my “tolerance and skills” I took another (30mg) pill. Let me just tell you that I have participated in a LOT of things and , well, I had to leave work. Like Luke described, I felt foreign to my own appendages, my short term memory was dissolved, and I was so deep in paranoia, I don’t what could have gotten me out. Let me also say- I am bipolar, I do take other meds and on this particular day I had to take a drug called Relpax which is a migraine abortive measure which also increases your serotonin uptake. Bottom line- I made a mistake by taking too much, but I was really surprised that too much was not just a crecendo of what the proper dosage affect would have been. It was totally sensory totally impairing, and for sure euphoric but in the environment I was. Tomorrow will be a control group as to what the proper dosage does. I rambled- but I just have to say- it really shook my world today- I felt like someone dosed me out without me knowing. thats all. over and out.

    Posted by: Jennifer September 6th, 2007 at 2:45 am

14. I think Vyvanse has been a godsend. I have been suffering from ADD since I was a child, and for the most part I never wanted to medicate myself due to the possibility of dependency on the drugs. When I was 17, I had a brief stint on Adderall, but it didn’t last very long and I built up a tolerance rather quickly (within 1 month). I am now 25 and went back to school to finish my degree. When I combined this with full-time work and a fairly new marriage, the ADD was really becomming a problem. My doctor started me off on 30mg Vyvanse for the first month and upped it to 50mg for month two. For me, the Vyvanse lasts about 10 hours. We added an IR Adderall to make sure the ADD was treated for the evenings when I went to school. While I am sure there are side-effects for some people, I have not experienced any. The Vyvanse helps with concentration and definitely helps ensure that I stay on task at work. The only problem it hasn’t really helped with is my hyperactivity. I still move and fidget constantly. Is there anyone out there who has similar symptoms? Would upping the dose help with this fidgeting? It is really embarrassing at work when I do things like flip my scissors or tap on my desk without even realizing it. Thanks in advance for any responses.

    Posted by: Mike September 13th, 2007 at 2:11 pm

15. I started Vyvance two days ago and it has been an uncomfortable experience so far: nausea, disorientation, strong tingling in the neck, sweating, teeth grinding, smoking urges, etc.

    It feels like the drug is pumping through my system in waves so I go up and somewhere down to normal and restart the cycle. I think I might be high. But not like Luke who is definitely high!

    Oddly, two associates saw immediate improvement. So what I am feeling inside does not seem to be translating to my behavior. I cut the dose in half today (sorry Doc). I am wondering if anyone stayed with their doses and found it easier over time.

    Posted by: Jon September 13th, 2007 at 4:37 pm

16. I started vyvanse this morning. I have been taking Provigil in order to stay awake. My doctor thought vyvanse might be a better alternative to provigil. I have been sleepy all day just as I usually am. I also take luvox for OCD and cymbalta for depression. I hope vyvanse will keep me awake.

    Posted by: martha harris September 14th, 2007 at 11:35 pm

17. Jon,

    I too have experienced the sweating and teeth grinding, but I can’t really speak about the other side effects. I find mine to be rather minor though. Definitely not as bad as when I take IR Adderall. The teeth grinding has lessened after about a month (I went from 30 the first month to 50 the second) and about 5 days after increasing the dose. I have to take an IR Adderall at about 5:00 pm because thats when my Vyvanse wears off, and I notice the sweating and teeth grinding a lot more with that. Hope it helps!

    Posted by: Mike September 17th, 2007 at 9:59 pm

18. People who are taking Vyvance, or any other ADHD for that matter, should not assume that any side-effect they may be experiencing will be shared by others. It can be a very individual thing. I had been taking 30mg of Adderall XR for several months before switching to 70mg of Vyvance and have no side-effects, whatsoever. I agree with a previous posting about some of the ignorant and ridiculous statements some people make.

    Posted by: Kevin September 20th, 2007 at 7:52 am

19. VYVANSE is the best. I agree with Jenny that a lot of people need to get informed before they go out there scaring people about a medication. I was diagnosed 5 years ago. This was only after my son was diagnosed and my doctor told me there is usually a link genetically. My son was on Adderall 10mg and has done so great. However, my doctor recommended Vyvanse. At first I was skeptical for him to try it since he was doing well. But after 3 days, the control over his ADHD was amazing, even over that of his previous medication. I too got on Vyvanse (after failing everything under the sun.) This is the only medication that has ever worked for me, but also I am a recovering alcoholic and I like that I can’t abuse this medication or become adicited.

    Posted by: Carla September 27th, 2007 at 10:27 pm

20. My 7 year old son was diagnosed with ADD last year and has been on Adderall XR 20mg. The symtoms he had with Adderall were typical… headaches, not hungry, sometimes had difficulty sleeping and just wasn’t the jolly little boy that we knew. Yesterday was our first day on Vyvanse 30mg… I am SO happy so far. His teacher said there was more focus but he was himself again!! When I got him from school his first words were… “I am hungry”!!! He ate like the normal boy that I know last night and this morning!! He also slept really well and had no headaches!! My only regret so far is that I didn’t try this for him sooner!!

    Posted by: Leslie September 28th, 2007 at 2:12 pm

21. I too have ADHD and am 42 years old. I used Wellbutrin for a while until it lost its efficacy. I switched over to Adderall after hearing from a friend about it. I’ve been on it for a few years now, even though I don’t care for the side effects. Mainly, I get headaches and on occasion lose my appetite. Since reading from you posters how great Vyvanse is, can anyone tell me if they drink coffee in the morning? There’s one thing I know not to do is drink coffee and take Adderall. It puts me in a zombie-like state.

    Posted by: Juan Ramon September 30th, 2007 at 6:28 pm

22. So I am an 18 year old male that has been taking Adderal XR for about 1 and a half to 2 years and has played around with dosages and I have crushed the beads and snorted the drug also.I have experience with all sorts of drugs common with student in high school including alcohol, weed, E, and cocaine. If you don’t believe these are common drugs found in high school you are living in a fantasy world. I find myself a unique individual because after doing such drugs with my friends I would never experience a “come down” including depression and the desire for more, I am just simply done and move on. Yesterday I received a free 30 day prescription to this new Vyvanse and said sure why the heck not. The next day I took 1 50mg pill, and waited to feel its effects..Having ADD I felt the drug did a very nice job, However I didn not feel as motivated as Adderal but it did the job. Also unlike Adderal you obtain the ability to better select what it is you wish to focus on, where as adderal filled me wish a desire to learn where as Vyvanse I found myself thinking about drugs..The high received from this drug was much different then adderal XR..where adderal XR had similar effect to that of speed…Vyvanse was almost identical to that of E and cocaine discluding the body high. Meaning E has the ability to make brushing someones hair an orgasmic experience, vyvanse lacked this quality but still I was mentally high (it also causes similar side effect such as jaw clenching and the rolling of eyes into the back of the head). It was around 8pm that the effects began to become noticeably lessened. Never before have I ever had such an urge for more in my life, but this time I thought to myself lets see how high this can get me. I took 3 more and set out for a night of parties and the usual. Yes this may sound extreme but I live in a middle to high class neighborhood and drug use like this is considered usual among all students..and around the world has almost become a social norm in the eyes of students themselves. An hour had passed and I was possibly the highest I had ever been, nothing made sense anymore and the world around me was being manipulated, I would see people in the distance but then they were gone, a sense of people being behind you or watching, depth perception and sight were all out of wack and there was a thin layer of fog everywhere I went. Lights looked like the sun and I began seeing 3 of everything. I was sitting on the porch of a house attempting to gather myself and I look up to see my car melting to the ground. The effects of this drug are highly comparable to that of crack, meth, shrooms..and possibly acid given the conditions. What I found MOST INTERESTING is that the company states snorting this drug will not produce a high. however me and my friend tested this and found that snorting a line would get you high but ONLY after having took some befor, if you wernt already high on the drug you felt nothing. I tell this story to you today because due to my experience with this drug I have quit use of any and all drugs. The addictive nature of this drug is one to be feared, for a free month trial was gone within 4 days. Causing a loss of reality, I no longer could tell what was real and what was the drugs fault, I would see people and wave then they would vanish, so every time I saw someone I questioned if they were really there or not. I felt like I had gone insane, and thats not the type of kid I am. I drink occasionally and I have tested out what my friends like to do but never considered myself a user. I graduated with a 3.8 and am currently in college. After comming face to face with my dead bestfriend I got a slight grip on reality….just enough to call a friend for help. I caution to parents to watch their children’s perscriptions. Yes your child is trustworthy and would never do such a thing but medication such as so can change a person thinking behavior and when addiction occurs this thinking behavior is all the person has…changing them from someone you once knew and loved into some crack hungry monster.

    Posted by: Ryan October 1st, 2007 at 4:26 am

23. I have a daughter that just started taking vyvanse 30mg. She has been sick ever since. Nausea, dizziness and I am worried. We have never been on ADD meds before and I wonder if anyone has ever had these side effects.

