Young women are increasingly using medication designed to better focus and concentration.
Express Scripts, a pharmacy-benefit management company, recently conducted a study of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medication prescriptions filled from 2008 to 2012. The March study found the use of ADHD medication has increased by 35.5 percent nationwide; specifically, more women are using the drugs.
Child, adolescent and adult psychiatrist Dr. Elias Sarkis of Sarkis Family Psychiatry in Gainesville said there is a growing awareness of ADHD in women.
“In adulthood, as many women present for treatment for ADHD as men do,” said Sarkis, who has been practicing psychiatry for 23 years.
But in childhood, one girl for every three boys requests treatment for the disorder, he said.
One reason may be that young girls with ADHD don’t call attention to themselves because they aren’t as disruptive, Sarkis said.
Anthony Greene, a psychologist at the UF’s Counseling & Wellness Center, said there are two patterns of ADHD.
One pattern presents difficulty in focusing and maintaining concentration, and the other is seen in impulsivity and hyperactivity.
“Most of the students I interview suggest ADHD interferes with their functioning,” Greene said.
He said students can have difficulties ranging from trouble holding casual conversations to zoning out in class.
“They can have to restart and reread things, which can take them three to five times as long to get through study materials as their peers,” he said.
Caroline Davoli, a 23-year-old UF telecommunication senior, was diagnosed with ADHD two years ago.
She said she loses her train of thought and forgets where she parks when she doesn’t take her medication.
“When I got to college, things started catching up with me, and that’s when I was tested,” she said. “I was gifted in elementary and middle school, so they never thought to test me.”
[A version of this story ran on page 8 on 3/25/2014 under the headline "More women using ADHD meds"]
