The aim of this paper was to present the main aspects of non-medical use of methylphenidate. In methodological terms, we carried out a literature search to achieve better interdisciplinary understanding of this controversial and multifaceted use. We found that contemporary use goes beyond the trio of disease, health and care, to include man's incessant striving to surmount his limits and live well in society. This turns this medicine into a fetish and brings users closer to their frailty. It can be seen that methylphenidate was first produced and that afterwards, there was an attempt to scientifically configure attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), i.e. first the medicine was invented and then the disease. We conclude that methylphenidate is yet another gadget of contemporary life: a short-term quickly consumed object and a within-reach connectable and disconnectable partner. It becomes a device for ephemeral pleasures, while produced and marketed as a medicine.
Methylphenidate; Pharmaceutical preparations; Gadget; Amphetamine