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Dr. Chrysoula I. Liakou MD, PhD
- Treated online: Assessment online. A doctor can go through your symptoms, look for other causes and refer you for a specialist ADHD assessment; the diagnosis and ADHD medicines are specialist-led.
- What it is: a neurodevelopmental condition that affects attention, activity and impulse control. Symptoms start in childhood, usually before the age of 12, and often continue into adulthood.
- How common: in a 2021 global review, about 2.6% of adults had ADHD that began in childhood and continued, and about 6.8% had ADHD symptoms as adults.
- Medicines: methylphenidate and lisdexamfetamine are started and monitored by an ADHD specialist. Stimulants for ADHD are never prescribed online.
- Emergency: call 112 or go to an emergency department if you might act on thoughts of ending your life, have harmed yourself, or have chest pain, fainting or a racing, irregular heartbeat on ADHD medicine.
Do not book a video appointment if you are thinking about ending your life and feel you might act on it, if you have harmed yourself or taken an overdose, or if you have chest pain, have fainted or have a racing, irregular heartbeat, including while taking ADHD medicine. Call 112 or go to an emergency department.
Can an online doctor diagnose ADHD?
No, ADHD is not diagnosed online, and never by a quiz: an ADHD specialist, such as a psychiatrist, makes the diagnosis after a detailed assessment, and starts and monitors any ADHD medicine. What a doctor by video can do is go through your symptoms and their effect on your life, look for other causes and for the anxiety, low mood and sleep problems that often come with ADHD, treat those, and refer you for a specialist assessment when it fits. Stimulant medicines for ADHD are never prescribed online.
How an online consultation helps with possible ADHD
- Your story, taken seriously: Your symptoms since childhood and their effect on work, studies and relationships, without a quiz deciding for you.
- Look-alikes checked: Anxiety, low mood, poor sleep, thyroid problems, alcohol and drugs can all look like ADHD, and the doctor looks for them first.
- A referral that is ready: When the pattern fits, a referral for a specialist ADHD assessment, with what you have told the doctor summarised.
- Help while you wait: Treatment for anxiety, low mood or sleep problems, and practical ways to manage at work and at home.
What the doctor checks in an online ADHD consultation
The doctor asks about the warning signs first, then about the symptoms and their history. The doctor asks about:
- Warning signs: thoughts of ending your life, self-harm, or chest pain, fainting or a racing heart on any medicine.
- Your symptoms now: attention, organisation, forgetfulness, restlessness and quick decisions, and where they cause problems: at work, in studies, at home or in relationships.
- Your childhood: whether the symptoms were there before the age of 12, and how school went.
- Your mood and sleep: worry, low mood, mood swings and how you sleep, because each can look like ADHD or come with it.
- Alcohol, drugs and medicines: including caffeine, cannabis and anything bought without a prescription.
- Your health and family: heart problems, high blood pressure, epilepsy, and ADHD, autism or mental health conditions in the family.
Before the call, note a few examples of how the symptoms affect you, and find old school reports if you have them. With your agreement, someone who knew you as a child can help fill in the picture later, at the specialist assessment.
What are the symptoms of ADHD in adults?
The main symptoms are being easily distracted or forgetful, finding it hard to organise your time, struggling to finish tasks, losing things, restlessness, talking a lot or interrupting, and making quick decisions without thinking about the consequences. Most people have both inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive symptoms, though some have only one type.
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| Type | What you may notice | How it can show in daily life |
|---|---|---|
| Inattentive | Being easily distracted or forgetful, problems focusing on a task, poor planning | Losing your wallet, phone or keys; struggling to follow instructions or to finish tasks |
| Disorganised | Finding it hard to organise your time and to prioritise, trouble multitasking | Missed deadlines, tasks started but not completed |
| Hyperactive | High energy or restlessness | Finding it hard to sit still; feeling driven to keep moving |
| Impulsive | Being very talkative, interrupting, quick decisions without thinking of the consequences | A hot temper, low frustration tolerance, mood swings and trouble coping with stress |
In adults, hyperactivity often eases, while impulsiveness, restlessness and difficulty paying attention may continue.
ADHD in women
ADHD is thought to be recognised less often in women than in men. Women more often have inattentive symptoms, which are harder to spot than hyperactivity, so ADHD can go unnoticed through school and be diagnosed only in adulthood. In a 2021 global review, adult ADHD was about as common in women as in men: 4.5% and 5.0% for ADHD that began in childhood.
Is it ADHD, or does everyone have some of this?
Almost everyone has some of these symptoms at some point, and occasional or recent difficulties are not ADHD. ADHD is diagnosed only when the symptoms are severe enough to cause ongoing problems in more than one area of your life, such as work and relationships, and can be traced back to childhood.
What causes ADHD, and who gets it?
