I can only speak of Vyvanse, but generally I have to agree with what you describe. Yes, stimulants are addicting and have potential for abuse, but so does sugar, caffeine and nicotine.

But if the meds work as intended, they will also keep you more lucid in your decision making, which lets you have more control over your behavior. Short: Treat the meds like e.g. sugar or caffeine, stay at a constant dose, tweak it slowly and do some breaks in between to check your dependence and reset tolerance.

Yes, it’s so common. Yes, it’s normal. The meds work amazing, and I’m miserable when they wear off because I lose that lucidity and control that they grant.

As long as you trust yourself to be responsible, I wouldn’t worry.

Possibly relevant, methylphenidate had the weakest efficacy of the stimulants I have taken, (me and my health team have tried 'em all), maybe talk to your doctor about an extended release amphetamine, if it doesn’t work as good for your chemistry or you’re still worried a good doctor will switch you back to what works best.

Yep, when you have life with a major block and then experience a significant reduction in it you will definitely feel the pull to have even less. There is a sweet spot for meds and it can be different than you initially think.

I find that having my morning dose of 40mg Ritalin LA and my afternoon dose of 20mg Ritalin standard release works really well, but if I am just doing stuff like dinner and hanging out I may actually split that 20mg dose into two sequential 10mg doses a couple of hours apart. That gives me relief from some of the sensory issues for much more time but doesn’t give me as much help with the motivation and activity level stuff.

So for you it may be worth considering an adjunct of lower dose Ritalin for after the big dose wears off, obviously depending on how it worka for you. I would recommend speaking to your prescribing doctor about trying a few different dose schedules for their recommendations, and really to use the language of testing so they understand you mean to experiment within safe bounds to understand how it works best. That means the same overall dose but tweaking the delivery timing and measuring the outcome.

Some psychiatrists will be uncomfortable with this. Some may be reluctant to have you try things and experiment. Some may think you are heading towards abuse. For that reason I would also recommend saying you want to optimise the dose you currently have, not increase, and also be open to other things like modafinil or similar non-stimulant meds.

Also, consider non-medication interventions. A great one is hard, heavy exercise, for example powerlifting. You burn a bunch of calories in a short time and release some of the body tension that builds over time and eventually causes issues. I find that lifting heavy things helps settle me and makes the next 3-5 days way better. Cardio never does the same for me, but maybe it would work for you.

I’m not a doctor. You absolutely should speak with your prescribing psychiatrist as soon as you can about your concerns.

Most everything sounds normal outside of the euphoria. I’m not a doctor, but from my understanding of reading adhd studies, people with adhd usually don’t experience euphoria when taking stimulants, especially compared to neurotypicals. And people with adhd also experience a lower risk of addiction when specifically on stimulant medication. However, I think it’s important to point out that while these things are statistically unlikely, they are not impossible, nor should this be ignored. If you are concerned, that’s reason enough to bring it up with your doctor sooner rather than later. Before you jump ship entirely on stimulants, I would consider an extended release, as stimulant medication is extremely effective for adhd. However, again, I’m not a doctor, and I would defer to your psychiatrist’s advice.

Since you did ask about experience, I don’t think I’ve ever experienced a euphoric reaction to stimulant medication myself, especially not methylphenidate. I currently take vyvanse and it does elevate my mood, but more in the sense of clarity rather than euphoria. I’ve never experienced a craving for medication, and have forgotten to take my stimulant medication multiple times. I have wanted to take more of my stimulants than prescribed before, not because they make me feel good, but more out of desperation to continue being able to do things. That’s about what I can think of for my own experience.

When I first started taking Vyvanse (lisdexamphetamine) I felt similar. Most of the effects were positive. One of the not so great ones was that it kind of removed my verbal “restraint”, since I felt much more confident and much less anxious. For a while I had to keep a mental check on that that. For instance, if someone at work says something really stupid, I couldn’t just says, “That’s a really dumb ass idea.” Even though that’s what I felt like saying.

Eventually my brain acclimated to the meds and everything leveled out. I’ve been taking the max dosage for years with no issues.

Yes, they do that, but they are addictive with high potential for abuse.

Advise with your doctor aboit raising the dosage but do not let yourself pass 60mg daily total without explicit instructions from a doctor.

I’ve never felt a craving before and I’m on a relatively high dose of 54 mg extended release methylphenidate once a day. I did experience something kind of like a craving before though, when my dosage was too low early in treatment. Like it would work well initially and then I would feel the effects wearing off sooner than I would like, which made me want to take more because I had so much of my day left. It was frustrating more than a craving, but that went away after I got my dosage increased.

I think so. It basically makes me feel like when i drink, which is when i feel the most calm confident and focused.

I don’t really like having to take it all the time though. And it stifles creativity which is a little freaky. I haven’t had any for a while becuase I have to call my doctor every month to get it and its embarrassing. And its more expensive than ever now. Plus I can’t have much coffee with it or I get way too amped.

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