    Posted by: Julie October 1st, 2007 at 2:05 pm

24. My 9 year old son is just finishing the free trial. This is the first med the doc tried. We did notice benifits of the drug, BUT the uncontrollable Jaw movement that he has experienced is too much to watch our child go through and I have stopped the medicine.
    First day we gave him the 30mg pill and it was WAY TO MUCH! He was Very Sad one minute then super hyper then sad again. I decided to lower the dosage myself and started to only give him a half of the pill. After a week his Jaw movement was Unbelievable. He looked like he was biting at the air or something and constantly moving his jaws around.(Also his fidgiting had not improved and was possibly worse) After 2 weeks I tried to go ahead and give him the whole pill. His uncontrollable jaw movements went Crazy. He looked like he was going crazy or something. I went right back to the half pill and finished the trial.
    We have now decided that the side affects are to bad with this drug to continue.
    On the other hand though, His hand writing became legible this month(his ADHD has his handwriting looking worse than his brothers who is in 1st grade), His coloring skills improved and his concentration on homework improved. Also his teacher said his school work improved.
    So without the side affect of the mouth & jaw movement the drug worked BUT the appearance he had on the drug looked so bad he looked mentaly challenged si we have stopped it, and they want us to try Strattera.(What should I know about this new drug?)

    Posted by: Rich October 5th, 2007 at 5:18 pm

25. I started taking Vyvanse about 2 months ago and I’d recommend it. I can focus and am able to organize my day. I’m not pinging off the walls bouncing from task to task leaving them unfinshed. It even allows me to actually SIT and enjoy time w/ my children. My family notices the change. There were some side effects…. weight loss, dry mouth, chest pains, but eventually subsided. The only problem that I have is the COST!!!!! Even w/ my insurance I pay over $100 monthly for 30 pills, which is OUTRAGEOUS!!! I have no choice but to switch my meds to a generic of Adderall. I’m not happy w/ it and think that they should make the drug more affordable. The program that comes w/ Vyvanse starts you off the first month free and only offers financial support for the ages 6-12. Something should be done to make the medication more affordable.

    Posted by: Rachel October 6th, 2007 at 3:29 pm

26. Ryan, who made a posting on Oct. 1st, is understandably confused, considering all the drugs he ingests. Drug abusers have more appropriate websites on which to post their experiences. Try wackycrackheads.com. and not take up space on an ADHD website. ADHD is only a minor problem he’s living with.

    Posted by: Lisa October 7th, 2007 at 1:12 am

27. I have taken Vyvance for the past 4 days and feel very confused and unmotivated. Much more of an ADHD fog than usual. Like everyone else that is an adult, I have much to do and found that my memory has also been very poor. The dry mouth has been especially bad. I am very afraid that I will not be able to organize and carry out my work on Monday and that it will be very noticeable. Has anyone had these particular side effects? They are enough to make me go back to the trusted Adderall–XR or IR!!! Thanks.

    Posted by: Cathy October 7th, 2007 at 2:11 am

28. The statements about not being able to get high from snorting Vyvance is totally wrong, I have had two months of the script for my adhd, the first month i was on 30 mg and 50 the next month. I honestly take them for fun more than for my adhd. If i have a test or need to study ill snort one or two, but if you do 3 or 4 50’s you will be up for about 40 to 50 hours easy. Ive also snorted adderal xr and focalin xr, I prefer the adderal high, and focalin has a totally different feeling too, but it all gets you high if you do it the right way. However if you have a problem with drugs I would not suggest taking it due to the fact that it will make you relaspe if you are trying to be clean. Im sad to hear that adderal xr is going off the shelves, that stuff is awesome, prolly cuz its a pure amphetamine salt and vyvance along with focalin are a mix of amphetamines and other stimulants. I couldnt really imagine a young child taking this drug without being high all day. The best thing for adhd in children is be a better parrent, dont shove pills down your kids throats, and be surprised when they become meth heads later on in life. I know a few meth addicts and they all were perscribed adderal xr or ritalin as a child. Not to say that the drug prolly does help some people but look at how many people in this post described the feeling as high, not jittery or alert, but high. That should be a big red flag to any parent, i know i would never give my child vyvanse or any other highly addictives script and any parent who does just to calm their kid down is irresponsible and should be hit in the head with a large blunt object for being such a tard when it came to their own childs well being.

    Posted by: Me October 9th, 2007 at 2:09 am

29. Ryan and ‘me’:

    I am in your exact position! and you are so right, anyone out there reading this who thinks that drugs like adderall (”addy”) weed, liquor, meth, coke, shrooms, acid, E, and ketamine arent common in most high schools, well think again. i could walk into my school with about 20-50$ in my little pocket and buy a good portion of just about ANY and ALL of those drugs listed in less than an hour. but that is beside the point here…
    I was perscribed Vyvanse after admitting to my doctor that i had had a little illegal adderall binge the week before, but it had helped my schoolwork to the extreme! she perscribed me 50mg a day and it rocked my world like adderall could not. adderall made me tense, twitchy, aneroxic,(and it only lasted for about 3 hours max.) and such an insomniac that after a week of about 80mg per day i just had to call it quits. But both Vyvanse and adderall are EXTREMELY ADDICTIVE and i capitalize this from experience with both. Vyvanese helps my ADD sooo much BUT, after taking it for about 14 days now at 50mg per day normal dose, i am starting to not be affected by it anymore. But when i first took it and sat down in my math class to do some work, WOW… ive never understood math so incredibly as i did that day.
    and the people that say that Vyvanse is unabusable are veryyyyy wronggg as well. if you take more than the recommended dose of ANY pharm that messes with the brain, you are pretty much bound to get a ‘high’ experience out of it. I have not yet tried this with Vyvanse seeing as my best friend hid the bottle from me becasue she loves me that much. (haha) This 50mg dose is only effective in me for about roughly 5 classes (4.5 hours?) when it should be active all day. I got horrible side effects at first but they lessened as i became more tolerant to it over about 2 weeks. I am thinking about going off it for a few days becasue the weekend is coming and i dont think that Rum and amphetamines mix all that well considering what ive read on other sites today, but i am quite afraid of the sickening “adderall crash” that i could get once i go off this Vyvanse stuff. I dont know what to expect but i know that i will find out tomorrow. However i have learned that mixing adderall and weed can give you the conversation skills and the imagination you need to literally be a sucessful standup comic, or to entertain even the most unwilling of people quite easily, but prolonged use leads to DEFINITE personality changes and indesisveness.

    on one last note about Vyvanse, two VERY distinct (and somewhat scary) effects of taking it that i have observed in myself have been extreme physical tics and muscle spasms. This is bad. Also when you ‘come down’ from Vyvanse you basically get extremely mad and frusterated with EVERYTHING. no matter how small, if it pisses you off, consider it destroyed.

    If used in its correct way, Vyvanese can be a VERY useful pharm, but i really dont think so in young children. posibly should be used more (and my doctor agrees) in adults, for it can be very strong and vastly unperdictable especially in those people with other mental disorders. (i have a growing list now including (but not limited to) ADD, bipolar disorder, depersonalization disorder, midlevel depression, extreme childhood social anxiety, and bouts of unexplainable psychosis/skitzo. I have tried many different things for them and Vyvanse, while not being the best, is certainly not the least effective. Zoloft isnt good if you ever want to have sex again in your life, and depakote (i may note) made me want to vomit everytime i ate anything. i wont go into too much more detail because this is getting rather long.

    but main point: Vyvanse = good concentration, abality to get high from, free 30 day trial, quick tolerance, very addictive, different than adderall.
    and if you couldnt tell from all this spastic, crazed, random topic choice writing, my best friend obviously didnt hide the bottle all that well.

    Posted by: Laura October 10th, 2007 at 4:22 am

30. i have a son who is on AdderalXR 60mgs a day for the last 5 years and nothing works. He is 16 and weighd over 300 pds and 6ft2 inches. Iwas wondering if this drug would help him more.

    Posted by: Marilyn October 10th, 2007 at 9:09 am

31. I am 23 and have been on 30mg’s Adderall xR for 3 years. It does work for me with no side effects, but I have severe drop-offs at 3pm like Jill (aug. 24th). I’m very committed to exercise, eating well, and good sleep patterns, but I just can’t get past 3-3:30 without going cross-eyed. I’ll be asking my doc about Vyvanse, and I will report back with results. Thanks to those with constructive comments.

    John

    Posted by: John October 11th, 2007 at 1:54 am

32. To the idiot above asking if we give our pets meds for being hyper. Well, no- pets do not have to sit in school 5-7 hours a day or participate in social interactions in a peer-group- they just take a pee by the tree- so meds would not be indicated (i.e. it cause no issues if the pee is not so focused).

    Posted by: John Crux October 11th, 2007 at 6:51 am

33. We started our 9 year old on Vyvanse about a month ago (30 mg). His first reaction was he couldn’t stop talking, and stayed up all night. Of course we weren’t given specific instruction on when to administer, so he took this first dose right after school the first day. We then backed way off and started with a small amount, working back to the 30 mg dose. His teacher tells us that he is doing much better in class. But my wife and I are researching every possible natural method to give us an opportunity to get away from these drugs.I do believe these drugs do work, and they help medicate a child so that child can get through a day of school staying reasonably focused.
    In my opinion, most of the issue in school with his ADD (he doesn’t have the hyper part), is not his or any other child that is on this or any other medication. There seems to be 2 components contributing to this whole ADHD/ADD epidemic. 1) Schools hands are tied when it comes to discipline. The whole liberal ” treat everybody the same” idealology is now backfiring on our culture. I am amazed by what I observe in my kids’ classes, and how kids behave because parents have been duped by the left winged nuts. 2) I have spoken with local school board officials who admitted to me that nearly every public school system’s cirriculum today is geared towards the female student. I have 4 children (my 2 oldest are boys and my 2 youngest are girls). I am watching both boys struggle with just being what they are… “Boys”! I also see other little boys have the same struggles in their day to day school experiences. It appears that we are trying to discriminate against boys, and smear the genders to where by the time they graduate, they will probably think and act more female than male. Of course as parents, we want our boys to accel and do as good as they can do in school , so we buy into the whole facade that our sons our “not fitting in” to their (the public school system’s) little idealistic plan.

