My son just started vyvanse for ADHD, this is the fourth medication?

He has been on concerta, focalin and adderall, what can I expect with vyvanse? I read the side effects and the y are pretty much the same as the others. His doctor said there is a difference in the delivery of the medication. Today was his first day and he seemed more aggressive than normal. Any suggetions?

honey -

As I understand it (and I am still learning myself), Vyvanse is a prodrug. There is something about the way the drug is activated and released in the body ONLY after it is ingested. That is one difference. Another difference is that it is supposed to last longer throughout the day.

Medications tend to vary these days in a certain # of ways

1. Stimulant vs. Non-stimulant
2. Length of effectiveness

Side-effects can be the same as others simply because these medications are targeting the same receptors or chemicals in the brain (not a medical doctor - so not my expertise).

I would absolutely suggest you watch your son closely and give it a few weeks. It's hard to judge the results of a medication in a short time.

I hope this helps.

Dr. Rory Stern
http://www.thetruthbehindadhd.com/tips.h...

Keep on it for a few weeks and see how it goes. You have to remember, every medication is different in the mix, delivery, etc. It's just like Ibuprophen vs. aleve, does the same thing but one doesn't work for one person but does for another. You've got to allow his body to try it. It's like any prescription medication, it takes time to adjust to and it's all trial and error to find the correct Rx.

Ritalin worked for me, nothing else did and believe me, it took 6 meds to figure that out lol.

I don't know if it will work for him, but check into straterra. I'm on it^_^. I was on Concerta, once, it made me feel"happy" but I was way too agressive(lol, I got into more fights than did since high school on that stuff) I asked to be taken off it as soon as I could. the straterra seems to even my moods out more. He could just be "acting out" because he knows he can get away with it though. I do it sometimes, just because people expect some acting out by people with ADHD,lol.

I would give it a few weeks...his body has to adjust to it, and not having his last med in his system. My son is on his 4th medication too (maybe 5th). He has done adderall, strattera, daytrana patch, and now vyvanse. I think with the strattera we tried to add concerta, but he cannot swallow a pill. I liked the patch the best but it caused him to have major tics.

my daughter takes Metadate cd for about a year now and other then having to increase the dose after the first couple of months their have been no problems