Athletics
AuDHD Beyond the Diagnostic Line
Why ADHD Plus Autistic Traits May Be the Definition We Actually Need I think we may be defining AuDHD around the wrong boundary. The common definition is straightforward: ADHD plus autism. If someone meets diagnostic criteria for ADHD and also meets diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder, we call the combined presentation AuDHD. That definition […]
Beyond the Deficit Trap: How Sports Psychology Exposes the Blind Spots of Academic Research
American neurodevelopmental research remains fundamentally locked in a deficit-first paradigm. By evaluating cognitive function primarily through seated compliance, isolated laboratory variables, and endurance for low-urgency symbolic tasks, institutional psychiatry documents the mechanics of behavioral breakdown while remaining blind to the mechanics of high performance. The Pathology Blind Spot The traditional medical model treats executive dysfunction […]
John Chaney: A Model Mensch for ADHDers in the Classroom
My Teacher From Afar I never played for John Chaney. I never sat in his locker room, stumbled into one of his infamous early-morning practices, or had him pull me into his office after I screwed up and explain what I needed to understand about myself. John Chaney probably never knew I existed. But he […]
The Accidental Remedy
Why Injured Athletes Can Suddenly Look Like They Developed ADHD "...Two years ago there was nothing at all about the effects of aerobic exercise on ADHD. I had worked with dozens of people. Of course, who have treated their ADHD with exercise (the trade-off is one hour of aerobic exercise for 4 hours of performance […]
The Weak Scaffold
What an ADHD Specialist Could Be—and Why Executive-Function Coaching Alone Falls Short I recently applied for an ADHD Specialist position at a private K–12 school built around serious student-athletes. The educational model immediately interested me. Students complete academics during a compressed portion of the day, leaving substantial time for high-level athletic development with experienced coaches. […]
What the Kitchen Builds
How passion can become competence, executive function, identity—and eventually something you have to learn to leave The kid is at home. Nobody has called them talented yet. There is no chef’s coat, no brigade, no Saturday-night service and certainly no Michelin star. Maybe somebody asks them to help make dinner. Maybe they start screwing around […]
Sleeping is Winning: Why Elite ADHD Athletes Are the Ultimate Ambassadors for Sleep Hygiene
In the high-stakes world of elite sports, physical conditioning, nutrition, and tactics have traditionally dominated the performance conversation. Yet, sport science has increasingly revealed a simpler, more potent game-changer: sleep. For neurodivergent athletes—particularly those living with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)—sleep isn't just a rest period; it is an irreplaceable tool for cognitive regulation, emotional stability, and physical […]
The Kinetic Paradox: Why Academic Research Misdiagnoses Neurodivergent Motor Performance
For decades, psychiatric literature and standardized developmental assessments have maintained a firm diagnostic consensus: Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Autism Spectrum Condition (ASD) are fundamentally characterized by motor impairment. Meta-analyses consistently cite motor planning friction, poor gait symmetry, low muscle tone (hypotonia), and developmental dyspraxia as high-prevalence traits affecting approximately 75% to 85% of the neurodivergent […]
The Chaney Paradigm: Why Relationships Are the Only Way Classroom Consequences Work for ADHD Students
For a student with ADHD, standard behavioral consequences often fall completely flat. Traditional disciplinary models operate on a simple calculus: misbehavior equals punishment, which should theoretically deter future misbehavior. But in an ADHD brain—particularly one navigating the intense emotional currents of Rejection Sensitive Dysphoria (RSD)—this calculus doesn't just fail; it frequently backfires. The truth is, […]