By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – July 24, 2023
One of the biggest challenges with ADHD is self-awareness. To learn self-awareness, you need to look in the mind’s mirror. With ADHD, executive functioning is impaired, and it’s very effortful to be self-aware so you can override the automatic brain. That’s why the pause may be the most helpful tool to manage your ADHD.
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – July 17, 2023
A Lesson from Professor Dumbledore,
Headmaster at Hogwart’s School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
In the movie Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, Harry Potter finds himself gazing into the Mirror of Erised. In his reflection, he sees the image of himself with his parents standing behind him, both of whom are deceased. Puzzled, Harry looks behind himself only to find his parents are not there. As he gazes into the mirror and dreams, Professor Dumbledore walks in:
Continue reading “ADHD: When the Dream Becomes the Obstacle”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – July 3, 2023
ADHD relationships can spiral out of control and end up in hurtful conversations. Is that an outcome you will really want? How do you stop these interactions that only end up damaging your relationships? Once the damage is done, how do you repair or rebuild the trust? It’s not just by saying you’ll do better or you’ll try harder. You really have to get at the dynamics of the relationship and then work to understand each other. That’s what you need to develop conflict intimacy. Continue reading “Hurtful Conversations in ADHD Relationships”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – June 26, 2023
Comedians make us laugh by using humor making fun of human nature. For instance, comedian Jeff Foxworthy popularized the phrase, “You may be a redneck if…” and then adds a peculiar behavior or trait poking fun at what it means to be a redneck. Another humorous example is one we learned from comedian Rick Green, that you can’t laugh and cry at the same time. Continue reading “You Know You Have ADHD When….”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – June 19, 2023
The first written record of the concept of ADHD coaching was in the book, Driven to Distraction, by Dr. Ned Hallowell and Dr. John Ratey in 1994. Little did they know at that time, the entire coaching industry would grow into a new ADHD intervention. In the late 1990s, a handful of individuals became life coaches that had ADHD and began touting the concept. In 2004, we saw the official formation of the ADHD Coaches Organization (ACO) as a means for coaches to come together and share best practices and competencies. Continue reading “ADHD Is Hard. Can a Coach Help?”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – Published June 5, 2023
What is it like for someone with ADHD when their executive functioning brain is being taxed and becomes a distraction? It’s like starting the task all over again. If you have ADHD, it’s just like rebooting your laptop; you have to reboot your brain. That’s why I’m using a computer as a metaphor to understand what happens when you get distracted while engaged in an activity that requires your executive functioning brain. Continue reading “ADHD Insight: Impact of Distractions on Executive Functioning”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – Published May 29, 2023
Medical papers dating back to 1798 always included emotion in the conceptualization of ADHD. This continued up to the 1970 Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 2nd Ed. (DSM-II). Since then, emotional dysregulation has been excluded from the clinical conceptualization of the condition. Dr. Russell Barkley (https://russellbarkley.org), world-renowned authority on ADHD, argues that emotion needs to be returned to a central place in ADHD as it has been ignored far too long. Continue reading “The Importance of Emotion in Understanding & Managing ADHD”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – May 22, 2023
What is insightful thinking, and why should it be understood as an alternative to methodical thinking or other problem-resolution strategies? Insight, or insightful thinking, is the sudden and immediate comprehension or understanding that takes place without overt trial-and-error testing. Continue reading “My Insights on Insightful Thinking”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – May 15, 2023
Dr. Russell Barkley (https://www.russellbarkley.org) likes to think of the ADHD brain as a two-level system, that is, the automatic brain and the executive functioning brain. The use of the executive functioning brain is effortful because it takes great effort to step in and override the automatic brain. Continue reading “ADHD Tips: Use Your Executive Functioning Brain to Override Impulse”
By Jeff Copper, MBA, PCC, PCAC, CPCC, ACG – May 8, 2023
What is Executive Function Deficit Disorder (EFDD)? What does self-regulation have to do with EFDD, and what does all this have to do with ADHD? For answers to these questions and more, I reached out to Dr. Russell Barkley, the world-renowned ADHD expert, affectionately called “ADHD Genius.” Continue reading “Executive Functioning in Adults with ADHD: A New Construct”
