Developing an awareness and understanding of one’s own thought process is the essence of Metacognition. Executive functions are a group of cognitive “daily living” problem solving skills which typically improve with age, maturity and life experience. they distinguish high-functioning individuals from those who struggle with deadlines and goal management. Students and adults with aDHD often present clinically with frustration regarding procrastination, difficulty following through on important daily living tasks, and shame regarding not meeting the expectations of others. they need support developing “executive functions”. In this workshop, you will learn a curious and compassionate approach to facilitate inquiry into our clients’ own experiences for the purpose of supporting their development of executive functioning skills. rather than learning how to teach executive functions to clients, we will learn how to support our clients in teaching themselves, and in learning from their own experiences. Learning Objectives: • Define Metacognition & Executive functioning • be able to describe a thorough process of ADHD evaluation • Identify the most common co-occurring conditions with ADHD • list the core executive functions required to function well as an independent adult • How to put aside labels such as “lazy” or “unmotivated” in order to identify the functions that even undesirable behaviors serve, or the skills deficits which those behaviors highlight

1. David D Nowell PhD
“How Exactly Did You Do That?”
Supporting metacognition and
executive functioning in clients with
ADHD
www.DrNowell.com

2. www.DrNowell.com
DavidNowell
DavidNowellSeminars

3. Learning objectives
• Describe a thorough process of ADHD evaluation
• Identify the most common co-occurring
conditions with ADHD
• List the core executive functions required to
function well as an independent adult
• Determine to put aside labels such as “lazy” or
“unmotivated” in order to identify the functions
that even undesirable behaviors serve, or the
skills deficits which those behaviors highlight

4. Defining ADHD
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5. Common comorbidities
• Learning disorder
• Substance abuse
• Anxiety disorders
• Oppositional defiant disorder
• Sensory and motor differences

7. STRATEGIC BEHAVIORAL INQUIRY

9. The ADHD evaluation
• Who diagnoses ADHD?
• History
• Collaterals
• Checklists
• Testing
• QEEG

10. Goal of metacognition: To be deeply
seated in the place of awareness,
choosing what we give our attention
to now. And now.

11. Executive Functioning
• Russell Barkley
– Verbal working memory
– Nonverbal working memory
– Self-regulation
– Reconstitution

12. Executive Functioning
• BRIEF-2 and BRIEF-A (Behavioral Rating
Inventory of Executive Functioning)
–Behavioral regulation index
–Emotion regulation index
–Cognitive regulation index

13. BRIEF-2 (Behavioral Rating Inventory
of Executive Functioning)
• Behavioral regulation index
• Emotion regulation index
• Cognitive regulation index
– Initiation
– Task completion
– Working memory
– Plan/organize
– Task monitor
– Organization of materials

14. Knock 3 years off his age

15. A healthy high-functioning 26 year old
is able to…
• Manage screens and technology
• Resist soft addiction
• Initiate and repair and end conversations
• Engage with non-preferred tasks
• Manage time and money and emotions
• Self-motivate

16. STRATEGIC BEHAVIORAL INQUIRY

17. Objectives of SBI
• Specific behavioral strategy
• What was the feeling-goal?
• Motivational level on a scale from 1-10

18. Benefits of SBI
• Affirms the client’s unique internal experience
• Emphasizes the culture of self-regulation
• Encourages metacognition

19. Assumptions of SBI
• Everybody’s doing the best they can
• Behavior is not incomprehensible or random
• Behavior follows patterns which reveal
themselves to the curious observer free of
prejudice or blame or theory

20. Where do you see this problem
The most? The least?
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21. How to do SBI

22. How to do SBI
“How exactly did you do that?”
“How did you know it was time to _____?”
“How long had you been thinking about ____?”

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