What Is ADHD Coaching?
This article will cover everything about ADHD coaches from what they are to how you can hire one.
For years, most people believed ADHD only affected children, especially boys. But more and more evidence proves ADHD is a lifelong disorder that occurs equally in both males and females.
As a result, a new profession has risen to provide specialized life coaching to children and adults with ADHD. We call these professionals ADHD coaches. Most ADHD coaches haven’t been to medical school, and it’s a purely skill-based profession. As of yet, ADHD coaching isn’t regulated by any laws.
ADHD coaching is not therapy, counseling, consulting, mentoring, training, teaching, or tutoring. Those professions mentioned assuming something is “wrong" with the client. But with ADHD coaching, the goal isn’t to fix a problem. The goal is to help clients achieve their own goals using collaboration, not dictation.
ADHD coaches focus on everyday problems like going to work or school on time. In comparison, therapists focus on helping people with depression, anxiety, and other mental challenges.
What Can ADHD Coaches Do for You?
An ADHD coach can do many things for their clients, such as:
- Instill discipline, confidence, and values
- Improve time management and organizational skills
- Provide a plan to accomplish your goals
- Develop tools, techniques, and strategies needed to accomplish goals
- Identify obstacles in the way of achieving your goals
- Help you discover yourself and what motivates you
- Help you learn from your mistakes and experiences
- Make you feel accountable for your actions
ADHD coaches work with both children and adults. When it comes to children, ADHD coaches differ in their approach. Some work with children and their parents at the same time — others with only children or only with parents. When coaches work with parents, they focus on helping them master the unique skills and unorthodox techniques needed to raise a child with ADHD.
Is ADHD Coaching Right for You?
Before an ADHD coach can help you achieve your goals, you have to be ready, willing, and able to participate in the coaching process.
That means you must:
- Want help in achieving the goals you believe your ADHD is preventing you from succeeding.
- Be willing to spend time with a coach to create a strategy and then follow it to the best of your ability.
- Be mentally stable or taking steps to address your mental health. For example, people with ADHD often struggle with depression, anxiety, or insomnia. You want those things under control before you go see a coach.
- Be willing to let go of bad habits and bad people in your life.
Due to the nature of ADHD coaching, it’s best for adults and college students. If you have young children, it’s a better investment for you to receive coaching than them. You can pass down the coach’s teachings to your children in a way that’s easier for them to understand.
The Cost of ADHD Coaching
ADHD coaching can cost between $100 to $400 per session. The cost is based on factors such as:
- How many sessions you have per month with your coach
- Availability of coach between sessions (texts and emails)
- Length of sessions (they range from 30 minutes to an hour)
- Expertise of coach (is the coach a licensed medical professional?)
- Your geographic location
Many coaches also require commitments ranging from one month to three months minimum, with at least two to four sessions per month. Unless you’re buying a plan, you typically pay per session.
Unfortunately, ADHD coaching is not covered by insurance in most cases because it’s considered educational. If you have concerns about being able to afford coaching, the good news is most coaches offer free “trial" sessions. Free trial sessions are usually free or discounted, requiring no long term commitments.
If that’s not enough, you can also look into group coaching. Since more than one person is being coached at once, you can pay as much as 70% less, depending on the group size. You can usually use a credit card to pay for coaching sessions.
The Pros and Cons of ADHD Coaching
Pros:
- You can reach your full potential
- You can start achieving goals you were previously unable to achieve
- You set the agenda and decide what you receive help with
Cons:
- Coaching is expensive
- You have to invest time searching for the right ADHD coach
- When the coach is gone, you might fall back into your old ways
The pros and cons above are blunt. However, hiring an ADHD coach is no small matter. It requires serious consideration, commitment, and financial investment. Furthermore, keep in mind that coaching is educational, and you can’t learn the skills to achieve your goals overnight. Expect to invest at least three months of your time and money into coaching before you see a significant improvement.
How to Choose an ADHD Coach If You Have ADHD or Are a Parent of a Child Who Has ADHD
The coaching process requires getting out of your comfort zone, trust, and collaboration. Your relationship with the coach will determine your success, so it’s essential you choose the right coach. The personality of a coach is more important than their cost per session.
Step 1: Figure out what type of coach you want
- Do you want your coaching sessions online or face-to-face?
- Do you want a man or woman to coach you?
- Do you want a coach who specializes in helping people like you? (Parents, students, business people, etc.)
- Do you want a coach who is tough, sweet or a bit of both?
Step 2: Search for your ideal ADHD coach
After answering the questions above, you’re now prepared to search for an ADHD coach.
The following websites are sources for finding an ADHD coach:
From here, you can create a list of five coaches who might interest you.
Step 3: Make sure a potential coach is the right fit for you by asking one simple question
Wouldn’t it be great if you could know whether you and a coach could get along well before you spent money on their services? Do so now.
Think of a past experience you had that didn’t go well, a problem you’re having now, or a goal you’ve wanted to achieve for a while but haven’t yet. Then tell the coach about it.
When you’ve explained enough details, say, “Now that I’ve told you that, do you have any ideas on what I could be doing better?" Your goal is to see whether the coach has any valuable ideas they can share with you. A coach who can help you, relate to you as a person, and a coach who cares, will be able to provide you an idea or two.
You’ll also be able to see what type of person a coach is by what ideas they have. Their ideas will tell you everything about their personality and approach to coaching. From there, it should be easier for you to hire your ideal coach.