Vyvanse over-focusing problem

Hi, I am a 17 year old male, and I have read every Vyvanse related post on this site, and I have searched Google extensively. I have only been able to find a small amount of information regarding the problems I have had with this new medication. From what I have read, only older teenagers and adults ever mention my symptoms. This may, however, be because younger children do not know how to communicate their symptoms accurately to their parents. Before I get started though, I feel obligated to give a brief history of my ADHD medication usage, and a detailed description of my symptoms from taking Vyvanse. There seems to be lack of candid, first hand information on the subject, especially regarding this new drug. So I will thank you in advance for reading my long post. If you are in a hurry though, or if you just want to see my questions, skip to the last paragraph and look back if necessary. I aim to help others who share my symptoms, but can not find any references to them.

I was first diagnosed with ADHD at age 10, and was prescribed an Adderall 15mg tablet once a day. Due to my naivety, I never really noticed its affects until I was older, and was upgraded to the generic dextroamphetamine 20mg tablet once a day. By the time I was 13 I began to realize that it did help me focus a bit more at school, and that my mood was better in general while on it. It did tend to make me a bit anxious at times, and sometimes nervous in social situations, but I could handle it. I would forget to take it from time to time, but I wouldn't even really notice a difference unless I remembered that I had forgotten it. This is what lead to a small abuse problem that started soon after I turned 16.

I started saving it up when I didn't really need it, and taking two or three extra when I needed to finish up a project or take a big test. Then it got to where I would save my meds for weeks at a time, without doing any of my schoolwork, because I felt that it was easier to do it all at the last minute over the course of a few days. I would take five or six orally and snort one or two at night, then take another six or seven orally and snort another one throughout the day; continuing as necessary until my tasks were completed. Luckily, the most extreme binge only happened three times. I did not like the way I felt under the influence of such high doses, and I really hated the way I felt coming down from them. So I took a week off before resuming dosage as prescribed; only doubling my dose a few times. During my next doctors visit, just before I turned 17, my doctor suggested that I try Vyvanse, adding that I would be his first patient to do so. I thought that it would be a good idea, because he told me it had a lesser potential for abuse, and I was a little freaked out about some of the things I had already done with regular medication. So he prescribed me Vynvase 70mg, which is equivalent to about 20mg of amphetamine when broken free from the amino acid lysine, and gave me a free 30 day coupon.

