Addiction and Vyvanse

[recovering_addict]

I have been attending a rehab center the last 2 month for drug abuse.  I have Adult ADD and was given Adderal which I took more often that prescribed and for the wrong reasons.  Being off all meds, my ADD is back full force.  I get so frustrated with the havoc it reeks on my life that it then causes severe depression.  I went to my Dr. to talk about options.  She is really pushing Vyvanse even though I told her I am an addict and one of my drugs of choice was Adderal which the Rehab says is actually "speed".  Isn't Vyvance a type of "speed" also.  I desperately want help but not enough to risk getting back into abusing yet another substance and give up  my sobriety date.  She says she will only give me 7 at a time which will keep me from getting addicted but I can still abuse.  I need advise.  This scares me.
Thanks!

[84lulu]

First of all I would like to congratulate you on your sobriety you are on the road to recovery to better yourself. I too am a recovering addict and I take adderall. My sponser and others hate it and want me off it but I have problems from other meds I'm on falling asleep at anytime and have ran off the road before. I'm very frustrated and don't know what to do. I take 30 mg twice a day and it is not working very well anymore and I wonder if it is actually working at all. My doctor sees me once a month and knows I'm a recovering drug addict and drug test me every time he sees me after I relapsed on tabs. Make sure and tell your doctor u r a drug addict and see if he will start making u take a drug test. That way he knows exactly how much is in your system and anything else and holds you accountable. Most importantly you took a huge step by getting what was in your head out and talking about it! That is the most important thing in recovery!!! Do not keep things in your head and feed on it and let it eventually talk u into just taking one or a little as we know one is too many and a thousand never enough . I am considering switching to vyvanse or something similar. Ask about concerta also, I'm not sure how the two differ. You keep doing the next right thing and I pray you will have an awesome road ahead of you! Also if you would like to talk more, ever need help, ever just need someone to listen, or ANYTHING find me on FB and IM me. Landie Campbell . I would like to follow your story and know what you find out about your ADHD drugs and what your doctor says. I will talk to mine to about substitutes. Good Luck and Good Job:-)

[Modafinil]

If you have been seriously abusing stimulants and have had serious addiction issues with them then you absolutely must not go back on them.

I have difficulty believing a doctor would tell you to do so, given your past. If so, get a new doctor.

[Deedeewife]

Thank you so much for your input. I will definitely buy the book.

[Sandman2]

   The "The ADD/ ADHD Answer book," by Susan Ashley has a full section on medication.  On page 162, she says, "Providing the medication is taken as prescribed, there is not a risk for addiction.  Dosages prescribed are low and not anywhere near the amount required to develop a dependency."   And every reliable report I have read would agree with this.
   You might want to pick up the book.  Its about 10 bucks on Amazon and has a lot of helpful information including a great section on how homework and getting schools to help.
    As far as medicating.  It really depends on how he is doing at school.  A child of his age does not have the self control to deal with ADHD (heck, many adults don't).  You might not need the meds now if he is really intelligent, but its possible later on that they could be needed.   One thing to consider.  Its easy to try them.  You can stop them any time you want.  They are out of your system in a day, so no taper off worries.  The doctor will start him off on the lowest dose and you should be very proactive in letting your doc know how it is working.  There is a bit of trial and error as all the meds are a bit different as are the people taking them.
   But for a pretty detailed - non biased - answer.  Buy the book I suggested.  It has 24 pages on medication.
   If you have any more questions, please post.  Best wishes!

[Deedeewife]

I have a question...my 7 year old has adhd and the neurologist mentioned vyvanse as a treatment. After reading the posts about addiction, should I try a non-stimulant? Should I not medicate at all? Thoughts are welcomed. Thanks.

[subz28]

I am also an addict and on vyvanse,but my drug of choice was opiates,so I am also on suboxone.I was on adderall instant release 40mg a day .until yes you guessed it I screwed up took to much stayed up. A few days had a breakdown.It took a long time for my psyche to treat me with stimulate again ..anyway my point vyvanse is cleaner and last longer doesn't make you feel as. Bad when wearing off.and my doc made me sign contract drug test to make sure its there and you might laugh in 36 my mom had to come in and sign that she would bring it too me everyday.if you are worried talk to your doc about deal like that.if you have somebody who will hold you accountable you want have to worry about abusing  its working wonders for me.any questions e-mail me at ***@****

[triedeverymed]

I too am a recover addict and I take Vyanse. I take it only as prescribed and it does what it's supposed to do. The fact that you doc is only giving you 7 at a time is a good thing. Vyvanse works just like Adderal so if you don't think you can handle taking a type of "speed", I would ask your doctor about Straterra. It takes longer to start acting in your system and needs time to build up. I think there is less chance for abuse with Straterra so you may want to ask your doc if you feel tempted to take more Vyvanse than prescribed.
I want to congratulate you on your honesty, it takes a lot to come out and admit you would abuse the Vyanse if given the chance. You are definately on the road to recovery!!
Do a little research online about Straterra and ask your doc if it's an option for you. I see how you can like the feeling of Vyvanse but when I was on 70 mg. it made me too mellow so I asked to have my dose reduced. That is a normal reaction for someone who does have adult ADD.
Good luck to you!!

