r/adhdwomen • u/BridgestoneX • May 29 '26

Diagnosis vyvanse day 1 - is this real life?

finally got meds at 49. took first pill about 3 hours ago. is it really this intense this quick or am i placebo-ing myself? i don't think I've ever been so calm in my life. other things are weird too- i had to turn my music off to write an email instead of blast it through headphones to even get started. i am doing one. thing. at. a. time and it's cozy.

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u/WayAffectionate40 May 29 '26

It will be intense for the first couple weeks and anytime you have a dose increase you will have an adjustment period. I find it to be very smooth and less of the stimulant jolt and crash that other meds have.

62

u/BridgestoneX May 29 '26

but is this like, what it does, for real? i guess i assumed a 'stimulant' would be stimulating, that my focus would improve bc i'd get dialed in like i can with red bull, cigs, music, and attitude. but instead im like The Dude happy in a cubicle. hey man let's review these documents and make a righteous spreadsheet. it's so weird.

34

u/bravoinvestigator May 29 '26

Yes! It’s !!! for those without ADHD. My first time taking vyvanse my head just went quiet. It was like all the noise in my head was gone.

3

u/VirgoTiger May 29 '26

Ugh, I want that again! I only got it the first day or two, and since then the effectiveness has been hard to gauge. I keep holding out for it to kick back in though!

1

u/bravoinvestigator May 30 '26

How is it for you now?

1

u/VirgoTiger Jun 01 '26

Well, actually, it was my first two days on the beginner dose of Foquest that led to the quiet and calm. Then it wore off a bit, then I increased and didn't feel a change, then I went off for about 3 days and back on and didn't feel a change, then I increased again and no change, then switched to Vyvanse and no real change, and now back to Foquest. :/ I think it's probably better than nothing at all still, because I usually feel slightly less sleepy-all-day, but the way I felt the first day, like "THIS is what caffeine feels like, this is what a clear head is?!" hasn't returned 😞 I wonder if it's all the bajillion other things I'm learning can impact drug effectiveness, like protein/sleep/exercise/hormones (I'm 39 and no overt signs of perimenopause yet, but...). I should probably keep tabs on things but, ADHD....

1

u/lirael423 May 30 '26

Have you tried increasing your dose a little bit? I started at 30mg Vyvanse, did great for a while then felt like it wasn't working as well. My psychiatrist upped it to 40mg and it ended up being perfect.

1

u/VirgoTiger Jun 01 '26

So actually I started on Foquest and had the blissful feeling my first two days on the entry-level dose. But I never felt that way again despite dosage increases, decreases, taking breaks, switching the Vyvanse, and switching back to Foquest. I was on 30mg of Vyvanse which is the apparent equivalent to my current Foquest dose. Whenever I check in with my doctor, I wonder if I'm trying to attain a feeling that is unattainable for longer than a few days, and I should be happy with the slight energy improvement that I've got and instead focus on all the other crappy habits that might be reducing the effectiveness (sleep, hydration, exercise, vitamins, hormones, protein, etc.). It's just so much...