E240: Raising Out-of-the-box ADHD Children Well with Tracy Otsuka

There is a 50-75% chance that your child will have ADHD when you, their parent, have ADHD.

That means everything multiplies exponentially - both the struggles and the wins! Parenting is already a tough job, and ADHD adds extra flavor, spunk, and responsibility onto both our and our kids’ plates. 

How can we raise our ADHD children well? 

Meet Tracy Otsuka, author & host of the ADHD for Smart Ass Women podcast & book. 

Tracy Otsuka, JD, is a certified ADHD coach and the host of the ADHD for Smart Ass Women podcast. Over the past decade, she has empowered thousands of clients (from doctors and therapists to C-suite executives and entrepreneurs) to see their neurodivergence as a strength–not a weakness. Tracy leverages her analytical skills from being a lead counsel at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to identify the right questions to ask her clients so they can boost their productivity, improve their finances, save failing relationships and live happier lives.

Tracy’s expertise and experience as an adult living with ADHD are regularly sought out by top tier media including Inc, Forbes, ADDitude magazine, and The Goal Digger Podcast. When she’s not sharing her thought leadership around ADHD on other platforms, she hosts her own podcast which ranks #1 in its category and has over 5 million downloads across 160 countries. She also moderates a Facebook group with nearly 100,000 members. A married mother of two, Tracy lives in Sonoma County outside of San Francisco. 

We’re often told that people who have degrees or do well in school couldn’t possibly have ADHD. Giant Eye Roll!

While Tracy excelled in school, including a law degree, but it wasn’t until she was late-diagnosed with ADHD that she knew it was because she worked harder than everyone else and implemented some serious organization and structure.

Today we’re discussing how both Tracy and her son Marcus struggled with undiagnosed ADHD and dyslexia in school, affecting their grades and confidence. Tracy focused on supporting Marcus' interests and passions rather than grades, which helped him get into NYU and find his path to success. 

Tracy also shares her hard-earned wisdom around communication, understanding strengths and weaknesses, and not passing on generational trauma to her children as part of how her family is able to manage 3 of 4 members having ADHD.

With both her son and daughter reaching young adulthood, Tracy is on the other side of motherhood as an empty nester and is shining a light on what truly matters as you raise your ADHD kids well.

Find Tracy Otsuka here: https://adhdforsmartwomen.com/

Find links to everything mentioned in this episode & read the transcript here: https://www.patriciasung.com/podcast/episode-240-raising-adhd-children-tracy-otsuka-smart-women

Curious how ADHD shows up frequently in women? Download this free checklist of ADHD symptoms to help you feel confident at your diagnosis assessment or in your own knowledge of ADHD.

I’ve got a podcast for you to check out! I’m honored to partner with Understood.org’s podcast, In It: Raising Kids who Learn Differently this month.

In each episode, you’ll hear from people sharing their own stories and perspectives on how to navigate and support those who have challenges with reading, math, ADHD, or dyslexia, and more. Listen today for support on how to better support yourself and your child.

Our annual ADHD Moms Luxury Weekend Retreat is coming up October 11-13, 2024 in Houston, Texas!

You're officially invited :)

“Gift yourself the opportunity to meet like-minded people (literally), make instant friendships, and the space to finally be yourself.” –ADHD Mama T.H.

I’ll take care of all the details - you simply show up and enjoy.

Put it on your calendar now. Because you deserve to take care of yourself too. Grab your all-inclusive ticket here: patriciasung.com/retreat

Last day to get your ticket: Tuesday, September 24th!