ADD / ADHD Coaching Blog

New ADD Book Club Book

The ADD Book Club is starting a new book in October. Join Coach Scott Lewis to discuss the book 10 Simple Solutions to Adult ADD. The live calls will take place on Thursday October 4, 11, and 18 at 4:00 pm Eastern. It's okay if you can't make the live calls because these calls will be recorded for you to download an listen to at your own convenience.

Join the ADD Book Club now

Is Your ADD Getting In The Way of Your Coaching?

I’m always surprised when I hear from a client that their previous coach was often late for coaching appointments, sloppy with billing, and sometimes appeared distracted during calls.

Are you a good role model for your clients? Do you inspire confidence? As ADD coaches we need to maintain a certain level of professionalism. Our clients need to know that they can count on us for structure and stability, despite our own difficulties.

Although having ADD may build a certain amount of camaraderie between you and your clients, you need to make sure that it is not getting in the way of your coaching relationship.

If you are a coach with ADD – get your own coach or coach yourself through your difficulties. You are your greatest testimonial!

Invisible Clients?

How many clients do you have?  Are you sure?  I'd be willing to be that you have twice as many as you think, but only half of them are paying you!

That's a pretty outrageous statement, isn't it?  And yet I believe that it's true.  I even think that you might agree, once you hear my logic.

I happen to be an ADD Coach who specializes in working with students, primarily teens and young adults.  Often, in the course of working with my client, I will have an occasion to speak to one or both parents.  Sometimes I initiate the conversation, and sometimes they do.  I may need to clarify something, help them solve a problem that's come up, or just offer some information.  This usually takes place within the time frame we've established as working time for their child, although sometimes I get an unexpected call or email.  I rarely feel as though I am taking time away from my real client, nor do I feel taken advantage of.  The fact remains, though, that for all intents and purposes, I am working with more than one person.

"Well", you may say, "that doesn't apply to me.  I don't work with children; my clients are adults, or I work in the corporate environment."  I beg to differ.  No matter how alone any of us feels in this world, we are all attached to others.  As John Donne so eloquently stated, "No man is an island...".

How many times in the course of a session have you had a client say, "My husband wants to know..." or "My boss thinks..."?  Your answers to these questions are being carried back to their source just as surely as the question was conveyed to you.  Those "invisible clients" exist in your sessions as my client's parents do in mine, although admittedly, yours probably take less time.

What's my point in bringing this up?  Am I upset?  Thinking of charging extra for those behind the scenes?  No, none of the above.  Just an observation, mostly.  We work with more people (and touch more lives) than we think.

Brenda Nicholson

Less than 50% of Kids with ADHD Diagnosed

Forget the conventional wisdom on attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

U.S. children are underdiagnosed and undertreated for ADHD, not the other way around, according to a new study of kids ages 8 to 15.  It estimates that 8.7% suffer from ADHD.  But the study, by doctors from Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, found that only 47.9% of children with ADHD have been diagnosed.  A mere 32% receive consistent treatment, though some $3 billion worth of ADHD drugs were sold last year.

Those untreated children probably won't be a boon for drugmakers.  The study found that the poorest one-fifth of children were the most likely to have ADHD.  They were three to five times less likely to receive treatment than other income groups, due to limited or no access to mental health services. 

That starts a vicious cycle: Lack of treatment predisposes them to school failure and drug abuse, making upward mobility unlikely.

Source: BusinessWeek, September 17, 2007

ADD Book Club Starts this Week!

The first ADD Book Club calls are this week!!!

The ADD Book Club is currently accepting the first 10 members at the special
rate of only $27 per month. Join now and save $20 off of the regular monthly
rate of $47 per month!

There are still some spots open at $27 per month rate! Sign up now because these spaces WILL fill up quickly!!!

http://www.adhdbookclub.com

40-fold increase in bipolar disorder children

Bipolar disorder affects more than 5 million adults.  The causes are uncertain but the disorder tends to run in families.  Some doctors believe bipolar disorder doesn't occur in children, and until last month there was only one drug approved to treat the illness in kids.

Dr. David Fassler, a University of Vermont psychiatry professor, said research suggests that close to half of children thought to be bipolar may be misdiagnosed.  He said parents should get a second opinion if they have concerns about a diagnosis or proposed treatment.  "Bipolar disorder is not always easy to recognize in children and adolescents.  There's considerable overlap with other conditions, including ADHD, conduct disorder, anxiety disorders, and depression," said Fassler.

A new analysis suggests there's been a huge increase in the number of U.S. children diagnosed with bipolar disorder.  Researchers found a 40-fold increase from as estimated 20,000 doctor visits (where kids were diagnosed or treated for the disorder) in 1994 to 800,000 in 2003.  The jump coincided with children's rising use of antipsychotic medicine.  The numbers echo other estimates suggesting as many as 1 million U.S. children are bipolar, but it remains a controversial diagnosis in children.

Dr. Thomas Insel, director of the National Institute of Mental Health, which partially funded the research, said the study "waves a flag saying we've got to do much, much better in finding ways to validate psychiatric diagnoses in children.  This is an area that really needs hard science."

The study appears in the September 2007 issue of Archives of General Psychiatry.

Source: The Associated Press

ADHD Coach Credentialing Process Begins

The IAAC has begun its ADHD Coach Credentialing Process this month. They are currently accepting applications for Senior Certified ADHD Coaches. Applicants must be actively working as ADHD Coaches, must have at least 5 years of experience, and have 1500 hours of paid ADD Coaching experience. There are also some additional educational and professional contribution requirements. The application fee is $350 for non IAAC members and $200 for IAAC members.

More information can be found at the IAAC Website.