The first day I took it I thought to myself that I loved it. I was feeling good all day, and even, for the first time, into the afternoon. Later that night, after it had noticeably worn off, I was left with a restless feeling. I did not worry about it though, and was only delayed an extra thirty minutes or so in falling asleep. The next day I began to realize why I liked the Vyvanse so much. It put me in an overly-focused state, where the only things that were of any importance to me were the random things that popped into my head. I was feeling so optimistic about the new medication, that I failed to realize this, or any of the other negative symptoms on the first day. I felt so good because I was complacent, and spent the day pondering endlessly whatever my mind spit out. I could not have cared less about what was being taught to me, or the subjects of my friends' conversations. All I wanted to do was continue devoting my entire attention to my present thoughts. On the third day, I came up with a highly complex math problem involving matrices, without even knowing if a solution existed. I spent almost five school days doing nothing in class but working out a possible solution to the problem. I would become agitated if something caused me to deviate from my task, even if it was something very important, or something I normally enjoyed. When I finally did solve it, I did not feel any satisfaction, and I did not get a sense of accomplishment as I would expect. My heart was racing as I checked my solution over and over, and huge sense of dejection fell over me when I finally accepted that it worked. I immediately put the paper that I had been working on away, and I attempted to pay attention momentarily. I felt very confused, anxious, exposed and vulnerable; as if this was the first time I had ever been in that class, and as if I had just been alone a few seconds ago. It seems that all my enjoyment came as a result of a mental break from reality. I was so hyperfocused that I shut out the real world around me, and did not see, hear or even notice my immediate surroundings. As soon as my excuse for escaping disappeared, everything rushed back, overloading my senses. I could not think to do any of my real class work, and I was unable to come up with anything that I felt was worth saying to anybody. At this point, all the other symptoms, most of which had still gone unnoticed, became increasingly apparent. The worst was of them was the dry mouth; I drank quarts of water whenever I happened to realize it, and suffered when I did not. Another symptom was inadvertent jaw clenching, along with tension and spasms in several other muscles. The jaw clenching along with the dry mouth caused sores on my gums during the week that I was working on the math problem, as I rarely stopped to get any water. I maintained tight suction in my mouth the whole time, and my lips must have pressed against my gums for too long. After about two weeks I shifted from focusing on complex ideas for long periods of time, to small ideas for shorter periods of time. I got used to jumping quickly from one thought to another, maintaining complete focus on them. So much so, that I would repeatedly forget that Vyvanse is making me do, to an extreme, the exact thing for which I am using it to counter. Some my friends started to tell me I looked like I was out of it all of the time. Whenever I tried to do something important I felt disoriented, like I had just woken up, and I could never remember what I was told. Other bad symptoms were constant sweating, and bad breath. Not only did I sweat a lot, but my sweat was high in ammonia, and undoubtedly smelled horrible. In addition, ammonia would somehow work its way into my mouth, and make my breath stink within a few minutes of brushing my teeth and gargling with mouthwash. Another symptom, which I still can not explain, was a change in the feel of my skin and muscle tissue. The skin on many parts of my body began to lose its resiliency, so when I poked it or pulled it there would be a delay before it began to slowly regain its shape. Some long, thin muscle tissue, like the tissue on the back of my forearm, became painful to the touch, and felt contracted and mushy. The symptom I found most alarming though, was the complete withdrawal of blood from my penis. My old medication did cause this mildly, however, while on Vyvanse it would not work, no matter what happened. I was afraid that it could cause an injury, because it was to the point where it was just unprotected blood vessels covered by a thin layer of skin. I kept taking the Vyvanse over the next two weeks, hoping the symptoms would decrease or disappear. They never did, so I got a new prescription for Vyvanse 50mg the following month. The same symptoms persisted with no noticeable decrease. After a week of taking the new ones, I decided to skip a day to see how it felt. A few minutes after I sat down in first period I began to feel extremely tired. However, as soon as I got up to change classes I felt fine. Within a minute or two of sitting down in second period, the tiredness came back. It was so bad I could not keep my eyes open at all, and my head would constantly fall and be snapped back up. Then, because I could not sleep, I became extremely restless and agitated. I felt like I was going jump out of my skin if I did not move, or like somebody was prying apart every bone in my body with a crowbar when I was still. Needless to say, the rest of the day was like torture, and I did not learn a thing. I forgot to take one a few days later, and the withdrawal was just as brutal. I decided to quit taking them with less than a week left in the prescription, and I went a month without them. The first week without Vyvanse was every bit as bad as the first day, and after a month the tiredness still did not completely vanish. I have midterms this week, and was afraid of still being completely tired during them. So I decided to take the last four pills during my exams then never take them again. I am still not sure whether I want to go back to regular dextroamphetamine, or just deal with my ADHD without any medication. However, I am beginning to be believe that the second choice, while being more difficult, may be the best one.

So, I want to know primarily; how many people have experienced these negative symptoms, mainly the over-focusing? And of the people who felt overly-focused, was it on important things or trivial things? Also, how common are the extreme withdrawal symptoms? Any thoughts regarding whether or not I should continue medication for ADHD will also be appreciated. I will welcome other comments about anything else I have said as well.

Hi Guitarkid,

I'm really not sure how to even begin to reply your post because it is very troubling, if I can be so blunt.  In my opinion, you are abusing your medication which is ultimately going to cause you additional problems.  Vyvanse, and all ADHD meds, are meant to be taken every day.  It really troubles me that at such a young age you are taking it upon yourself to regulate your medication schedule and dosage.  You are going to do more harm than good.  PLEASE, I beg you to talk to an adult and get to your doctor.  Tell your doctor exactly what you are doing and they can help figure out why you may be compelled to do this.  IMO, your misuse of the meds is purely a symptom of your ADHD.  Your doctor needs to know about this so that he can help you with regulation and consistency.

