I was just diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 40. However, I have known my whole life that I had it. I'm excited to finally be doing something about it. My Dr. prescribed VyVanse. Does anyone know if there is a better med. for just ADD not ADHD?

Thank you.

Just out of curiosity, what would you list as your primary challenges?

What behaviors do you want to address - or what are your most significant symptoms?

I had difficulty in school since 1st grade if not before. I lived in a small town and I don't think there were resources then for ADD. The reason why I decided at the age of 40 to deal with it is because I'm having a very difficult time focusing while trying to help my children with homework etc. I decided when this no longer just affects me it's time to address it and I'm so glad I am. My most significant symptoms/challenges are lack of focus(can't read a book), fatigue, difficult time with house work, finances, finishing anything etc. I appreciate any input. It's odd to me that I would be taking a drug for hyperactivity when I'm anything but hyper.

Can you keep your attention on the words being spoken when someone is speaking?

Do you also feel an urge (or ugres) to start new projects?

In terms of housework, do you create disorder (take things out but don't put them away) or is it more that you can't keep up?

In terms of finances, do you just loose track (bills late or lost, checking account balance unknown) or do you also spend without thinking?

In terms of not finishing things, do you go from thing to thing or do you just avoid the things you need to do and then do the things you want to do?

Are you fatigued all day, or just in the morning?
Do you sleep long hours (or would if you could)?
Do you feel tired just because you wear yourself out in your own head?

I'd have to assume that as long as you were fully disclosed your condition to your doctor, then he has put you on what he believes is best for your characteristics. Along with that, knowing your medical history, he has prescribed what he believes will have the least amount of side effects for you. But remember, it's kind of a trial and error thing because everyone responds differently to medication. Dosage needs to be tweaked and may possibly need to be switched to a different type. This is the doc's job to make the best determination as to what he thinks would work best for you with the least amount of side-effects. If it doesn't work or you can't handle the side effects, let him know.

But, in my opinion that's not what you are asking. It's why would you be put on a stimulant used to treat hyperactives when you are not. Plain and simple, it stimulates the brain causing you to be able to focus better. Generally speaking, Adderall and Vyanase (both dextroamphetamine stimulant based) are the most common prescribed for inattentive as it can help with the commonly associated low energy levels and lack of alertness in ADD inattentive. This is due to the norepinephrine nuerotransmitter. Adderall, Vyanase, and Strattera all increase norepinephrine levels. Strattera is a newer non stimulant med that only focuses on norepinephrine levels, but doesn't have as high of a success rate as the other stimulants and still has side effects (although different from stimulant-based meds).

Hope this helps some. I'd suggest to continue to read through the medication forums and also pick up a book on ADD. It will help you to understand things better. I'm in my mid 30's and was just recently diagnosed and like you have had it all my life. You will find it refreshing to read up on ADD as it will help explain a lot of things about your life to you and all of the pieces will start to fit together.

wow, Bill thanks for the great info. that explains a lot. I've been reading Healing ADD by D. Amen. So far it has been very helpful and informative. May I ask what you take and if you are happy with it? Unfortunately, I feel I know more about ADD than my GP(and that is not much). My psychologist diagnosed me then I went to my regular GP for the Rx.
Howard, to answers your questions. I am or do all of them except I'm not sure about the last one.

Can you keep your attention on the words being spoken when someone is speaking?

Do you also feel an urge (or ugres) to start new projects?

In terms of housework, do you create disorder (take things out but don't put them away) or is it more that you can't keep up?

In terms of finances, do you just loose track (bills late or lost, checking account balance unknown) or do you also spend without thinking?

In terms of not finishing things, do you go from thing to thing or do you just avoid the things you need to do and then do the things you want to do?

Are you fatigued all day, or just in the morning?
Do you sleep long hours (or would if you could)?
Do you feel tired just because you wear yourself out in your own head?

Howard, I'm curious. Is there a distinction inferred with the either/or nature of some questions?

Sorry to go on and on with the questions. I got carried away there.:o

Sometimes its good to start with Dexedrine IR (immediate acting, short term). That way you can get a more or less immediate reaction. You can also start at a very low dose and increase it as necessary in an exploratory manner. With the time release medications its a bit more difficult as you lack some of that flexibility.

Still, starting with a long acting formulation isn't a mistake, it may work very well for you.

Dexedrine is the active CNS stimulant in Vyvanse but its processed a bit differently so that its released over time after you ingest it. For some people it works very well, but for some the time delay mechanism / assimilation process can apparently have some unpleasant effects - side effects that aren't the same as those found with Dexedrine itself.

