// BBC HEALTH NEWS — SALUTE
'Wildly unfair that my husband and I pay £4k a year for ADHD treatment'
Rebecca and her husband, who also has ADHD, both pay for regular private psychiatric reviews, GP prescriptions and medication
Adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are demanding urgent action over a lack of funded services in Northern Ireland, with some revealing they pay thousands of pounds a year for private treatment.
Northern Ireland doesn't have a formally commissioned, publicly funded adult ADHD pathway like in other parts of the UK.
One woman has described the situation as "wildly unfair and inhumane", saying she and her husband spend about £4,000 a year on private treatment and care.
The Department of Health acknowledges increasing demand but said decisions must be taken in the context of overall affordability.
Rebecca Bryson owns three businesses, which helps to cover the cost of her ADHD, external treatment and follow up care.
Her husband, Colum Coyle, also has ADHD, and both pay for regular private psychiatric reviews, prescriptions and medication. Their combined costs of staying on treatment are about £4,000 a year.
"It's a tonne of money that most people don't have, and I'm in a position where we do have it because I work multiple jobs," she said.
She said the situation felt "wildly unfair and kind of inhumane".
"If I had another medical condition like cancer or a broken bone, and I asked for medical treatment, they wouldn't turn me away."