    Parents it’s time we stand up for our son’s rights, and demand they be allowed to be who they are and will always be… Boys!!!!

    If my attack on the “left wing nuts” offended anybody here, please double or triple the dosage immediately!

    Posted by: Paul October 11th, 2007 at 1:20 pm

34. I’m 36 and have been on medications for my ADD for many years. I’d been on the Dextroseamphetimine (okay may not have spelled that correctly) but, about 3 months ago my Dr. put me on Vyvanese. We tried several different strengths and I decided to just bute the bullet and try it and see if it would get into my system and I would slowly realize the results. What I realized is that it made me EXTREMELY agitated and angry. I am a pretty low keyed person and I became very mean for the lack of a better word. I didn’t find it to help me concentrate and I acquired more anxiety about things I’d never had anxiety about before. I’ve just called my doctor a week ago to put me back on the old stuff I’d been taking. This Vyvanese I understand has a different effect on everyone, but I thought what I experienced on it could help someone else if they find they’re feeling a little on the crazy side after taking these meds.

    Posted by: Lisa October 11th, 2007 at 4:40 pm

35. To the last poster–if you’re concerned that your boys are being singled out, ask your pediatrician to use a “normed” scale to gauge your child’s behavior. You and other parties (teachers, other objective caregivers) fill out the form, score it, and total it. Researchers have studied thousands of boys to see what the normal score is. If your children score significantly higher than the average boy…well, it’s not the schools that are the problem. So, be objective, and get your children help for their very real, biological disorder if they need it.

    I have a very hyper son, and thought it was normal boy behavior, until his teachers began complaining they could no longer redirect his attention. He started getting defiant, had low frustration threshold, and was frequently angry. His doctor said that he had ADHD, and he has benefitted from treatment–now, our household runs normally, and he’s a happy little boy who feels better about himself and his successes.

    Posted by: kandis October 12th, 2007 at 4:22 am

36. I have a 7 year old son who was diagnosed with ADHD last spring 2007. We tried concerta for a bit but could not get him to take the caplets in the morning. He’d gag and vomit every morning. He’d cry and beg not to have to take the meds. We changed to Daytrana 20 mg (first in the pediatric practice to use the patch)

    We saw a big improvement in his impulsive behaviors, focus, and watched him get along with his friends as he did before the frustration of the disorder got the best of him. We did see a lot of OCD behaviors like continuing to adjust his clothing for what seemed like hours, pushing his hair around as if it was bothering his face (he has long hair. We ended up giving him a haircut) He dropped a lot of weight but also grew 3 inches in 7-8 months. He never looked underweight. Always a healthy appearance. He had a lot of twitching in one eye when he was on the Concerta 18-36mg and this almost disappeared with the Daytrana. We adjusted his dosage for a while due to wanting to get rid of the OCD behaviors and make sure he did not loose too much weight. We went up to 30mg of Daytrana and eventually got down to 10 mg. He is much happier and less OCD on the 10 mg, but after success until September, we are seeing focusing and hyperactivity problems hinder his success in the classroom. We are considering Vyvanse since we can mix the med into a drink or I guess apple sauce. We are of course worried about the jaw movements reported by many of you as it is reminiscent to the OCD clothing adjustments, and hair rearranging.

    He’s so creative, funny, wise, and not really within “the box”. My sister, a physical therapist for children, complains he is 3 years behind in maturity when compared to another 7 year old (probably, her perfect daughter, who is a month older than my son) She, my neice happens to be acceptionally intelligent and mature, but almost a bit too mature, almost too controlled, as is my sister)

    None of these children will ever be the same as eachother. I take great care to appreciate the unique and creative and adorable kid my son is. He is a cross of many things like part surfer, guitarist, doctor, and even a rabbi. There is so much good and beauty and wonder in this child being dragged down by this unfair situation or disorder. Is this wonder and all of these amazing characteristics a result of the disorder though? I saw without meds and actively avoiding meds was going to trash his self esteem. When he came home from school reporting that he is stupid, ugly, and his teachers hated him, we knew it was time to get agressive with this ADHD world we live in. My 13 year old was diagnosed twice before we broke down and medicated her with aDDDEROL, I am diagnosed from 2 years ago as well and use aDDEROL. My 13 year old only medicated for a year and a half. She was tiny and refused to eat and I could not take a chance with her growth being affected by the Adderol.

    When these kids keep getting in trouble (seems like mostly the boys getting in trouble, while girs zone out and have an awful time retaining their lessons) at school and the teachers don’t have the experience or the time to give to these ADHD kids, this is when their self-esteem is jeopardized. The most irritating thing right now is that we pay $12K a year for our son to be in an independant school, not public because smaller classes will help the ADHD child focus better. All of a sudden for 1st grade, there are 17 kids in his class. (not what we thought would be but the school went for the big bucks rather than cut off applications this year. We are going to look into a change in his school but are only just starting to research where he should go. Any comments on schooling or med changes will be greatly appreciated.

    Posted by: Mauren October 15th, 2007 at 5:48 am

37. My 9 year old daughter started Vyvanse 50mg two weeks ago. I myself am scared of any and all meds for ADHD. She was diagnosed at 5yrs old with ADHD. After longs talk with the psyclogoist, Strattera this was chosen because it was a non-stimulant. It worked well for about two years then no longer worked even after being increased. Then she was switched to Concerta 27mg. Again 2 years and she began to fail in school, couldn’t sit still, was in her own little world. Took her back to the doctor and that was when she was put on the Vyvanse. In the two weeks she has been on it, she grades have improved, she does her homework, she has told me she feels better and that she can actually listen to the teacher, I am not having the behavior issues with her either. Her grades are starting to come up for example she had a 39% in one class and has brought it up to a C already. NO side effect at all up to this point so far. But I am on the look out.
    I have read the comments on it being the parents fault but unless you are in our shoes don’t judge. I myself sat exactly where you are on the issues until it happened to me. I was like I will never put my kids on meds the whole nine yards. Then I have a child that fails in all she tries to do. She is in trouble multiple times a day at school because of her inabilty to sit, listen and play fair. I have a child coming home crying because she doen’t understand why she is doing things. So I take her to the psycologist, where they do test, talk, and all to us. She then is diagnosed with the ADHD. After many sleepless nights and boxes of tissue I had to face I have a child with ADHD. Now the question was am I going to help her or am I going to hurt her (as in letting her go down the road she was on)? I choose like any caring parent would. I wanted to help my child in anyway I could. So I did elect meds but a non-stimulant as I mentioned. Stimulants scared and still does scare me. At times we do still have some issues, but she is a child and that will happen. Yes you have to disipline a child so they know right from wrong the meds will not and do not take care of that. But what the meds do do is help these children and adults focus on the task they are trying to do. Since I made the decision for meds, my child IS succeeding in her schooling. She IS confident in herself because she can do what the other kids do. She CAN sit and listen to the teacher in order to learn, she CAN take turns and be able to wait till it is her turn, she CAN be herself the way she sees herself. These individuals that have ADHD can not help the way things are, but meds help them to be who they want to be. It enables them to focus, learn, not fidget, and so much more. So before you go and try to put blame on someone or something know your facts and that persons life.
    As for addictions to meds, it can and could happen. But IF taken AS prescribe you lesson that chance. If you become immuned to that dose or it seems not to be working like it should, then don’t self adjust go back to the doctor and let them do the adjusting or possibly change the drug you are on.
    Trail and error on these drugs for what will work is what happens. NOT all drugs effect every person the same. Not all side effects are the same. Some will have none, some will have many.
    As for Vyvanse as of right now I works for my child and I will continue with it. I will be looking for any effects with the medicine like I would with any other. But like I said right now it is what is working for her.

    Posted by: Melanie October 16th, 2007 at 5:02 pm

38. My son is 8 years old and has been taking Adderall XR for the last 2 years. His dosage was increased several times over that time period until he reached 25mg. Then his doctor switched him to Vyvanse 30mg. The only side effect I witnessed on 30mg was for about 1 minute he was sad and mentioned his father always being mad at him. I mention this because this child is always happy and in a good mood. The 30mg did not seem to work at all. The doctor increased the dosage to 50mg within a few days and he has been taking that now for about 2 weeks. He has been complimented on his behavior in specific situations but for the most part the drug does not seem to be working. His teacher is reporting fidgeting with his desk contents & not focusing on work. He also grinds his teeth while sleeping but he did that with the Adderall as well.
    I am sick with concern for him because the doctor is now thinking of other medications for him. I hate changing drugs and after reading all of the above comments I am even more scared. He even mentioned a blood pressure medication to be taken at night. That scares the hell out of me. Any comments or suggestions would be highly appreciated.

    Posted by: Linda October 16th, 2007 at 7:21 pm

39. One more comment about the price of Vyvanse. We have a major health insurance company and they have ‘authorized’ us to buy the drug at our regular brand name drug price of $40 copay only because our doctor faxed them a letter stating that our child needed this medication.

