- Written by Daniel O’Donoghue & Scott Hesketh
- BBC North West Investigation Team
Jas Teti hasn’t taken any medication in over six months.
“Taking the medication made my brain quiet for the first time. It was amazing. I cried with so much happiness,” says the woman whose life has changed since being diagnosed with ADHD just a year ago. Jas Sethi told the BBC North West investigation.
But Jas, 34,’s joy didn’t last long. That’s because, like more than 150,000 other people living with the disease and dependent on medicines, Jas is affected by the UK-wide drug shortage that began in September.
Jas, who lives in Levenshulme, Greater Manchester, said: “When the drug shortage started I had to go back to my boring daily life…I had to make a decision to change things and I’ve never been able to… I had to quit the job I was doing,” he said.
The charity ADHD UK said the availability of medicines had “significantly reduced”, with just 11% of people taking their regular prescriptions in January, down from 52% in September.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said the shortage was due to increased global demand and manufacturing issues.
Jas, a former charity worker, has been without a prescription for six months and told the BBC that the prescription made his condition worse. fibromyalgiaa long-term condition that causes pain throughout her body.
“Not being able to take my ADHD medication means not being able to sleep,” she says. “It means my anxiety gets even worse and my pain gets worse. Unfortunately, there’s not much I can do because there’s only so much they can do about my pain.
“I didn’t have many options at the moment, so I had to make a big life-changing decision and quit a job I enjoyed.”
Dr Morgan Torian has warned that people can “literally collapse” if they suddenly stop taking their medication.
Dr Morgan Torian, associate mental health specialist at Beyond Clinic in Warrington, said Jas’s experience was not unique and had left many patients’ lives “totally unstable”.
“For some people, medication has changed their lives so much in terms of confidence, relationships and self-esteem that they have been able to return to work.
“It just completely destabilizes people, and they can literally collapse if you suddenly stop the medication.”
What is Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder? (ADHD)
- Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder is a condition that affects people’s behavior
- People with ADHD may seem restless, have trouble concentrating, and act impulsively.
- Most cases are diagnosed when the child is younger than 12 years old, but some cases may be diagnosed later in childhood
- However, sometimes ADHD is completely unrecognized in childhood and is not diagnosed until adulthood.
Dr. Torian explained that ADHD medications modulate brain function to help patients “switch on” and “switch off.”
“Drugs stimulate the nervous system, penetrating deep into the nervous system and turning it on, allowing it to turn on and off.
“People with ADHD often have their minds spinning at 100 miles an hour when they’re trying to relax, and their thoughts get distracted when they try to concentrate.”
Dr Torian said the right medication can have a “significant” impact, adding: “For some people, a very small amount of medication can have a significant impact, while for others it can make a very big difference, and suddenly… “Some people find that they can now do the work they need to do,” he added. They could never do it before. ”
Ms Jas told the BBC that the medication made her feel “free” and “independent”.
“Having ADHD is like having six different radio channels on in your brain at the same time, and sometimes some of them are in different languages,” she says.
“They’re all at the same volume, and you don’t know where the off switch is, and you don’t know which ones to listen to and which ones to deal with first.
“When I took the medicine, I became quiet for the first time in my life. When I took the medicine, my brain became quiet, so I cried. It was amazing. I was so happy.”
She added: “I never knew normal people were like this. I was so confused most of my life. I wondered how everyone was doing.”
Jas quit his job and now works as a dog walker.
ADHD UK estimates that around 150,000 people currently experience problems with their medication.
Research published by the charity last month found that 87% of its members agreed that the shortage was having a negative impact on their work, and 84% of full-time students said it had disrupted their studies.
Warrington MP Charlotte Nicholls raised the issue at Prime Minister’s Questions last month and said she was still hearing from constituents about the issue.
“We’re getting more and more calls from people telling stories of increasing desperation. People are having their medications rationed. People are having to call a bunch of different pharmacies and trying to get their medications. They have to make very long trips back and forth to get what they need,” she said.
“I feel like if the disruption continues for another three or four months, we can do more to help people.”
image source, british parliament
Warrington MP Charlotte Nicholls said she had been inundated with calls from affected constituents.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services said: “While we have taken swift steps to improve the supply of ADHD drugs, we know that some challenges remain and this is a challenge for patients and patients. “We understand this may be distressing for the family.”
“We have established processes in place to prevent, manage and mitigate drug shortages to ensure patients continue to receive the care they need.
“We are working closely with the NHS, industry and others in the supply chain to ensure that any issues with ADHD medicines are resolved as quickly as possible.
“We are also advising healthcare professionals that patients who are concerned about their condition should speak to their doctor.”
