After 37 years of being undiagnosed with ADHD, I was so grateful to get my diagnosis! Once I had an inkling that I had ADHD, I began devouring books about it :-) The books in this list are five of many that have helped me understand myself and my brain, and I want to help others have access to them and to the inspiring, affirming, and empowering self-knowledge they provide! These books will help you figure out if you might have an ADHD brain and then, from there, help you work with and celebrate that brain.
This book is a fun way to get inside the head of a teen girl with ADHD! I love reading books with characters with ADHD, and I love reading romance, so this book is my happy place. :-) Mazey Eddings does an awesome job of portraying the mental loops an ADHD brain can get into and how to overcome them through connecting with the right others and working towards becoming one's authentic self.
Tilly in Technicolor is Mazey Eddings's sparkling YA debut about two neurodivergent teens who form a connection over the course of a summer.
Tilly Twomley is desperate for change. White-knuckling her way through high school with flawed executive functioning has left her burnt out and ready to start fresh. Working as an intern for her perfect older sister’s start up isn’t exactly how Tilly wants to spend her summer, but the required travel around Europe promises a much-needed change of scenery as she plans for her future. The problem is, Tilly has no idea what she wants.
Inspired both by my marriage to someone with ADHD as well as my own neurodiversity, I have been researching this topic for the last 15 years. As a collegiate athlete and stimulation seeker myself, my doctoral dissertation explored the impact of HIIT exercise on symptom presentation in adults with ADHD, and the results were inspiring. I truly believe that with the right set of tools and supports, those with ADHD can be the driving force behind humanity's many accomplishments. This belief also informs my strength-based counseling approach with those who have ADHD that I am honored to continue working with throughout their own self-empowerment journeys.
I loved what Penn and Kim Holderness have done with this book because, as someone in an ADHD marriage, it was refreshing to hear honest (and at times humorous) accounts of how ADHD can impact marriage and how it can also, when given the right support, enhance relationships.
I also appreciate the strength-based perspective to living with and excelling with ADHD, even for all the frustrations and difficulties it can cause in our lives. Readers really do walk away feeling they, too, are awesome because of their unique brains rather than just someone with a diagnosis that needs to be fixed.
The engaging, uplifting antidote to traditional ADHD books (which, let's be honest, if you have ADHD you'd never read anyway).
You live in a world that wasn't designed for you. A world where you're expected to sit still, stay quiet, and focus. Because of the way your brain is wired, you can feel like you're failing at life. But you are not failing. You are awesome.
Award-winning content creators Kim and Penn Holderness are on a mission to reboot how we think about the unfortunately named "attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder." As always, they are doing it by looking in the mirror, because…
I’ve alwaysbeen fascinated by children’s language development and am a word hound. For over five decades I’ve been a teacher, teacher trainer, school founder/director, mentor, founder/executive director of a large children’s museum; author of 6 classic textbooks on how children think and learn, and author/self-publisher of one of my many story-poems. My passions are writing, studying new findings in brain development, and launching top-quality schools in underserved urban areas. Between 1969 and 1990, I founded six schools, five still running, three as private non-profit schools and two as essential entities (one called the “safety-net") in their public school systems. The MELC is the only U.S. school accredited by Reggio's founders.
1961: My life’s thrill was Danny’s birth—happy, loving, and by age 2, articulate speech that turned heads. But in Montessori school, despite numerous materials for writing and reading, he was called “hand retarded.” He struggled, only acquiring reading in high school. Today he is a clinical psychologist with honors galore! 1961: We knew little. 1971: First brain scan. 1977: Cognitive science was born as scientists from numerous fields began brain studies. In Danny’s youth, there were guesses and alleged treatments but little science.
Cognitive-Behavioral Neurologist/Kennedy Krieger Institute, Developmental Neuropsychologist and Professor Emeritus/Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Martha Bridge Denckla’s book, Understanding Learning and Related Disabilities: Inconvenient Brains, gives a scientific understanding of ADD, ADHD, ASD, and six other brain dysfunctions to parents, teachers, and others suspecting learning problems.
Wow! Dr. Denkla is so deeply knowledgeable. Her scholarship and explanations of conditions provide information to relieve readers' anxieties.
