May We Introduce You To: Donna Addkison, Certified ADHD Coach & Founder of Wither & Tynes Life and Business Coaching for ADHD

Lee: Donna, can you tell us about yourself, Wither & Tynes, and why you became a certified ADHD coach?

Donna: Over the course of my professional career, I have lived in 10 states and worked in higher education as an adjunct instructor, managed high-profile political campaigns successfully, served at the highest levels of state and city government, led nonprofit organizations including a regional chamber of commerce and economic development foundation, worked at the parish and diocesan levels of the Episcopal Church, failed at marriage twice and have one amazing son.

Universities awarded me two masters degrees, and organizations presented me with numerous awards. I even led the “on-the-ground” work to build a community development credit union and was a licensed financial advisor for a time…among other things. Yet, I never BELIEVED I knew what I was doing. I believed I would be “found out” and needed to exit before I “failed.” Do you “see” my ADHD yet? No one else did – or if they did, no one ever said a word, and I had no idea that sense of distrust in myself was emanating from a lifetime lived with undiagnosed ADHD.

In my early 50’s so many things had fallen apart. I couldn’t figure out why I kept getting bored in really cool jobs, why I had this overwhelming urge to move every few years, why I could be “so smart” and lose my keys/glasses/wallet seemingly every day. I realized that the medical community couldn’t or wouldn’t answer my questions, or I wasn’t asking the right questions.

After being laid off during the COVID pandemic, I began working with neurodivergent young adults on their way to community college. To say I had more in common with these young adults and certainly felt more at ease with them than I did with the older adults running the program would be a gross understatement. One day, after feeling “stupid” in a staff meeting, I sat back, said not another word, and simply observed the “adults” in the room. When the meeting ended, I asked the individual in charge when she planned to tell me that I have Autism, ADHD or both. Her answer? She thought I knew that already.

Like so many overlooked and undiagnosed girls and women, my first diagnosis in 2008-ish, depression, couldn’t have been farther off the mark. In fact, I didn’t even know about that diagnosis until I requested a printed copy of my records. Next came generalized anxiety in 2018, but that still wasn’t quite right. After that day in 2020, I knew I needed to know more. I sensed there had to be a better way to move through this life, through this world, and someone had to know that way. When I found ADDCA (ADD Coaches Academy) and began to read about how coaching through an ADHD lens came to be, their research and their work to build individualized awareness and approaches, my impulsivity led me to jump in with both feet.

Beyond a shadow of a doubt, that was one of the best decisions I ever made. The work was difficult and transformative. It underscored my belief that another way was possible for individuals with uniquely wired brains to live their best lives without sacrificing any of the good stuff. Over the past few years, I’ve continued to advance my training, elevate my credentials, and partner with clients to create their “designer Legos” so they, too, can build scaffolding around trouble spots, discern the better rhythm for their days, weeks or lives, and live into the “WHO” they know themselves to be. That’s my mission, and that is Wither & Tynes.

Lee: What do you see as the special needs of kids and adults with ADHD, as well as their families?

Donna: Awareness of what ADHD is and what it isn’t grounded in science and data. Awareness of what is possible when treatment and support are grounded in science and centered on the individual.

Broader public awareness of the same among the general public, employers, human relations professionals, and educators including university faculty.

Access to a variety of diagnostic approaches that are affordable, and a health insurance system willing to understand that correct diagnostics early may save great expense later from injuries and illnesses.

A responsive medical/mental health system that listens, observes and treats the whole person regardless of age or other demographic variables.

A new paradigm for understanding the role of medication in managing the body’s chemistry, access at an affordable price point, and a solution to medication shortages.

A multi-modal approach to managing the hard-wired traits and behaviors associated with ADHD for individuals, regardless of age, and for those who love them. This might include: counseling, coaching, medication, integrated medical care that considers individualized approaches to nutrition, sleep and movement as well as alternative treatment approaches such as yoga, tai chi, acupuncture, and more.

Individualized support at school and at work built on an understanding of what is truly supportive.

Self-compassion and compassion for one another.

Community.

Lee: What do you think are the benefits of working with a certified ADHD coach?

