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Vyvanse Overdose
i have taken vyvanse, and adderall (unprescribed) on a couple of occasions to help me with my school work, but this afternoon i had one of the worst experiences of my life. i had purchased a 70 mg vyvanse pill, took 1/4 of it yesterday and the other 3/4 this morning, so today i was on about 50 mg. after school i was with my friend and started to experience terrible muscle contractions in my hands, forearms, feet, and calfs; i couldn't move my hands or feet AT ALL and it felt as if i was clenching those muscles as hard as i could and i could NOT stop this. I began to feel nauseous, and started vomiting. after i emptied my stomach onto the side of the road i felt much better, the nausea, and contractions subsided, and as of right now i feel fine, but it seems to me like i overdosed on the drug and i don't know if this can hurt me later on or even cause me to die tomorrow. I have no intention of ever taking this medication again, and I do feel ok now, but i have read that vyvanse overdoses can lead to death, and i just want to make sure im actually OK. PLEASE HELP ME IM SCARED AND I REALLY DO NOT WANT TO GO TO MY DOCTOR WITH THESE QUESTIONS (I weigh about 103 pounds, im 5'4 and 17 years old)
The capsule used for Vyvanse has nothing to do with how the drug works. There are no delayed release capsules used for Vyvanse. This drug takes longer to metabolize and is done so in a manner that makes it longer lasting and thus does not induce the high that other amphetamines can produce, which makes Vyvanse inherently less addictive. Drinking lots of water can help with negative side effects like blurred vision, headaches, muscle cramps, and light headedness, this is my own personal observation so take it as you will. Either way drinking lots of water throughout the day is beneficial in many ways. I also get short of breath more readily when working out so I try to workout in the morning before my daily dose or later at night when the effects of the drug diminish.
COMMUNITY LEADER
Gotta always check the dates on these posts. That one by Margypops was pretty old. Hopefully, she has changed her opinion a bit by now.
First off, Vyvanse is not just prescribed to "children"... it is a medication for young people AND ADULTS who have been diagnosed (typically) with ADD, ADHD or a Learning Disability that significantly impairs Executive Functioning or Processing Speed. Do not delegitimize the treatment of a health issue for all those who NEED and take their meds as prescribed, just because others might abuse them.
Since you didn't get your facts straight before commenting like you know what you're talking about, let me clear some things up for you. Medications for people with attention difficulties can do much more than "simply" help them concentrate, but sometimes are the key to the patient's ability to even function in society, school or the workplace.
My good friend has ADHD and she works 3 jobs. She can do this with the same difficulties as any other person without the disorder when on her meds, but if she goes into work without, she loses her keys, phone, is late for everything, can hardly string together a conversation because all of the background distractions disturb her thought process and the disorder has MANY times effected her to the point where she even loses the children whom she teaches at a ski resort, and typically ends the day in mental breakdown because of her LEGITIMATE difficulties with proper functioning without her medication.
The same as someone with arthritis can't just "work harder" to ease the pain of their joints without meds.
It's ignorant and embarrassing on your part to make such a patronizing comment about what can oftentimes be a serious mental disorder, especially on a website where people seek medical SUPPORT.
Bring your irrelevant and uneducated opinions elsewhere.
Since you didn't get your facts straight before commenting like you know what you're talking about, let me clear some things up for you. Medications for people with attention difficulties can do much more than "simply" help them concentrate, but sometimes are the key to the patient's ability to even function in society, school or the workplace.
My good friend has ADHD and she works 3 jobs. She can do this with the same difficulties as any other person without the disorder when on her meds, but if she goes into work without, she loses her keys, phone, is late for everything, can hardly string together a conversation because all of the background distractions disturb her thought process and the disorder has MANY times effected her to the point where she even loses the children whom she teaches at a ski resort, and typically ends the day in mental breakdown because of her LEGITIMATE difficulties with proper functioning without her medication.
The same as someone with arthritis can't just "work harder" to ease the pain of their joints without meds.
It's ignorant and embarrassing on your part to make such a patronizing comment about what can oftentimes be a serious mental disorder, especially on a website where people seek medical SUPPORT.
Bring your irrelevant and uneducated opinions elsewhere.
COMMUNITY LEADER
Actually V is not like other time release stim meds. Its uses an additional protien, lysine, to create Lisdextroamphetamine which provides the time release as your body breaks it down. The capsule does not provide the time release function.
I know this question was posted a long time ago but i want to answer so that anyone else that is looking for an answer can find one.
To start off, you were experiencing overdose. The most likely reason is that you broke the pill up when you took it (i'm assuming because you said you took 1/4th in the morning and then the rest later). Vyvance uses an extended release capsule. This makes it last longer by keeping the pill from being digested quickly. So, when you broke it up, you removed the only thing that manages the amount digested at one time. So what you need to do is call 911 and tell them that you have overdosed on x amount of Vyvance . If you are worried about your parents finding out then simply refuse to give your information to the hospital you are taken to. They will still have to treat you because it is a life threatening emergency. After treatment simply leave without saying a word to anyone.
