#134: “I Don’t Want to Mess This Up!” Talking with Your Kids About ADHD

SHINING WITH ADHD 

EPISODE #134: “I Don’t Want to Mess This Up!” Talking with Your Kids About ADHD

The Childhood Collective

11/08/2023

SUMMARY

As expectant parents, I am sure you read “the books” like we did. Books about pregnancy, books about sleep, books about nutrition, books about not paying attention to the books, the list goes on and on. Interestingly enough, none of the books prepare you for discovering your child is neurodivergent. It is only when you realize that your child doesn't play by those books and then you feel like you’re in uncharted territory. You finally get a diagnosis of ADHD for your child, and you feel validated, and you can finally stop caring about what Aunt Carol says about your parenting. But how do you talk with your child about it? Letting them understand how their brains work and how amazing they are is foundational for their self-esteem. Chances are they already experience being “different,” so the understanding is a gift to them. Nothing we do in parenting is perfect because WE aren’t perfect, but in this episode, we share our favorite strategies for talking to your child about their ADHD diagnosis. 

MEET OUR TEAM

We are Lori, Mallory, and Katie. Lori and Mallory are child psychologists, and Katie is a speech language pathologist. Most importantly, we are moms, just like you. After working with families over a combined total of 40 years, we saw a need to provide ongoing support and education to parents raising children with ADHD. 

LINKS + RESOURCES

The Childhood Collective Youtube  *Closed Captioning Available

The Childhood Collective Instagram

Have a question or want to share some thoughts? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Mentioned in this episode:

Board Games for Kids with ADHD

Board games are a natural way to help kids build their executive functioning and cooperation skills. When we polled the community about your favorite board games for kids with ADHD, you gave us hundreds of ideas! We narrowed them down to the games that got the most votes, and sorted them by age. Check out our top recommendations for board games for kids with ADHD, and let us know how it goes.

Board Games for Kids with ADHD

Zenimal

We love the Zenimal. It’s amazing for kids who are feeling anxious or need a little help calming their busy body before bed. The best part? Each meditation ends with the most beautiful message: “You’re a good kid!” Use our code: TCC for a 15% off discount.

Zenimal

Creating Calm Course

Creating Calm is a video-based course that will teach you simple, step-by-step strategies to help you parent a happy and independent child with ADHD (ages 4-12 years old). Whenever and wherever you have an internet connection. Use the code PODCAST for 10% off!

Creating Calm Course