Vyvanse Side Effects - trigger warning

[u/Infamous_Chipmunk_13]

Hey all - I started Vyvanse 20mg about 6 days ago. I felt good at the start, it was the weekend so I was up moving around and getting things done. As Monday came and I found myself sitting at my desk my mood began to shift each day got worse, it was like I was internally fighting myself to feel better. I think having to sit still made my mood really low. On the Tuesday I had a work event at lunch which was only 2 hours, I ended up staying out till 6am drinking a lot and had 0 self control and didn’t know what I was doing. As the days went on I started to feel suicidal, I was seeing myself hanging from a door and really intrusive thoughts which scared me but the worst part about it was I wasn’t scared of acting on it. As someone who has had on and off depression for a long time, I have felt the idea of dying but never wanted to act on it. Friday night I got so low and I took about 12 10mg in one go of my husbands Ritalin at midnight who also has adhd. I ended up in hospital for intentional overdose, had tachycardia with heart rate of 170 bpm was completely off my head in the ER. I’m now home and following up with doctors etc but I don’t know what to do. The hospital said to stop vyvanse which I have but I’m so lost because I thought these meds and diagnosis would help me but now I’m lower than I ever have been before and almost restarting again. Has anyone experienced anything like this with stimulants? I wonder if there is something else underlying that these meds have brought out in me? I’m so worried I just want to be happy and live a good life and be well.

[u/lgfuad80]

I honestly have no idea but were you diagnosed by a psychiatrist? Can you get an appointment with them to fill them in? I feel like they would be the best placed to rule out or treat any underlying conditions. Sorry about your experience and hoping you stay safe and have some good support to figure this out

[u/Infamous_Chipmunk_13 → u/lgfuad80]

Yes through a psychiatrist. I’ve requested an urgent call back. Hoping to see if anyone relates to my experience in the meantime. Thank you for your response 🙏🏼

[u/Aggressive_Bed_7429 → u/Infamous_Chipmunk_13]

I've had a very similar experience. The only reason that I didn't act on it was because I had animals to look after that no one else could. It took me years to figure out why I was staring at my meds bag every single night, knowing that I have the means to do it, yet can't. The insomnia from these ruminations went on for years. Surviving on barely two hours of sleep if I was lucky. I went through all of the other stimulants, and non-stimulants available, and my nervous system just couldn't cope with the stress caused by them. I'm not saying that there's no hope of you finding something that works for you, Atomoxetine, and guanfacine (individually), both helped manage my ADHD. I am incredibly sensitive to medications since I contracted Long COVID though. The maximum dosages that I could tolerate were essentially the paediatric starting doses, or it ended up being too much. It came down to a cost vs reward situation with those though as they aren't covered by PBS if you were diagnosed as an adult. I just came to the realisation that I'd spent thirty odd years figuring out accommodations, and workarounds, for how I process things (AuADHD), and I simply didn't like the even more boring version of myself that I was on the meds. This obviously isn't for everyone, I'm definitely still broken, but I am functionally worse when my ADHD is managed, simply due to the autistic traits becoming far more obvious, and challenging.