More adults think they have ADHD. But many are struggling to get diagnosed

This story is part of CBC Health's Second Opinion, a weekly analysis of health and medical science news emailed to subscribers on Saturday mornings. If you haven't subscribed yet, you can do that by clicking here.

Casey Marie Ecker had struggled with inattentiveness and constant exhaustion for years. But as she worked a 9-5 during the pandemic, she hit a breaking point.

And she had to quit. 

"I was just running behind on all my tasks and didn't have any focus or drive," said the 29-year-old, who now works odd jobs to make ends meet in Montreal. "At a certain point, it got so bad that I had to go to a clinic."

Ecker had suspected since high school that she might have undiagnosed ADHD. While her therapist suggested some of Ecker's symptoms were consistent with the condition, they didn't have the qualification to make a diagnosis.

At a primary care clinic, the Montrealer says starting in February a rotating team of doctors gave her prescriptions for psychostimulants — but no one has told her whether she has ADHD. 

Instead, she's kept cycling through medications commonly used to treat the condition she suspects she has and is seeing what helps. 

But what she really wants is a diagnosis.

"It would be incredibly validating and also, just being able to understand why I function the way I function."

Her story is part of a growing pattern — both in the increase in prescription drugs being handed out for ADHD and in the number of adults who suspect they have the condition but have not been formally diagnosed. 

In the U.S., one in four adults suspect they have undiagnosed ADHD, according to a recent survey commissioned by the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. At the same time, only 13 per cent of respondents shared those suspicions with their doctor.

There's no similarly recent data in Canada, but there's evidence that a growing number of adults are taking ADHD medications. 

In 2023, roughly 600,000 more Canadians filled prescriptions for psychostimulants than in 2019 — a 67.7 per cent hike over four years, according to figures from the health research firm IQVIA. The highest jump was seen among young women, those between 18 and 24, who went from 4.6 per cent to 8.6 per cent of the population. There was also a jump among women between the ages of 25 and 44 — from 3 per cent to 6.4 per cent. 

It's unclear how many of them — like Ecker — do not have a formal diagnosis.