How long Does Vyvanse Stay In Your System: Blood, Urine, Hair, and Saliva?

The Vyvanse could appear anywhere and you may have heard of this name before. Indeed, this is very commonly known in the medical field. But have you ever asked yourself what is Vyvanse? How does it affect your body? Or else, what is Vyvanse used for? This article is going to tell you all the necessary information about Vyvanse. And also, it is going to answer your question which leads you to click on this article: How long does Vyvanse stay in your system.

What is Vyvanse? What is Vyvanse used for?

In the medical field, Vyvanse represents for a medical drug using in treating ADHD (as known as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). Vyvanse is the brand name of lisdexamfetamine, a pharmaceutical substance labeled as a psychostimulant. Along with Adderall, Vyvanse is also used in treating BED (Binge Eating Disorder) and some other mental disorders [1].

What are the ingredients of Vyvanse?

The only ingredient of the Vyvanse is lisdexamfetamine, and lisdexamfetamine is only available as Vyvanse. So they are supposed to be the same thing no matter of the brand name or the scientific nomenclature. Many people also have asked: is Vyvanse an amphetamine? The answer is yes because lisdexamfetamine is an amphetamine salt.

So, after intaking the drug, your body will metabolize and convert the substance into amphetamine. The mechanism is also true with Adderall, which contains four different types of amphetamine salts. They seem to give similar effects, but unlike the Vyvanse, Adderall could have more potential side effect than the Vyvanse [1].

What is the difference between Adderall and Vyvanse?

In some studies, in which they compare the effectiveness between Vyvanse and Adderall to the CNS (Central Nervous System), Vyvanse proved itself to be as valuable as Adderall but it provided fewer side effects. The reason is supposed to be the ingredients they used to make Adderall and Vyvanse.

While the Vyvanse contains only one amphetamine salt (lisdexamfetamine), the Adderall contains four different types of amfetamine salts (which are salt isomers of amphetamine and dextroamphetamine), the chemical resonance of the four salts increases the effectiveness of the drug but it also increases the detrimental side effects [2].

Otherwise, because they are amphetamine salts, they provide all the effects of amphetamine, including the potential for abuse. The Vyvanse needs to transform to its active form to make the influence, while the Adderall directly affects the CNS. In other words, the Vyvanse has less potential for the addiction. In some neurologists’ concept, Vyvanse is considered as the successor of the Adderall because of its equivalent effects on CNS but fewer side effects [2].

How does Vyvanse work?

The basic model of ADHD is associated with functional impairment of the neurotransmitter systems. As soon as Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine) gets into the bloodstream, under catalyzation by the enzymes on red blood cells, it is converted into L-lysine and dextroamphetamine which is the active form of Vyvanse.

The substance is capable because it increases the activity in brain’s neurotransmitter systems by inducing the release of dopamine and norepinephrine at neurons’ terminal. These two released substances are neurotransmitters. They contribute to alertness, increasing capacity to focus, motivation and effort [3].

Furthermore, a large-scale study shows that approximately 80% patients with the symptoms of ADHD have improvements after being prescribed with Vyvanse. That study once again contributes to the hypothesis of the Vyvanse mechanism of action [4].

How long does Vyvanse take to work?

After taking the Vyvanse, we need time for it to degrade and to be absorbed. In some studies about Vyvanse pharmacokinetics, provide us information about the time the drug needs to work. The release and extended release variant of lisdexamfetamine reach the peak plasma concentrations range from 3 hours and 7 hours after taking. Averagely, the time answer for the question how long does Vyvanse take to work is about 3 to 5 hours after post-dose [5].

Discontinuation of Vyvanse

All the people who are prescribed with Vyvanse, at the end of the treatment, they could feel discomforts after stopping using the drug. Even the drug is legal in prescription, it is still an amphetamine. It addicts the patients from a mild addiction to severe addiction.

The discomforts could be lethargy, brain fog, and withdrawal symptoms such as hypersensitivity, irritability, sweating, insomnia, lack of appetite, etc. Such effects can make you wonder if there is any drug remains in your body. To determine how long does the Vyvanse stay in your system, before and after the discontinuation, it is necessary to understand the Vyvanse half-life time and where does it exist in your body.

