book Review: Thriving with Adult ADHD: Skills to Strengthen Executive Functioning by Phil Boissiere, MFT

Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this book, free of charge, from Calisto Publishing for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it.

 

 If you have a family member, or friend, with ADHD,

 then this might just be the BEST holiday present they get this year!

Strengthen executive functioning skills to overcome ADHD symptoms with proven strategies from Thriving with Adult ADHD.

Synopsis:

Focus, organization, stress management, and more—these qualities are gained and improved by strengthening executive functioning and core skills. Thriving with Adult ADHD offers a toolbox of practical, evidence-based exercises to build this mental skill set and take control of ADHD.

From managing common distractions at work to regulating emotions with family and friends, these proven-effective strategies target symptoms that impact your home, work, and personal life. Applied through a series of exercises and assessments, Thriving with Adult ADHD is an actionable, results-oriented approach to achieving real, sustainable life changes.

Thriving with Adult ADHD includes:

• An overview that explains what executive functioning is, and how it affects your brain.
• Actionable strategies that are designed to improve memory, organization, productivity, stress management, and follow-through.
• Self-assessments at the beginning of each chapter to help you identify your personal strengths and weaknesses.

Don’t let ADHD symptoms hold you back. Gain the skills you need achieve your life goals with practical strategies from Thriving with Adult ADHD.

Review:

I was happy to see that this is a VERY re-latable book, and it reads as though you are talking with a friend. The assessments are very simple and quick, and my 11 yr old realized she had more ADHD symptoms than she thought she did! By the end of the assessments, she understood there were quite a few areas she needed to work on, but most importantly, that she wasn't the ONLY one who had the same issues to solve! The improving memory section was very illuminating for her, and offered both of us new ways to think about how she handles instructions. By having her repeat them back to me, we both can verify that she not only heard, understood, but also processed them! I'm always surprised when she can practically verbatim instruct someone else, using what I thought she hadn't processed. But the book explained, how she was able to keep certain things to stick, while others, like simple directions, haven't!

The section on mental flexibility was very interesting for her, as she started to see how she gets so easily distracted and how not being able to focus can be a huge problem for in her future work world. Finding out about DJ Alex Cruz (yeah I know, but if it's not Irish Dance music, we don't have it on speed download, LOL) and how a steady beat could help to FOCUS her attention was a revelation. I had never thought about steady beats in the background to help her keep focus. Now he's on whenever she does schoolwork! Being able to move and hum to the music has really HELPED her. Who knew?

The section on reacting was also a huge help for her, making her realize she tends to react versus pausing before reacting. That's a huge impulse control issue. The book offers sound ideas on how to rethink her impulsiveness, and she was actually quite open to the idea presented of STOP, and has already started to use it positively.

While the book isn't technically for tweens/teens, I think it's really important for them to read the book, as well as adults, who have ADHD too. By setting kids on the right path, they will have the experience of using the techniques BEFORE hitting the work environment, and be much more successful! For adults, it can really make them PAUSE and learn new techniques that can make work, and everyday life, much more manageable!

About the Author:

PHIL BOISSIERE, MFT, has spent the last decade treating adults with ADHD in the high-pressured environment of Silicon Valley. On top of his clinical training, Phil has pursued advanced training in the assessment and treatment of ADHD from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard University. Phil cofounded Silicon Valley’s premiere adult ADHD clinic in partnership with two Stanford medical doctors. He also founded the online resource for adults with ADHD, Beyond Focused. As a clinical expert, Phil has been featured on major media outlets such as PBS, ABC News, Good Morning America, and others.