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HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
FROM THE SOUTH BAY / SO CAL CHAPTER OF CHADD
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) affects our lives in different ways. Symptoms are not the same for everyone and can appear differently over time. We know that the best support often comes from those who have "been there"...those of us who live with ADHD. Sharing, talking and networking with other ADHD adults and parents with ADHD children and teens and young adults, is a good way to learn about this "difference." More importantly, we learn that we are not alone.
Our Chapter's mission is to provide ongoing support to help us understand this "difference" which affects our lives, our children and our families. With the current concerns about mental health, in addition to the daily social demands among our youth and their families, we recognize a need to support families with hands-on strategies and practices.
The South Bay/So Cal Chapter of CHADD offers the following Support Programs for Adults, Mothers & Grandmothers, and Teens (ages 11-14) and their Parents:
1. Our CHADD ADULT SUPPORT GROUP (AGES 18 +) is back! We are happy to welcome back Justine Ruotolo, LMFT, as our CHADD Adult Support Group Facilitator. Justine Ruotolo, LMFT is a licensed marriage and family therapist in California and Virginia and an Executive Function/ADHD coach.
Justine has been working in the ADHD community for over 30 years and is a graduate of the Pepperdine University clinical master's program, with an emphasis on marriage and family therapy. Justine works with children, adolescents, adults, couples, and parents. Justine facilitated our Adult Group successfully for over 13 years and we are delighted that Justine is returning as our Adult Group Facilitator.
Our next Adult Zoom meeting will be on Saturday, DECEMBER 2, 2023, from 1-2:30 pm (PST). If interested in participating, please email Justine at Justine @ missadd.com and Carolyn at ckellychadd10g@gmail.com and we will be happy to include you and will send you the Zoom link.
2. Our CHADD FRIDAY NITE LIVE MEET-UP FOR TWEENS AND TEENS (Ages 11-14) AND THEIR PARENTS are in-person and monthly on a Friday night, from 6 pm - 7:30 pm. Doors open at 5:45 pm. We enjoy Pizza and a healthy treat together. Tweens/Teens begin their Meet-up and their parents move to an adjacent room for their Meet-up.
The ultimate goals of the Friday Nite Live Meet-up are to help strengthen resilience, teach self-advocacy and foster mental wellness in a confidential and safe space. It is important to learn how to better communicate within families to build trust, improve social skills and advocacy.
Our Tween & Teen Meet-up provides opportunities to share their internal struggles and successes with others and develop positive strategies to navigate their feelings, improve social skills, and communicate effectively.
Our Parent Meet-up provides opportunities for parents to learn and support each other and their children. Parenting is quite challenging under the best of circumstances. And when our tweens/teens struggle, parents struggle and parenting can be overwhelming and isolating.
Carolyn Kelly is the South Bay/So Cal Chapter of CHADD coordinator.
Dates are:
January, 2024 (DATE TBA)
February 9, 2024 (TJ VanMarter, Special Guest - Psychotherapist/Board Certified Behavior Analyst)
March 8, 2024 (Robin Kiss, Special Guest - Art Educator)
April 5, 2024
May 10, 2024
June 7, 2024
For information about our CHADD FRIDAY NITE LIVE MEET-UP FOR TWEENS AND TEENS (ages 11-14) AND THEIR PARENTS, contact Carolyn Kelly, Chapter Coordinator @ ckellychadd10g@gmail.com.
3. The CHADD WOW (WISDOM OF WOMEN) GROUP FOR MOTHERS & GRANDMOTHERS will take a summer break and will resume in September, 2023 via Zoom. Meetings are from 6:30-8:30 p.m. This is our 7th Program year. Our 2023-24 dates, special guests and their topics are listed below:
September 16, 2023
Special Guest: Kathy Whelan-Gioia, MS, M.Ed, ET/P, Non-Attorney and Active Member of COPAA (Council of Attorney,Parents,Advocates)
Topic: How to Make Every Day Count
The presentation will focus on ways to make every day count! When your child is back in school, so are you. Techniques to reduce stress at home while developing successful supports to enhance your child's performance and progress during the school year will be discussed.
October 14, 2023
Special Guest: TJ Vanmarter, MA, BCBA, LMFT, Psychotherapist and Board Certified Behavior Analyst, who works predominantly with children and adults struggling with neurodivergence and emotional regulation.
Topic: The ABC's of Effective, Compassionate and Empathetic Parenting
November 4, 2023
Special Guest: Kisha Williams, M.Ed (Ed Admin), M.Ed (Sp Education), B.A. (Psychology/Learning Behavior Disorders), SPED Dept Chair, Monitoring Teacher
Topic: Behavioral Interventions for Students and Strategies to Build Positive Parent-Teacher Rapport
December 9, 2023
Special Guests:
Donnalea Barber, Life Coach w/ADHD Specialty, M.Sc., Public Health, CPCC, PCC
Joanne Norris, Ed.D, Educator, Advisor, Speaker & Trainer, ADHD Specialist & ASC Coach
Topic: Suicide Awareness and Suicidality Risks for Women/Girls w/ADHD
Their aim in tackling this complex topic is to enable participants to engage in a discussion about suicide and what leads up to it (self-harm, suicide ideation). There are a plethora of relatively recent research data that illustrates why Women and Girls who have ADHD are at a very high risk of self-harm, suicide ideation and suicide attempts. These findings provide compelling reasons for early identification and treatment of ADHD in Girls and Women.
