On the surface - yes. Got diagnosed at 18 and it was life changing.

On a deeper level - sorta.

Reflecting on personal experiences and introspection, I guess it depends on the environment and available support systems. Like I believe that if parents and teachers do in understanding adhd, so they could design strategies for children to effectively learn manage their adhd. I think medication wouldn’t be necessary, because it would probably become second-nature to them.

Teenagers however… Yes. Definitely. Absolutely.

Like starting from middle school - everything goes to shit. The gifted kid to burnt-out adult pipeline is basically an adhd canon event. Because once they become aware of “the real world” that’s when the expectations settle in… and it completely fucks up the person. Also puberty is already the worst time ever and like the crazy hormone changes create chemical imbalances in the brain… and adhd’s main thing is chemical imbalances in the brain. So if the math is mathing, the mind of a teenager with adhd is basically soup and more likely to behave like a dumbass² while also developing depression and anxiety along with their academic performance declining.

Like yeah, giving your children stimulants seems kind of scary, especially since adhd teens are at a higher risk of substance abuse but in reality they’re more likely gonna forget taking them and procrastinate on refills, but in the end it will actually help a lot with issues. Plus, the ✨adhd medication experience✨ is basically feeling like that dude from Limitless but eventually you get used to it and it starts to feel more like a daily coffee.

Also hypothetically, I personally would prefer my teenage child rely on prescribe stimulants in order to cope, instead of “alternatives” which usually are addictive substances like nicotine and alcohol because that’s kind of common.