    Posted by: Linda October 16th, 2007 at 7:26 pm

40. Alright. so.
    I’m almost 22
    I’ve got Bipolar with manic symptoms… no depression.
    My whole live i’ve been on downers to medicate the symptoms of my bipolar. To keep me calm and sedated. benzos, anti psychotics, muscle relaxers, sleeping pills, etc.
    Memorial day of this year i tried Adderall XR 20mg (2) for the first time.
    HOLY COW. I was … in touch with this part of myself for the first time. I was able to gather my thoughts and ideas together and make connections that I couldn’t before. It helped me with my job too. I was so excited. It didnt make me “high”, i didnt take it to “get high”. only to work, or clean my room, or do creative stuff. and never more than 40mg
    I started bartering with my neighbor, her Adderall for … well whatever she wanted from me. Around July I finally dropped the bomb on my PDOC that I was getting this stuff, and that I was dead set that I had ADHD. He agreed that he thought I had it cause even when I was taking a shit ton of sedative meds, I was still talking a million miles an hour, thoughts racing.
    SO finally I got my script. 60 20mg Adderall XR a month. I took it as written in August, and halfway through sept. I had to start taking 3 a day for work by the middle of september, so my doctor changed the script to 60 30mg.

    Well at my appt. in september he started mentioning vyvanse. He was pushing it on me by saying it was more of an appetite suppresant.

    hah. In the beginning of April, I weighed 165/160. I got put on 400mg Topamax, then in August the Adderall XR. Today, I weigh 105. The combination has led to some very serious unhealthy eating habbits that I fight with every day. I’m getting better, but it’s really hard.

    So yea, that’s the reason I’m not jumping on the vyvanse wagon. I can’t afford something that will supress my appetite even more.

    For those of you who get on vyvanse to loose weight, DO IT SAFELY. Anorexia isn’t defined as “not eating cause i think im fat” anorexia defined is just “loss of appetite”. Just because you haven’t ate all day because you weren’t hungry and it’s time for bed, EAT SOMETHING.

    And for all of you kids getting on here bragging about how awesome it is to get f’ed up on Scripts and all these drugs and shit, get 60+ credit hours in college under your belt and take Pharmacology and Neurology classes, and learn about how all this shit messes with the neurotransmitters and lobes in your brain, and how 10 years from now the only Scripts you’re going to be taking, are the anti-convulsants and anti-depressants because you screwed your brain up so bad. And you only have your self to blame.

    Posted by: ManicMae October 17th, 2007 at 3:02 am

41. I’ve been taking Vyvanse for about two months now, and it is simply not working out. I often feel disconnected from my body and/or what is happening around me. I feel like I am not in my own head… it’s like you can’t remember your own personal agenda or goals, and almost don’t even really know where you are. It completely zaps out your motivation. It’s very distressing, and I stopped taking Adderall XR for the same reason, as well as Straterra.
    Also - to those of you who are worried about your children who are experience nausea and dizziness, that would be due to a loss of appetite, and dehydration. I’ve gone through that. It’s simply what the medication does. I am 15 and have been taking ADD medications since I was 8 years old, starting with Concerta, then Ritalin, then Straterra, then Adderrall (testing both the regular and XR) and now I’m on Vivance… it’s a tough struggle to find the right drug. Good luck to all of you.

    Posted by: Rachel October 22nd, 2007 at 6:25 am

42. I have an 8 y/o boy who was diagnosed with ADHD about 10 months ago. We have tried several meds before we found one that worked effectively. Currently he is on Focalin 30mg a day. I notice a great improvement in his ability to focus. Prior to getting diagnosed he was unable to grasp simple concepts, like tying his shoes. He is not a stupid child just unable to focus and would end up getting frustrated. My point is to Paul.. if he feels his kids do not have ADHD or the school is just wanting to medicate his children maybe he is right. You should get a second opinion. But I am hear to tell you I thought ADHD was a crock until my son was diagnosed. (I do have an older son who is not ADHD)

    To Maureen October 15
    I don’t know where you live so it may be different in your state. I am in Ohio. ADHD is a reconizible learning disability. (I believe that is a US standard) First, contact your county or state learning disability association and explain your situation. They will give you info on your child’s legal rights especially in a school setting. As part of Pres Bush “No Child Left behind” program, schools are required to accommadate your child. I will tell you that public schools have more resources available than private. My son was in a privte school last year and they were less than eager to help. This year he is in public and is doing much better. His main class has 30 kids but he goes into small groups for reading and math with other a few other kids. In Ohio we have IEPs which are Individualized Education Plans. These are legal documents on the education your child will receive.The school(teachers,pricipal etc), myself and the a representative from the Board came up with the plan. Just to note, they tested him extensively to come up with his ability and his learning style. The plan is reviewed every 2 years. I hope your state has something similar. Kids learn at their own pace, especially ADHD kids.
    As far as Adderol, my son had a bad time on that too. I have heard that boys are more prone to Adderol reactions than girls. Don’t know why. Also ignore your sister and her daughter. ADHD kids (both boys and girls)are more immature than their peers yet they have a higher IQs. I have read no less than 50 books on ADHD/ADD and have a pretty good knowledge on the subject.I recommend “123 Magic” and “Transforming The difficult Child”. I have heard a recent study was done and ADHD childrens’ brains are different in CT scans. I have not verified it yet so I am not positive. So don’t listen to your sister and enjoy your son.Let me know how it goes victorygoddess@cox.net.

    Posted by: Michele October 25th, 2007 at 5:57 am

43. I am a high school English teacher. My child was diagnosed with learning disabilities and ADHD at seven years of age. We have run the gamet of medications and doctors. If your school district suggests testing, allow it; the results are usually valid. You as a parent can also request testing; there will be loads of paperwork and meeting, but they will all be worth it in the long run. I also suggest parents consult a pediatrician for a full-scale physical with an executive panel of bloodwork. I have found the most success with a partnership of public school officials, classroom teachers, a pediatrician, and a pediatrics nuerologist. There is no substitute for doing your own research. Don’t be rushed into quick decisions. There are many pediatricians who bill themselves as ADHD specialists but who have less knowledge than a well-informed parent. There are few federal laws governing special services for public school children with disabilities. In many states ADD or ADHD is not considered a disability. Your school district special services personnel can help guide you.

    I know there are rotten teachers, just as there are rotten folks in every profession; however most of us teachers are teaching out of a love of content and for children. I do everything I can to help children, regardless of the IEP or official diagnosis. Please regard teachers as a vital part of the team that wants to help make your child successful.
    The best thing you can do is to talk with your child’s teachers as a team to develop strategies to help your child. With any where from fifteen to thirty students in a class, I am sometimes successful and sometimes not. But I always try. If parent, student, and teacher all make an honest effort, things will get better. The best thing you can do for the classroom teacher is to compliment her when your child and you have a good day. You might also try meeting some of her needs by contributing classroom supplies or something for the whole class that you know will especially benefit your child. Most teachers look for ways to make students successful and feel good about themselves; let them know what toots your kid’s horn so that they can toot at school!

    To the high school and college students who are using drugs: I have been to the mental hospitals and to funerals of students who sound just like you. Get some professional help before it is too late. And don’t have children; I also have to try to teach the children of drug abusers who have already ruined their lives and have produced mentally and physically handicapped children that are innocently suffering for the sins of their parents. Get help for drug addiction and then get “fixed” so you can’t reproduce. This is harsh but true.

    To the parents of children with learning disabilities and ADD/ADHD: Take a break from worrying over your child’s illness and just love them. Declare stressful nights as homework free and just do whatever they like.
    Take a day occasionally that is medicine free, stress free, and let them do what makes them happy. My son is now enrolled at a local technical college and doing okay. He may flunk English, but he’s a good kid with excellent manners and a great moral compass. Relax and enjoy your wonderful kid. Celebrate the good things you see them do and know that they will be okay.

    Posted by: Catherine Owens October 25th, 2007 at 11:53 pm

44. I am a 39 year old man with an 8 year old son who is ADHD. I believe that he is the 3rd generation, but only he and myself have been diagnosed. It was one of the most difficult decisions my wife and I have ever made when we decided to medicate our son for ADHD. So far, it has been a good one. I was not diagnosed or medicated until I was an adult, so the thought of altering a mind during development was frightening.

    If you have ADHD you can understand more easily what it means to you to suddenly be able to stand in a line and wait your turn or focus long enough to sit and pay your bills. You can understand what it means to you to be able to make it through an hour of math instead of ten minutes and get an “A” instead of a “D.”

    My son, like myself but to an infinitely greater degree, is like a paralyzed genius without his medications. He will learn to function with and without them, but he will understand them as the tool that they are to help him make it through our society.

    Those of you who are afraid of medicating your children have good reason to fear. Doctors tend to overmedicate, in my opinion. If they tell you 36mg of Concerta to start, ask them why not 18mg? Start small and use your child’s teachers, peers, and doctors to help you. Do the same with yourself.

    My son takes Daytrana very successfully. We get two good meals into him a day; one before the patch gets applied, and one a couple of hours after it’s off. There was no appetite on Focalin or Concerta and the effective time was always too short. Higher dosages created amphetamine like effects, but the efficacy did not change. My adult experience is almost identical.

    I will be starting Vyvanse tomorrow. The doctor seems to think some of my side effects will be lesser with it than the others.

    Here’s a comparison for those of you dead-set against medication. I wear glasses for distance vision. I put them on when I drive and I take them off when I’m not going to drive. When I have them on, I stay in my lane and drive with the flow of traffic. You don’t honk at me or flip me the bird for erratic driving.

    I take my Concerta, and tomorrow my Vyvanse, Monday through Friday, and sometimes on weekends. I engineer your products so that they don’t fail when you need them. My paperwork gets done and my testing is completed as is necessary for a safety item. When I don’t have to do these things, I don’t take my meds.

