[yaomingite]

> Anecdotally, I've seen this a lot with adults with undiagnosed ADHD (including myself until 26). Caffeine can be a (very shitty) alternative to proper stimulant medication that people don't realise they actually need because of a medical issue. So the end up drinking 4-5 coffees a day instead.

ADHD medication is among the hardest to get in the first place, and to maintain in many places.

I was diagnosed as a child, and still couldn't get regular medication until 3 years ago (I'm 37 now). Doctors will try to push off-label treatments, often SSRIs, which do nothing for ADHD. They will push people to try ineffective talk therapy and describe actual medication as "only a last resort".

My cousin can't get it because his insurance says you only have ADHD if you were diagnosed as a child, and he spent his childhood in another country where the roads were barely maintained.

ADHD meds reduce the chances someone will abuse drugs according to research, but many docs will cancel prescriptions if you are honest about cannabis use.

In the wake of the opiate scandal new restrictions also place limits on how much a pharmacy can dispense, even if everyone has a valid prescription. That's part of the reason for the medication shortages in some areas.

It's been a miracle medication for me, but if you don't have money and luck it can be next to impossible to find someone to help you. Those that do often require thousands in fees.

[jijijijij]

To add: At least for methylphenidate, there are several studies showing neuronal long term improvements, "brain normalisation", in people with ADHD. That's rare in psychopharmacology...

I do understand hesitation about immediate release amphetamine, but the retarded formulations are also quite hard to abuse. If you do more than prescribed, you won't get high, you will have a bad time. "Getting high", requires a sudden onset, rush, and sharp peak, which retarded meds won't induce.

Denying people with ADHD to try stims, is really, really unethical considering our knowledge on their effectiveness treating the condition.

[MadcapJake]

Especially considering how difficult it often is for ADHD people to follow through on subsequent visits.

[N1H1L]

ADHD is also very strongly linked to cigarette smoking, by the way. What I mean is that nicotine is a form of self-medication