A True Story About Parenting My ADHD Child Part 1

My name is Sonja. I’m the co-founder of Thrivister. This journey you and your child find yourselves on can be a hard one. When we see our kids struggling and we aren’t able to get them back on track, we start to lose any semblance of control we thought we had.

I know, because that’s how I felt. My son was diagnosed with ADHD as a child. For a while, when he was younger, I was able to help him more. He would accept more guidance from me and I could channel his focus toward sports. He’s an amazing snowboarder.

But once he was approaching middle school, things got more complicated.

School started to become more and more of an issue. His grades and self-worth were slipping and no matter how much I tried to do things for him, hold him accountable and get him tutors and school support, nothing was helping. That’s when I connected with my Co-founder and partner in Thrivister, Michelle Raz. I had no idea how much was really on the line at that time. I remember feeling so incredibly relieved to take a step back and hand the reins to someone who was professionally skilled in this area. Plus, the tension that was building between my son and me due to my nagging and micromanaging was driving a wedge between us.  

Michelle worked side by side with my son. She moved him away from shame, shutdown, and frustration and towards self-awareness, self-regulation, and resourcefulness. Together, they prioritized work to pull his grades up at the last minute. She helped him develop a plan for each class and she coached him on how to advocate for himself with each of his teachers.

I couldn’t believe he’d pulled it off. With the help of his coach, he was rounding the corner! In the next email, I’ll share how my son is doing now and how the Thrivister mission was built through Michelle’s and my passion to reach and support other students like him. Michelle actually has a pretty profound story herself.

To close things out remember, ADHD and neurodivergence of any kind are not indicative of a student’s ability to succeed. I know firsthand! They only serve as a sign that traditional methods of learning and developing new skills may take a different approach. That is where Executive Function and ADHD coaching can make a huge difference. In part two of this story, I share how my son went from this state of chaos and overwhelm to trusting his strengths and growing into a successful young adult.

READ PART 2 – Going from failing to flourishing

If you have any questions about more story or need support, just email us. We are here to help.