I currently am on the following dose of IR Dexedrine (Barr labs):

7.5mg morning
5mg noon
5mg night

It has been working great for me, but I wanted to try out the 15mg Dexedrine Spansules so I don't have to worry about dosing my noon dose/feel the effect of the morning dose "come off." My doctor doesn't have a problem with increasing my dose to 7.5mg morning/7.5mg noon/5mg night... but he was trying to figure out and a bit confused I guess about the 15mg Dexedrine Spansules (in terms of pharmacokinetics.)

The FDA pamphlet for Dexedrine Spansules all list it in a very vague way as to how the medication is released. Even in the pharmacokinetics section, it just lists the peak plasma levels are achieved later on in the day compared to the IR version.

I told my doctor that I believe Dexedrine Spansules release 7.5mg immediately, then 7.5mg gradually (for the 15mg Dexedrine Spansules.) The PDR he was reading didn't make it clear, so he wanted me to do some research on my own before changing dosing.

I told him I wanted to do something like 15mg Dexedrine Spansule and 5mg Dexedrine IR at the evening dose. He agreed with that but was confused after reading the PDR about the spansules, thinking that 15mg Spansule will make my dosing up to around 30mg/day.. which I told him I didn't think so.

Are there any references that make the Spansule mechanism clear? Does Dexedrine Spansules use the same extended-release mechanism as Adderall XR (immediately half dose, 4 hours later other half dose?)

Thanks!

Edit: Do you recommend I just go for the 7.5mg 2x day/5mg evening (of the IR) instead of the Spansules? Thanks!

You might consider vyvvanse as well its a 12 hour d-amp prodrug and only needs to be taken once per day.

20mg per day of dexedrine = 50mg of vyvvanse btw.

BobC

Does Vyvanse and Dexedrine IR or Spansules have the same effect, or is Dexedrine smoother than Vyvanse? I prefer Vyvanse over Adderall. I currently take 50mg a day. I've never taken regular Dexedrine. I think the effects would be similar.

Spansules are old school style extended release (waxy covered bead to try and slow the release). Nothing too complex about how they work compared to newer meds.

To answer your question......

A 15mg spansule releases 7.5mg immediately and the remaining 7.5mg a few hours later depending on how quickly the beads dissolve in your stomach. Spansules last about 4-6 hours for most people. You might want to start with taking a 10mg spansule in the morning, a 10mg spansule at noonish and maybe the 5mg IR tablet in the evening as needed if your doctor is ok with that and work up from there. Your doses are pretty small as some folks around here go over 100mg per day (although that is more of a rarity). For Dexedrine most settle in the 30-60mg per day range.

J

I personally find that the Spansules last about 10 hours. I work a physically active job, so that may have something to do with that. However, effects linger on afterwords (I don't feel sleepy as early anymore).

Spansules are smoother than regular Dex because there's less missing of the next dose, or taking it late or early because of real life constraints or demands on your time.

7.5mg is the lowest dosage possible for Dex, AFAIK. So your ADHD is either very moderate or your doctor is being very cautious.

Before I got my little pill box system going, I accidentally doubled up on my early 2x15mg dosages (forgetting I'd already taken them while I'm rushing around late for work as usual).
It didn't affect me adversely, but I do find with 30mgs for now. It's a simple experiment to just take a second tab in the morning to see how it works for you (you want to do it on the regular 4hr Dex, just in case), but talk about it with your doctor first.

If your Doctor is looking at a PDR, I wonder how qualified/experienced he is with treating ADHD.
The only times my Doctors ever checked was for pricing. Can you not get a referral to a shrink (or a specialist shrink or paediatric shrink) or neurosurgeon?

Spansules are old school style extended release (waxy covered bead to try and slow the release). Nothing too complex about how they work compared to newer meds.

To answer your question......

