Favorite websites on ADHD/ADD, Different Brains & Different Ways of Learning, ADHD-Friendly Lifestyles
Starting about 2010, there's been an explosion of excellent websites, podcasts, online communities/discussion boards and other resources regarding all aspects of adult ADHD. With no way to keep up, here are some of my go-tos.
More Attention, Less Deficit IMHO, the best overall self-help book/manual for adults with ADD/ADHD, published in 2009 by Dr. Ari Tuckman. His website features a podcast series (also available on iTunes) with clear and straight-forward ideas for understanding ADHD, its treatment, and practical strategies for managing life. Be sure to check out the PDF of the chapter on Executive Functioning and the sample chapter on Working Memory from his 2013 workbook, Understand Your Brain, Get More Done.
Children and Adults with ADD – the largest national organization. Website provides information, links to local chapters. CHADD is engaged in political advocacy, lists area professionals and provides information on all aspects of living with AD/HD for children, teens, adults, parents, etc. The annual CHADD conference is well worth attending, and some areas have regional conferences.
The National Resource Center on ADHD The NRC, a service of CHADD, offers practical research-based information about understanding and living with ADHD for Adults, Parents, Educators and Professionals. Resources include: Webinars, Fact Sheets, Podcasts, an Online Community, the ADHD Information Library and a telephone Helpline with Health Information Specialists. Information and Helpline services are available in English and Spanish.
The Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) describes itself as “the world’s leading adult AH/HD organization”. The site contains a series of articles on the practical management of ADHD for adults, authored by well-regarded clinicians, researchers and AD/HD coaches.
ADDitude Magazine Online magazine (also available in hard copy) with the motto “Living well with ADD and learning disabilities”. Short and to the point articles with lots of how-to’s, blogs and Q & A forums.
TotallyADD.com Interactive education and support site for adults with ADHD, their family and friends. Home of A.D.D. & Loving It ?!?, a scientifically sound and very funny documentary about ADHD in adults, which discusses causes, treatment and how to live well. Site also has self-assessments, Q & A, discussion boards, and lots more video on ADD-life.
ADHD & Marriage Dr. Edward Hallowell and relationship coach Melissa Orlov blog about marriage and relationships when one or both spouses/partners has ADHD, aiding couples to learn how to thrive in relationships affected by ADD and ADHD. They offer a positive, realistic and practical outlook, with spot-on information and strategies.
Mindfulness: Training for Mental Focus and Emotional Balance
The Mindfulness Prescription for ADHD - An 8-Step Program for Strengthening Attention, Managing Emotions, and Achieving Your Goals by Lidia Zylowska, MD. Mindfulness training (or mindfulness meditation) is like going to the gym for your brain - over time, doing the exercises increases mental strength, flexibility and stamina. Dr. Zylowska, a psychiatrist specializing in integrative medicine and adult ADHD, was one of the developers of the Mindful Awareness Program for ADHD (MAPS), an eight-session mindfulness-based treatment model for adolescents and adults with ADHD at UCLA's Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC).
You can read the book's intro and first chapter, and download audio files of the 8 practices along with the worksheets used with the text. An interview with Dr. Zylowska, How to Use Mindfulness to Manage ADHD Symptoms, is part of ADDitude Magazine’s ADHD Experts series. An overview article from CHADD's Attention! Magazine is here.
Guided Imagery/Meditation Practices
HealthJourneys.com offers audio guided imagery and self-hypnosis practices aimed at strengthening mind and body for all manner of health and wellness concerns. HJs also partners with hospitals, health insurance companies, universities/colleges and other organizations to make selected practices available for free. ADHD-relevant practices to aid Focus/Concentration, Procrastination, Anxiety, Depression, Sleep and other concerns are downloadable here, thanks to the Student Health and Wellness Service of the Los Rios Community College District in California.
ADHD-Friendly Lifestyle & Environments
73 ADHD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life Now Just like it says, from Additude Magazine.
ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life Co-authored by a professional organizer and a psychologist, you can download a free sample chapter, ADD-Friendly Strategies That Work with Your ADD from the second edition of this very useful and popular book.
ADHD Rewired Home of Eric Tivers, LCSW's podcast on living with ADHD and Spectrum conditions. Eric does online coaching and accountability groups (paid) and hosts a private FB group (anyone can apply to join). Check out the Adult Study Hall, the podcast and the ADHD Rewired YouTube channel. Be sure to set a timer first, before clicking through the links!
Focusmate.com Virtual co-working platform where you can sign up for 25 or 50 minute work sessions and be partnered with someone else working during that time. You meet, quickly greet and say what you working on, then mute til the end of the session. Very effective, supportive way to help yourself show up and get things done. Three sessions per week for free, small monthly subscription for unlimited sessions.
Learning styles & Learning differences
VARK -- A Guide to Learning Styles Very useful for a quick and practical overview of “preferred learning style”, has a short assessment using the VARK model of “Visual, Aural, Read-write or Kinesthetic”; outlines strategies for learning, studying and test-taking “without tears” for each style. Has supporting research and versions of the VARK for adults and high school students. User friendly. Good for tutors.
National Center for Learning Disabilities Info, links, the works.