Vyvanse, Dexedrine and Adderall generally give people more focus and energy, just speaking generally and with regard to Inattentive ADD. In some cases what happens is that the multiple voices we may have inside drop off and its easier to move forward without being distracted. The extra energy can give someone the ability to stay on a task longer.

Strattera can work well for Inattentive ADD also. It can help people with focus and attentiveness also.

Personally, I found that stimulants helped, but not in the most important ways (for me). I had energy and the ability to focus, but not much additional ability in terms of planning or thinking ahead. I didn't improve in terms of attending to priorities or managing my time overall. In a sense I was able to procrastinate more enthusiastically. Some times that may be called hyper-focus...where you can locked into one task for a long time. But I had difficulty pulling myself away from some activities even when I wanted to.

So I'm giving Strattera a trial. After just a few days I think it works much better for me. I seem more interested in "getting things done" and better able to work on the things that I want to do but would ordinarily put off till later. But it is still too soon for me to fully evaluate it.

Whatever medications you try, remember it is always best to start at a low dose and to slowly increase it if necessary to try to achieve positive results. There are generally some side effects with any of these drugs but usually they are mild and temporary. Still, larger initial doses will make them more apparent and could cause some possibly avoidable discomfort.

Good luck. Keep us posted !

Howard, I'm curious. Is there a distinction inferred with the either/or nature of some questions?


Well, yes, but it was mostly my own curiosity or my own inference.

We use general terms - "distracted", "can't focus", even "procrastinate" and I wonder if there aren't often somewhat different things going on within different people, even though they (we) may use identical terminology.

Generally when use those phrases without some clarification we're actually describing almost the outside view, but not the mechanism (how it happens).

I'm not saying we need to do that all the time - to be more specific - but its interesting to get an idea what the actual patterns of thought are.

I think that there are several different "manifestations" of even inattentive ADD and I was just been trying to see if I could get a better idea of what her mix of characteristics were.

****

But really, it was a bit beyond the scope of the question she posted.

wow, Bill thanks for the great info. that explains a lot. I've been reading Healing ADD by D. Amen. So far it has been very helpful and informative. May I ask what you take and if you are happy with it? Unfortunately, I feel I know more about ADD than my GP(and that is not much). My psychologist diagnosed me then I went to my regular GP for the Rx.
Howard, to answers your questions. I am or do all of them except I'm not sure about the last one.

I'm currently on Adderall and I am happy with it, but everyone is unique. My doctor explained that he would try me on it and we'd see how it worked. He said that it would be a good indication of how well I responded to stimulants. He also stated that although there are many different types of stimulants, they basically act the same. If I responded well and I was happy with the results than he'd stop there. If I responded for the most part well, but there were timing issues (how long it lasts, etc) or other smaller issues then we would consider other brands/types of stimulants. If I didn't respond well at all, than he would consider other alternatives other than stimulants. I'd have to say that albeit a few minor side effects, I'm quite happy with it. In fact it's actually been life changing for me and in a good way. My only complaint so far is that it doesn't last long enough and it doesn't seem to be as effective as when I started, but I'll address that with him at my next visit (this week).

I'm on dexedrine and strattera, although I'm mostly lazy and just take the dex. I do find I need both if I'm doing something that requires my full attention, like if I'm in school. Right now being at work I'm ok with just the dex.

I've been on 30mg of VyVance for 5 days. I felt it a little the first few days and now not much of anything. Is it too early to ask Dr. to increase dosage?

I'd let him know. My DD's p-doc said to wait a week and then he'd adjust as needed. I called him in three days to up the dose. He did with no questions. My doc was even more relaxed about it. He said to call him anytime and let him know how it was working. Every doc is different, but if you think it needs adjusting, call him! If he gave you antibiotics and you felt better for a day, but got worse again you'd call him then wouldn't you? I don't see the difference. What's the worse he can do? Say try it for a while longer?

When you say felt it a little, describe felt.

I actually didn't like it at all the first day, but convinced myself to stay on it to see if it got better. It did in short time. I've been on it for a little bit now and don't feel it like I did, so I'll be calling to see what he wants to do. I'm assuming a mild increase.

On a side note... "Bill Compton." Is that out of a book or am I imagining things? Hm. It sounds really familiar!

On a side note... "Bill Compton." Is that out of a book or am I imagining things? Hm. It sounds really familiar!

:D Sorry for the distraction... It's the name of a vampire in True Blood based on the Southern Vampire Series.