For what its worth, I have found Vyvanse to be extremely effective for me and it has absolutely changed my life for the better.  I take the same dose every morning when I wake up and it lasts for approximately twelve hours. 

Every day that you are here on this earth is a very special and important day!  So please talk to your doctor so that you can begin to get the necessary help so that you can manage through each day effectively and be better prepared and equiped to handle the days where you have more demands (ie. test day).

Many blessings and best wishes to you!

Hi Guitarkid,

I have a posting around yours called "Vyvance in Young Adults" and I must honestly say, you have scared me to death. My post is pretty much asking about the side effects of Vyvance in people our age -- older teens and young adults. (I'm 24.)

I surely hope that your story is not typical. This is my first week of Vyvance and I, so far, am loving it. But, like you said, the dry mouth is TERRIBLE and in the past week I have been drinking bottle after bottle of water... enormous amounts. So much that I'm afraid I'm going to throw off my electrolyte levels or something. The only other EXTREME symptom I have is no hunger at all. I was so excited the first day I took it, I didn't even notice that I ate breakfast around 10 and didn't eat again until almost 7.  I wasn't in the least hungry when I did realize this at 7pm, I just decided I should probably eat something because it had been over 8 hours...

I've never been on any other medicine for ADD -- I tried Strattera for about 7 days when I was 18, but threw it out and never went back for a follow-up, so I don't even really count that. 

I have total sympathy for what you've gone though, although, so far, I don't have anything personal to compare it to or advice to give. This is my first go-round, and I'm still in the beginning. You have pretty much answered my questions from my posting, but I wish I had more to offer you, to help with your concerns. The only thing I think I could offer is coping mechanisms that have kept me going over the years, since I've gone without treatment, I think I'm pretty much an expert in that field now....

Good luck with your next step with ADD treatment

Guitarkid,

I've been intermittently prescribed ADHD medication since the age of 16.  I was first presecribed Adderall and it worked wonders.  That is, untill I began having similar adverse affects to yours, with Vyvanse.  Likely, as pointed out in other responses, due to taking it other than exactly as prescribed.  I do believe I was over prescribed at one point but that's why as soon as adverse effects are experienced it's the patients duty to consult with their physician.

I am now prescribed Vyvanse as a 23 year old college student.  The adverse effects are still something I often struggle with.  Insomnia, as example, for which I am also prescribed Xanax to alleviate the restlessness I experience before bed.  When I don't get a GOOD nights sleep I have great trouble waking in the morning in time to take the Vyanse 12 hours before bedtime to avoid the same scenario the following night.  As a working student there are times I find myself behind and will stay up late studying; onsetting the cycle.  My grades are important to me so those cases are willing "sacrifices" or calculated risks I choose to take.  Sometimes it pays off and sometimes I kick myself for deciding to have done so.

Also, a problem I encounter is cost management.  What I mean by that is, I'm uninsured.  My monthly Vyvanse prescription costs me $150 out of pocket.  Like I said, I'm a working student.  The added financial pressure sometimes seems a greater burden than the benefits of the medication.  However,  the medication has enabled me throughout my academic and professional history to overcome my ADD (inattentive) and be successful.  I value that immensely.  So, again I find myself in a cycle of struggle and cost-benefit analysis.  What I do to help the financial aspect of the situation is work with my doctor, asking him for an increased daily dosage that I then space out beyond the 1 month prescribed.  I feel comfortable, in that this is discussed and clearly communicated with my physician whom I've seen for over 5 years.  However, I do recognize the increased risk for misuse in choosing to do this.  I open the 50 mg capsule of which my script says to take one a day and pour about half into a soft drink.  I then drink my daily dose.  This causes irregularity of daily dosing and contributes to some of the other adverse effects.  I do think if I could afford to take the 30mg/day everyday that I really need much of the problems I'm dealing with would be easier to manage.  I have an appointment set with my physician to suggest the alternative of increasing dosage quantity to 2 30mg capsules/day.  Likely the cost will also increase and I will have to explore other avenues.

I'm so glad to have found this post.  Guitarkid, your description of the adverse effects you've experienced I really relate to and really dislike.  Just like that matrix problem you solved there is a solution here too.  Anyway, to whomever may have read this, thanks for letting me share!