Vyvanse vs Adderall | ADHD Information

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[QUOTE=rosalie68]I would definitely insist that he be put on something else.  There is no use in taking something that doesn't work.  We ended up getting one of those weekly medicine containers that have the days of the week on them.  Sometimes my son would go into the kitchen to take them and get distracted while he was in there.  He would not remember if he took it and sometimes he would think that he did.  He does still miss doses now and then but it is alot easier to keep track and he does a lot better knowing if he has taken it or not since it has the weekday on it. I hope everything goes well for you at the appt.
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I had to get a 'day of the week' box too so I could check if I had given it to my ds or not.

I also agree with not wasting time on something that isn't working. It doesn't take more than a few days to know if a stimulant is making a difference.

We had our appointment and I got quite a bit of resistence from the doctor about changing the meds, I really don't understand why, but I finally prevailed.

My son has been on Adderall for 3 weeks and he says he thinks it is more effective, not necessarily a drastic improvement but an improvement. I have not seen any side effects. My son says it may possibly take longer for him to fall asleep at times but he was not even sure of that.

I imagine we will have to stick with this one for the remainder of the school year to judge if it really is being effective. If not, I am not sure what to try after this. Dexadrine worked well for my oldest son but it did have some negative side effects.

Thanks for the feedback

[QUOTE=momof3boys61]

We had our appointment and I got quite a bit of resistence from the doctor about changing the meds, I really don't understand why, but I finally prevailed.

My son has been on Adderall for 3 weeks and he says he thinks it is more effective, not necessarily a drastic improvement but an improvement. I have not seen any side effects. My son says it may possibly take longer for him to fall asleep at times but he was not even sure of that.

Thanks for the feedback

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I give my son time-release Melatonin 1mg. I'd been giving him Melatonin for awhile, but when I switched to the time-release type he started having better days in school (he is also on Vyvanse which is working well for him).

Is the prescribing doctor a ped or family doctor? It seems like an odd attitude for a psychiatrist to have. If you and the doctor don't agree on treatment and you are able to try a different doctor, do so.




Luvmykids0240614.4006944444To bad about Vyvanse it works wonderfully for my son and has for 2.5
years. Good luck!Codykins140614.4694212963

Hello all,

I am new to this message board.  My daughter is 10 and we have battled with ADHD symptoms pretty much since she started kindergarten.  After years of denial and mostly fear on my part, we have decided to travel down the medication road.  We are starting with Vyvanse 30mg. Today is the first day.  She complained of a headache and "wiggly worm" sensation in her legs. I will continue to post our progress and welcome any feedback.  Thanks!    

 

ADD/ADHD runs in my family. My oldest son has significant ADHD, my middle son has mild ADD and my youngest is somewhere in between.

My youngest just turned 15, he has been on Vyvanse for a couple of years and was on Focalin before that.

I have never really seen a noticable benefit from his medications. With my oldest son, there was a significant difference but he took dexadrine.

I told the therapist last month that I did not think he was getting much benefit from Vyvanse but he left him on it after my son promised to make more of an effort in school. He just said that so we could get out of there. His report just arrived and he is not doing better. He is a smart kid who has a real hard time making himself do his work. He is very inattentive, you think he is listening, he is looking right at you, but later you find out he did not really hear a word you said.

I want to ask the doctor to try him on Adderall XR, I want to push it if I have to. Can anyone tell me of the pros and cons between the two medications?

While my son was diagnosed when he was 5, he did not start taking medication until middle school when the demands of school became greater as did the demands on his attention. Up until then he was not a discipline problem (he was not an angel but he was good natured)and due to my experience with his older brothers, I was on top of him all the time to make sure he completed his work. As a teen in high school, they are more defiant and sneakier, it is harder to keep track and we are arguing too much. I am tired of nagging but I do not want his potential to go to waste either. Any insight is appreciated.

My son took Vyvanse for about a year.  At first it worked great, but he was very emotional and angry and started having tics.  Then it seemed like it wasn't working at all.  We took him off and tried Adderall XR.  I wasn't expecting anything because I heard Vyvanse and Adderall are very similar, but Adderall made a big difference.  So far this has been the best med that he has been on.  It has controlled his impulses and helped him to focus better than anything else we have tried so far.  He gets tics with every stimulant med but they are not as bad as they were with some of the others.  We use Guanfacine to counteract them and to help him get to sleep at night.  Every person is different so no one will know how it will work with your son until you try it.  I think if Vyvanse isn't helping him that are not losing anything to try Adderall.  Since he is 15 he will be able to tell you how he feels on it and you will know if it's working better for him.  Do you know that he is taking the Vyvanse?  I would try to make sure whatever med he has that you make sure he takes it.  My 9 year old will say he took his and then I will see it's still in the container.  Vyvanse could be the reason he is arguing more.  My little boy was so irritated when he took it.  He started to blow up on people for the smallest things.  It made him aggressive and just generally not happy.  Also could be a teenager thing.  We haven't gotten to that age yet.  Good luck and if you want to know any specific things about our experience with either one, just let me know.

Kim

I would definitely insist that he be put on something else.  There is no use in taking something that doesn't work.  We ended up getting one of those weekly medicine containers that have the days of the week on them.  Sometimes my son would go into the kitchen to take them and get distracted while he was in there.  He would not remember if he took it and sometimes he would think that he did.  He does still miss doses now and then but it is alot easier to keep track and he does a lot better knowing if he has taken it or not since it has the weekday on it. I hope everything goes well for you at the appt.

Thank you for your feedback, I really appreciate it.

Sporadically over the last 1 to 2 years, I have had problems with my son taking his medication. I did not know there was a problem until about a year ago, I was cleaning up his room and found about 5 doses all over his room. His explanation was that he had set them down and then forgotten to take them. I beleive that that may happen, but there are other times when he insists before we walk out the door in the morning that he has taken it - but when I check the bottle, none are missing. I started putting one or two doses in the bottle that he has access to, so that I could keep track. Over the past 4 months I think he has been taking it pretty regularly because of my oversight, but I still don't think it is benefiting him.

We have an appointment Friday with his psychiatrist, I hope he does not give me a hard time about trying something else.