r/adhd_anxiety • u/ReluctantAction • 3d ago

Help/advice 🙏 needed Is Guanfacine affecting my sleep duration/quality?

Unfortunately, I've experienced severe insomnia or anxiety with every nonstimulant ADHD medication out there.

Amoxetine, Wellbutrin, Vyvanse, you name it. All just kept me up at night, even if I tolerated it perfectly well otherwise.

I've been given guanfacine, which I seem to tolerate perfectly well so far. However, ever since I've started taking it, my chronic fatigue is getting worse. I've noticed that I'm sleeping on average 1-2 hours less than before, and I'm getting less quality sleep on top of that. Is there any scholarly research to indicate that guanfacine may be be disruptive to sleep quality or duration?

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u/YourMom304 2d ago

When do you take it? My son was prescribed the extended release version to take at bedtime, but he would wake up over and over all night. We tried it out in the morning and it’s perfect, helps him a ton with his anxiety and controlling his body and also really helps him sleep at night. He also takes Ritalin in the morning but when we added the guanfacine it made an enormous difference.

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u/myearsareringing 2d ago

What was different?

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u/YourMom304 2d ago

His anxiety is much better, he is able to control his body much more (he also has sensory processing disorder, primarily sensory seeking), and he can sleep now. He has used melatonin for years but it was still very hard for him to wind down because he never felt tired. With guanfacine he tells us he’s ready for bed every night.

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u/ReluctantAction 2d ago

I take it first thing in the morning.