I’m a college student with ADHD who has been otherwise perfectly healthy- small but healthy weight, exercise and eat healthy, no conditions to speak of, no family history of illness. Recently at the OB/GYN, the nurse taking my blood pressure saw it was high (168/96) for the first time (she checked all past visits and I’m normally 110/70).

It turns out that the stimulant med I was taking for my ADHD gave me hypertension, despite that I was taking the lowest dose possible. I went to my primary care doc, I saw a cardiologist, I had various tests and procedures done and everyone was frankly in awe that I could have such a high BP, and they could not identify another cause. I barely eat meat, I have a naturally low salt diet, and I only have 1-2 drinks per week (yes, I know this is rare for a college kid, I’m a dork). It just made no sense.

So I stopped taking the stimulant and lo and behold, a month or so later of monitoring at home and my BP stabilized and is now perfectly normal. I’m having to pull more all-nighters to get assignments done, but at least I am alive.

However, my case is a lucky one- hypertension is called the ‘silent killer’ for a reason. Most college kids, including those taking stimulants for ADHD, do not get regular check-ups- they only see healthcare providers when they are sick, and could go months or even years without having BP and vitals taken.

At a minimum, psychiatrists and prescribing physicians should be required to take patients’ vitals 1x per month in order to distribute these schedule II drugs.