How long does Vyvanse stay in your system?

Before answering the question how long does Vyvanse stay in your system, it is essential to understand the system. The substance appears anywhere in your body after being taken. But it concentrates mostly in the blood, urine, hair, and saliva. Based on this property of Vyvanse, they also provide Vyvanse test respectively, to answer how long does Vyvanse stay in your blood and how long does Vyvanse stay in your urine.

Previous information has shown that Vyvanse is metabolized to dextroamphetamine and L-lysine. While L-lysine is an acid amine and it is absorbed to be used in the biosynthesis of protein, the dextroamphetamine has the pharmaceutical effect on CNS. So the half-life time of Vyvanse elimination is the half-life time elimination of dextroamphetamine.

The time ranged from 9 to 11 hours; this means that the substance will diminish gradually, but it still stays in the body for about 2 to 2 and a half days before being eliminated entirely. Including the time for the body to absorb the Vyvanse and time to metabolize it, we can tell the Vyvanse last long three days maximum in conclusion.

The studies in half-life time elimination of the Vyvanse are used in Vyvanse test. In the blood test, Vyvanse lasts for 8-24 hours maximum, in urine test it lasts for about three days, in hair test it is over one month and in saliva test it is two days. As an amphetamine substance, the degradation of Vyvanse is affected by pH; an index number shows how acidic or basic the liquid is. For the Vyvanse, the liquids are the blood, the saliva, and of course the urine [6].

Vyvanse drug test

There are many names for the test such as Vyvanse drug test, Vyvanse drug screening, AMP, or toxicology urine screen. The most common Vyvanse drug test is urine screening test because it is convenient, it is cheaper than a blood test, it poses no complication and the time the drug stays in the urine is adequate to determine.

With the information about how long does Vyvanse stay in your system that we give you, it can be easily guessed that for the people who used this drug in the last three days, the result will be positive and a lab is going to confirm that.

For the blood test, the time Vyvanse lasts is less than the time in the urine. Plus, it requires a blood sample, and the patient needs to be injected, that can expose the patient to many risks. For such reason, it is not very usually used. Same as the test in the urine, the result will be positive within 24 hours after taking the drug. Consequently, it is very precious within 24 hours, but after that, the result provides very less.

Variable factors that may affect how long does Vyvanse stay in your system

Even though the normal time for Vyvanse clearance is about three days, there are a variety of factors that are necessary to consider because they may lengthen the clearance time. Most often factors need to be evaluated are individual factors, the frequency of use, dosage, and drug interactions.

How individual factors affect how long does Vyvanse stay in your system?

This varies from person to person. Some patients manifest the hyper-elimination of the drug, but some others excrete the drug very slowly. The individual factors include age, weight, liver function, renal function, genetic rates, Vyvanse metabolism, urinary and gastrointestinal pH.

Although there isn’t any study analyze the association between the absorption, distribution, metabolic rate of Vyvanse in people under and over 65 years old. But there is preliminary evidence that shows out the Vyvanse last longer in people over 65 years old. This may be due to the deficiency of the enzymes as well as a decrease in metabolic functionality. The factors involved for people over 65 are also underlying disorders, hypertension, slow of blood flow, and so on.

Otherwise, the primary and initial clearance of Vyvanse is made by the kidney. So as the renal function decreases as you get older, that is thought to be the main reason for the slow Vyvanse metabolism and excretion in elders.

The pharmacokinetics proves us the drug works on the cells. And the colonies of cells make the body. The more cells contribute to heavier weight. So undoubtedly, the weight also affects how long does Vyvanse stay in your system and your body. The larger dose and the lower body mass consequent in longer the time Vyvanse stay.

Indeed, the Vyvanse comes in capsules of 10mg, 20mg, 30mg, 40mg, 50mg, 60mg, 70mg. Although the doctors will give you the most appropriate dosage, due to individual factors, they need to adjust the dosage for every case. In a different circumstance, the clearance of Vyvanse will happen very fast with the same mechanism [7].

How gastrointestinal and urinary pH influence Vyvanse elimination?