Children with developmental disabilities inhabit a gray zone: they live and learn under normal conditions in some aspects of their lives, while their "inconvenient brains" present a range of challenges in other school and life contexts. Dr. Martha Bridge Denckla provides parents and educators with general knowledge, research findings, and practical recommendations about a variety of these developmental conditions, including dyslexia, dyscalculia, ADHD, autism spectrum disorder, problems with motor coordination, and executive dysfunction. Inspired by her efforts to explain these conditions to parents over 45 years of clinical practice, she provides a science-based understanding of the issues in an accessible…
I’m a serial entrepreneur who’s built and sold several startups. I’ve been helping non-venture-backed startup founders since 2005 and now I run the first startup accelerator for bootstrappers, called TinySeed. I’ve invested in 57 startups, but I don’t believe the only way to start a SaaS company is to raise money. I host the most popular podcast for bootstrappers, called Startups for the Rest of Us. I also run the most well-known conference and online community for non-venture-track SaaS founders, called MicroConf.
The mental game is perhaps the most important part of being a successful founder while also living a sane and happy life. Sherry Walling is an entrepreneur with a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and helps us understand how to properly equip ourselves for the startup journey. For full disclosure, I am married to Dr. Walling and credited as a contributing author since we collaborated on several of the ideas that served as the basis for this book. But this book is recommended far and wide by those who read it and understand the need to be aware of how difficult this journey can be.
Learn how to stay sane and ensure both you and your business thrive for years. You run a business. And running a business is hard. It can ruin your health. It can ruin your relationships. It can ruin your life.But only if you don’t equip yourself for the journey.The responsibility, stress and loneliness of being an entrepreneur are a far cry from your friends who work salaried jobs. The path of least resistance is to let the stress and isolation of starting, running and growing a business infiltrate most aspects of your life.
Inspired both by my marriage to someone with ADHD as well as my own neurodiversity, I have been researching this topic for the last 15 years. As a collegiate athlete and stimulation seeker myself, my doctoral dissertation explored the impact of HIIT exercise on symptom presentation in adults with ADHD, and the results were inspiring. I truly believe that with the right set of tools and supports, those with ADHD can be the driving force behind humanity's many accomplishments. This belief also informs my strength-based counseling approach with those who have ADHD that I am honored to continue working with throughout their own self-empowerment journeys.
I always felt that those with ADHD were not disordered but rather unique brains that sometimes struggled in the current highly stimulating yet sometimes sedentary modern world we live in. When I came across this book, I felt as if all my ideas had been synthesized into one comprehensive and truly revolutionary piece of literature that outlines the biology, history, and research behind why this is correct.
The author lays out why ADHD should not be considered a form of dysfunction or disorder but rather a subset of people who are “hunters in a farmer’s world.”
This book also helped me understand why some vocational tests, academic expectations, and societal norms do not support the unique ADHD brain and why thinking outside the box and asking what the powerful ADHD brain can offer our society has the potential to benefit us all.
A newly revised and updated edition of the classic guide to reframing our view of ADHD and embracing its benefits
* Explains that people with ADHD are not disordered or dysfunctional, but simply "hunters in a farmer's world"--possessing a unique mental skill set that would have allowed them to thrive in a hunter-gatherer society
* Offers concrete non-drug methods and practices to help hunters--and their parents, teachers, and managers--embrace their differences, nurture creativity, and find success in school, at work, and at home
* Reveals how some of the world's most successful people can be labeled as ADHD hunters, including…
My father died by suicide when I was thirteen. Because my family never spoke about the issues leading up to and resulting from this devastating event, we suffered a great deal. I have a deep love for books that expose just how dark, and troubled the teen existence can be. Authors who are brave enough to tackle such topics feed my bravery. The more stories we have on the topics of suicide, mental health, and trauma the broader the conversation and the more those who feel as though no one could possibly understand what they are going through feel seen.
This is one of those books that will sit with you for days. It is the story of two friends—former foster brothers—who were separated then reunited.
One is doing well (Adam) and the other is lost in a deep labyrinth of emotions (Julian). The connection between these boys and how it evolves is masterfully portrayed.
I could feel Adam’s anguish and helplessness towards Julian. Some problems don’t have a quick fix. But what all problems need is kindness.
Sometimes this simple act can make a world of difference.
When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he's got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn't easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can't complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track…
Fly
With Me was
the most enjoyable book I read all year. It was smart, heartfelt, and
well-paced, with a perfect balance of heavy and light. I laughed, and I cried
multiple times.
I also deeply appreciated seeing neuro-spicy
characters on the page.
This representation—bisexual characters, characters
with ADHD—means so much to me. Andie Burke, along with Sarah Grunder Ruiz in
her upcoming book, is putting us on the map in the best way. I’m so here for
it.
