ADHD Questions
ADHD Treatments
Can ADHD medications cause bad moods?
Charles Li, MD
April 20, 2023
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ADHD has been linked to mood swings and difficulties with emotional regulation. There have been some concerns that medication, particularly stimulants, can make it worse.
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Some studies back this up, showing that Adderall may increase the risk of irritability, causing takers to feel annoyed and angry.
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Fortunately, medication does improve emotional control in general. Strattera and Ritalin have been shown to improve emotional symptoms and irritability.
Background
ADHD affects our ability to regulate emotions, which can manifest as mood swings.
Studies have shown that most individuals with ADHD report having difficulty regulating their emotions. Of all the emotional regulation domains, negative emotions and mood swings have been most strongly linked with ADHD.
In some cases, this may result from Bipolar Disorder or another mental health disorder. Emotional difficulties can also occur with just ADHD alone.
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About 70% of adult patients with ADHD report ED or emotional lability. Furthermore, ED also exists in patients with ADHD not suffering from any other comorbid mental disorder.
ADHD medication can cause irritability
In some cases, ADHD medications can cause irritability. Some people taking stimulants report feeling more anxious or angry due to their treatment.
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Irritability is common in ADHD, even though it is not a defining diagnostic feature. Irritability can be described as a propensity to react with anger, grouchiness, or tantrums disproportionate to the situation.
Some Redditors on Adderall reported feeling unusually irritable, so much so that some switch medications to get relief from their irritability:
Fortunately, not all treatments cause irritability. For example, one study in children found that Adderall triples the risk of irritability while Ritalin was linked with a decrease in irritability:
A meta-analysis found that methylphenidate reduced irritability by small amounts in ADHD. However, amphetamines were linked with a near tripling of irritability risk.
ADHD medication improves emotional control
The good news is that most people who take ADHD medication will experience improvements in their emotional stability.
The study below found that Strattera and stimulant medications were linked to fewer or less severe mood swings.
A meta-analysis found that stimulants may be more effective in improving emotional symptoms in ADHD
While more research is needed to confirm this result, the data does suggest that stimulants such as Adderall and Ritalin are more effective at improving your mood.