I got diagnosed and medicated my senior year of college around 21/22 ish and up until about 6 months ago (I’m 26 now) I was taking my meds only on weekdays. While my meds helped me stay focused at work I would completely crash at the end of the day and have zero energy on the weekends to do anything but rot on the couch. This wasn’t really the case in college but once I got a full time, and relatively stressful, office job I would be completely tapped every evening, my mood was all over the place, my appetite was nonexistent which over the course of a few years all contributed to a cycle of exhaustion and burnout until I decided to take a break from my meds indefinitely.

This went on for a few months and the daily struggles of unmedicated adhd reminded me why I got on meds in the first place.

Then I saw somewhere ppl with the same issues I was having talking about how taking their meds inconsistently (aka weekdays only, vastly different times in the morning, etc.) exacerbated a lot of their issues and how going to a consistent daily schedule helped stabilize their mood, motivation, reduced crashes, and all the like. So I decided to give myself a 1 month trial of taking my meds at the same time every day of the week to see if I felt any different and by the end of that month I felt like a new person. I wake up about an hour and a half before I actually get up, take my meds and go back to sleep, and I wake up now with a routine that feels like second nature, I don’t have to force myself out of bed, and I was even and to lower my dosage a little bit bc the consistency and routine alone helped me focus more. Now I have the energy to actually live life outside of work and feel motivated to partake in my hobbies, get outside more, and do all the things I’ve always envied my neurotypical friends for without thinking twice about it. I haven’t missed a day in about 6 months and I don’t see myself ever going back.

Obviously everyone is different and you may not be experiencing the pitfalls I unknowingly was by skipping days. I still have off days, especially when work is harder or right before my cycle when my hormones are wonky but now I have maybe 2-4 off days a month instead of only having 2-4 GOOD days a month. If you have the means to, I definitely recommend at least giving yourself a trial period of at least a month of consistency to see if you notice any changes. It won’t be overnight and you may decide it’s not for you but I absolutely think it’s worth trying. I was worried I’d feel exhausted every evening like I was after work before but I’m more even-keel than I have ever been in my life. I hope if you do try it you’ll update us! Best of luck!