A central source of frustration for most adults with ADHD is that they know what they need to do but they have difficulties turning their intentions into actions. These difficulties also interfere with their ability to use self-help books and to get the most out of psychosocial treatments that provide coping strategies that promise to improve their functioning. Drs. Ramsay and Rostain are experts in the assessment and treatment of adult ADHD and are leaders in the development of effective psychosocial treatments for this group of patients. Their newest book, The Adult ADHD Tool Kit: Using CBT to Facilitate Coping Inside and Out is a coping guide for adults living with ADHD, one that does not just present useful coping strategies but also provides specific tactics designed to help readers implement these skills in their daily lives and brings them to life in a user-friendly format. The authors discuss many different settings in which ADHD may cause difficulties, including work, school, matters of physical health and well-being, and the issue of excessive use of technology. Although written for consumers, clinicians will find the book to be a clinically useful tool for their adult patients with ADHD, serving as a companion to the newly updated and expanded second edition of Drs. Ramsay and Rostain’s professional treatment manual, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Adult ADHD: An Integrative Psychosocial and Medical Approach.

Table of Contents

1 Introduction

2 What Do You Have to Do? The To-Do List

3 How Do You Spend Yourself? The Daily Planner

4 Define, Prioritize, and Choreograph What You Do: Time and Task Management

5 Putting the Plan into Motion (or “Once I Get Started . . .”

6 Keeping the Plan Going (Part 1): Motivation, Emotions, and Energy

7 Keeping the Plan Going (Part 2): Attitudes, Beliefs, and Self-Esteem

8 Outsourcing Coping Skills

9 Data Management: Recording, Organizing, and Managing Information

10 Materials Management: Organizing and Managing Your “Stuff”

11 Environmental Engineering: Managing Your Surroundings

12 Problem Management: Putting Skills Together

13 Managing College with ADHD

14 Managing the Workplace with ADHD

15 Relationships, Family, and Adult ADHD

16 Health, Well-Being, and Adult ADHD

17 Your Relationship with Technology: Good Servant, Poor Master

18 Committing to Undoing the Effects of Adult ADHD

19 The Role of Medications in the Treatment of Adult ADHD

20 Conclusions

Appendix A: Online Resources and Organizations

Appendix B: Recommended Readings for Consumers

Appendix C: Recommended Readings for Professionals

Appendix D: Adult ADHD Clinics

Appendix E: Useful Tools and Apps

Appendix F: Medications for Adult ADHD

Review

"In over 35 years of treating adults with ADHD, I have never come across a better resource than Ramsay and Rostain’s The Adult ADHD Tool Kit. After an excellent presentation of foundational processes such as planning, time management, procrastination, motivation, organization, and challenging distorted beliefs, they creatively apply these techniques to coping in college, the workplace, relationships, and health. They also address the excessive use of technology and the role of medication for treating adult ADHD. Adults with ADHD and the professionals treating them will benefit greatly from Drs. Ramsay and Rostain’s wisdom. Don’t leave home without this tool kit."

―Arthur L. Robin, PhD, is the director of psychology training at Children’s Hospital of Michigan in Detroit.

"This book is the real deal. Ramsay and Rostain are clinicians and researchers and bring the best of each to the often confusing and frustrating challenges of ADHD. They offer strategies that aren’t just nice ideas―they really work."

―Ari Tuckman, PsyD, MBA, author of Understand Your Brain, Get More Done; More Attention, Less Deficit; and Integrative Treatment for Adult ADHD.

"This toolkit holds the tools for facing the challenges of adult ADHD and contains wisdom of true pioneers of ADHD treatment. The ideas and techniques in this book can transform an overwhelming life to one of hope and confidence."

―Craig Surman, MD, is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and the coauthor of Fast Minds: How to Thrive If You Have ADHD (Or Think You Might).

"Drs. Ramsay and Rostain take the reader on an insightful and comprehensive journey through overcoming some of the major pitfalls associated with adult ADHD (including time management, organization, and self-care). Readers will find themselves engaged and entertained by the authors' use of metaphor and examples from pop culture, which also helps to solidify ideas for later recall. The book is chock full of quick and simple takeaways, reminding readers of the most important tactics from each section."

―Abigail Levrini, PhD, is the clinical director at Psych Ed Coaches and author of Succeeding with Adult ADHD: Daily Strategies to Help You Achieve Your Goals and Manage Your Life.

About the Authors

J. Russell Ramsay, PhD, is cofounder and codirector of the Adult ADHD Treatment and Research Program and an associate professor of clinical psychology in psychiatry in the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine. He is cochair of the professional advisory board for the Attention Deficit Disorder Association.

Anthony L. Rostain, MD, is cofounder and codirector of the Adult ADHD Treatment and Research Program and a professor of psychiatry and pediatrics in the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine, where he is also director of education for the department of psychiatry. He is currently president of the American Professional Society of ADHD and Related Disorders (APSARD).