We told you that Vyvanse after being metabolized turns into dextroamphetamine, which is a weak base. So the chemical activity of the substance is stimulated by the pH. The maximum time for Vyvanse urinary elimination is three days, that’s when the urine is very basic. But in the condition which the urine is very acidic, it means lower pH, the degradation happens very fast and can be as short as 16 hours (this means the half-time life is reduced to half, or the Vyvanse is eliminated faster).

In conclusion, the gastrointestinal and urinary pH make a significant influence on how long does Vyvanse stay in your system [8].

How dosage and frequency influence Vyvanse elimination?

It is apparently the more substantial the dose you take, the longer the time your kidney needs to excrete all the drug out. However, the kidneys have their limitation. The kidneys can work very well to excrete the amphetamine out of the body, but there are a certain number of filters in them.

So, if you take a massive dose, over than maximum dose of 70mg (this varies in different people), the kidneys even at their best can’t clear all the drug and it will be reabsorbed back into the bloodstream. Hence, it prolongs the time need for the elimination.

For the frequency, because the average half-life time of Vyvanse ranges from 8 hours to 3 days in different conditions, that means if the frequency to take the drug is too thick, or time between 2 times taking the drug is too close, the drug can accumulate in your body.

In other words, that literally means your body needs to eliminate a large amount of drug at a moment. This leads into a consequence same as taking a hefty dose. Thus prolongs the eliminating process.
Otherwise, Vyvanse also has interactions with other drugs. The interactions can affect considerably how long does Vyvanse stay in your system. Even it is prescribed by doctors, if you have any allergy, hypersensitivity or you are under other medical treatment, you should tell all the details to your doctor to avoid any unwanted consequences.

How do you take Vyvanse?

Vyvanse exists in capsules, so it’s very easy to drink. It gives you no uncomfortable taste, you can drink it with normal water. However, many people have a habit to drink the drug with juice or fruit, we do not recommend you to drink the drug with juice or take the capsule with food. The food or the juice may affect the absorption of the drug partially, so the effect may change due to interactions.

Last but not least, always check the expiry date of the capsules. Does Vyvanse expire? Yes, it does as many other drugs. Of course, you don’t want to drink an expired drug which provides many tremendously bad effects to your body.

What are the side effects of Vyvanse?

Vyvanse has a side effects list comparable to those drugs containing amphetamine because it is a pro-amphetamine. It works after transforming into dextroamphetamine. Because Vyvanse is a CNS oriented drugs and it has a high potential for abuse, the side effects of Vyvanse are divided into two groups physical and psychological [9].

Physical side effects of Vyvanse: At regular therapeutic doses, the Vyvanse is associated with some cardiovascular side effects such as hypertension or hypotension from the vasovagal response or Raynaud’s syndrome.

There are also sexual side effects such as erectile dysfunction or prolonged erections. The patients can also feel the abdominal pain, appetite loss, nausea and even weight loss. Other potential side effects include blurred vision, nosebleed, reduced seizure threshold, etc.

Otherwise, the drug stimulates the medullary respiratory centers in the brain. This stimulation results in faster and deeper breaths. For normal condition, this may not be noticeable, but if the state has already existed on the patient, this must be very carefully considered.

Plus, amphetamine induces the contraction of smooth muscle in the bladder which controls urination. That may consequent in difficulty urinating. This effect can be useful in loss of bladder control. The drug can also relieve the pain as an opioid and enhance a slight analgesic manifestation [9].

Psychological side effects of Vyvanse: Normal therapeutic dose for treating ADHD and BED doesn’t provide any side effects except increased alertness, apprehension, concentration, self-confidence, elevated mood and a reduced sense of fatigue as many other amphetamine drugs.

But it has a high potential for abuse, so the side effects are going to become evil for addicted people. They should be anxiety, irritability, obsessive behavior, restlessness, dizziness and may be hallucinations.

Likewise, because of amphetamine tolerance in addicted people and long-term patients, the normal dose will become deficient. Thus it creates entity consequence for mentality like in the withdrawal syndrome [10].

