"Taking medication meant my brain was quiet for the first time; it was amazing, I cried because I was so happy," Jass Thethi, whose life was transformed after an ADHD diagnosis just over a year ago, told a BBC North West investigation.
But the 34-year-old's joy was short-lived because, like more than 150,000 others who live with the condition and are reliant on medication, Jass has been affected by a UK-wide medicine shortage that started in September.
Jass, who lives in Levenshulme, Greater Manchester, said: "When the medication shortage started I had to go back to white knuckling everyday life… I had to take the decision to change things and I had to quit the job I was doing."
The charity ADHD UK said it had recorded a "significant decline" in the availability of medicines, with only 11% having their normal prescription in January, a drop from 52% in September.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said increased global demand and manufacturing issues were behind the shortages.
Dr Morgan Toerien, associate specialist in mental health at Beyond Clinics in Warrington, said Jass's experience was not unique and many patients' lives had been "completely destabilised".
Source: BBC News, 27 February 2024
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