The cause is not always known. ADHD often runs in families, and genetic differences play a part. Other things linked to ADHD are:
- being born prematurely, before 37 weeks of pregnancy
- epilepsy, or a brain injury
- being autistic
- smoking, alcohol or drug use by the mother during pregnancy
- exposure to toxins such as lead in childhood
ADHD is common. A 2021 global review estimated that about 140 million adults had ADHD that began in childhood and continued, 2.6% of adults, and that about 366 million had ADHD symptoms as adults, 6.8%. It becomes less common with age: ADHD that began in childhood affected about 5.1% of adults aged 18 to 24 and 0.8% of those over 60.
Is ADHD hereditary?
Often, yes: ADHD often runs in families, and a parent, brother or sister with ADHD makes it more likely. It is not caused by anything you did, and it is not a lack of effort.
What comes with ADHD
Many adults with ADHD also have depression or anxiety, and ADHD comes with a higher risk of substance misuse, accidents, money problems and unstable relationships. People with ADHD are also at higher risk of suicide, which is why the doctor asks about it plainly. Treating these alongside the ADHD is part of the plan.
How is ADHD diagnosed in adults? Can an online test tell you?
No single test confirms ADHD, and an online quiz cannot diagnose it. A self-screening questionnaire can suggest that an assessment is worth having, nothing more. The diagnosis is made by an ADHD specialist, such as a psychiatrist, who:
- goes through your symptoms and their history, especially from childhood and school
- asks about work and education, family and friends, and your health history, including mental health
- may speak to someone who knows you well, with your agreement
- may use rating scales or psychological tests alongside the interview
- looks for other conditions that can cause similar symptoms
To be diagnosed, the core symptoms must have started early in life, before the age of 12, and must cause ongoing problems in more than one area of your life. If you are diagnosed, the specialist explains what it means and what support is available. Waits for an ADHD assessment can be several months or longer, so a referral that sets out your history clearly is worth having.
ADHD or something else?
Several conditions can look like ADHD, or come with it. These clues help, but only an assessment can tell them apart:
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| Condition | Why it can look like ADHD | Clues that point to it |
|---|---|---|
| Anxiety | Restlessness, poor concentration, trouble coping with stress | Worry that is hard to control, a churning stomach, muscle tension |
| Depression | Poor concentration, forgetfulness, low energy | Low mood or loss of interest for 2 weeks or more |
| Bipolar disorder | Restlessness, fast talking, impulsive decisions | Distinct episodes of high and low mood, with much less need for sleep during the highs |
| Sleep problems, such as insomnia | Poor focus and irritability | Broken or short sleep, daytime sleepiness |
| Thyroid problems | Restlessness, or slowed thinking | Found with a blood test |
| Alcohol or drug use | Poor focus, impulsive decisions | Symptoms that follow the use, or withdrawal |
Autism and Tourette’s syndrome can also come with ADHD, and the specialist considers them during the assessment.
How is ADHD treated in adults?
Treatment helps manage the symptoms, but it does not cure ADHD. The options are lifestyle changes, changes at work or in your studies, talking therapies and medicines, and not everyone needs or wants medicine. A combination of medicine, education, skills training and counselling often works best.
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| Treatment | What it involves | Who provides it |
|---|---|---|
| Stimulant medicines | Methylphenidate or lisdexamfetamine, usually the first choice; finding the right medicine and dose can take time | Started and monitored by an ADHD specialist |
| Non-stimulant medicines | Atomoxetine, for people who cannot take stimulants or have side effects from them; it works more slowly | Started by an ADHD specialist |
| Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) | Skills to manage time, organisation and impulsive behaviour, and to change unhelpful thinking patterns | A therapist, after a referral |
| Changes at work or in studies | A quiet workspace, written as well as spoken instructions, help planning tasks | Your employer or college |
| Treatment of anxiety, low mood or poor sleep | Talking therapy, and medicine when it helps | A doctor, including by video |
A doctor outside the specialist service can take over prescribing ADHD medicine only under a shared care agreement with the specialist.
Can I get ADHD medication online?
No. Stimulant medicines for ADHD, such as methylphenidate and lisdexamfetamine, are controlled medicines. They are never prescribed online, and a specialist starts and monitors them. If you already take one, keep your specialist as the prescriber, and see a doctor promptly about side effects.
What might the doctor recommend if you think you have ADHD?