More Attention, Less Deficit IMHO, the best overall self-help book/manual for adults with ADD/ADHD, published in 2009 by Dr. Ari Tuckman. His website features a podcast series (also available on iTunes) with clear and straight-forward ideas for understanding ADHD, its treatment, and practical strategies for managing life. Be sure to check out the PDF of the chapter on Executive Functioning and the sample chapter on Working Memory from his 2013 workbook, Understand Your Brain, Get More Done.
Children and Adults with ADD – the largest national organization. Website provides information, links to local chapters. CHADD is engaged in political advocacy, lists area professionals and provides information on all aspects of living with AD/HD for children, teens, adults, parents, etc. The annual CHADD conference is well worth attending, and some areas have regional conferences.
The National Resource Center on ADHD The NRC, a service of CHADD, offers practical research-based information about understanding and living with ADHD for Adults, Parents, Educators and Professionals. Resources include: Webinars, Fact Sheets, Podcasts, an Online Community, the ADHD Information Library and a telephone Helpline with Health Information Specialists. Information and Helpline services are available in English and Spanish.
The Attention Deficit Disorder Association (ADDA) describes itself as “the world’s leading adult AH/HD organization”. The site contains a series of articles on the practical management of ADHD for adults, authored by well-regarded clinicians, researchers and AD/HD coaches.
ADDitude Magazine Online magazine (also available in hard copy) with the motto “Living well with ADD and learning disabilities”. Short and to the point articles with lots of how-to’s, blogs and Q & A forums.
TotallyADD.com Interactive education and support site for adults with ADHD, their family and friends. Home of A.D.D. & Loving It ?!?, a scientifically sound and very funny documentary about ADHD in adults, which discusses causes, treatment and how to live well. Site also has self-assessments, Q & A, discussion boards, and lots more video on ADD-life.
ADHD & Marriage Dr. Edward Hallowell and relationship coach Melissa Orlov blog about marriage and relationships when one or both spouses/partners has ADHD, aiding couples to learn how to thrive in relationships affected by ADD and ADHD. They offer a positive, realistic and practical outlook, with spot-on information and strategies.
Mindfulness: Training for Mental Focus and Emotional Balance
The Mindfulness Prescription for ADHD - An 8-Step Program for Strengthening Attention, Managing Emotions, and Achieving Your Goals by Lidia Zylowska, MD. Mindfulness training (or mindfulness meditation) is like going to the gym for your brain - over time, doing the exercises increases mental strength, flexibility and stamina. Dr. Zylowska, a psychiatrist specializing in integrative medicine and adult ADHD, was one of the developers of the Mindful Awareness Program for ADHD (MAPS), an eight-session mindfulness-based treatment model for adolescents and adults with ADHD at UCLA's Mindful Awareness Research Center (MARC).
You can read the book's intro and first chapter, and download audio files of the 8 practices along with the worksheets used with the text. An interview with Dr. Zylowska, How to Use Mindfulness to Manage ADHD Symptoms, is part of ADDitude Magazine’s ADHD Experts series. An overview article from CHADD's Attention! Magazine is here.
Guided Imagery/Meditation Practices
HealthJourneys.com offers audio guided imagery and self-hypnosis practices aimed at strengthening mind and body for all manner of health and wellness concerns. HJs also partners with hospitals, health insurance companies, universities/colleges and other organizations to make selected practices available for free. ADHD-relevant practices to aid Focus/Concentration, Procrastination, Anxiety, Depression, Sleep and other concerns are downloadable here, thanks to the Student Health and Wellness Service of the Los Rios Community College District in California.
ADHD-Friendly Lifestyle & Environments
73 ADHD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life Now Just like it says, from Additude Magazine.
ADD-Friendly Ways to Organize Your Life Co-authored by a professional organizer and a psychologist, you can download a free sample chapter, ADD-Friendly Strategies That Work with Your ADD from the second edition of this very useful and popular book.
ADHD Rewired Home of Eric Tivers, LCSW's podcast on living with ADHD and Spectrum conditions. Eric does online coaching and accountability groups (paid) and hosts a private FB group (anyone can apply to join). Check out the Adult Study Hall, the podcast and the ADHD Rewired YouTube channel. Be sure to set a timer first, before clicking through the links!
Focusmate.com Virtual co-working platform where you can sign up for 25 or 50 minute work sessions and be partnered with someone else working during that time. You meet, quickly greet and say what you working on, then mute til the end of the session. Very effective, supportive way to help yourself show up and get things done. Three sessions per week for free, small monthly subscription for unlimited sessions.
Learning styles & Learning differences
VARK -- A Guide to Learning Styles Very useful for a quick and practical overview of “preferred learning style”, has a short assessment using the VARK model of “Visual, Aural, Read-write or Kinesthetic”; outlines strategies for learning, studying and test-taking “without tears” for each style. Has supporting research and versions of the VARK for adults and high school students. User friendly. Good for tutors.
National Center for Learning Disabilities Info, links, the works.
Managing ADHD
Manage verb "to succeed in doing something, especially something difficult" (from the Cambridge Dictionary).
Managing ADHD is a process, not something done once, but every day. Naturally, some days go better than others. If you've just been diagnosed or have known for a while but want a refresher, check out these basic guidelines for managing ADHD.
Managing ADHD is a process, not something done once, but every day. Naturally, some days go better than others. If you've just been diagnosed or have known for a while but want a refresher, check out these basic guidelines for managing ADHD.