Your ADHD Story Has More Power Than You Think

A conversation with Jakara Eason and Dr. Shanta Whitaker of Mindful Choices for ADHD

Most ADHD families are navigating a system that was never built with them in mind. Diagnosis wait times stretch into months. The conversation around ADHD is louder than ever, but the people most affected by it are rarely the ones in the room when decisions get made.

This week I sat down with Jakara Eason, Executive Director of Mindful Choices for ADHD, and Dr. Shanta Whitaker, the organization's Chief Science Officer. Their organization came out of a national summit that brought together families, clinicians, researchers, educators, and policymakers who had all been working toward the same goals in total isolation from each other. Mindful Choices exists to break those silos.

Here's what they had to say.

"Someone always has a connection."

We started by talking about how common ADHD really is, and how that shows up in rooms most people never get to see.

"If you know one person with ADHD, you know one person with ADHD," Jakara said. "The connection is that ADHD is real, and everyone deserves access to the care they need."

She described what happens inside congressional offices when ADHD comes up.

"When we go into congressional offices to talk about ADHD, someone in the room almost always says, I have it. Or my mom does. Or my best friend. Someone always has a connection. Because ADHD is that common."

The policy conversation isn't happening somewhere far away, among strangers. It's happening among people who, in some way, already know exactly what we're talking about.

"This is the direct impact of what you're doing to my life."

I asked what actually moves a policy conversation forward. Jakara didn't point to data first. She pointed to people.

"The most important policy decisions I've seen happen because someone walked into an office and said: this is the direct impact of what you're doing to my life."

A person telling the truth about their own life to someone with the power to do something about it.

"Your experience matters," she said. "Whether you're a parent, a caregiver, a clinician, or someone just trying to figure it all out, your perspective shapes the future of care."

"There's still this belief that ADHD ends when you stop being a child."

This is where Dr. Shanta Whitaker's work comes in. As Chief Science Officer at Mindful Choices, she's focused on what happens to ADHD care when a young person leaves home.

A kid with support. A diagnosis. A care team and a system at home that mostly works. And then they turn eighteen.

"There's still this belief that ADHD ends when you stop being a child," Shanta said. "It doesn't. And that gap is exactly what we're here to address."

College changes the structure. The workforce changes the peer group. The care that worked at sixteen doesn't always travel to nineteen, and in a new environment where no one knows the history, it's easy to stop asking for support altogether.

If you have a teen moving toward adulthood, this is the gap to be paying attention to right now.

The Quick Win: start the conversation

Jakara's Quick Win is one I want every listener to actually do this week.

Contact your elected officials. Not just your senator. Your city council member. Your mayor. Your congressional representative. Every one of these offices has staff whose job is to hear from constituents.

"Start the conversation," Jakara said. You don't need to understand the legislation. You don't need a script. You need to introduce yourself, share what your family is dealing with, and let someone know that ADHD is real in your community.

"People are paying attention now more than ever."

Toward the end of our conversation, Jakara named something I think a lot of us feel.

"The conversation around ADHD is growing louder and more visible," she said. "This is an opportunity. People are paying attention now more than ever."

That's the thread running through everything Mindful Choices is building. Not a louder argument. A seat at the table that wasn't there before, held open by people willing to walk through the door and tell the truth.

What's next

Mindful Choices for ADHD is hosting a free virtual summit series, Thriving in Transition: Reimagining ADHD Care for Young Adults. Session 1 is June 17 at 12:30 PM ET, and Session 2 follows on July 22 at 12:30 PM ET. You can sign up at choicesforadhd.org.