A strengths-based approach to ADHD care focuses on the unique capabilities of each patient – allowing you to tailor patient interventions, improve adherence, and achieve better long-term outcomes.
By adopting a strengths-based and inclusive approach to assessments while acknowledging the challenges ADHD individuals face, patients are better equipped to foster resilience, self-efficacy, and motivation.
Our latest webinar was streamed on Wednesday 4th December talks about exactly this, and was hosted by our expert clinical advisors Jess Brunet (UK), Anna Brasile (US), and Katie Hathaway (US).
Strengths-based approaches in education
Katie brought a dual perspective as a clinician and a parent of a twice-exceptional child with ADHD. She explained that neurodivergent students often face educational challenges due to the structured and fast-paced school systems which typically clash with neurodivergent needs.
She stressed that traits frequently criticized in children with ADHD (such as impulsivity) can become strengths in adulthood, such as creative problem-solving or thriving in high-pressure environments like emergency rooms.
She said: “If we're not setting them up for success early on in life, it can lead to higher rates of anxiety, depression…So if we can focus on building their skills within the schools and within their younger years to help them not only be successful in an environment that's not always geared best towards how their brain works, but also be really successful and able to hone those skills later in life.”
Practical applications in schools
There are different ways to integrate strengths-based approaches in the real world, building resilience early to prevent long-term mental health issues.
Incorporate children's interests to motivate them, like incorporating their passions into classroom tasks.
You can also use strategies like self-monitoring checklists tailored to students' strengths (for example, math puzzles for a math enthusiast struggling with language arts).
Building resilience through individualized support
Katie highlighted research by Charabin (2023) showing ADHD and non-ADHD students sharing similar levels of resilience and positive self-image but differing in internal perceptions of school-based behavior.
She said: “Kids with ADHD felt that they did more poorly at school than the students without ADHD. So, the conclusion that these researchers came to is that teachers really should not view their ADHD and non-ADHD students all that differently, because the reality is they don't view themselves very differently.
“But I thought it was so interesting because that has been my experience as well. And so it's all the more important for us to look at building resilience with these students, by teaching to their strengths and using some more practical interventions."
Teachers should avoid viewing ADHD students through a deficit lens and instead:
- Incorporate positive reinforcement (for example, a 7:1 ratio of praise to corrections).
- Develop mentoring opportunities where ADHD students can share their strengths.
Jess reinforced this, recalling her clinical experiences with young people where tailored interventions, such as creating task-based train tracks for a student passionate about trains, helped build engagement and structure.
Adult ADHD and strengths-based care
Anna, with expertise in adult ADHD, discussed the transition challenges faced by ADHD individuals, such as entering adulthood without sufficient scaffolding. Many adults only receive diagnoses after struggling with mood or coping issues. Anna emphasized:
- Reframing struggles: Focus on strengths and use them to navigate challenges. For example, “difficulty focusing for long periods” reframed as “strong ability to focus in short bursts” can guide workplace accommodations.
- Community support: Include partners, roommates, or co-workers in the care plan. Anna shared how understanding each other’s strengths and challenges within her household helped build mutual support and psychological safety.
Initiatives to help underserved populations get ADHD diagnoses
A recent initiative here at Qbtech called QbAccess is designed to provide nonprofit healthcare organizations with access to our FDA-cleared objective ADHD testing solutions at a reduced rate. This aims to reduce health disparities by ensuring low-income populations have access to high-quality ADHD evaluation services.
Anna said: “I have led an initiative around access [QbAccess] and improving access to tools that enable more robust evaluations for nonprofit clinics that often serve the underserved populations and who would never otherwise be able to afford a thorough evaluation.
“And if you can't have a thorough evaluation to know how your brain works, how do you know what strengths that you're going to focus on as far as optimizing your outcomes? So, you know, I think programs like that are incredible resource for folks who don't have that access.”
From a UK perspective, Jess added: “What we're seeing at the moment is that we've got wait lists people are needing to kind of go through their GP and then sit on a wait list for a specialist provider.
“So I think that's where some of the thinking around being neurodivergent or neuro-distinct and thinking about strengths is really beneficial early on because if we are needing some time to wait until we are able to see a specialist clinician to consider a diagnosis, we’re considering what could we be doing at those really early stages and how do we give everyone the tools to think about this person from a strengths based approach?”
Learn more from our clinical advisors with our webinar on ADHD, women’s health, and hormones.
Additional resources:
ADDA webinar recommendation for ADHD coaches directory
ADDA resources for employers and employees
ADHD Foundation on ADHD in the workplace