Published: 16:08 BST, 30 August 2026 | Updated: 16:17 BST, 30 August 2026
Some women with ADHD have given the stimulant medication Vyvanse a rather alarming nickname: the 'divorce drug'.
In online forums, they describe starting the medication and feeling the noise in their heads quieten. They feel calmer and more in control and, in some cases, begin looking differently at their lives and the person beside them.
Some say the change has forced them to confront problems in relationships they had previously tolerated or struggled to make sense of.
But can treating ADHD really lead someone to leave their marriage?
Sydney psychiatrist and ADHD specialist Dr Kieran Kennedy, whose new book This Explains Everything: A Psychiatrist's Guide to Navigating Adult ADHD is released on September 1, is wary of making that leap.
'I would generally push back on that from what I see,' he tells the Daily Mail.
In fact, after supporting many adults through ADHD diagnosis and treatment, Dr Kennedy says he much more commonly sees the opposite: relationships becoming stronger, not falling apart.
Dr Kieran Kennedy (pictured) says he actually sees relationships get stronger after adult ADHD diagnoses
The explanation, Dr Kennedy says, may have less to do with Vyvanse itself and more to do with just how profound an adult ADHD diagnosis can be.
Vyvanse is the brand name for lisdexamfetamine, a stimulant medication used to treat ADHD. It is thought to work by increasing the availability of dopamine and noradrenaline, brain chemicals involved in functions including attention and impulse control.
For someone diagnosed in their 30s, 40s or beyond, however, a diagnosis isn't simply an explanation for why they lose their keys, struggle through paperwork or leave everything until the last minute. It can make someone look back at years of behaviour, emotions and choices differently.
'We really look at life so far and what life means now and what it might mean for the future,' Dr Kennedy says.
That process can continue once treatment begins. When medication is effective, Dr Kennedy says the changes can be significant and positive.
That might mean looking again at their career, goals and passions. For some, it can also mean examining their relationship and patterns that may have been in place for years.
