Private ADHD medication titration for adults and children
Titration is how you and your clinician find the right ADHD medicine and dose: starting low and adjusting in small steps. With us you pay per appointment, each about 30 minutes by video. A typical journey is about three months and three appointments, with health checks throughout and a clear plan at the end.
Diagnosed somewhere else? Send us your diagnosis report and start with a medication review. Not sure yet, or in Northern Ireland? Ask a question first.
| Adults (18 and over) | Sophie Turner, ADHD Specialist Nurse Prescriber: £199 per appointment |
| Children and teens (6 to 17) | Dr Arjun Mehta, Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist: £199 per appointment |
| Each appointment | About 30 minutes by video, usually monthly while your dose is adjusted |
| Typical journey | About three months and three appointments. Some people need more |
| Fee includes | The appointment, and any prescription issued at it |
| Not included | The medicine itself, which you pay for at the pharmacy |
Who can start titration with us?
You can usually start if
- We diagnosed you or your child, and you’ve decided together with your clinician that medication is worth trying
- You’re an adult diagnosed elsewhere, in the UK or abroad, and you’ve sent us your diagnosis report. Your first appointment checks it
- You’re registered with a UK GP and agree to us contacting them
- You’ll be in the UK for each appointment
If your child was diagnosed by another service, please contact us first and we’ll explain what’s needed. Young people aged 16 and 17 can book and consent for themselves, and a parent or carer is welcome to join. For children under 16, a parent or legal guardian books, consents and attends.
We may not be the right service if
- You have a heart condition that needs a specialist’s view first
- You’re dependent on drugs or alcohol at the moment, or have a current eating disorder
- An NHS ADHD service already prescribes for you
- You need help urgently. Please see urgent help
These situations need NHS or specialist care first. If we can’t help, we’ll explain your other options.
Before you start: health checks and your GP records
At your first titration appointment, your clinician goes through the checks NICE recommends before starting medication:
- Your physical health, current medicines, and your own and your family’s heart history
- Your mental health, sleep, and any drug or alcohol use
- Blood pressure, pulse and weight, plus height for children
An ECG (heart tracing) is only needed if something in your history suggests it, such as fainting during exercise, chest pain, palpitations, known heart disease, or a close relative who died suddenly under 40. If you need one, or a heart specialist’s opinion, we’ll explain how to arrange it before you start.
We need a summary of your GP records
Before we prescribe, we ask your GP practice for a summary of your medical records. GMC guidance says prescribers working remotely shouldn’t prescribe controlled drugs without access to your records. If you don’t agree to us contacting your GP, we can’t prescribe. GP practices can take a little while to reply, so we ask early.
The three stages of titration
NICE doesn’t set a fixed length for titration. This is a typical journey, not a promise: some people settle sooner, and others need more appointments, a slower pace or a different medicine.
| Stage | When | What usually happens |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Starting out | Your first appointment | Your clinician goes through your diagnosis, health, current medicines and goals, and records baseline blood pressure, pulse and weight (and height for children). If medication is right for you, you start on a low dose and your first prescription is posted. |
| 2. Dose adjustments | Reviews, usually monthly | At each appointment your clinician asks how the medicine is working and what side effects you’ve noticed, and looks at your readings, sleep and appetite. The dose or timing is adjusted in small steps, aiming for the lowest dose that helps. A new prescription is issued at the appointment if you need one. |
| 3. Stable | Typically after about three months and three appointments | Your dose is working, side effects are manageable and your readings are up to date. You and your clinician agree what comes next: a shared care request to your GP, or repeat prescriptions. |
Each appointment is booked and paid for separately, so you can see how you’re getting on before deciding whether to book the next. For children, we ask parents and, where possible, teachers to complete short rating forms at the start and after dose changes, so we can see how things are going at home and at school. Read more in ADHD titration: what to expect.
Checking your blood pressure and pulse at home
During titration you’ll need to measure your blood pressure and pulse regularly: before you start, after each dose change and whenever we ask. You can do this at home with a validated upper-arm monitor, or at your GP surgery.
- Choose a monitor from the British and Irish Hypertension Society’s list of validated monitors
- Check the cuff fits. Children and adults with larger arms may need a different size
- Sit quietly for 5 minutes with your arm supported, then take two readings a minute apart
- Write down the date, time and both readings, and send them to us before each appointment
The free NHS blood pressure check in pharmacies in England is only for people aged 40 and over without high blood pressure, so it usually isn’t suitable for titration.
Your prescriptions
If medication is right for you, your clinician issues the prescription you need at each appointment. Most ADHD medicines are controlled drugs, so private prescriptions are written on a paper form. The form depends on the nation: FP10PCD in England, PPCD(1) in Scotland, WP10PCD in Wales and PCD1 in Northern Ireland.
- We post it by tracked delivery to you, or to a pharmacy you choose. Many pharmacies can deliver the medicine to your home
- Each prescription covers up to 30 days
- It must be dispensed within 28 days of the date on it
- Prescriptions issued at your appointments are included in the appointment fee
You pay the pharmacy for the medicine. Private prices vary between pharmacies, and NHS prescription charges don’t apply, so it’s worth asking a few for a price. Check your pharmacy can get your medicine in stock before your prescription arrives.