    If your kids are getting flipped the bird at school on a daily basis and made to feel inferior or defective because you won’t give them the tools WHEN they need them, shame on you. Try everything you and the teachers and doctors can think of first, and praise God if it works. But if it doesn’t, get a good neurologist and a pediatrician and ask a lot of questions.

    Posted by: Keith October 28th, 2007 at 5:03 am

45. I started vyvanse 2 months ago. It has been the best drug for my add. I also have premenstrual dysphoric disorder which I take lexapro 20mg for. “They” websites will tell you you arent supposed to take these meds together but it seems to be the perfect cocktail for me. Unfortunately I decided to play with this drug a litle bit. I ended up taking 6 30 mgs in one day translates to DEATH WISH. DO NOT PLAY with this drug. Its not adderall or the others that you can eat like pacman. This drug makes you feel INCREDIBLY WORSE the more you do. Now for the really fun part, I took six…I was up for the entire night with mouth ulcers, and knots in my FACE, NECK, arms fingers toes you name it. It got to the point I thought my face and neck arteries would blow up. Listen, I used to do alot of drugs esp ecstacy and meth. Doing too much of this was the worst thing I ever did. At any rate this is a wonderful drug because you really cant abuse it. When the doses are proper you feel perfect. The first month I felt nothing so Doc increased it. The only thing I felt the first month was DIZZY, disoriented (I got off the worng subway stop in Queens and beleived it was the right one) and tooth grinding. Now everything is great with the proper dose. I still feel a little irritable at points but I think thats just me.
    Okay, Im not proud of what I did but I wanted to share in case someone finds themselves screwing around with this. I am really tired of angry bloggers, please take your issues somewhere else. This should be considered a support group. If anyone needs anything else please dont hesitate to ask on me I am highly experienced in this arena. Oh and Luke is totally Accurate!

    Posted by: Jenny November 4th, 2007 at 11:24 pm

46. MY SON IS ON THIS MED. IT’S DO REALLY WORK FOR HIM. ALSO IT’S SLOW DOWN HIS RUNNING AND ANIX0US PROBLEMS..

    Posted by: CARMINA November 5th, 2007 at 2:22 am

47. I am a 36 year old mother of 4. When my youngest was in 2nd grade and the homework started to really to come home, I began to see a change in her. I had to stay right by her side at all times when she did her homework.(which took an average of 4 hours to do, and on a regular basis should only take maybe an hour) If I didn’t she would wander. When she would read she would have a hard time consitrating and understanding what she was reading, especially if there were other things going on in the house. Her comprehension wasn’t that good, and she was very unreasonable. Her playing or down time was hardly anything because she would spend so much time trying to get her homework done that by the time she was finished it was time to eat dinner and then bed time. She would get hyper in a crowd, so much that you couldn’t settle her down or reason with her. For awhile I blamed it on me and me babying her. I would ask her teacher at the time about how she was doing in the classroom. It would always be “oh great, or shes doing just fine”. The thing that was hard is that my second born had a speach problem and struggled in reading. We had to work hard for him to be able to do his spelling, reading and ect. But he did it and is now a great student and a hard worker. I could see the difference when she started having problems-hers where nothing like his. So even more I would blame myself-I had to be doing something wrong, or just imaging things. I hated myself when I would work with her on her homework-I hated what I turned into. I would get so frustrated and loose my patients. My other 3 children could tell how hard it was for me to reason with her and try to make her do her work and understand the simplest problems of “what was one more then 3″, that they would step in and try to help. Well when she was in 3rd grade her teacher called me less then a month into the school year and said that she was concerned with the prgress that Marley was making, she had scored way below on her fall ISATS-even lower then the ones that she took when she was a 2nd grader in the spring. I started to cry-finally someone that noticed the things that where going on. She helped set up some test to be done at the school with the school psychologist, and other members of the team. She went through the whole 9 yards of testing. When I finally got her test back- I cried. Not only because it was there on black and white everything that I knew, but that my child had a problem. At first I tried to work with it-I was very afraid of the meds. Then one day I was talking with my sister-in -law and she told me of the problems one of her kids where having. Almost identical to Marley’s. She had put her daughter on Focolin. When she told me that she came home from school one day and said “guess what mom? I am smart now- I can do my work”. I thought “man am I being selfish in not trying something to help my child feel successful?” the next day I made an appointment with my childs doctor. Took the report that I had received from the school and my own personal experience and talked to him. He put her on the focolin also. For the first little while it really seemed to help. Homework time was easier, grades went up, it was better. The only problem that I could see was that she wasn’t really wanting to interact with other kids,clingy sometimes, had to know where I was at at all times. Then it got to the point that It didn’t seem to be lasting throughout the day. Especially in the late afternoon. So I went back to the DR. and he then gave us Vyvanse. So far and it has only been 2 days, she had been more content to play with others, for along period of time. Easier to reason with, reading better, and happier. She had a nervous thing that she did with her fingers-rubbing them together by her ear to hear the sound-that went pretty much away when she was on the focolin, it has come back on the vyvanse. I will continue to watch that, but so far I like what I have seen. I take offence to the comments that where made about problems in parenting and ADHD kids. She is the last of my four children, I am not a working mom, I am here and always have been here for my kids, we have lots of good family support around, I am very active in their schools, I know my kids teachers and they know me. And I make them accountable for their school work-they know that it’s very important and that I am here to help them succeed. I don’t know why Marley has the problems that she does-and maybe I will never know. But I do know this- I am her mom and I love her dearly. I want her to be the best that she can be, and make sure she knows that she can do anything that she sets her mind to do. I want her to grow into a successful adult and have a successful life in what every she choose to do. I don’t treat her any different then my other 3. She still has the same expectations to do HER best in school and in life. Because I know that she is a smart and capable person. Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought that this would happen to my child-but it has and now its up to me to do what I can to help her through this time in her life. So until you are faced with these issues in your own family, keep your comments to yourself. I know that it is still going to be along road ahead but I am willing to face whatever comes our way-we are family-and thats what matters.

    Posted by: Leslie November 5th, 2007 at 7:34 am

48. I just started Vyvanse about a week ago. I am a college student, 19 years old, and was prescribed Ritalin early in high school. I had the horrible side effects of tooth grinding and chronic headaches with Ritalin and stayed off ADHD medication for a couple years thereafter. My grades suffered…up and down…as my concentration waned. My freshman year of college I started taking Adderall XR. It is a seriously uplifting drug with a bad dropoff and an apt for quick tolerance. It is very easily abused–while I have never used any psychostimulants as anything more than what they were intended for, I know it is a common problem with adolescents and young adults. Vyvanse has thus far been satisfying. It definitely helps increase concentration and productivity without the intense ups and downs of Adderall nor the side effects of Ritalin.

    Posted by: Anna November 7th, 2007 at 5:31 am

49. To take advice from your Psychiatrist would make you a dumbshit… Mr. PHD needs a PAYCHECK, and therefore, you should all do your research before you take/give any recommended meds. authority means just that. it doesnt mean “i know what i’m talking about.”

    my experience with Vyvanse has been terrible. It fucked with the way that i think (my personality, interests, connection..). I can’t sleep, I’ve lost 30 lbs in about two weeks (I’m seventeen)… It has destroyed my relationship with someone who means everything to me..

    If my psychiatrist hadn’t perscribed Vyvanse to me in order to strengthen my grades at school, then I wouldnt have a drug addiction, and I would be able to think…

    …What’s worse is the guilt.
    I cannot track it’s source.

    Posted by: carrie November 8th, 2007 at 5:25 pm

50. To Mauren,

    When you asked about educational alternatives, I wanted to scream : “Try homeschooling!” That’s what I’ve been doing with my 2 kids, one of whom was diagnosed with severe ADHD just yesteday. We started Vyvanse this morning, and she is much calmer and focused today.

    HTH

    Posted by: Anna November 9th, 2007 at 12:18 am

51. Kids just want to get fucked up. At least all MY friends do.
    Is this new drug something teens can get a high from?

    And does it contain meth, like adderall does?

    Posted by: erika November 10th, 2007 at 7:40 am

52. I am 19 years old and started taking vyvanse about 4 months ago. First, I started at 30mg the first week, 50mg the second week, and finally 70mg the third week. 70mg seemed like it worked the best for me, so I have continued to take it. Having been on this drug for 4 months, I have definitely noticed major side effects. I will admit that it does help me a HUGE amount in school, but the side effects are a bit scary. I have lost almost 20 pounds since I started taking it. I feel very weak and I look anorexic! Also, I’ve noticed that I have muscle spazams and random twitches. I feel as if I am hungry 24/7, but at the same time, I eat very little because of how nautious the drug makes me. I feel as if I have larger memory problems than before I started taking the drug. Sometimes I can’t even remember what I did 5 minutes ago. Also, I don’t know if this is really from vyvanse, but I have been breaking out in a rash on my hips and it has been there for 2 weeks and won’t go away. I have never had sleep problems, and now I have insomnia. One minute, I will be working really hard on my school work, and the next I will get pissed off and won’t want to do anything for the rest of the day. I always have headaches and tylenol doesn’t help them go away. I feel as if I am outside of my body, not knowing who I really am anymore. Everything I see is a blur. Overall, I think this drug has really improved my grades and motivation, but I’m starting to get worried about what it’s doing to my body and my mind.