Donna: It’s necessary to know that an ADHD coach is not a therapist and that coaching as an industry is self-regulated. Knowing that your coach carries professional credentials from either International Coaching Federation (ICF) or Professional Association for ADHD Coaches (PAAC) or both tells you that the coach has submitted to rigorous testing and evaluation as a coach and has agreed to abide by the ethical standards set by the credentialing organizations. I want my clients to know I’m voluntarily asking ICF and PAAC to evaluate my coaching ability, require continuing education on my part, and provide an umbrella of ethical standards to guide my work.

That said, therapy and coaching can work well together because a therapist and a coach are trained differently and have different purposes. Think about it this way. If therapy supports a client’s ability to answer “why” looking back across their lived experience, coaching supports a client’s ability to answer “which, what, how, when, where and who” looking forward to lived experiences to come. Coaching honors all the work done in and through therapy and supports actively moving past any accumulated shame, guilt, or fear. Coaching through an ADHD lens offers a tailored approach to achieving an individual’s intentions and goals in everyday life and over the longer term.

Talk about an opportunity to craft a user’s manual for your own brain and nervous system! Imagine how transformative having that user’s manual can be.

Lee: Can you describe the services that Wither & Tynes offers and what they involve?

Donna: In general, I partner with individuals, both neuro-normative and neurodivergent, as their coach, to support the creation of individualized users’ manuals for their unique brain wiring usually with a specific emphasis on something academic, business, career or life related. Because of my varied professional experiences, I support a wide range of clients, most of whom are 18 or older. Under certain circumstances I will coach individuals as young as 14. Typically, we work together in 50-minute increments weekly, and we communicate by email or text between sessions.

Some of my clients don’t have a diagnosis of ADHD or Autism (or both), but they have suspicions. They may be parents of a neurodivergent child or adult child, a personal or professional partner with a neurodivergent individual, or in a broader relationship with neurodivergent individuals. Some may be experiencing challenges with the “executive functions” of the brain resulting from a stroke, traumatic brain injury or Long Covid. My approach to coaching works equally well in these circumstances.

Every now and then I will offer opportunities for small group work that can be viewed as coaching, but it lacks the individualized components. In the last half of 2025 I will be launching several single-session and multi-session workshops to tackle specific challenges, and I continue to host a network/support group for women with ADHD.

Information about all of this and more is available on my website at www.withertynes.com.

Lee: How can our readers find out about your services?

Donna: The simplest would be taking a quick look at my website, www.withertynes.com. I offer a short, no cost exploratory session to answer specific questions about coaching and to see if I’m a good “fit.” There’s also an option to contact me for speaking requests. Otherwise, email me directly at donna@withertynes.com or call me at 612-360-2123. Certainly, there are several professional directories where you may find information on coaches as well such as ADDA, ACO, CHADD, ICF and PAAC.

Lee: If you are available for community speaking events please describe the event, including fees and contact information for booking.

Donna: Yes, I do work with organizations and businesses looking to better understand ADHD and AuDHD whether that’s with a shared-interest group like a parents’ or civic organization, a non-profit organization, or for-profit business.

These opportunities may take the form of group workshops, speaking engagements or uniquely designed programming for organizations or businesses. Contact me through my website or by email at donna@withertynes.com for more information as fees vary depending on the request.

Lee:  What is the most important takeaway you want our readers to know about living with ADHD?

Donna: Science has made tremendous strides since 1902 when ADHD was believed to be “an abnormal defect of moral control in children.” We know now that ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition characterized by differences in brain and cognitive development including differing structures and less organized white matter – all with a high degree of individual variability. While the impact may wane and wax in intensity over the course of a lifetime, the neurological differences remain.

When we are aware of the underlying biological differences, operate from a strengths-based approach, and develop individually focused ways to manage hard-wired traits or behaviors that may have negative consequences now or in the future, we can prepare individuals living with ADHD to live their lives to their fullest, living into the fullness and richness of WHO we are. We can find ways to minimize potential negative impacts while taking advantage of so many strengths also hard-wired into the ADHD brain/nervous systems such as heightened levels of empathy, sociability, humor, sensitivity, enthusiasm, determination, curiosity, flexibility, creativity, calmness in crisis, and more. In fact, we must do these things because it takes both brains, neuro-normative and neuro-divergent, to sustain us and to contribute to a better tomorrow for the entire human race and this planet we call home.