ADHD-CCSP: What is it?

Ally Bremer
1 day ago
5 min read

I recently completed the official certification process to be an ADHD-CCSP. What is that, you ask? CCSP stands for Certified Clinical Services Professional and my area of expertise is ADHD. In order to complete this certification, I needed to complete a minimum of 30 hours of continuing education classes with at least 3 hours focused on psychopharmacology and 3 hours focused on ADHD in the community and 24 hours specific to ADHD assessment and treatment topics. I also needed to complete at least 200 clinical contact hours with clients diagnosed with ADHD. All of this may sound like mumble jumble to you (and it sort of is!) But it basically means that I spent a lot of hours and time working with ADHD clients while learning as much as I could about treating ADHD. In this post, I'll share about some of the things I learned and how that knowledge helps me help you or your child.

Throughout this training, I learned a ton of information about the science of ADHD and the brain and the differences in the ADHD brain versus a non-ADHD brain. I learned how ADHD impacts work, school, home and family life, relationships, and one’s own psyche. I learned why time management, organization, and completing homework is so challenging for those with ADHD. I also learned how relationships can be impacted when one person struggles to complete daily chores or tasks and the other person feels like they have to pick up the slack or be constantly reminding the other to complete tasks. One of my favorite parts of this course was gaining an understanding of how the ADHD brain thinks and what is or isn’t getting attention in the ADHD brain on a daily basis. This knowledge has helped me be able to better understand my ADHD client’s experiences while using my knowledge of the ADHD brain to find strategies to address the issues that arise.

I also learned the basics of pharmacological interventions for ADHD. While this does not give me the ability to prescribe or recommend medications, it does give me an understanding of how medications work and what their role is in the treatment of ADHD. With this understanding, I can help clients maximize their treatment.

Lastly, I learned an abundance of strategies and tools to help those with ADHD manage the symptoms and struggles that come with the diagnosis. I can’t even begin to share how many tools I learned, but what I can say is that I have a LIBRARY of resources for ADHD skills building! As we know, one of the biggest struggles with ADHD is with executive functions- or the higher order brain functions that help us with skills like time management, attention, task initiation, self-control, and organization to name a few. Through this training, I now have many tools and skills building strategies to assist people with ADHD in managing their executive functioning deficits. I also learned ADHD-specific tools to assist with emotional regulation and gender-related differences in ADHD.

This course also helped me to learn how to approach ADHD from a holistic and realistic place. Unfortunately, as of now, there is no cure for ADHD. So, the focus of treatment is finding the strategies that work and help ADHD-ers manage their struggles successfully. I learned how to approach treating ADHD with the goals of long-term success and implementation of manageable and doable skills and plans. After completing this training, I have been able to hone my expertise and skills in working with ADHD clients in order to provide the best possible and evidence-based supports for those clients. I have had so much fun learning- and I will continue to learn as I maintain this certification and complete more education!

If you have any questions about ADHD treatment or are interested in pursuing support for ADHD, don’t hesitate to reach out!

Flexible Thinking: What is it and why is it important?

If you have a child in school or therapy, you’ve probably heard teachers or therapists talk about flexible thinking. It’s something I work on frequently with clients and also something that people often have questions about. Let’s talk about it!

What is flexible thinking?

Flexible thinkers are able to adapt to changes, think about things in different ways, are open to changing their minds, and can consider multiple solutions to problems. Flexible thinking is an executive function that helps us with emotional regulation, problem solving, and self-control. Flexible thinkers are often cool in the face of stress or unexpected circumstances and are good at taking things as they come and coming up with creative solutions to problems that arise in their lives. Like all executive functions, flexible thinking relies on other executive functions working together in order to be successful. For example, flexible thinkers use self-control and emotional regulation to keep calm and think through things. They also use problem solving skills to help themselves pivot in the moment.

Why is flexible thinking important?

Flexible thinking is an important skill because, simply put, it makes navigating every day life much easier. We are all confronted with big and small problems all the time. And (hopefully you’ll agree with this), life generally goes better when we can manage these problems without losing our cool or being unable to solve the problems. Flexible thinking doesn’t mean that we don’t get frustrated or have an emotional reaction to things not going according to plan. But, it does mean that we can keep that emotional reaction in check and use our logical brains to work through possible solutions and navigate the situation. I’m sure we can all think of people in our lives who handle challenges well and people who handle them… not so well. Or maybe we know people who are willing and able to change their minds about something big or small when presented with new information. And I’m sure we all know people who are not willing or able to do that. Flexible thinkers are also able to think about situations and determine whether or not they should roll with the punches or dig in a bit and stand their ground. It is definitely not advisable to be someone who always bends or changes their mind or perspective- but it is important to know when we should and shouldn’t!

How can I improve my flexible thinking skills?

There are a lot of ways you can improve flexible thinking skills. My first piece of advice is always to practice stopping and thinking before reacting or speaking when things don’t go according to plan or we are faced with a setback. If we can pause and identify what the problem is, what solutions are available to us, what the consequences are to each solution, and then pick the best solution, we will be much better able to work through these challenges. Depending on the situation, you may have to take a deep breath or two before you’re ready to think through these things, and that is perfectly okay! Also, taking a minute to ask yourself if the problem you’re faced with will be an issue in an hour, a day, a week, or longer may help you keep things in perspective and manage unexpected changes in helpful ways. Anytime we can pause and challenge that immediate desire to react emotionally or get upset when thing don't go as planned, we are helping ourselves be flexible.

Flexible thinking is an important skill for everyone and something we can all practice each day. Being a good flexible thinker means we can manage the inevitable challenges we face with greater ease and less emotional strife. If you or someone you know struggles with flexible thinking, talk with your therapist or reach out to our team to get scheduled with a therapist! We are happy to help!