In 2012, I felt like I had hit a wall. I had trouble keeping organized and was on an emotional roller coaster at work. I felt overwhelmed – I could not keep up with my job responsibilities.

At the time, I worked in a competitive environment where mistakes were not tolerated; working efficiently (aka "quickly") was expected, and every detail and overall accuracy were critical. Perfection was the standard. Mistakes were unacceptable.

I was constantly stressed and emotionally drained, and my time with family and friends was robbed by an inability to relax, leading to constant distractions, agitation, and exhaustion. I began to doubt my capabilities and was obsessing over and beating myself up for the slightest mistakes I made.

After my anxiety reached an all-time high, I went to see a mental health counselor and was diagnosed with Adult ADD-Inattentive type.

"The teacher and the taught do the teaching."

After researching ADD and its challenges, I was determined to pursue my strengths and passions to help others, including teaching them about ADD/ADHD, identifying and developing their coping strengths, and providing access and resources to support their growth based on their needs. I want to add my voice to those with ADD daily and help them find their way out of the darkness – where they can be their authentic, best selves.

Back from the wall, My ADD diagnosis helped me realize some amazing things about myself. For more than 40 years, I worked hard to find a way to "fit" into the non-ADD world and did not even know it. Finally, the feelings of inadequacy and insecurity I developed over the years began fading away. As it turns out, many others struggle in their everyday work and personal lives because of ADD/ADHD.

You know how it goes:

• Being told information only once and expected to remember it;
• Knowing what to do with it and how to do it;
• Attending to the correct information while retaining the essential parts
• Allowing no distractions, even though you may see the world differently than non-ADD people.

I learned, and continue to learn, how to find the best ways to make things work for me, and I want to help others find that for themselves too.

For over 28 years, I worked as an educator and administrator, including ADD/ADHD students. I worked with parents and teachers to develop tools for students to feel and become more successful. I also helped parents and teachers navigate the special education process, from informal classroom interventions to fully formalized behavioral and individual educational plans (IEPs).

Got More Questions? Need Accountability? Join DeShawn for the Gain An Hour Meetup.

To learn more about my passion for bringing peace to your home or if you need to set aside some deep thinking time on any projects, I offer a weekly online meetup to focus and dive deep into a project you want to accomplish. It's not a talk session, but bring your work, declare what you are working on, and jump in! I offer this to anyone to help get stuff done! Fill out the Contact form, write Gain an Hour Meetup, and I'll send the details to your inbox.