[ex_unbeliever]

Vyvanse is an extended release form of dextroamphetamine, also known as dexedrine. (I'm not an expert, but I'm pretty confident that my info is correct.) Dextroamphetamine is an amphetamine, which is what most people mean when they call something "speed." There are several well-known, widely used amphetamines (by "used" I mean both used legally, as prescribed by physicians, and used illegally, also known as abused). The amphetamines I know about, in order of increasing intensity, are: dextroamphetamines (including Vyvanse, which is low intensity but has been engineered to last a long time--say, a peak intensity lasting 6 to 10 hours), adderall (which is mix, I think, of a slight variations of some kind of amphetamine), and then of course really intense stuff like methamphetines (which I know very little about, but which has ruined a lot of people's lives--think of it as kind of like crack cocaine, the most addictive and destructive form of coke). *** I wonder how you abused Adderall. You said, "more often than prescribed and for the wrong reasons." If you really got carried away with it, and your use of it had destructive consequences in your life, your cautiousness about using amphetamines is probably wise; and you ShouLD proceed with caution. The kinds of destructive consequences I'm referring to are: 1. acquiring supplemental doses illegally and/or deceptively; 2. spending money you needed for other truly important things to supplement your dosage; 3. exceeding the prescribed dosage because you felt like you "had" to have some feeling or instant gratification you got from the med; 4. exceeding the prescribed dosage because you felt icky or lousy or uncomfortable in some way when the med was wearing off, or once it had completely worn off; 5. used other drugs along with the Adderall because the combination felt good; 6. behaved weirdly or inappropriately; 7. were getting way too little sleep or eating way too little food; 8. having pretty serious mood problems either under the influence of Adderall or when it was either partially or completely wearing off (mood problems = irritability, SuperExuberantFantasticWonderfulAmazingEuphoric!!!!, depression, deep depression, suicidal, or an uncomfortable level of anxiety). If you had any of these feelings, moods, or reactions from your dosage of Adderall, or you broke laws, lied, ran out of money, or felt a desperate need to have more Adderall; your concern about using any form of amphetamine is probably realistic. (Personally, I put up with a mildly elevated degree of irritability when I'm experiencing the "benefits" of  amphetamine meds (because it's only a slight increase of problem I already have and which I have to take steps to alleviate anyway); and a mild degree of depression when the medication is wearing off (because depression is something I would have to learn how to think positively and exercise and read scripture and pray myself out of anyway--and also focus on helping and showing appreciation to others).  *** I described all these legitimate reasons for limiting or avoiding amphetamines because there are some misinformed reasons for avoiding them. If you read a few good books about ADD or ADHD, like Hallowell and Ratey's books, or Thomas Brown, or Sari Solden, or Larry Silver, or a bunch of others; you'll see that many experts say different people require different doses, different intervals between doses, and/or different medications. Many "regular," non-expert doctors think one of the lower doses or lower number of doses should work fine for anybody. (For some people a low dose *does* work fine.) They also think anybody who thinks the low dose isn't doing the job and a higher dose would do better ... is a drug abuser and/or addict. If that's how you ended up thinking your behavior was addictive and/or abusive, you may be prematurely and naively worried, and maybe you should seek someone with more ADD/ADHD expertise to guide you in deciding whether or not to steer away from all amphetamines and all other stimulants. I am NOT suggesting you should decide for yourself the quantities and kinds of uppers you should use. But I hope your avoidance of a med that might be a useful PART of a multi-faceted approach to living a less frustrating life, isn't based just on the ignorant advice of someone who doesn't properly understand the relationship between real addiction (which you may or may not have) and an understandable (but illegal, and NOT recommended) attempt to work with a knowledgeable doctor to find the correct medication and dosage for you. (By the way, the right medication, if substance abuse of stimulants is an unmanageable problem for you, may be one of the non-stimulant medications for ADD/ADHD. But keep in mind, the non-stimulants don't work for everybody. But even the stimulants don't work for everybody. And the good thing about lower doses is, lower doses = less side effects.) ............ Best wishes. Ex-Unbeliever.