ADHD meds not working anymore?

[ijack]

Has anyone had this issue before?
I was diagnosed about 4 years ago and because I was nursing I started meds about 3.5 years ago. Started with 10mg adderall and it was magic from the beginning. Could focus, *noise* in my head was gone, concentration was much better, it was awesome. After taking it for about 2 years it shopped working as well (doctors seem to be split on if your body gets "used" to it after a period of time or not) so we went up to 20mg and it never really worked as well. Since then I've had some health issues that had me going off all my meds completely for a while (I also have depression and anxiety) and starting over. We've been trying to find a med for me since July and nothing is working and I'm starting to get really frustrated. So far we've tried
Adderall XR 10mg - not enough
Adderall XR 15mg - I crash horribly in the afternoon, get crazy tired and a debilitating headache
Vyvanse (various doses from 5-30mg) - gives me horrible anxiety
Focalin (various doses from 5-30mg) - does nothing for me
Ritalin 10mg - may be working okay but not great, I do think it makes me more anxious

I don't know what I'm looking for here, advice maybe? I think I'd be less frustrated if I hadn't been able to control it before, but adderall used to work great and now nothing is working and it's annoying. I feel so confused and forgetful most of the time. I'm not talking about forgetting a few things, but big things like totally forgetting to pick DD up at school or missing deadlines at work. I can't function like this.

[hopecounts]

Have you tried a non-stimulant med?
Your chemistry may not be responding to the stimulant options as well anymore.
It's worth trying a non-stimulant.

[Ohhmm(bligo)]

I was on Adderall for a few years and it stopped working. I just started on Ritalin a few months ago, and am doing decent, but not as great as I was on Adderall.
It might work better if I would remember to take my meds regularly. Stupid ADHD.

[ijack]

Jan 11, 2016 12:38:37 GMT -5 hopecounts said:

Have you tried a non-stimulant med?
Your chemistry may not be responding to the stimulant options as well anymore.
It's worth trying a non-stimulant.

We've discussed trying strattera next. We've also discussed intuiv, but he said that he has a hard time getting insurance companies to approve it since it's usually just for kids :/

[ijack]

Jan 11, 2016 12:40:02 GMT -5 Ohhmm(bligo) said:

I was on Adderall for a few years and it stopped working. I just started on Ritalin a few months ago, and am doing decent, but not as great as I was on Adderall.
It might work better if I would remember to take my meds regularly. Stupid ADHD.

I'm sorry you're experiencing this too

[spindle92]

I am in the same boat as you and it sucks.

I was on concerta for a few years and it was the magic drug for me, until my body started getting too used to it and it stopped working. We have tried a few different drugs with not much success. I am currently on Ritalin too and it is OK, no nearly as good as Concerta was for me but better than the others I have tried. I think at my next appointment I am going to ask to increase the dose and see if that helps at all.

[ijack]

Jan 11, 2016 13:42:12 GMT -5 luschek said:

Are you on an AD? I'm on Lexapro and just talked to my psych Friday because I want to go back on Adderall. He suggested Wellbutrin instead, as a compliment to Lexapro. Something about how Wellbutrin makes the other AD work better ersumshit. I wasn't happy but I'm trying it. We'll see.

I am. I'm currently on cymbalta but was on effexor and wellbutrin last year when they started working. It may be worth a shot to try again though.

[degal99]

When I was having trouble with the afternoon crash on 20mg XR Adderall my doc added 5mg regular Adderall to take around 3. It's nice because I don't feel like it's always needed but I have it when I do. Plus it's "fast acting" so it doesn't interfere with sleep as it's worn off by then.

[bugandbibs]

Not a doctor, but....

My DD1 takes 30 mg of Adderall XR, so a higher dose may help. She also had success with 20 mg Adderall XR and a short acting dose in the afternoon. She doesn't like taking meds at school, but obviously that wouldn't be an issue for you, lol.

How long are you giving different meds a chance to work? Some of them take 4 weeks or so to have full effect. I would try other meds, but maybe increase doses over the course of a month to see if you can find your sweet spot.

[ijack]

Jan 11, 2016 14:49:16 GMT -5 bugandbibs said:

Not a doctor, but....

My DD1 takes 30 mg of Adderall XR, so a higher dose may help. She also had success with 20 mg Adderall XR and a short acting dose in the afternoon. She doesn't like taking meds at school, but obviously that wouldn't be an issue for you, lol.

How long are you giving different meds a chance to work? Some of them take 4 weeks or so to have full effect. I would try other meds, but maybe increase doses over the course of a month to see if you can find your sweet spot.

With adderall if I get above 15mg I can tell it's too high of a dose. I get shaky and my mind races and it's just way too much. 15mg seems to be an ok dose as far as controlling my adhd (though not like 10mg used to be) but I crash and it's not worth the crash for me.
I didn't realize that stimulants could take that long to have a full effect, I always thought they were an immediate kind of thing. My doc usually has me increase my dose every 3 days because I've been on stimulants for so long and know how I feel on them.