Vyvanse + Methylphenidate Questions

Hello all.

I am very new to the stimulant category of medications. I wrote a very large *description* of how I am feeling and such, but then compressed it into some core questions for everyone's sanity.

I can't tell when methylphenidate kicks in but the comedown isn't fun (headache, irritability). Is this normal? Should it be this subtle? Do I need a dose increase?

Methylphenidate helps my anxiety, am I getting high? (takes as prescribed)

Personal experiences with methylphenidate vs Vyvanse?

Thank you for your time!

**I've taken these for roughly 3-4 weeks.**

Methylphenidate = Ritalin, Metadate, Concerta
Vyvanse = lisdexamphetamine

Hello,
I have anxiety and ADHD (also have borderline personality disorder). I have been on Vyvanse, Adderall, Concerta and Ritalin. For the ADHD. These medications helped my ADHD symptoms and did sometimes help the anxiety (because the ADHD made it worse because of the over stimulation). Sometimes I think it also made things worse.

My experience with these drugs is over time they wear off..so that also means that when you first start taking them you may feel "hyper stimulated" as though you have just drank too many espressos or strong cups of coffee. For people with anxiety this can increase the symptoms of anxiety as it increases your heart rate and can feel similar to how anxiety feels physically. Overtime your body gets used to it and those feelings tend to go away. Watch your caffeine intake, especially when first taking these medications as it can make things work.

As for crashing I did notice that when on these meds, especially when on Adderall. I remember sometimes I would have a can of coke later in the afternoon and then crash moments after finishing it (I think the mix of adderall crashing, sugar and caffeine made me super crash).

I am not completely off medication as I am 3 months pregnant. It has been hard as I find my concentration is not as good and I miss that little jolt it gave me. I also can't drink coffee as I have a major aversion to it. That coupled with pregnancy fatigue and the foggy pregnancy brain has made things hard-but manageable.

For me stimulant medication helped, but never took the ADHD symptoms totally.
Hope this helps,
Good luck :-)

Methylphenidate is like a benzo for me sometimes. It's sort of like a calming stimulant if that makes sense. The crash used to be very bad especially when taking too much but I'm taking it as prescribed and I just sleep when it wears off. I don't think you're high on it but if you are, lol.

Vyvanse (Lisdexamfetamine) didn't work very well for me so I changed back to Methylphenidate. I don't know why. It turns into Dexedrine (Dextroamphetamine) in the liver but oh well..

That's great that methylphenidate helps with your anxiety and a sign that, maybe, you could tolerate a higher dose. When I was put on methyphenidate, it worsened my anxiety and I had to drop down to a pretty low dose to get rid of the tense feeling it created.

Methylphenidate did help me wake up in the morning, which was good, if I had a plan of what I was going to be doing. Otherwise, I tended to just engage in a lot of fruitless thinking.

I'm prescribed vyvanse for binge eating disorder and also have bp2. From personal experience I wouldn't suggest people with BP to take stimulants because of the come down. I can't take it every day because it loses its effectiveness. I'm used to it to the point where I'm not crashing that hard anymore but I have to be careful because I've had panic attacks on it. I also don't like the fluttering feeling in my chest. I pretty much take it when I'm having a hard time waking up for work in the morn.

Are you taking the 3x/day or the extended release?

My first ADHD med was Ritalin. I took it for nearly 10 years, but my shrink wouldn't up my dose and I thought I needed that. So I figured maybe the different chemical composition of Adderall would help. I'm changing doctors. Can't stand this guy but it's slim pickins in my area. Have an appointment w/ new person on Monday. Hopefully this works out better.

When I first went on Ritalin it was AMAZING! Everything was effortless. I was the type who would constantly leave cabinet doors open, stuff on the counters. I remember my husband asking, "Are you ever going to put that away?" The fact is I didn't even SEE it. Meanwhile, when I first went on Ritalin, I was talking on the phone, saw something out of place, put it away and realized all that after the fact.

The thing was I didn't like the crashes either. I'd be grinding my teeth at the beginning then BAM! Crashing. Ritalin LA was much better. If you're not on some extended release type, try that.

I don't know how much you've ever read up on ADHD or meds, but there's a reason for that.....

Our brains are understimulated in the pre-frontal cortex. This is the executive function part of the brain. Once we take something to "speed that up" it works in the opposite way for us, but creating clarity and calm. This is why so many people would self medicate with cocaine or other stimulants.

Another thing I read that I found interesting in my very first research into ADHD was that fighting has the same sort of feel good effect. For me, I was extremely argumentative with my husband. It was interesting to learn that the adrenaline and other bits that are engaged in a fight, would ultimately provide a soothing effect. You know I was a peach to live with right?

I take Vyvanse for compulsive eating and focus / concentration issues at work. It is very smooth compared to Adderall. With Adderall, I could really feel it kick in and it made me anxious and jittery. It didn't help my compulsive eating, much to my pdoc's surprise. With Vyvanse, I take it with water and a little protein in the morning, and about an hour later I realize I'm getting my stuff done at work and not fantasizing / planning my lunch (at 8am). The 'comedown' is basically non-existent compared to Adderall. With the latter, I would crash after about 5 hours.

Are you talking about short acting Adderall or Extended Release?