As he was close to the Young Turks (Jeunes Turcs), he was appointed as the director of the Medical Faculty at the age of 30.

In 1917 he married the novelist Halide Edip, who was at the time teaching in Lebanon, and both joined the team of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk in 1918 when foreign armies occupied Istanbul.

In Ankara, Adnan Adıvar was named Minister of Health, Ministry of Internal Affairs and the vice president of the National Assembly between 1920 and 1923.

He was one of the intellectuals within Mustafa Kemal Atatürk's circle, active in the Turkish War of Independence with his wife, the author Halide Edib Adıvar.

Disappointed, after a year of serving as an independent representative, Adıvar left for Vienna to accompany his wife who needed to undergo medical treatment.

Allegation of his involvement in an attempt on Atatürk's life made him extend his stay abroad, where he seems to have developed an interest in philosophy and history of science.