Creating a new niche out of marriage counseling and ADHD
Marriage and couples counseling is a cornerstone of many therapy practices. The real question is, how do you carve out your own particular niche within that specialty?
A new book discusses one possible alternative: Marriages that are being wrecked by adult Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Actually, adult ADHD has been getting lots of ink in the press—it’s no longer a term that leaves the public puzzled. At Psychotherapy Finances, we’ve spoken to several therapists who have worked this niche into their practice with good success.
A new book coming out in September, The A.D.H.D. Effect on Marriage, is getting some attention in the commercial media, with a post this week in The New York Times’ Wellness Blog.
The book was written by Ned Hallowell and Melissa Orlov, who offer “marriage consulting” with a focus on understanding how ADHD may be impacting a relationship.
“Typically people don’t realize the ADHD is impacting their marriage because there’s been no talk about this at all,” Orlov told The Times. She says the disorder had been ruining her marriage before she teamed up with Hallowell, a researcher on the subject.
She said her husband was “consistently inconsistent. I could never count on him. It goes from feeling responsible for everything to just chronic anger. I didn’t like the person I’d become either.”
But the couple worked things out and are now happily married, The Times is pleased to report.
By the way, Orlov and Hallowell also publish a blog on this topic if you’re interested in finding out more about what could be a new and trendy niche market.