    Posted by: Abby November 10th, 2007 at 10:27 pm

53. Ok, My son is 15 years old, dx was when he was 3! Had been on RITALIN,CONCERTA,STRATERRA and finally we just gave up, they all made him sick and the feeling of all over yuckiness. Anyway, gave him the choice to go off all meds at the age of 11 and we dealt with it. He did not show ANY signs of the hyperactivness and we jut thought it would be ok. My son is now 15 and is a very angry boy. He thinks we don’t know what we are doing in his life and just wants to be on his own, he knows it all! Right! He’s flunked 5 of his 7 classes and was sent to an alternative school to help him focus. They said the were worried about his moods because they were up and down and sooooo much drama with his girlfriend( not a very nice girl, she will tell him”if you don’t do what I say then you don’t love me” She IS the root of all his problems, I think).But his counsoler wanted to try an antidepressant and we both agreed. This morning he went to the appointment and then a nurse practioner put him on this VYVANSE! He already has trouble sleeping and a BIG attitude problem and they want to put him on this?? I am seriously freaking out! I have been addicted to Meth and am afraid this could make my son addicted to the meds. I don’t want him to take it, but you wouldn’t belive the situation that got us to this point. I am afraid that my son will have the most extrem side effects just because he is such an angry person and his moods are all outa wack. I only wanted him to try the antidepressant. What and how do I tell these doctors I do not want my son to take this drug? He lives with my mother as I have recently moved to Ft. Wayne Indiana and making my life change to get our lives where they need to be. He refused to move due to the girlfriend and friends, also its three hours from where he is now. I don’t wanna be back on here in a few days tell u that my son had the same symptoms and it was worse than any of your stories! i know what it is like to experiance your child not waking up after taking a med that just came out for ADHA and I have seen him become very very angry on RITALIN, sick and vomiting on STRATERRA, uncontrolable on CONCERTA. I only wanted something for his moods! They gave him something that they think will help him concentrate for school. I am very worried with all that I have read on here. I am going to try and talk my mother out of giving him the meds, I thank u for your info on here.I pray nothing happends to him. Thanks!

    Posted by: Amy November 13th, 2007 at 2:40 am

54. so like, here’s the deal:
    medication cannot make you a better person.. it can change the chemicals in your mind, but the only real way to fix shit is to take control of your life. psychiatrists are pricks.
    there will always be enough “insane” people in the world to make a killing off of psychological med perscriptions.

    ..and i defiently had the same reaction to Vyvanse as Abby stated, above. disconnection is a good way of describing it.

    Posted by: carrie November 13th, 2007 at 4:06 pm

55. So many on this post suffer not from ADHD, but STUPIDITY. I don’t suspect Vyvanse will address this.

    It would be so useful if the posts were limited to coherent and relevant experiences. There are some, and I thank you.

    I am interested in reading from those who have taken Vyv for several+ months: please post.

    Posted by: Teddy Ruxpin November 13th, 2007 at 9:46 pm

56. I have an 11 year old daughter who just started Vyvanse on the 3rd of November 2007. And last week on November 7th 2007, while riding home on the school bus she had a seizure from taking this medication. I was contacted by the rescue squad and fire department that my daughter was having a seizure and could not talk at all. They had to stop the bus to get her some immediate help because her eyes was rolling back in her head and she could not respond for quite some time. She was immediate transported to the Emergency Room where several test were ran. The most important question they asked me was what medications are she taking and did she start any new meds that they needed to know about. One I told them about Vyvanse the ER doctor told me to STOP!!!!!!!!!!This medication immediately and she was out of school the rest of the week. Following that was contacting her doctor to have more test ran. Then he asked the big question does anyone in your family have a history of having seizures and that answer would be NO!!!!!! So the next thing I was told was that my daughter has to take a EEG to see if there is any brain damage. I don’t know how alot of you feel but till this day November 13, 2007 my daughter still is having tremors that doesn’t look like they will leave. This thursday November 15, 2007 I will get the results of her EEG. And when I get the results I will be posting them on this site. I’m not anger just a little bit upset about this medication thing. It seems like we all have tried the same meds to help with ADHD. So the real question is what do you do when something like this happens to your child and you can’t do nothing but just wait and see what the test will tell you? Alot of parents just want to help their children get through what they are going through but it seems like our hands are tied to a certain point. I wish you all well with Vyvanse. I’m talking to the ones who are having success with it. But right now I’m scared because of the side effects and they have alot of them. I just want to tell you all to be careful of this medication it only took 4 days for my daughter to have a seizure. And it could happen to anyone not just my child anyone of use could experience the same thing.

    Posted by: Kisha November 14th, 2007 at 1:42 am

57. I am 25 and I have always struggled with my ADHD. When I was first diagnosed I started on Concerta which eventually I had to switch off of because it wasn’t lasting past 2-3pm in the afternoon. I switched to Adderall XR which I thought worked better, but wore off between 3-4pm. Daytrana was my lifesaver! I could wear the patch as long or as short as I needed! If I had a longer day, I would wear the patch for 12-15 hours or so, then take the patch off and after its removed it still lasts for 3 hours. The only downside with that, I have very sensitive skin. In the summer months I didn’t want to have red squares on my hips which would easily be seen in a bathing suit. so I switched to VYVANSE.
    With VYVANSE, I never thought I could feel this “normal”. I hate to use that word, but its really the only one that fits. I don’t get a rush of the medication, its very smooth so I don’t get the speedy feelings I did with the other medications. Or the exreme drop offs at the end of the day. I have ZERO side effects. Usually when I switch my meds I get insomnia for the first 3 nights. Not when I switched to VYVANSE. I realize every medication can work differently in different patients, but I am so glad I gave VYVANSE a try. Otherwise I would have never known what I was missing! As someone who has been on Concerta, Adderall XR, Adderall, and Daytrana… VYVANSE has really changed my life.
    I would HIGHLY recommend that anybody with ADHD/ADD should at least give VYVANSE a try. I sincerely hope it will change your life the way it has positively changed mine.

    Posted by: Jessica November 14th, 2007 at 3:09 am

58. Where to begin.. First off I do commend those parents out there trying to help there children but of course not just meds will do the trick.. Structure.. time..positive reinforcement… even therapy b/c I’d say everyone reading this suffering from ADHD have felt and feel “different” then everyone else.. Thus if can cause self-esteem issues… If your or your children with ADHD do not get identified and treated w/ or w/o meds along with therapy it can cause horrible repercussions… My whole life I knew something was wrong with me but no one would listen and as time went on my ADHD started stemming out into Substance Abuse, Narcissism, Sociopath, I was switched around on meds for depression, mood disorders, anti psychotics.. Everything under the sun until I received the time and attention I needed.. Finding the right meds for ADHD takes time and then for them to really work takes time also to sustain in your system… I started on 30mg of vyvanse then 50mg then 70mg and now 80mg.. since it has yet to be tested on adults, my doctor and I are trying out the dosages.. I am a recovering attic but I changed my life and vyvanse has significantly contributed to my overall attitude about life.. My side effects include, weight loss and dry mouth sometimes edgy.. I notice a difference if I eat food before taking or not.. Please anyone feel free to contact me if you’d like to talk.. I’ve seen and done some awful things in my life but you don’t have to let disorders tell set you into a mold for the rest of your life.. Like my Dr. says “Life is all about choices” I know having disorders makes it difficult but I believe if I, someone who has been in mental hospitals, can say I’m clean.. no smoking, no drugs, no alcohol, that anything is possible. Please contact me if you need a friend… cespy1@hotmail.com

    Posted by: Corey November 15th, 2007 at 1:54 am

59. Well, after reading all of this I have come to realize what they say about opinions. Any hopes of one starting their child on Vyvance after reading this, is slim to none. Saying this, I have already started my two girls both on 30 mg of Vyvance. After the last couple of years of dealing with them and realizing things were not getting better, the doctor had to do something. And the “great” person who said something about parenting obviously does not have any kids. You can do the best parenting job, and still have uncontrollable children that will not listen to you at all and for no amount of money in the world. That is what I have dealt with. I have went from niceness, begging, pleading, to bribery. We have spent hours on homework with everything off but the lights. Of all the things, we could have done, going to the doctor to get get is the best and should have been done sooner. We have only been on Vyvance for a day or so. Hopefully good results will come. But coming from a new parent with children starting a new drug, be considerate of us. Don’t be so judgmental and quick to make more of a situation than what it is. Maybe those drugs didn’t work due to a misdiagnoses. I don’t think that anyone should give up over a couple of days; unless, it is truly a life threatening case. Keep in contact with your HCP. Don’t go out there and discourage. Keep it real.

    Posted by: Ann November 16th, 2007 at 3:18 am

60. The Adult Who Got a Second Chance at Success, Despite the Rumors and Fear of Mommy Ingnorance

    At twenty-nine, I never expected to get a second chance at a college education. I count myself as very lucky to have this chance to transform my life, and it would have been possible without a chance meeting that got me on the path to a proper diagnosis for ADHD and associated combination treatment with therapy and the medication Vyvanse.

    As a child, I was always able to just get by in school. Teachers from middle school straight through a failed attempt at college would tell me if I would just focus my efforts and apply myself to my studies I would achieve academic success. No matter how hard I tried or extra help that was offered, I never was able to see any results.

    Without results from the hard work and dedication I knew I was putting in to my studies the results were average at best. Then in my first year of college, putting forth the best energy and focus I knew, I failed out.

    Failing out of college is not something that anyone should have to endure. I handled it the best I could and worked one blue-collar job after another for the next ten years. With the help of a friend and professionals, I stress psychiatric professionals not a pediatrician, who understand the true impact of not treating ADHD I am here to tell you that this disorder can ruin your child’s life.

    As, I read the above postings of ignorance, I am astounded by the number of people who cannot get over their own taboos and about mental health disorders or fears about medications that are based on the opinions of the parent next to you on the playground.

