ADHD

I'm lisdexamfetamine (Vyvanse, but more recently switched to the generic version of it) and my son is on methylphenidate (Concerta). So I occasionally take Concerta just out of curiosity and because I've been contemplating switching to Concerta myself. For me, both feel very similar and I wouldn't be able to know which one I took if I was given one at random. The effects from other factors such as sleep, diet, etc. are more significant than the kind of med I'm taking.

I'm over there waiting for lisdexamfetamine to be allowed in my country because methylphenidate is not enough to help me out of work :/

I was on atomoxetine before it suddenly stopped working, then on methylphenidate which only fucked me up and then on lysdexamfetamine which worked best. I have been off medication for a few years now.

If it's not a hassle to switch, then it would be worth trying. Everyone is different in how they react to things, and it's okay to try a few just to see if you like one better

I really preferred vyvanse to other stimulants, because I didn't crash as soon as it wore off. But I struggled with how long it lasted in a day, and kept going back to Adderall because that was easier to control

You didn't ask this, but I'm on clonidine now and it's everything I wanted out of an ADHD med plus it helps with anxiety. And, I can have coffee again without feeling like my heart is going to fly away lol. Just mentioning that to point back to my first paragraph, what works for me might not work for the next person and vice versa

I switched from Adderall to Ritalin recently and its been interesting. Also in the possible AuDHD camp, but ive never had vyvanse.

Generally speaking, Ritalin has been better at clearing out the "background noise" but not as good at the motivating to do a task. Tbh, I'm OK with that because I often found myself hyperfixating on the wrong things on Adderall. Worth noting that I'm also on am SNRI (venlafaxine) for anxiety/depression and migraines, so that likely has some bearing on how each works for me. It wasn't as drastic a change as I thought it'd be tbh. Just different. I hesitated trying it out for a while but I was ovrrthinking it. At least for now I think Ritalin is better for me, but I don't think Adderall is out of the question in the future.

While I never found coffee and adderall throughout the day to be that weird, i did need to watch it or I'd be jittery. I don't think I've ever felt like I overdid it with coffee and Ritalin. I'm a coffee fiend so that's been a positive for me.

I also have felt like adderall may have been masking how depressed I was for a while. I often felt like it'd just nuke the things that were bothering me until it wore off. Ritalin doesn't seem to do that. Don't get me wrong, that's a good thing since its forced me to actually internalize and start processing it while Adderall may have been kicking the can down the road more than I thought, and it is known more for the emotional changes than Ritalin is. I suspect this also has something to do with the alexythymia component of ASD, which adds some points to the notion Ritalin may be better for AuDHD.

I have no experience with the first but I think to me it would be worth it just to get the media that works okay currently covered. To my mind the only thing to loose is time spent on the meds that currently help, and energy evaluating a new thing

Honestly, you ought to try it and see what happens, especially if you can always go back. It’s dependent on the person, so take this with a grain of salt: vyvanse, for me, was like rocket fuel that burned me out by 5pm. It worked mostly well and I only switched because of shortages. Methylphenidate was workable, but ultimately not able to sustain focus like the vyvanse was (this was between both concerta and Ritalin). Also, different dosages of vyvanse might do different things. Be careful of chasing higher doses, though, because that likely means it’s not working as it should.

I just had to switch from Vyvanse to Adderall XR because the only pharmacy in my area that didn't have a backorder closed. It's only been a couple weeks but I greatly prefer the Vyvanse, however the Adderall is better than being unmedicated. Adderall isn't as "smooth" and it gave me a tummy ache and caused headaches due to inadequate hydration. Since I figured out the hydration issue the headaches haven't been a problem and I think the tummy ache was just due my old guts getting acclimated to a new medication.

All that said, I am in a similar boat financially, my insurance wasn't paying for the Vyvanse so I ended up using my entire HSA contribution every month, and the Adderall is $20.