To start off, you were experiencing overdose. The most likely reason is that you broke the pill up when you took it (i'm assuming because you said you took 1/4th in the morning and then the rest later). Vyvance uses an extended release capsule. This makes it last longer by keeping the pill from being digested quickly. So, when you broke it up, you removed the only thing that manages the amount digested at one time. So what you need to do is call 911 and tell them that you have overdosed on x amount of Vyvance . If you are worried about your parents finding out then simply refuse to give your information to the hospital you are taken to. They will still have to treat you because it is a life threatening emergency. After treatment simply leave without saying a word to anyone.
I have taken 12, 40mg pills of vyvanse within the same hour before because I was desperate to get that speed feeling. Oh I got it alright. I couldn't stop shaking for hours and my muscles were always clenched tight so I was unnaturally stronger then I was while I was on it. Or at least I looked stronger. But then my heart started to speed up really fast and began to skip beats and I had trouble breathing (I thought I was going to die that night) and it scared me and I kept hearing **** and kept seeing stuff and I had mood swings very badly. 1 second I'm pissed and in 2 seconds I'm the happiest kid alive. I didn't sleep for 3 days and I noticed I started to lose muscle all over my body and had quite a bit of excess skin. But after a few days of eating and drinking again I got it back. So ya your good even though this was posted a long time ago. Just thought I'd share my experience.
COMMUNITY LEADER
The initial poster was smaller then you and had very typical overdose signs, and apparently did not have AD/HD. So very different than you.
So some thoughts.
First, is that your prescription is gonna run out much sooner if you keep upping the dose - so all of what you are saying is kind of a moot point cause you won't be able to get the meds.
Second, it is possible you might be a "ultrarapid metabolizer", which could explain why you possibly seem able to handle the higher doses. More on ultrarapid metabolizers here - http://www.corepsychblog.com/2009/06/vyvanse-dosage-for-adhd-finding-the-safe-top-of-the-window/
I think that your heart rate at 80 is too high for someone your age. But it all depends on what you had been doing and when you took it. Best thing is to take it while on the med and then off the med and take it after you had been sitting down for a couple of minutes. The long term effects of a higher heart rate are never good.
It is possible that you do need a higher dose of V. Here is another link to doses - http://www.addadhdblog.com/vyvanse-dosage-how-to-get-the-right-dose/#c987e
Its worth reading the blogs on both sites. Lots of good info here.
You also might be interested in checking out http://jeffsaddmind.com/. Its a definitely adult ADD site with tons of great information. I think you will find very helpful coping strategies and realize that there are many others out there have some of the same problems you do.
But all in all, I don't like the idea of you taking the higher doses while not under a docs watch (for several reasons). And some of the effects sound too much like somebody getting high on speed which does bother me.
My recommendation would be to check out the sites I have listed. Besides giving you more info, it will let you talk to your doctor on a more informed basis. And then sit down and have a long talk with your doc.
Best wishes.
So some thoughts.
First, is that your prescription is gonna run out much sooner if you keep upping the dose - so all of what you are saying is kind of a moot point cause you won't be able to get the meds.
Second, it is possible you might be a "ultrarapid metabolizer", which could explain why you possibly seem able to handle the higher doses. More on ultrarapid metabolizers here - http://www.corepsychblog.com/2009/06/vyvanse-dosage-for-adhd-finding-the-safe-top-of-the-window/
I think that your heart rate at 80 is too high for someone your age. But it all depends on what you had been doing and when you took it. Best thing is to take it while on the med and then off the med and take it after you had been sitting down for a couple of minutes. The long term effects of a higher heart rate are never good.
It is possible that you do need a higher dose of V. Here is another link to doses - http://www.addadhdblog.com/vyvanse-dosage-how-to-get-the-right-dose/#c987e
Its worth reading the blogs on both sites. Lots of good info here.
You also might be interested in checking out http://jeffsaddmind.com/. Its a definitely adult ADD site with tons of great information. I think you will find very helpful coping strategies and realize that there are many others out there have some of the same problems you do.
But all in all, I don't like the idea of you taking the higher doses while not under a docs watch (for several reasons). And some of the effects sound too much like somebody getting high on speed which does bother me.
My recommendation would be to check out the sites I have listed. Besides giving you more info, it will let you talk to your doctor on a more informed basis. And then sit down and have a long talk with your doc.
Best wishes.