    My own mother listened to similar parents and ignored my ADHD thinking, as other parents with no real argument basis, that I would just grow our of it.

    One does not grow out of ADHD, it’s there for life. Fortunately, I am one of the lucky one’s. With the proper diagnosis, therapy sessions and medication as a total treatment plan, my life has changed.

    As I said, I am back in college near the end of my first semester. I have learned through therapy how to modify behaviors that I learned as a child with ADHD to navigate a world that doesn’t think the way I do. With this total treatment plan, I will finish this semester earning nothing less than a B+ in all five of my classes.

    This B+ average is a stark contrast to the GPA of 1.2 that almost ended my college life and future success ten years ago.

    I’m not saying that this medication is the right medication for everyone with ADHD, only that it is working for me. I am asking that any parents who read this take the time to consult true professionals and do their own research before making a decision that could prevent your child from the life that you envisioned for them the first time you held them in your arms. ADHD is nothing to be ashamed or afraid of, but it is something that you must face head on, as all good mothers do.

    Don’t let the ignorance of rumors and fears keep your kids from the success you know they deserve. For almost thirty years, rumors and fear almost kept me from my success, but now I am educated to know better. You owe at least that much to your children and yourself as a responsible parent.

    Posted by: Michael November 16th, 2007 at 5:48 am

61. Carie, please don’t come on here spreading your ignorant propaganda generalizing psychiatrists and medicine. Not all of us can flip a switch and turn on and off our chemical imbalances. And we don’t blame our problems on medications we take. The medicine that we take, that saves our lives, DOES make us better people. Regardless of the medicine, we take responsibility for our actions. And it’s a shame you feel so much negativity towards your doctor, but not all of us feel the lack of compassion that you feel from your doctor. A lot of us have psychiatrists that care about our well being, returns voicemails after 5pm, and goes out of their way to make sure we are taking the best meds suited to our diagnosis.

    Live a few years out in the world by yourself, with a crippling mental disorder, where you are at the MERCY of medications. Then you can try and tell everyone those medicines did not make you a better person.

    Posted by: Lisa November 16th, 2007 at 9:36 am

62. I am 20 years old and I have been taking adderall XR in dosages between 25-40 mg since I was diagnosed with ADD at age 16. I called my psychiatrist the other week because I wanted to see if I could up my adderall dosage from 25 to 35 mg since this semester at college has been extremely challenging for me. She reccomended that I try vyvanse becuase she was switching alot of her patients that took adderall to it. So I went along with it thinking maybe this was some fantastic new scientific discovery in the treatment of ADD. Boy was I WRONG. Before I took it I even did a lot of research and even read many of the experiences on this website. The fact that there had been so many bad experiences scared me somewhat but since there were a few good responses I went ahead and took it. My doctor gave me a trial of the 30mg pills which are supposed to be equivelant to about 10-15 mg of XR, so she told me I could take two if I wanted. So at first I only took one and felt a little strange but it was clear to me that something wasnt quite kicking in. Then I took another one about an hour later and began to feel it. My stomach got all upset ad crampy, my vision became sharper (similar to the effects of cocaine or a hallucinogenic drug), I had leg cramps, headaches, and I felt very disconnected from myslef. Then it got really scary when I was trying to do my homework, and I would type a sentence and look back and realize that there were whole words and phrases missing from what i had meant to type, and some words were replaced by completely different ones, it really freaked me out. The most mortifying of all the side effects from this drug was this morning when i woke up with horrible diarreah, it got even worse when I was on my way to work and experienced an uncontrolled bowel movement. I AM 20 YEARS OLD stuff like that is NOT supposed to happened, it was horribly embarrassing. I will NEVER take this drug again and I dont advise that anyone does until the makers of this drug actually work out all the kinks of it. I was very upset to find out after it had been prescribed to me that this drug has only been approved for 6-12 years olds, and that Shire is doing a 10 month trial period to see how adults react. I feel like a guniea pig, and I am very upset with my doctor. I’m getting my adderall back!!

    Posted by: Tanya November 17th, 2007 at 8:59 pm

63. We just started our 8-year-old son on 30 mg of Vyvanse. Within a couple of hours of taking the pill each morning, he begins to talk NON-STOP! I mean about 50 out of every 60 seconds…about anything and everything! He also seems to get extemely emotional and cries any time we go against what he thinks we should say or do. Is this a normal side effect? This is our first time to try ANY drug-as we are very opposed to medicating him. We’ve tried changing his diet, natural homeopathic vitamins, fish oils, and everything else we can possibly research out to do. Nothing has helped, so we finally gave in. We have seem AMAZING results immediately. He organizes everything! He cleans! He is helpful! He is polite! He is active and wants to go outside! He has energy! All of these things are so pleasing–but I’m not sure we can stand the constant talking!!!! Does it go away in time when his body gets used to it? Also, he absolutely HAS to finish his sentence. When we cut him off and tell him he HAS to stop talking now–he insists he has to finish! Please help if you’ve had any experience with this. It worries me!

    Posted by: Julie November 19th, 2007 at 2:13 am

64. Unforunately, I found this website after I started my son on Vyvanse. I read all of the comments that are posted. Thank you to all the parents who told their experiences and also those teens and adults who spoke of what it is like for them to take this drug. I can relate to the parents who tried everything and finally wanted to try meds. This was my first experience with a prescription drug for my son. He is 6 and sounds like Julie’s son after the meds (excessive talking non-stop all day everyday, HAS to finish each comment). He is also EXTREMELY hyperactive and can’t sit still. Somehow we have been able to channel his energy into education (or he’s just naturally bright, not sure) but he is reading at a 3rd grade level and doing double digit addition and subtraction and is only in kindergarten. Unfortunately, our county doesn’t like to skip kids so he is in a situation where he is completely disruptive to the class because he is bored out of his mind and also b/c of the ADHD but being bored doesn’t help for 7 hours a day. Anyway, after trying different things like changing his diet (www.feingold.org — try this if you haven’t), omega 3 oil, trying natural OTC drugs (whole foods has Sea Buddies concentration formula - seems to work for some), we gave up and went to meds. My son is 6 and was given a script for 30 mg of Vyvanse. I did not tell him that we were doing this b/c I wanted his unbiased opinion. Let’s just say it was a horrible experiment. My son was only on it for that one day. He was almost completely quiet (said maybe one thing per HOUR and oddly enough it was extremely insightful), he ran a lot slower at the playground and once I observed him just “observing Mother Nature”. It was like he was stopping to smell the roses. Even more scary, he complained about his legs being too heavy and had to sit down. He also threw up in the car. Also he was up most of the night/couldn’t sleep, which is normally not a problem. He just had a very, very weird experience and we won’t be putting him back on this drug. Unfortunately, as much research as I have done on ADHD, I trusted the doctor and didn’t do enough research on what she prescribed. I think I was just ready and happy to have a “magic pill”. Unfortunately, he was more like a Stepford kid, almost robot like and was perfect in every way. (For example, I didn’t have to tell him 7 times to do something, just once and got an “okay, Mommy”.)
    I call this pill the “shut up pill”. It’s not for him. If it works for you or your child, then stay on it. If it doesn’t, you will know and you will know to try something else instead. My next try will be “Focus” a natural remedy I found on-line that had lots of great testionmonials from other parents who tried it instead of or with a lower dosage of their ADHD meds. Wish me goodluck!

    Posted by: Robin November 19th, 2007 at 8:01 pm

65. After spending many years, (25+) being diagnosed with various forms of depression, and trying every anti-depressant in the book.

    (Mostly SSRI’s like Prozac, Effexor, LexaPro, and the worst of all Remeron, (which made me so tired and hungry, I would eat, be too lazy to brush my teeth, fall back asleep, and over the course of 12 months had to have 2 teeth pulled. So now, I was fat, had bad teeth, no energy, and was still feeling like crap.)

    I finally broke down and ponied up for a real shrink.

    He talked with me for about 90 minutes, looked over my medical charts, and asked, “Has any Doctor ever asked you if you might possibly have ADHD?”

    I said yes, my long time family doctor did once, but that was back when ADD was so stigmatized that I was ashamed to say I thought I might have it.

    He recently put me on 30 and then after two weeks 50mg of Vyvanse, then I visit him again in one month. (3 weeks from now). He just wants me to watch my blood pressure, (120/82 at last doctor’s visit)and to call him if there are any problems.

    So far, it has made me clear headed for the first time in a long time.

    The doctor said, “your depression is there, and I’m not going to ignore it, but I think maybe the underlying cause is that you have never been properly diagnosed.”

    So far, so good.

    Posted by: B.Michael November 21st, 2007 at 12:02 pm

66. Well i have been taking Vyvanse 50mg for about 2 weeks and when i started it worked for me everyhting was going great then maybe after the first week or less i got really down and depressed i don’t think it is good to mis diagnose depression with ADHD meds because it could make you more deep in your depression as it did me and like when i start the Vyvanse meds i was ok happy all the time i was a nice person and eveything but after the first week i went down hill from the there so maybe it was depression and not ADHD my doctor took me off the Vyvanse right away after i got off i felt like i was having a heart attack but i’m on the rights meds now i was going to 2 doctors one said i was depressed and the others doctor sad i have adhd one the doctor who said i was depressed i have with him for a 2 years and he said i had major depression and the other doctor the one who gave me meds said i had ADHD and i was in his office for abut 30 mins but anyway i feel better but anyway ADHD and Depression are not the samething they could have something close to do with one another but they are not the same people !

