Do I need a formal ADHD diagnosis for my child before taking this course?

No. This course is designed for parents of children with ADHD — whether your child has a formal diagnosis, is in the process of being evaluated, or you strongly suspect ADHD but haven't started the diagnostic journey yet. Week 2 actually walks you through what a good evaluation looks like and how to navigate the process, so if you're still in the "is this ADHD?" stage, you'll find this course especially helpful.

Is this course a replacement for therapy or medication?

No, and it's not trying to be. This course is educational — it gives you the knowledge, strategies, and Catholic framework to parent your child more effectively and with more confidence. It doesn't replace individual therapy, psychiatric care, or your child's medical team. What it does is make you the most informed person at the table so you can have better conversations with your child's providers, school, and parish.

My child is only 5 (or already 16). Is this course still relevant for me?

Yes. The course covers ADHD across childhood and adolescence — from early diagnosis through the teen years and college launch. Some weeks will feel more immediately relevant than others depending on your child's age, but the foundational science, the parenting strategies, the faith integration, and the executive function–virtue framework apply no matter how old your child is. Week 11 is specifically dedicated to the teen years, and the earlier weeks are designed for parents at any stage of the journey.

I've already read Dr. Barkley and tried behavioral strategies. What will I get here that I haven't already learned?

The science in this course draws heavily on Barkley and the best ADHD research — so some of it will be familiar. What you won't find anywhere else is the integration. This course connects Barkley's principles to Catholic moral theology, maps executive function onto the cardinal virtues using Aquinas and Augustine, and uses Don Bosco's Preventive System as an organizing framework for the entire program. If you've done the secular homework and still felt like something was missing — the "why does this matter for my child's soul" piece — this is the course that fills that gap.

I'm not sure I can commit to 12 weeks. What if I fall behind?

You can complete this course on ANY timeline. The Weekly videos are a suggested pace, however....This course addresses that directly. ADHD rarely travels alone, and we don't pretend it does. Week 4 covers the most common comorbidities and look-alikes — anxiety, ODD, learning disabilities, autism, sleep disorders, giftedness, and trauma. Week 8 includes a dedicated section on Oppositional Defiant Disorder with specific strategies beyond standard ADHD approaches. The course is designed to give you the full picture of your child, not just one piece of it.

Is this course mostly theory and theology, or will I actually get practical tools I can use?

Both — and that's the point. Every single week ends with concrete, actionable strategies you can use that same day. You'll get visual routine checklists, meltdown de-escalation scripts, word-for-word phrases to use with your child and their school, a homework station setup guide, a teen driving contract, accommodation request letters, medication decision frameworks, and a 30-day action plan with weekly checklists. The theology and neuroscience are there because they change how you see your child — but the tools are there because you still have to get through Tuesday morning. This course was built by a clinician, not a theologian. Everything you learn gets put to work.