A 15mg spansule releases 7.5mg immediately and the remaining 7.5mg a few hours later depending on how quickly the beads dissolve in your stomach. Spansules last about 4-6 hours for most people. You might want to start with taking a 10mg spansule in the morning, a 10mg spansule at noonish and maybe the 5mg IR tablet in the evening as needed if your doctor is ok with that and work up from there. Your doses are pretty small as some folks around here go over 100mg per day (although that is more of a rarity). For Dexedrine most settle in the 30-60mg per day range.

JYes I obviously know that the spansules are old mechanism waxy release.. not the Adderall XR release. Wow, why do you think I asked that question?

Yes I knew this also, in regards to the half/half dosing of the 15mg spansules. Spansules last 4-6 hours for most people?

I appreciate the dosing advice though. I'll let you know how the 15mg spansules go, as I just got a 2-week "trial" supply from my doctor for 15mg spansule, 5mg IR at night. Both by Barr Labs.

My doses are small because I'm not a speedfreak or amphetamine abuser. I have legit ADHD and my life has improved because of it at low doses for one reason: I'm not an amphetamine abuser.

The normal dose for dextroamphetamine is somewhere between 0.3 and 0.5mg/kg. No more than 1.0mg/kg should be needed and a higher amount makes neurotoxicity more likely. 60mg is the PDR maximum dose but it is quite rare to be prescribed this dose. When it comes to prescription amphetamines, less is more.

I personally find that the Spansules last about 10 hours. I work a physically active job, so that may have something to do with that. However, effects linger on afterwords (I don't feel sleepy as early anymore).

Spansules are smoother than regular Dex because there's less missing of the next dose, or taking it late or early because of real life constraints or demands on your time.

7.5mg is the lowest dosage possible for Dex, AFAIK. So your ADHD is either very moderate or your doctor is being very cautious.

Before I got my little pill box system going, I accidentally doubled up on my early 2x15mg dosages (forgetting I'd already taken them while I'm rushing around late for work as usual).
It didn't affect me adversely, but I do find with 30mgs for now. It's a simple experiment to just take a second tab in the morning to see how it works for you (you want to do it on the regular 4hr Dex, just in case), but talk about it with your doctor first.

If your Doctor is looking at a PDR, I wonder how qualified/experienced he is with treating ADHD.
The only times my Doctors ever checked was for pricing. Can you not get a referral to a shrink (or a specialist shrink or paediatric shrink) or neurosurgeon?
Yes, I know, one of the main reasons I wanted the spansules was so I don't feel the morning dose come off.

This is why my PSYCHIATRIST, who is old school, is going slow with my medications also. Because he wants to make sure I am doing alright at a dose. 5mg is the lowest dose btw, I'm surprised you didn't know that.

I'm a bit insulted here and I feel you have insulted my doctor's intelligence also. You guys think that because I'm taking a "low dose" (in your opinion) of Dexedrine that I don't have ADHD/a mild case of ADHD??

That is just something you pulled out of your ****. Seriously. Why would I need to see a paediatric shrink? I'm not a child. My doctor may not be the most up to date on psychostimulants/ADHD, but at least he gives ME the OPPERTUNITY to give him my opinions on how I should dose and he lets me do SOME of the research.

Most doctors won't even consider a second opinion from a PATIENT none the less.

Sorry for the derailing. I will let you know how 15mg spansule goes.. and if I have any more questions/problems if you guys can refrain from bringing up these rediculous statements it would be appreciated.

Thanks!

My doses are small because I'm not a speedfreak or amphetamine abuser. I have legit ADHD and my life has improved because of it at low doses for one reason: I'm not an amphetamine abuser.
er, wel neither am (or was) I an abuser - and I have legit ADD as well.
Nevertheless, I am on 50 mg. And it works fine.

Yes I knew this also, in regards to the half/half dosing of the 15mg spansules. Spansules last 4-6 hours for most people? Are you abusing your meds or are you a speedfreak?

We're not doctors here, so we can't really give you medical advice. The only thing we can do is share our experiences with you. If you search the site, you'll find that for most people the Spansules last anywhere between 4-8 hours, usually on the lower end. It's different for everyone, though, because everyone metabolizes the medication at different rates.