Side effects: what to tell us, and when to get urgent help
Your clinician will explain the possible side effects of any medicine before you start, and ask about them at every appointment. Stimulant and non-stimulant medicines can cause different ones, for example appetite and sleep changes with stimulants, or drowsiness and an upset stomach with non-stimulants. Tell us about any of these, and don’t wait for your next appointment if they worry you:
- Poor appetite or weight loss
- Trouble sleeping
- Feeling anxious, low, irritable or not yourself
- New tics, or tics getting worse
- A racing or pounding heartbeat, or readings above the limits we give you
Call or email us during opening hours, 10am to 8pm, 7 days a week: 0306 999 0123 or hello@adhdhealth.co.uk.
Get urgent help
Call 999 if you have chest pain, faint, have a seizure, or have a very fast or irregular heartbeat that doesn’t settle.
If you see or hear things that others don’t, or have thoughts of harming yourself, get help now. See our urgent help page.
For anything else that can’t wait when we’re closed, contact NHS 111 in England and Wales, NHS 24 on 111 in Scotland, or your GP out-of-hours service in Northern Ireland.
When your dose is stable
Once your dose is stable, you and your clinician agree what happens next. There are three usual routes:
- Shared care with your GP After three completed titration appointments, you can ask us to request a shared care agreement, so your GP takes over prescribing. The request is £200 once. GPs can say no, and many decline for private patients. How the shared care request works
- Private repeat prescriptions with us If your GP declines, or you’d rather not involve them, you can request repeats at £60 each. A clinician reviews every request, and you’ll need a medication review at least once a year. How repeat prescriptions work
- Stopping If medication isn’t helping, or you decide it isn’t for you, we’ll plan that with you and let your GP know.
If you need more than three appointments
Some people need more time to find the right dose or medicine. Each extra appointment is £199, the same as the others, and your clinician will tell you at each one whether another is needed, so there are no surprises. Shared care requests open after three completed appointments, so you can ask at any point from then.
If you can’t make an appointment
You only pay for the appointments you book. You can move or cancel one for free with 72 hours’ notice or more, and shorter notice has partial or no refund. Our cancellations and refunds page has the full rules.
Who you’ll see
Sophie Turner looks after adults through titration and beyond. Dr Arjun Mehta looks after children and young people aged 6 to 17. A parent or carer attends appointments for children under 16, and is welcome to join for 16 and 17 year olds.
Sophie Turner
ADHD Specialist Nurse Prescriber
Dr Arjun Mehta
Consultant Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist
Titration questions
More answers on our FAQs page.
Will I definitely be prescribed medication?
No. Your clinician only prescribes if, after the health checks and your GP records, medication is safe and suitable for you and you want to try it. If it isn’t, we’ll explain why and what else might help.
What does each appointment fee cover?
The fee covers the appointment, about 30 minutes by video, and any prescription your clinician issues at it. You pay the pharmacy for the medicine itself, at their private price.
How many appointments will I need?
Typically about three over roughly three months: one to start, then reviews that are usually monthly while your dose is adjusted. Some people need more. Your clinician will tell you at each appointment what to expect next.
Can I start titration if I was diagnosed elsewhere?
Adults can. Send us your diagnosis report and any treatment records, and book an adult titration appointment. At that first appointment your clinician checks the diagnosis against NICE guidance and your treatment so far. If the evidence is enough, you carry on, and if it isn’t, we may suggest a full assessment. See already diagnosed with ADHD. For children diagnosed elsewhere, please contact us first.
Can I drive during titration?
You must tell the DVLA if your ADHD or its medication affects your ability to drive safely. In England, Scotland and Wales, some ADHD medicines are covered by drug-driving law, but you can drive if they’re prescribed, you follow the advice, and you’re not impaired. Read ADHD and driving.
What if I’m going away during titration?
You need to be in the UK for each appointment, and each prescription covers up to 30 days. If you have a trip planned, tell us before you start so we can plan the timing with you.
Guides on titration and prescribing
ADHD titration: what to expect
What ADHD medication titration involves, the health checks before you start, how long it takes, side effects to report, and what happens afterwards.
Treatment and titration
How private ADHD prescriptions work in the UK
How private ADHD prescriptions work in the UK: paper controlled drug forms by nation, 30-day supply, 28-day validity, tracked post, pharmacies and costs.
NHS and shared care
ADHD shared care agreements, explained
What an ADHD shared care agreement is, who does what, when it can start, what it costs and what happens to your prescriptions if your GP…
Sources
- NICE. Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder: diagnosis and management (NG87). Last updated 2025.
- General Medical Council. Good practice in prescribing: controlled drugs and other medicines where additional safeguards are needed. 2021.
- UK Parliament. Written question 22612 on private controlled drug prescriptions. Answered January 2025.
- Community Pharmacy England. Dispensing controlled drugs. Accessed October 2026.
- British Medical Association. Prescribing in general practice. Updated April 2025.
- British and Irish Hypertension Society. Validated blood pressure monitors. Accessed October 2026.
- GOV.UK. ADHD and driving. Updated January 2025; Drugs and driving: the law. Accessed October 2026.
Ready to start titration?
Book your first titration appointment, about 30 minutes by video. If you’d like to talk it through first, or you live in Northern Ireland, ask a question first by phone, email or the contact form.
Or call us on 0306 999 0123, 10am to 8pm, 7 days a week.