Donnalea and Joanne will discuss predictors and risks, showing why self-harm must be taken seriously because of its link to suicide ideation and attempted suicidess. In this presentation, Donnalea and Joanne will identify protective factors, warning signs and other risk factors, especially in adolescents and young women. Community resources are available and we will learn how to access these resources when needed.
Donnalea Barber is an IFC PCC-credentialed Life Coach (Coaches Training Institute) and specializes in ADHD. Her career is grounded in family, public health and health promotion. As an active coach, Donnalea brings a neuroscience-informed approach in support of her neurodivergent clients, helping them navigate their specific ADHD challenges. Donnalea is Communications Director and Co-founder of Coaching Suicide Awareness and one of two facilitators for the global "Knowing Me, Knowing You peer-to-peer ADHD Women's Support Group currently based in Belgium.
Dr. Joanne Norris is an educator, advisor, speaker, trainer, Mental Health Advocate and Specialist. Joanne has served as Past President, Education Advisor and European Brain Ambassador at ADHD, ASC & LD Belgium (www.neurodiversity.be) and is an NLP Practioner and Coach. Joanne co-facilitates "Knowing Me, Knowing You: Free Online Support Group for Women who have-or suspect they may have ADHD. Joanne continues to raise awareness about every aspect of ADHD, especially how it manifests in Girls and Women. Joanne's new project is forming ADHD International with a number of ADHD Warriors across Europe and the wider world, to focus on bringing ADHD education and awareness to less developed countries - again, Joanne's focus is on Girls and Women.
January 13, 2024
Special Guest: Jessica Kiss, DO, Family Medicine Specialty
Topic: The Pros and Cons of Social Media on the ADHD Brain
February 3, 2024
Special Guest: Jessica Patay, Founder/Director of wearebravetogether.org
Topic: The"Hidden" Needs of Siblings in ADHD Families and Other Disabilities/Differences
March 9, 2024
Special Guest: Johna Toomey, E.T., J.D., Founder/CEO Learn.Thrive.Grow Academic Support
Topic: Addressing Learning Challenges in ADHD, Learning Disabled, and/or Gifted Children
April 13, 2024
Special Guest: Scott Gutentag, PhD (Licensed Educational Psychologist & Nationally Certified School Psychologist)
Topic: A Deeper Dive Into the Core of ADHD: Executive Function
May 4, 2024
Special Guest: Justine Ruotolo, LMFT, Executive Function/ADHD Coach, CHADD Adult Group Facilitator
Topic: Brain Tricks and How They Help Executive Function Deficits
June 1, 2024
Special Guest: Jennifer Somers, PhD, NIMH-Funded Post Doctoral Research Fellow, UCLA Department of Psychology
Topic: Parent-Child Relationships - Risk and Protective Factors in the Context of ADHD
For more information about our CHADD WOW (Wisdom of Women) SUPPORT GROUP FOR MOTHERS & GRANDMOTHERS, contact Carolyn Kelly, chapter coordinator at ckellychadd10g@gmail.com.
We encourage you to become a CHADD member. For about $1 a week ($53 Annual Family Membership or $130 Annual Professional Membership), you would help support your local chapter and CHADD's national advocacy efforts for information, services, support and accommodations in the schools and in the workplace.
FOR INFORMATION, email Carolyn Kelly at ckellychadd10g@gmail.com
Do you need immediate assistance?
As a volunteer, I may not be able to get back to you if you need immediate assistance.
If you are seeking information for something that is time-sensitive (such as an IEP/Section 504 meeting at your child’s school), or are looking for a local professional with AD/HD expertise, please contact CHADD’s National Resource Center on AD/HD (NRC), online at http://www.help4adhd.org/ or by phone toll-free at 800-233-4050 (press option 2, Monday-Friday, 9am-5pm Eastern time).
The NRC is staffed by trained health information professionals who can answer many of your questions about AD/HD and provide other helpful information and resources. (NOTE: the NRC does not provide legal or medical advice, but can offer ideas and suggestions to help you find what you are looking for).
CHADD does not endorse or represent products, services, publication, medications or treatments. Meetings are free and open to the public, although membership with CHADD is strongly encouraged, since your local group will receive a portion of your dues to continue supporting your community.
Contact Information
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Local Volunteer Opportunities
If you would like to volunteer your talents to this group, please send us an e-mail at ckellychadd10g@gmail.com
CHADD AFFILIATE: South Bay/So. CA CHADD
CHADD NATIONAL
CHADD Local Support Groups and Affiliates Need Your Support
CHADD has local support groups in every state in the United States. Each group offers programming or information specific to their geographic area. These groups offer assistance for parents, children, young adults, adults and other stakeholders (psychologists, teachers, doctors, etc.). These groups provide advocacy, support, networking and information to those affected by AD/HD in their communities.
Ways you can support these efforts are as follows:
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Donate to this effort
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Contact your local CHADD group to advocate for support groups
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Contact your school district to host and support newly forming or current groups
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Contact your local community foundation or other foundations in your area to support this effort
For questions on these, or any options to support CHADD please visit our web site at https://chadd.org or contact the CHADD National office at (301) 306-7070.