Spansules last around 6 hours for me. IRs 4.

Yes, I know, one of the main reasons I wanted the spansules was so I don't feel the morning dose come off.

This is why my PSYCHIATRIST, who is old school, is going slow with my medications also. Because he wants to make sure I am doing alright at a dose. 5mg is the lowest dose btw, I'm surprised you didn't know that.

I'm a bit insulted here and I feel you have insulted my doctor's intelligence also. You guys think that because I'm taking a "low dose" (in your opinion) of Dexedrine that I don't have ADHD/a mild case of ADHD??

That is just something you pulled out of your ****. Seriously. Why would I need to see a paediatric shrink? I'm not a child. My doctor may not be the most up to date on psychostimulants/ADHD, but at least he gives ME the OPPERTUNITY to give him my opinions on how I should dose and he lets me do SOME of the research.

Most doctors won't even consider a second opinion from a PATIENT none the less.

Sorry for the derailing. I will let you know how 15mg spansule goes.. and if I have any more questions/problems if you guys can refrain from bringing up these rediculous statements it would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Relax. Breathe. Words on the internet don't necessarily carry the intonation the author or the reader assume.

Paediatric psychiatrists deal with ADHD much more than adult psychiatrists. Most adult psychiatrists who have ADHD patients didn't have to make the diagnosis because that was done while the patient was a child, by the paediatric shrink.

Most doctors who have an adult practice are not experienced with ADHD. When a previously undiagnosed adult darkens his threshold saying "ADHD" the adult psychiatrist who does not have ADHD as a (sub)speciality will be doubtful. They assume that your ADHD should have been diagnosed much earlier. They don't want to give out "dangerous" or "addictive" drugs to the wrong people and have to worry if you are a drug seeker.

When they do decide to believe an adult, they still proceed cautiously. When my first doctor started me on Ritalin she was astounded that it made me sleepy and again doubted ADHD. She sent me for a consult with a child psychiatrist who is now my regular doctor. Now, in my 35 year, I see a child psychologist. Are you suggesting that I should feel infantilised? I don't. This is a doctor who is very familiar with my disorder and the drugs.
Consequently he was much more aggressive in finding the appropriate dosage than the adult shrink.

5mg is the lowest dose for regular dex-amp. For spansules, I believe 7.5mg is. Next up of the XL is 15mg, and no larger size cap is available in my area (and considering that you pay per tab instead of per mg, that makes it $100/mo for me).

My current dosage is 30mg in the AM, 15mg more at lunch of the spansules and repeated accidental doubling up of the initial morning dosages has not had a very noticeable affect on me and definitely not adverse. On these forums you will find people with doses of Dex as high as 100mg a day. So 5mg really is a conservative or baby dose. In a full sized adult I would suggest that it would probably be barely therapeutic for anyone with anything except the mildest level of ADHD. So 5mg may be barely noticeable and you might even move on from Dex before you even get to a dosage that could very well be perfect for you.

So please get past your hostility, no sleight was intended. But let me ask you, do you want take your import luxury sports car to your local "old school" general mechanic, or would you rather take it to a "new school" mechanic who can hook it up to the fancy computer and fine tune and tweak the finicky thing a lot faster?

I don't know about you, but I'd rather think of myself as a Bentley or Maserati rather than a Ford Festiva.

Do keep us up to date on your results. Good luck.

BTW:
Spansules last 10 hours for me.

So I got on a viable dosing schedule, 7.5mg morning, 7.5mg noon, 5mg night for Dexedrine IR.

Works nicely.

I found the spansules to be unpredictable in nature. Some days I take it and it lasts 12+ hours, other days I take it and it poops out within 8. It isn't very strong compared to instant release, and it seems that after the initial release of meds there is a definite valley between doses. If I were you I would give it a shot, and boost with your IR when the valley starts to take effect.

Overall the spansules are good, but a tad bit unpredictable in my experience.

Also, if you're getting spansules DO NOT get Barr generics. They absolutely suck.