Flying-phobic ER nurse Olive Murphy is still gripping the armrest from her first-ever take-off when the pilot announces an in-flight medical emergency. Olive leaps into action and saves a life, but ends up getting stuck in the airport hours away from the marathon she's running in honor of her brother. Luckily for her, Stella Soriano, the stunning type A copilot, offers to give her a ride.
After the two spend a magical day together, Stella makes a surprising request: Will Olive be her fake girlfriend?
A video of Olive saving a life has gone viral and started generating big sales…
Is there a Japanese or Dutch word for "One who loves to geek out on organizational strategies, productivity (and post-its) SO MUCH they focus their career on it?" If there is, um......that's me. I'm Dr. Rebecca Branstetter, and I've been a school psychologist and collector of practical strategies to support students with executive functioning challenges for over 20 years. As the author of The Everything Parents Guide to Executive Functioning and creator of the “How to Teach Children and Teens Executive Functioning Skills” masterclass, my passion is to help kids figure out how they learn, what's getting in the way of their potential, and what to do about it!
So often, executive functioning challenges like impulse control, difficulties with attention, and trouble with organization are thought of as isolated skills to be taught as an “add on” lesson. However, there are easy ways to teach executive functioning skills as an “add IN” to what parents and educators are already doing throughout the day. I recommend this book because it helps teach executive functioning in everyday routines, like cooking, going to the store, and on the playground. I really love the colorful and ready-to-use pages in this book! The author also sells a really cool card deck you can get to take with you “on the go” to boost not only executive functioning but also emotional regulation and social communication.
The Mom’s Choice Award winner, Make Social and Emotional Learning Stick! Practical activities to help your child manage their emotions, navigate social situations and decrease anxiety, Expanded and Updated, (black and white version!) has helped thousands of families boost emotional regulation, executive functioning, social communication, reduce anxiety, and so much more!
Does your child struggle to have meaningful connections, navigate social situations, and communicate with others?
Learn how to support them so that they can build on their strengths and interests to feel confident and connected in social relationships and situations.
Does your child experience high levels of anxiety or…
In 2012 I started a minimalist journey, inspired by my 1,500 square foot house that could no longer comfortably contain the possessions belonging to me, my partner, and our then 2-year-old triplets. I was a full-time working mom with little time to declutter, yet I knew that if I didn’t change our home, the stress of our stuff would rob us of valuable space and time to enjoy our young family. Over a period of eight months, I let go of about 70% of our possessions, and I’ve never looked back. I’ve since taught hundreds of thousands of busy parents how to do the same through my blog, book, TEDx, keynotes, classes, and coaching.
I was introduced to this book by a client of mine who, due to her severe ADHD, was struggling to manage her life while pursuing her dream of a graduate degree. I got my own copy and have since recommended it to nearly all my personal clients! This book is written with plenty of bullet points, clear pictures, and open space on the pages to help ADHD brains focus and get the information they need. Although the author addresses readers with ADHD specifically, I think the title of this book should be “Organizing Solutions for Everybody!!!” It’s one of the few organizing books I keep on my own bookshelf.
If you're one of the 10 million American adults with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), every day is a struggle to keep your home, your office, your electronics, and your calendar organized. Organizing Solutions for People with ADHD, 2nd Edition presents a simple but effective, long-term solution to get you back in control of your life. Written by professional organizer Susan Pinsky, this book outlines a practical, ADHD-friendly organizing approach that emphasizes easy maintenance techniques and methods for maximum efficiency, catering to the specific needs of the ADHD population. Color photos, useful tips, and bulleted lists make this a quick…
If you or your partner deal with ADHD, this book is a game-changer for relationships! I've read it three times and highlighted so many Kindle notes it couldn't export them all. Orlov nails the challenges for both partners, no blame game or excuses here—practical tips to navigate post-diagnosis life and tweak long-standing relationship dynamics. Highly recommend!
Updated in 2020! invaluable resource for couples in which one or both partners have Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), this authoritative book guides troubled partners towards an understanding and appreciation for the struggles and triumphs of a relationship affected by it, and to integrate ADHD into their relationship in a more positive and less disruptive way. Going beyond traditional marriage counseling which can often discount the influence of ADHD, this discussion offers advice from the author's personal experience and years of research and identifies patterns of behavior that can hurt marriages-such as nagging, intimacy problems, sudden anger, and memory issues-through…
