ADHD medication diary: prepare for your next appointment

Keep the diary separate from treatment decisions

The NHS explains that ADHD medicines must be started and monitored by a specialist. A personal diary can organise what you want to discuss; it cannot decide whether a medicine is right for you, calculate a dose or replace that monitoring.

Use the medicine name, form and dose on your current prescription. If you are unsure about an instruction or a missed dose, check the patient information leaflet or ask your pharmacist or prescriber rather than relying on a diary.

Record a few facts consistently

Choose a small set of fields that you can realistically keep. A brief entry made near the event can be easier to revisit than a long account written much later.

• Date, medicine and prescribed dose
• Whether you took it and the time you recorded
• Your observations about focus, mood and energy
• Any side-effect observations or questions
• A short context note, such as a different routine or sleep
• Whether an entry was added later from memory

Describe observations without assigning a cause

Write what happened in ordinary language. “I felt tired during the afternoon meeting” is an observation. “The medicine stopped working at 3 pm” is an interpretation that needs discussion.

If you use a numerical scale, define it for yourself and keep its meaning consistent. Diary scores are your personal descriptions, not a clinical test or an estimate of medicine levels.

Bring a short summary and your main questions

Before your appointment, select a period you can describe clearly and note any gaps in the record. Pick two or three questions that matter to you. You do not need perfect entries to have a useful conversation.

Do not change treatment because of a graph or a diary score. Discuss concerns with your healthcare professional and follow the instructions you have been given.

Choose paper or a private phone record

Our free printable ADHD medication diary is available on the resources page without an email address or subscription. Share blank copies freely; keep completed copies private.

ADHD Companion offers Android check-ins and PDF reports from your recorded history. It is a separate paid subscription with an eligible seven-day trial; the app does not diagnose ADHD or recommend a treatment change.