    Posted by: Kesha Miller November 21st, 2007 at 9:31 pm

67. Please refer to the book “Change Your Brain, Change Your Life” - there are coordinating websites as well.

    Please take the time to understand the three different areas of our brain’s lymbic system - understand how the work first - and then understand how they can fail. But mostly which areas are failing.

    Basal Ganglia - Muscular - tics, anxiety, Turretts, panic

    Deep Lymbic - Depression, seratonin

    Cingulate Gurus - worry, obsessiveness, inability to let go of past hurt, always says no, OCD

    ADD/ADHD symptoms fall into all categories and depressed people have ADHD, there are people that have ADD that arent depressed etc.

    Each area has its own deficiency so there are different medicines for each area, however when you tell your doctor about your personal symptoms you could likely be crossing over three different areas and some behaviors are symptoms of the root cause (you are depressed, but you are acting out which shows irritability but the core problem is depression - or you have low self esteem because you have social problems caused by ADHD but are treated for depression and the ADHD goes undiagnosed.) When our doctors prescribe - they are testing different chemicals in different areas as it is “not a perfect science” which it isnt but you can help your own diagnosis if you understand better.

    I am 41 and have been treated for 20 years for clinical depression and post traumatic stress disorder. But found out two years ago that I have ADHD - or better yet, that I responded very well to Adderall. What I know is that my depression is under control I have more motivation - but the depression medicine does nothing for my short temper, impatience, worry and irratibility. When I take ADD medicine, I have less irritability - and when I specifically take Vyvanse I have even less occurrances of getting stuck, worrying and always saying “no.” Vyvanse works beautifully allowing me to focus on specific tasks - multitask without getting overwhelmed thus irritated.

    I also learned better that the food you eat is so very important. If you are really really serious about getting healthy - giving medicine a chance to work etc - then you have to please stop drinking/eating caffeine, alcohol, sugar, soda, etc - the chemicals make it worse for your body to absorb the medicine correctly or even work at all plus causes side effects. I am focusing on eating protein in the morning - taking vitamins - eating vegatables and exercising and I hate that this is the answer but the bottom line is that if you really want your medicines to work you have to. The good news, Vyvanse makes it easier for me to discipline myself. And combined with food and exercise I feel better than I ever could have imagined. Check out the book “Change Your Brain Change Your Life.”

    But again, the food goes with the medicine or it doesnt work as well. The good news is that if you do committ to the medicine and the proper eating habits - it will change your life. Do you ever wish you could be “that guy” or “like her” because they have it so together? You can, but please first read this book - again after years of hearing about symptoms and behaviors - now understanding that there are specific areas that can be working improperly - wiring - chemical etc, the medicines can be better prescribed for the specific area.
    calmer.

    Posted by: Sarah November 23rd, 2007 at 12:43 am

68. As a Shire Rep I can tell you that half of the problems I have read above coming from misguided or just plain stupid dosing (like Tanya’s post where the doctor told her to take two). I have not gotten this kind of feedback in the field, and in fact have seen just the opposite- very positive. Start on 1 30mg capsule and titrate up IF NEEDED ONLY…

    Posted by: Shire Rep November 23rd, 2007 at 1:44 am

69. My son just turned 12 and has always had minor problems with school and focusing. He has had the same pediatrician his whole life. A few years ago when a teacher commented he might have ADD the pediatrician suggested an evaluation. He had an evaluation and was not diagnosed with ADD. He has still had difficulty focusing and is usually average or below average. He has no hyperactivity or behavior issues.
    My wife and I recently voiced our concerns to his pediatrician and he suggested we give Vyvanse a try. My son took the pill (30mg) at approx. 0720 hrs. By 0830 hrs he called my wife at home frantically telling her to come pick him up from school. He told her he was hearing voices that wouldn’t stop calling him and that he kept hearing scratching on metal. My wife said when she picked him up she could hardly recognize him. She stated he looked like an insane person. His eyes had a blank stare and he was sobbing uncontrolably. When I tried to talk to him on the phone he couldn’t stand to hear my voice over the phone because it hurt his head. My wife said this ordeal happened all day while waiting for the medication to wear off. When I came home from work at 7:30pm he still had a blank stare but the voices had stopped. My wife said at one point he got out of the shower and was staring at the bathroom mirror. He put his hands over his ears and started screaming for the voices to stop. We subsequently discovered that he also had an ear infection that day. When I called Shire I also discovered that red dye is an ingredient in Vyvanse. My son has certain allergic reactions to red dye in robitusin and other medications. He gets hives which he did get that day. My son also had his legs give out on him while running the next day.

    Our concern is will there be permanent damage due to this one terrible reaction for only taking one pill. My advice to anyone and any physician who is going to prescribe these medications is give each person a questionaire before blindly suggesting parents give their kids something. Our culture of giving a pill for this and that is getting out of hand. Kids have so much pressure these days. My 9 year old has more homework than I had in high school.

    My 12 year old would probably be an A student if he had one on one schooling. God Bless the people that can home school their children. I know there are those who the medication works wonders for and I think thats a blessing. But there needs to be a more official screeening of prescribing these children than just saying “Why don’t we give this a try?” I would like to know if anyone had lasting problems or if the problems stopped after a few days.

    Posted by: TODD November 25th, 2007 at 2:18 am

70. I am 53 years old, male. I was put on Vyvanse about 5-6 weeks ago. This is after being given Adderall. Adderall had a very strong affect on me. I felt very very good for 2-3 hours. Then a slight hangover. I had a strong urge to keep taking Adderall (feel bad take more, and more). I kept the doctor informed of all this. He was worried I might start abusing it.

    He then took me off everything for 4 weeks (Adderall and other medication). Then he added Vyvanse (30 mg, one pill, morning). It seems to help for 2-3 hours. Maybe even longer. N-o-t a strong effect as Adderall.

    I notice if I drink a lot a coffee, when I take Vyvanse. It induces a stronger bad feeling when the Vyvanse wears off.

    I take Vyvnase, I feel just Ok. So I have breakfast, and have coffee like I always do. Just seems like, if I have a lot of coffee makes Vyvnase, mess me up 3-4 hours later.

    I read everthing here. I noticed no other postings on this about coffee (or tea) with Vyvnase.
    _.

    Posted by: Stephen November 25th, 2007 at 9:51 pm

71. Interesting that Stephen brought up caffeine.

    I am seventeen and have been taking 60mg of Vyvanse to “improve school grades.” I have never been diagnosed with ADD or ADHD (I have been “diagnosed” with depression, which i find to be considerably hillarious in juxtaposition with my age and family situation).

    In conjunction with Stephen’s comment, I have always loved caffeine (my body needs caffeine; if i dont drink coffee after about ten hours i get grinding a headache). Possibly because I have been eating less solid food, due to Vyvanse, Starbucks is pretty much all that I consume. I also find myself craving it in the hopes that it will increase the positive stimulant effects of Vyvanse.
    For a while now, I have cut down my caffeine intake to the NECESSARY single drink a day.

    I have always had intense lows with Vyvanse. It drains my natural confidence and narcissism (pretty weird), but without it I crash… or ingest caffeine 24/7. Also, without Vyvanse, I really don’t give a shit about school.

    The low hits me in the evening. I try to walk it off, smoke it off, whatever… It’s hard to deal with.
    (I would love to talk to someone who has had experience with this medication. email me anytime: twelvecatsonacid@yahoo.com)

    Posted by: carrie November 27th, 2007 at 3:14 pm

72. p.s. wasn’t aware that there was another “Carrie” on here, or I might have chosen another alias.

    Posted by: carrie November 27th, 2007 at 3:16 pm

73. I am 33 with a young family and was turned on to Adderall by a long time friend who was taking it recreationally as a social “enhancer” and to bounce back from long weekend nights out with friends. Once I realized how productive it made me I got a prescription for myself. Yes, it was that easy. I got projects done around the house, stayed up late with my wife and baby in the very early months, and used it to bounce back the next day with much less sleep than I was used to. My career boomed, I was working out 4-5 times per week, and I had the energy to out-compete and out-think my peers and climb the ladder. The downfall, was that 40 MG IR was not enough and I was running out early and building a tolerance. It eventually came to the point where I had to avoid scheduling important meetings/presentations on the days or weeks I didn’t have it. I was lethargic and my brain cloudy and uninterested, and all I wanted to do was sleep and eat. I convinced myself and my doc I was truly ADD (due to a family history of it) and went in to ask for an increased dose of Adderall and he recommended Vyvanse 70mg.

    I have been taking it for one week and what I can tell you is that it seems to be much smoother (no peaks and valleys) as compared to Adderall IR, and oddly enough, seems to work when I need it. For example, if I initiate a task or project, I stay with it and have an elevated sense of clarity and direction and will follow through until completion. However, if I do nothing but lay on the couch and watch football, it doesn’t speed me up as the Adderall would. In some ways, I miss the intense energy I had from adderall, however one upside is that it seems the Vyvanse does not have the huge depressive effect associated with coming off it. I am not sure how the MG dosage compares between the two, so if anyone knows that would be helpful. I am taking one pill around 10:30 am , sometimes one and a half, and it will typically last about 5 or 6 hours in either case. I sleep and eat normally with Vyvanse, which was not always the case with Adderall.

    Also, does anyone know if adults with ADHD will have lethargic and cloudy withdrawal symptoms from these drugs, or is that only with “normal” individuals using the drug as a productivity enhancer.

    In that same vein, is there anything that lessens the withdrawal effect other than time away from it?

    Thanks in advance for any comments…

    Posted by: Patrick