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switching from adderall xr to vyvanse

I recently had to switch my add meds from adderall xr to vyvanse and I am on day 2 and I feel like I havnt taken anything.  I am extremely tired, have anxiety with everything going on around me at once, and I cant concentrate at all, I walked around my kitchen for 15 minutes not knowing why i wass but knew there was a reason then finally got my car keys that i was needing to get in the first place.  Is this normal?  I was taking 20mg of adderall xr and went to 60mg of vyvanse which i was told was like taking 25 to 30mg of adderall but i feel like im in some sort of withdrawal from adderall.  am i the only one this has happened to?
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189897 tn?1441126518
COMMUNITY LEADER
   Thank you for your post.  It is always good to here from someone who is going through the process.  Please feel free to keep adding your information.  We all learn from it!
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Avatar universal
I agree with Sandman2 that you are taking too much.  The first medication the doctor tried on me was vyvanse.  I started on 30 mg which didn't last long enough.  I was in college when I was taking it and took it at 9am and it was gone by 3-4pm.  She increased my dose to 50 mg which was too much for me. I had some of the same symptoms you mention like being tired, being stressed out more than usual about things, couldn't focus, mood swings, depression, overstimulated, and being overly clean about things even though i was still messy myself.  She lowered it back down to 40 mg which was better but still gave me side effects. It gave me some benefit but didn't really help my focus a lot. Next she tried intunive since it is a non stimulant.  I only did the trial which goes from 1-2mg i think but i'm not sure. After that i did some research online since it was a family doctor who was prescribing it and i didn't have enough money to see a real psychiatrist. From some of the reviews it sounded like adderall would fit my type of adhd better.  So my doctor put me on adderall xr starting at 10 mg.  She increased it only by 10mg or less at a time. So I went up to 20 mg and now have been on 25 mg since august 2011. The 25 mg is doing good by the benefits and less symptoms I've had but only last 8 hrs. I had side effects with adderall in the beginning but they were not as intense and long term as vyvanse. Right now I don't have any side effects except if I get less than 7 hrs of sleep then I do get tired even on the adderall xr. The side effects went away about a month after I started on the 25mg. I'm going to see a psychiatrist soon and have been trying to decide which one to go with now that I can afford it. I'm probably going to stay on the adderall xr and maybe see if I can get 1 or 2 adderall ir to add to my day. It says they last 4-6 hrs. I might see what they think about strattera and focalin because I am ADHD combined but have a big problem with the add side and some of the symptoms of the adhd side.  
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Avatar universal
Thank you for your reply.  My therapist chose that dose because the 20mg of adderall xr wasnt quite working good enough and she said that the 60 of vyvanse was the same as 25 to 30 of the adderall so I was very surprised at the reaction I had.  I think I might ask her if I can just go back to the adderall.
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189897 tn?1441126518
COMMUNITY LEADER
     From the info on this site - http://www.addadhdblog.com/vyvanse-dosage-how-to-get-the-right-dose/#c987e
    it looks like you are taking the right amount or slightly above the correct amount.  Actually, it almost sounds like you might be taking too much and are getting that "zombie"  effect.  Talk to your doctor and let them know what is going on.   Then please post back and let us know.  That info will help others.
    By the way, if you are taking it with something like orange juice - that could have an effect.
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