What happens next depends on how long you have had the symptoms, what else could explain them, and how much they affect you. This is the framework the doctors use:
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| What you have | Likely first step | Suitable for online care? | When in-person care is needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lifelong problems with attention, organisation or restlessness that affect work or relationships | History taken, look-alikes ruled out, referral for a specialist ADHD assessment | Yes, to assess | For the specialist assessment and any ADHD medicine |
| Poor concentration that started recently, with low mood, worry or poor sleep | Assessment for depression, anxiety or a sleep problem | Yes | If symptoms continue after treatment |
| ADHD diagnosed in childhood that still causes problems | Referral back to a specialist to review treatment | Yes, to assess | For restarting or changing ADHD medicine |
| Diagnosed ADHD with anxiety, low mood or sleep problems | Treatment for these alongside your ADHD care | Yes | If symptoms are severe |
| Side effects on ADHD medicine, such as poor appetite or poor sleep | Advice, and contact with your specialist | Partly | The specialist changes the dose or the medicine |
| Chest pain, fainting, or a racing, irregular heartbeat on ADHD medicine | Emergency care | No | Call 112 now |
| Thoughts of ending your life that you might act on | Emergency help | No | Call 112 now |
Wondering whether it could be ADHD? A doctor can tell you in one consultation whether a specialist assessment makes sense.
See available times →Managing ADHD: what helps
What you can do yourself
- Write a daily task list, set priorities, and do not overload the day. Split larger tasks into smaller steps and use checklists.
- Use one calendar for appointments and deadlines, with reminders, and keep keys, wallet and phone in the same place.
- Follow a routine that stays the same from day to day.
- Find a physical activity you enjoy: exercise helps focus your energy and eases anxiety and low mood.
- Keep a regular bedtime in a quiet, dark bedroom, and avoid screens, caffeine, sugar and alcohol close to bedtime.
- Eat a balanced diet at regular mealtimes.
- Ask for adjustments at work or in your studies, such as a quiet workspace, written instructions and help planning tasks.
- Talk to friends and family about your ADHD, and ask them for help when you need it.
Prescription treatment
A prescription is never issued without a consultation. ADHD medicines are started and monitored by an ADHD specialist, and stimulants for ADHD are never prescribed online. When anxiety, low mood or sleep problems come with ADHD or look like it, the doctor may prescribe treatment for those after a full assessment, taking any ADHD medicine you already take into account. Sleeping tablets such as Z-drugs and benzodiazepines are controlled medicines and are never prescribed online either. If the doctor prescribes, use the prescription at a pharmacy near you.
What does not help
Relying on an online quiz for a diagnosis. Taking someone else’s ADHD medicine, or buying stimulants without a prescription. Using alcohol, cannabis or large amounts of caffeine to manage restlessness or focus. Waiting for willpower to fix it: ADHD is not a lack of effort.
Special situations
Pregnancy
If you take ADHD medicine and are pregnant or planning a pregnancy, talk to your specialist before you change or stop it, so the plan suits you and the baby.
Driving
If ADHD or your ADHD medicine affects your driving, do not drive, and tell your specialist.
ADHD while travelling in Europe
Stimulants for ADHD are controlled medicines. If you travel within the Schengen area with one, you need a Schengen certificate from your country of residence for each controlled medicine you carry; each certificate covers up to 30 days. Outside the Schengen area, keep the medicine in its original labelled packaging and carry your prescription or a letter from your doctor. A doctor by video can help with jet lag and sleep, but cannot replace a stimulant you have run out of.
Children
Mobi Doctor consultations are for adults aged 18 and over. A child who is unwell needs a paediatrician or a local doctor in person, and emergency signs in a child mean 112.
When ADHD is assessed online, and when you need in-person care
Assessed online: symptoms that could be ADHD, the look-alikes, referral for a specialist assessment, and the anxiety, low mood and sleep problems that come with ADHD, before and after a diagnosis.
In-person care: the specialist ADHD assessment and diagnosis, starting, changing and monitoring ADHD medicine, and any emergency, including thoughts of suicide that you might act on and heart symptoms on medicine.
When to get in-person care
Call 112 or go to an emergency department now for:
- thoughts of ending your life that you feel you might act on
- having harmed yourself, or taken an overdose of any medicine
- chest pain, fainting, or a racing, irregular heartbeat, including on ADHD medicine
Get medical advice the same day for:
- thoughts of death or self-harm without a plan to act on them
- new suspicious thoughts, or seeing or hearing things that others do not
- days of very high energy with much less need for sleep
- side effects from ADHD medicine that worry you, such as a pounding heart or no sleep at all
You can also find a free, confidential crisis helpline in your country at findahelpline.com.
How Mobi Doctor works
- Book a time that suits you: daily 7am–11pm CEST. You can see a doctor over video, usually within 15 minutes. No subscription, and the exact price is shown before you pay.
- Speak to a licensed doctor about your symptoms: describe how they affect work, studies and relationships, say whether you had them as a child, and list your medicines.
- Leave with a plan: what to do, what to take and for how long, and which signs mean you should be seen in person. If the doctor prescribes, use the prescription at a pharmacy near you.