Vyvanse overdose

A Vyvanse overdose is considered as an amphetamine overdose. It can lead to many different symptoms, but it is scarcely fatal with appropriate care. The severity of the overdose symptoms augments with the dosage and descends with amphetamine tolerance. The amphetamine tolerance is the condition in which they demand a larger dose of the drug to get the same effect. This can also be affected by how long does Vyvanse stay in your system.

In particular, they recorded an individual who took as much as 5 grams of amphetamine a day, which is hardly 100 times the maximum therapeutic dose. While severe amphetamine poisoning usually involves convulsions and coma, mild and moderate amphetamine poisoning appears with different symptoms at different organic systems. Involved systems are the Cardiovascular system, Central Nervous System, Musculoskeletal system, Respiratory system, Urinary system.

In the cardiovascular system, mild and moderate amphetamine overdose manifests with abnormal heartbeat (tachycardia or bradycardia) with changes in blood pressure, while severe poisoning is fatal with cardiogenic shock, cerebral hemorrhage, circulatory collapse. With appropriate care and the use of antagonist drug, the death can be prevented.

In the CNS, the symptoms are less serious. They are appearances which affect reflexes of the body in both mentality and physical reflection such as abnormally fast reflexes, confusion, agitation, and tremor. The severe overdose can result in some syndrome like serotonin syndrome, delusions, and paranoia.

In other systems, the manifestations of mild and moderate poisoning are less noticeable but they are very precious in diagnosing and prognosis. They are a muscular pain, rapid breathing, painful urination or urinary retention. Contrary, the manifestations of severe poisoning are deadly in important systems like the respiratory system (e.g pulmonary edema can lead to a quick death), urinary system (acute kidney failure can cause the heart to stop beating) [10].

Such reasons make the curiosity of how long does Vyvanse stay in your system become essential and necessary for both the patients and the doctors to avoid overdose.

How to get Vyvanse out of your system?

One of Vyvanse side effects is increased alertness. Additionally, this can cause insomnia or hard to sleep if you take the pill in the evening. Because the drug is going to be entirely activated and remain in your body for a couple of hours, you will want to know how to accelerate the natural elimination of the drug.

Here are some ideas we give you to answer the question: How to get Vyvanse out of your system.

Drinking more water: The drug is eliminated mainly by the kidney and it is excreted in the urine. So if you intake a larger amount of water than usual, this will increase the amount of urine and increase the filtering capacity of the kidneys. Thus, this leads to a faster Vyvanse metabolism and quicker elimination of the drug.

Eating acidic fruits: As we analyzed, the amphetamine is metabolized and excreted faster in low pH, which means the acidic ambiance. The normal pH of the stomach is from 1.5 to 3.5 depends on how much stomach fluid is appearing. The feedback transmission of your body when you are eating stimulates the stomach to produce more hydrochloric acid or the fluid.

Noticeably, eating acidic fruits, such as grapefruit or oranges (the acidic fruits normally appear with sour taste) will initiate the signal faster than other food. Furthermore, the acidic fruits also support the amphetamine absorption [11].

Doing a short workout: The physical activity improves the cardiovascular health. While you are doing an exercise, your heartbeat increases, your blood pressure increases. These improve the blood flow in your body. Because amphetamine is transferred in the blood, doing exercise also enhances the amphetamine flow.

As the flow goes faster, the elimination happens faster. Otherwise, a workout also elevates the metabolic rate of your body. As a consequence, the drug is metabolized faster and it is also degraded faster.

Don’t take the double dose: Can you take Vyvanse twice a day? In case you forget to take the pill the day before, some people naively think that they just need to drink both daily dose and the dose before to compensate the incomplete treatment. This is a common misunderstanding that leads to a Vyvanse accumulation and prolonged elimination time and that may lead to Vyvanse poisoning condition.

If you forget to get the pill in time, just start doing it again. You will not need to find the solution for How to get Vyvanse out of your system or How long does Vyvanse stay in your system.

Bottom line

Vyvanse, while widely used, with high potential for abuse, is dangerous if you do not know enough about the drug. Hopefully, all the information here regarding how long does Vyvanse stay in your system along with information about the drug and its side effects, and information on how to get Vyvanse out of your system can help you understand various values of the drug.

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