Personalized Support for Optimal Adaptive Functioning

In addition to the main symptoms of ADHD (inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsiveness), ADHD often contributes to difficulties in several areas of life. Relationships with parents can become very strained and conflicted, there are typically difficulties in making and/or sustaining friendships or youth with ADHD are drawn to negative peer groups, self-esteem becomes damaged from constant critical feedback, and negative attitudes develop about school and their ability to achieve academically. Many youth with ADHD also have or develop co-morbid conditions such as depression, anxiety, and conduct and/or oppositional-defiant disorders due to persistently not achieving up to their abilities. 

At ADDvantage Coaching, I work with the youth and parents in Evanston, IL and surrounding suburbs to help your child/adolescent become their best self. In our initial meeting, I come to your home to learn about how you structure the environment, how you and your child interact and relate to one another, and about your lifestyle. I also want to learn about your understanding of ADHD, what treatment and interventions you have already tried and how effective they are, and why you are seeking services now. Based on our discussion, we will fashion a comprehensive treatment plan using evidence-based strategies to address your primary concerns. As a psychologist, I do not prescribe medication and I cannot make any recommendations about whether your child should take medication or which medication is right for your child. Whatever your decision about medicating your child, however, the services I offer can help your child to function better. 

I also encourage my clients to enlist the services of Marla Brodsky, at Luscious Life Nutrition (https://www.lusciouslifenutrition.net/). Marla is trained in a functional medicine approach, meaning that instead of just addressing symptoms, she aims to understand and treat the underlying causes of these symptoms. Although science has not yet determined why people develop ADHD, and the reasons ADHD occurs may vary from individual to individual, there is significant research available that those with ADHD typically have deficiencies in one or more essential nutrients, issues with absorption of nutrients, and/or their diet, that leads to a lack of neurochemicals in the brain that are needed to function effectively. Marla conducts a comprehensive evaluation, which may include lab testing, to ascertain what may be contributing to your child's ADHD, and a treatment plan for decreasing or eliminating ADHD symptoms.