The number of middle-aged women being prescribed ADHD drugs has soared by 40 per cent over the past year, data shows.
Some 427,000 people in total were prescribed drugs to treat ADHD last year in England, increasing by 31 per cent, according to the latest data published by the NHS.
But as more people receive an ADHD diagnosis later in life, some of the sharpest increases in prescription numbers can be seen in adults.
Some 267,000 patients aged 18 and over were prescribed ADHD medication, an increase of 40 per cent in comparison to 190,000 in 2024.
And the women aged 55 to 59 group also increased by about 40 per cent, with 4,107 patients prescribed ADHD drugs last year. There were similar figures among women aged 50 to 54.
Consultant psychiatrist Dr Stefan Ivantu told The Independent: “The rise in middle-aged women seeking assessments reflects a long-overdue recognition of female ADHD presentation and a welcome reduction in stigma.”
While 59,111 boys aged 10 to 14 years were given a prescription in 2025, making them the largest group, huge increases can be seen in women and girls across all ages.
Some 18,912 girls aged 15 to 19 years were prescribed medication in 2024, but last year that figure jumped by more than 5,000 patients.
About 2.5 million people in England have ADHD, according to the NHS, but many are undiagnosed. Symptoms can present differently between men and women.
While boys often show “hyperactive” symptoms, women frequently present with inattentiveness, anxiety and disorganisation. Research has suggested that such gender-related socialisation has since led to a generation being overlooked in childhood, only to seek diagnoses later as adults.
“A sharp surge in prescriptions makes clinical quality more vital than ever,” Dr Ivantu added.
“We must carefully rule out physical and metabolic factors, such as thyroid issues or perimenopause, which often mimic cognitive fatigue, while identifying co-existing conditions like burnout or anxiety.
“While medication can be transformative, it is rarely a standalone fix. In a world of constant technological distraction and modern life pressures, long-term wellbeing demands pairing precise medical care with lifestyle changes, tech boundaries, and healthy routines.”
But this increase in awareness comes as more than 800,000 people are awaiting a referral for an ADHD assessment, according to NHS data.
Henry Shelford, chief executive of the charity ADHD UK, told The Independent: “We have a huge healthcare gap for ADHD treatment, and reducing that in a meaningful way is important.
“ADHD was only formally recognised by the NHS via Nice for children in the year 2000 and for adults in the year 2008. So for people wondering why there are a whole load of middle-aged people, including me, coming forward for a diagnosis and treatment, it is because we didn’t have a chance of being picked up as kids. We'’re now having a conversation about ADHD; people are recognising it in themselves and coming forward for help.”
Dr Elena Touroni, a consultant psychologist and co-founder of the Chelsea Psychology Clinic, explained many women have watched their children receive a diagnosis and recognised themselves in the description.
“What we see at the clinic is a rising number of women in their forties and fifties arriving because something they have been struggling with for years finally has a name,” she said.
“Many have been compensating for decades, holding their lives together through considerable effort and intelligence. We call this masking – the conscious and unconscious effort to appear on top of things when the internal experience is quite different. It takes an enormous amount of energy to sustain, and it rarely comes without anxiety.”
An NHS spokesperson said: “We know we need to do more to improve care for people with ADHD, which is why the NHS commissioned an ADHD taskforce to look at a range of issues including trends in diagnosis and the right balance between therapeutic approaches and medication.
“In line with recommendations from the taskforce, we are starting to redesign local services, transform support and bring down waiting times.”
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