Nell Jensen, a 41-year-old Brighton woman, lost less than 11 pounds after five months on the weight-loss injjection Wegovy and regained everything when she stopped. But in 2025, a surprise ADHD diagnosis—and a daily dopamine-boosting pill—quieted the compulsive snacking that had derailed decades of dieting. As the original report details, her case highlights a hidden driver behind many failed obesity treatments: undiagnosed attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder.

Why Wegovy failed to move the scale for Nell Jensen

Nell turned to Wegovy in 2023 after a divorce that had her eating Chinese takeaway daily and reaching her heaviest weight of 14 stone 13 pounds. She paid roughly £160 a month for the once-a-week jab, hoping to lose up to a fifth of her body weight, as studies suggest. Instead, over five months she lost less than 11 pounds—barely a tenth of what typical patients achieve. When she stopped the drug due to cost, her weight ballooned back to its peak, according to the report.

The failure is striking because Wegovy targets appetite suppression through the GLP-1 hormone pathway. For Nell, that mechanism did not address what she later learned was the real driver: a brain chemistry imbalance that made her eat for a dopamine boost, not hunger.

The 40% statistic: How many women discover ADHD only in their 40s

A Cambridge University study cited in the report found that around 40 percent of women with ADHD do not receive a diagnosis until they are in their 40s. Nell herself was 41 when her psychologist identified the disorder. Experts say the number of men and women with ADHD is broadly equal,but females are underdiagnosed because symptoms—like inattentiveness and emotional dysregulation—can be mistaken for anxiety or depression. The report notes that about 3 million people in the UK are believed to have ADHD, yet many women like Nell spend years struggling with weight without understanding the link.

What is 'dopamine snacking' and how it links ADHD to obesity

According to Prof Katya Rubia, a cognitive neuroscientist at King's College London, ADHD patients have low levels of the feel-good brain chemical dopamine.. The body releases dopamine in response to activities like sport or earning money, but also from eating. “There's a big association between the two conditions,” Prof Rubia told the report, noting the link appears stronger in women. Nell's psychologist explained that her mindless snacking on chocolate and biscuits was likely a self-medication attempt to boost dopamine—a pattern experts call "dopamine snacking." Studies cited in the report show ADHD patients are 50 to 80 percent more likely to be obese, and children with ADHD are 30 percent more likely to have severe weight problems.

Why bupropion worked for Nell but not all ADHD patients

Nell's psychologist prescribed the daily tablet bupropion, a dopamine-boosting drug. Within weeks, she reported less snacking and an easier time sticking to salads and soups instead of croissants and ham-cheese toasties. Yet, as the report notes, it remains unclear why the link between ADHD and obesity is stronger in women than men, or whether bupropion's effect on eating is universal.. Nell herself said her diagnosis gave her a "new lease on life," but the open question is whether dopamine-targeting medications can consistently replicate her results across the broader population of undiagnosed women with weight struggles.