No sign-up needed
Not sure it’s ADHD? Tick every symptom you have to see each condition page that mentions it. It finds the right page, not a diagnosis: a doctor gives you that on a video call.
Tap the body — an area or a point — to browse symptoms anywhere
Similar symptoms, different condition? Anxiety can start the same way. Compare them, or look up any other symptom in the full symptom checker.
Frequently asked questions about ADHD in adults
What is ADHD?
ADHD, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is a neurodevelopmental condition that affects attention, activity and impulse control. It starts in childhood, usually before the age of 12, and often continues into adulthood.
What are the main symptoms of ADHD in adults?
The main ADHD symptoms in adults are being easily distracted or forgetful, finding it hard to organise your time, struggling to finish tasks, losing things, restlessness, talking a lot or interrupting, and making quick decisions without thinking about the consequences. Most people have a mix of these.
How do I know if I have ADHD? Is there a test?
No single test confirms ADHD, and an online quiz cannot diagnose it. A specialist makes the diagnosis from your history since childhood, the effect on your life, and by ruling out other causes. A doctor can tell you whether a specialist assessment makes sense.
How do adults get diagnosed with ADHD?
To get an ADHD diagnosis as an adult, start with a doctor, who asks about your symptoms and their effect and considers other causes, then refers you to an ADHD specialist, such as a psychiatrist. The specialist reviews your history, especially from childhood, and may speak to someone who knows you well.
Can an online doctor prescribe ADHD medication?
No. Stimulants for ADHD, such as methylphenidate and lisdexamfetamine, are controlled medicines that are never prescribed online. ADHD medicines are started and monitored by a specialist. An online doctor can treat anxiety, low mood or sleep problems that come with ADHD.
What causes ADHD? Is it hereditary?
The cause is not always known, but ADHD often runs in families and genetic differences play a part. Premature birth, epilepsy, brain injury, being autistic, and smoking, alcohol or drugs in pregnancy are also linked to it.
Is ADHD a disability or a mental illness?
ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition, a difference in how the brain develops that starts in childhood. Some people with ADHD describe themselves as neurodivergent. At work or in studies, adjustments such as a quiet workspace and written instructions often help.
How does ADHD show in women?
Women more often have inattentive symptoms, such as distraction, forgetfulness and disorganisation, which are harder to spot than hyperactivity. ADHD is recognised less often in women, so many are diagnosed only as adults.
Can you develop ADHD as an adult?
ADHD starts in childhood, before the age of 12, but many people are first diagnosed as adults, when the demands of work or family make the symptoms harder to manage. Problems that began only in adulthood need checking for other causes, such as anxiety, low mood or poor sleep.
Does ADHD get better with age?
ADHD does not go away, but it often changes: hyperactivity tends to ease in adult life and becomes inner restlessness, while problems with attention, organisation and impulsive decisions often continue. Many adults manage well once they understand their ADHD, with routines, reminders, a suitable job and, where a specialist prescribes it, medicine, and coaching or CBT adapted for ADHD helps with the habits that cause most trouble. Untreated ADHD is linked to anxiety, low mood and problems at work.
What does ADHD stand for?
ADHD stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. ADD, attention deficit disorder, is an older name that people still use for ADHD with mainly inattentive symptoms, without much hyperactivity; doctors now describe all of it as ADHD and note which type of symptoms you mainly have.
Can I travel in Europe with ADHD medicine?
Yes, with the right papers. Stimulants for ADHD are controlled medicines: within the Schengen area you need a Schengen certificate from your country of residence for each one, covering up to 30 days. Elsewhere, carry the prescription or a doctor’s letter.
Can an online doctor help with ADHD?
Yes, with the first steps. A doctor by video can go through your symptoms, look for other causes, treat anxiety, low mood or sleep problems, and refer you for a specialist ADHD assessment. The diagnosis and ADHD medicines are specialist-led.
- ADHD in adults, NHS, National Health Service (UK), reviewed 19 March 2025.
- ADHD in children and young people, NHS, National Health Service (UK), reviewed 19 March 2025.
- Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), NIMH, US National Institute of Mental Health, reviewed August 2026.
- Adult ADHD: symptoms and causes, Mayo Clinic (US), updated 25 January 2023.
- Adult ADHD: diagnosis and treatment, Mayo Clinic (US), updated 25 January 2023.
- The prevalence of adult attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: a global systematic review and meta-analysis, Song P, Zha M, Yang Q, et al. Journal of Global Health, 2021.
- Travelling into Ireland from Schengen countries with prescribed narcotics and/or psychotropic substances, Department of Health (Ireland), updated 30 March 2023.
- Schengen certificates, Fimea, Finnish Medicines Agency, accessed 15 October 2026.
This page is for information only and is not a substitute for a medical consultation. Guideline links are provided for transparency; treatment decisions are made with your doctor.
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