Umm, I'm also 17, and weigh about 125 lbs. and I am 5'4.... And you said that it was a huge dose to be taking 50mg for someone my size? ... Is that really true? How dangerous is that? Because I've been taking 50mg every morning for more than a year now. And it's fine with me. But recently I abused it, just to figure out what would happen, and I took 250mg of vyvanse .... The only side effects that I've gotten from it... Was obviously, my appetite decreased but not by much, if I were to compare the difference in appetites from taking the 50mg and the 250mg there wouldn't be a huge difference... And another is trouble sleeping. Now there is a big difference in the trouble of sleeping between the two doses... The 50mg, I fall asleep just fine. And the 250mg .... Well ha, lets just say it's 3 in the morning right now, and I'm still not tired. I'm just educating myself more on this drug that my doctor proscribed for my ADHD. And the last side effect that I found was my heart rate... I'm not sure what the average heart rate for a 17 year old my size is, when I checked my rate when I was on 250mg it was a little bit over 80 beats per minute... Is that okay? And this isn't the first time I've overdosed with 250mg . But I have experienced and don't plan on experiencing again,.. I did this, two days in a row. Which makes it that much stronger because isn't like a 50mg supposed to last up to like 10 hrs on average maybe? Well imagine 250mg and in my case, I added more the next day, with ALOT of extra vyvanse still in my system, so it went up to 450mg and the only bad side effect I had, was depression. And I slept fine that night, and woke up feeling normal the next day... Idk if any of this is weird or un-natural but that's just my experience, and it seems odd that I am doing just fine with these 250mg doses and all the other complaints that I've seen on the Internet were only using up to like 80mg and they experienced the side effects in a lil bit stronger sense. My side effects seem to have been only a minor version of itself and not the whole side effect... And if I may add. I'm not addicted or ever think about being addicted to the vyvanse or any drug I've ever used. No matter how addictive the drug might be, I can take a normal dose or a high one, as I have mentioned. And I had minor side effects with no addictions... And the 250mg actually lasted two days in a row, if I just took the 250mg one morning and the next morning I took 50mg... I felt like it was still staying strong. Not only did my focusing abilities become stronger when I overdosed with 250mg of vyvanse but i showed a very obvious change in my behavior! ALL of my behavioral and communicating and focusing and thinking and ability to work(ANY kind of work) became much stronger! And let's not forget that my confidence was boosted(I love it)! And it boosted the way I feel about myself and it lowed my ability to become embarrassed.(Another way of showing that my confidence was high) and I could honestly stop taking the pills and not need them, I could just forget about them totally! Just like any other drug. Like cocaine, isn't that supposed to be addictive? Well I stopped myself and didn't really care much for it either. Tell me if I'm wrong, but I'm not sure that any of this is normal?
Doctors don't prescribe these medications knowingly for those who just want good grades and to study. There typically must be a diagnosis involved of add/adhd. And these drugs don't work on people that don't have add/adhd. Otherwise, it is just speed and all the side effects. People that have add/adhd have a completely different reaction than those that don't. It doesn't hype them up.
I'm sorry that you used someone else's meds----------- that is NEVER a good idea. Do not play around with drugs. Even if prescribed for you rather than buying them off of a friend, drugs are to be taken carefully. Not to share with friends.
Hopefully and I'm sure you'll be fine but obviously, don't repeat this. good luck (no grade is worth a drug overdose)
I'm sorry that you used someone else's meds----------- that is NEVER a good idea. Do not play around with drugs. Even if prescribed for you rather than buying them off of a friend, drugs are to be taken carefully. Not to share with friends.
Hopefully and I'm sure you'll be fine but obviously, don't repeat this. good luck (no grade is worth a drug overdose)
Good post sandman,in my opinion ujujujuj this is exactly why these drugs should not be given out to children simply for the reason of helping them concentrate ..What are doctors thinking ..
thanks for the help and i hope your right, but trust me i have definitely learned my lesson. im never going to take anything like this again, and your right when you get used to studying with help from the high you get from drugs like these it makes it much harder to get things done without them.
COMMUNITY LEADER
I'm not a doctor. But all of these types of meds do leave your system fairly quickly (which is why you have to take it every day). So I think you will be ok.
However, I hope you have learned a very important lesson. That is a huge dose for someone your size - so it was dangerous. Furthermore, those meds can be addicting. And finally - I know from personal experience that ultimately it hurts your study habits/grades much more than it helps. The best method is good study habits. While the energy high you get during the studying is great - it rarely translates to better grades and frequently can wind up with worse grades.
However, I hope you have learned a very important lesson. That is a huge dose for someone your size - so it was dangerous. Furthermore, those meds can be addicting. And finally - I know from personal experience that ultimately it hurts your study habits/grades much more than it helps. The best method is good study habits. While the energy high you get during the studying is great - it rarely translates to better grades and frequently can wind up with worse grades.
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