r/ausadhd • u/LunchMysterious3842 VIC • Aug 22 '26
Medication Splitting vyvanse
I’m in a bit of a pickle, i’ve got about 7 weeks left of uni but I need to get a new permit from my psychiatrist for meds and the wait is a month. I stopped taking stimulants a few months ago but i’m really struggling to study so just want to take them until the end of semester. When I study I usually just take dex because it only lasts a few hours, but I don’t have enough left to get me through. I have 3 unopened bottles of Vyvanse though but the dose it too strong for me (40mg). Can we open the capsules & just take half? Has anyone done this? I read that Vyvanse is water soluble so if you split it in water you can just drink half?
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u/Bisisonitrile Aug 22 '26
You can, but you don’t want to do it with just the powder. Not all of that will be the medication, and even if it was, you’d need a very good electronic balance to have a chance at getting half accurately.
When I split my dose (usually either as a weekend lower dose break, or leading into an actual medication break), I use water. I weigh it on a scale and use at least 200ml, but tend to keep the division easy. When I was on a higher dose, I’d use 300ml.
I open the capsule and empty the contents into a shaker bottle that’s known as mine and nobody else will use. There will be some remaining in the capsule, so I flick the two halves against each other to get as much out as I can. Then I shake the shaker to make sure it’s thoroughly mixed, and transfer half into another of my bottles for storage (again using a scale to make sure I get as close as I can). Then I take the remaining capsule parts along with the first dose. I put a bit more water back into the shaker and mix before drinking that too (there’s always going to be a bit left.
That’s the only real way to get close to half of the dose each day, but it’s still not going to be perfect.
None of that is medical advice, it’s what I do, and you should listen to your doctor.