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ADHD Podcast for Parents and Educators
Episodes
Nov 5, 2025
Nov 5, 2025
2 min
What’s Up Team?!
It’s your humble host, Brendan Mahan, back at it again.
The podcast has been on hiatus for a while, but I am finally in a position to resume posting. So please tell your friends that I have returned.
The plan is to continue with the interview format that established ADHD Essentials as one of the top ADHD podcasts in the field, and to add in the occasional episode of me exploring useful topics as appropriate.
That said, I am expanding the scope to ADHD in general, as well as other neurodiverse topics such as anxiety and autism. The parenting information will still be there, but I’m no longer covering parenting exclusively. And odds are that I will be playing with my Wall of Awful model more frequently, because one of the reasons for the extended hiatus was that I a have signed a book deal with Hachette Book Group’s Balance Imprint, and Overcoming The Wall of Awful: Why It’s Hard to Get Things Done When You Have ADHD, Autism, and Anxiety, (and how to do them anyway) will be in a bookstore near you in the Fall of next year. Turns out writing a book is REALLY time consuming.
That said, ADHD Essentials will resume with some long-overdue episodes, including interviews with ADHD luminaries Ari Tuckman, Archie Chimayani, Larry Jones, and Farah Jamil. And I’ll also share my thoughts on subjects ranging from afterschool restraint collapse to emotional regulation and connection.
I plan to post several episodes in the next week or so to get the ball rolling, and then settle in to a once-a-week pattern after that.
I’m glad to be back at it, I hope you enjoy what I have in store for you.
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Feb 11, 2025
Feb 11, 2025
40 min
In today’s episode, I talk to my friend Tamara Rosier. Tamara runs the ADHD Center of West Michigan, she is also the author of two books - “Your Brain’s Not Broken”, and her new book, “You, Me, and Our ADHD Family”, as well as the workbooks that accompany both.
Tarama and I discuss her new book, and explore how ADHD affects family communication patterns, over-functioning and under-functioning, triangles, and ways to mend relationships.
Guest Links:
Learn more about Tamara and her work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Find Dr. Carolyn at:
https://www.instagram.com/the.adhd.md/
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Dec 31, 2024
Dec 31, 2024
36 min
It’s the end of 2024, so Dr. Carolyn and I are talking about goal-setting and how we view New Year’s Resolutions. Along the way, we dabble in the importance of working with our brains rather than against them, the power of feeling seen, and why staying true to our values is important.
Register for the ADHD Essentials Parenting Groups Here
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Find Dr. Carolyn at:
https://www.instagram.com/the.adhd.md/
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Nov 2, 2024
Nov 2, 2024
32 min
Today, we’re joined by executive function and leadership coach Frankie Berkoben. She shares why our executive function capacity can be so variable and the importance of being able to accept that variance, as well as the seven types of bandwidth, and why executive function coaching is helpful for leaders.
Guest Links:
Learn more about Frankie and her work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
-
Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
-
Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
-
Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
-
Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
-
Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Oct 26, 2024
Oct 26, 2024
33 min
Today, we’re joined by Dr. Patrick LaCount, the research officer for the “How to ADHD” YouTube channel.
Patrick talks to us about ADHD in young adulthood. We discuss the importance of taking a long view for both parents and young adults, tips for making friends, and the value of mindfulness.
Guest Links:
Learn more about Dr. LaCount and his work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Oct 16, 2024
Oct 16, 2024
38 min
Our friend Dr. Caroyn, the ADHD MD is back!
We talk about the importance of community to ADHD, how those communities allow us to embrace different parts of ourselves, and why the ADHD Conference is so meaningful to so many.
Register for the ADHD Essentials Parenting Groups Here
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Find Dr. Carolyn Lentzsch-Parcells at:
https://www.instagram.com/the.adhd.md/
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Oct 9, 2024
Oct 9, 2024
29 min
In today's episode, we're joined by Julie Kliers. Going undiagnosed until age 46 and not wanting to see her sons repeat her own struggles, Julie embarked on a crusade to learn all she could about ADHD, and became the person she needed. Now, she helps adults and students with ADHD embrace their unique and unlock their full potential!
Julie talks to us about the power of diagnosis, overwhelm, and boundaries. We discuss the ADHD trap of thinking we should be doing things in a neurotypical way and then beating ourselves up when we can’t, how executive function challenges lead to overwhelm, the struggle of black-and-white thinking, and ways to get into action.
Register for the ADHD Essentials Parenting Groups Here
Guest Links:
Learn more about Julie and her work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Oct 3, 2024
Oct 3, 2024
31 min
In today’s episode, we’re joined by Kyrus Keenan Westcott of The Vibe with Ky.
Ky talks about behaving truthfully under imaginary circumstances, the power of the stories we tell ourselves, masking, being an introvert, and the growth he’s gained from doing The Vibe with Ky.
Register for the ADHD Essentials Parenting Groups Here
Guest Links:
Learn more about Ky and his work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Aug 13, 2024
Aug 13, 2024
23 min
Dr. Carolyn is back! Carolyn is a pediatrician with ADHD who can talk about the disorder from any number of directions! You can find her on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok as the ADHD MD.
In today's episode, Dr Carolyn Lenszch-Parcells shares some good news, and we finish up our conversation about ADHD meds. This time, we discuss non-stimulants, and a bit about the med shortage.
The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
Learn more about Dr. Carolyn and her work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join The ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community
Jul 29, 2024
Jul 29, 2024
37 min
In today’s episode, we talk to friend-of-the-pod, and New York Times Best-Selling author AJ Jacobs. AJ is an editor at large for Esquire, as well as a journalist, author, and lecturer best known for writing about his lifestyle experiments. He’s also a fellow ADHDer.
AJ talks to us about his latest book, The Year of Living Constitutionally. We discuss:
- How his year of living like a colonial American affected AJ’s mental health (mostly in good ways)
- Why flexible thinking matters and how to support it
- Lifestyle lessons from Benjamin Franklin
- And election cakes
Guest Links:
Learn more about AJ Jacobs and his work here:
Learn More about Brendan and his work at:
- Learn about & Register for the The ADHD Essentials Online Parent Coaching Groups
- Join the ADHD Essentials Facebook Community
- Check out the ADHD Essentials Website
- Contact Brendan at brendan@ADHDessentials.com
Men’s ADHD Support Group Links:
- Learn more about the Men’s ADHD Support Group
- Join the Men’s ADHD Support Group’s Facebook Community