Reclaim Yourself
Do You Feel...
Overwhelmed
Frustrated
Disorganized
Inconsistent
Exhausted
Ready to give up?
Would You Rather Be...
Inspiring
Motivated
Productive
Capable
Reliable
In charge of your life?
PRINCESS AUDREY – an Apocryphal Tale
Once upon a time, in a land not far from here, there lived a King and Queen. They were very happy, and loved each other very much. To add to their joy, the Queen had just given birth to a baby girl they named Audrey.
Of course, a Grand Reception was held in honor of this propitious event, and all the Kingdom was invited. All the guests brought presents, hand-carved toys, fine linens, and toaster ovens.
Finally, the local Fairies flew in, waving their wands around wantonly and bestowing Great Gifts, such as Inner Beauty, a Quick Mind, and a Kind and Loving Nature.
Suddenly, there was a great poof of smoke and who should appear but Glinda the Good, who had gotten lost and wound up in the wrong Fairy Tale. “Oopsy Daisy!” she exclaimed.
Since she had inadvertently interrupted the festivities, she felt honor-bound to offer a Gift, so she contemplated for a moment and announced, “I bestow upon this Princess ……. ADHD!”, and then, rechecking her GPS, she was gone.
“Huh?” muttered the Crowd, although not in unison, “What kind of a weird Gift is that?”
“We’ll just have to wait and see,” said the Queen, who was quite practical. “Let’s have cake!” To which the Crowd readily agreed.
The years went by, as they tend to do, and, as promised, the Princess turned into a lovely young girl. She was, indeed, kind and thoughtful and had a quick mind. She also was a bit forgetful and daydreamed quite a lot, and tended to talk constantly, but no one minded too much because she was so charming, and after all she was the Princess.
But one day the Royal Tutor came to the King and Queen with an unpleasant message. “The Princess,” he complained, “Is Not Living Up to Her Potential. She loses interest in the lesson being taught and I have to repeat things several times. With the exception of Science, which I personally don’t believe in. She fidgets, she doodles, she looks out the window, and she is slow to finish her work. I am at my wit’s end.”
The King and Queen listened carefully, nodded politely, and fired him on the spot, but only because he did not believe in Science. They had heard what he was saying about their daughter, however, and they were concerned. Could this be ADHD? they wondered.
They beckoned the Royal Therapist, who agreed that some further investigation was necessary.
“I will ask a few simple questions,” he told them, “then we will have a better idea.” And so he did.
“Does she have a tendency to … ?”
Suddenly, Princess Audrey burst into the room. “Daddy, Daddy! Can I have a unicorn?”
“Not now, dear,” the King replied, “I’m in the middle of …”
“I knew it!” she shrieked, “You never let me have anything I want! You hate me!” With that, she flounced out of the room, sobbing noisily.
“Interrupt?” finished the Royal Therapist.
“Occasionally,” admitted the Queen.
“I think I have most of the information I need,” he said, “although I still want to run a few tests.”
“So?” asked the Royal Couple. “Does she have ADHD? Will we need to medicate her?”
“I’d like to try some behavioral intervention first,” replied the therapist. “A few simple changes in her diet, regular sleep and exercise, and some adjustments to her schedule may do the trick. If that doesn’t work, we can think about additional treatments or medication.”
“Oh dear,” sighed the Queen.
“This will be a bit of a challenge at first,” admitted the therapist, “but there are many wonderful advantages to having ADHD. She’ll be creative, resilient, compassionate, and persistent. When she grows up, she will be well-suited to become an entrepreneur, a doctor, an emergency worker, a race driver, a musician, or even a therapist like me.”
“We were hoping she could become Queen.”
“That, too,” he assured them.
And so the Princess and her parents and tutors grew more comfortable with her ADHD symptoms. She was never berated for her daydreaming and impulsiveness and instead praised for her problem-solving skills.
Her creativity and contagious high energy were encouraged and rewarded. As she approached her teens, the Royal Alchemist recommended medication to help her cope with the new challenges she was facing, and she tolerated it well.
In the wink of a dragonfly’s eye, she grew to be a gracious young woman, charming, passionate, generous, and kind. She served her subjects well and fairly, and they all adored her.
One day, the King and Queen called Princess Audrey to the Throne Room. “After giving it considerable thought,” they told her, “we have decided it’s time for us to retire. We have done quite enough.”
“Are you ill?” the Princess blurted out.
“No, no,” they assured her, “we are completely healthy, although we do tire a bit more easily. It’s just that we’d like to travel a bit, perhaps visit relatives in the Other Kingdoms, adventure to Faraway Lands, that sort of thing. Eventually we could see ourselves living in a condo on a Tropical Island.”
The Princess was taken aback. “Then who will run the Kingdom?”
“Why you will, of course,” replied the Queen. “You’ll be the New Queen!”
Ever curious, the Princess persisted, “Then what will you be?”
“Oh,” they admitted. “We hadn’t thought of that. We’ll figure that out later.”
Although the Princess was Quite a Composed Young Lady, she still had an ADHD brain that did not take kindly to Big Changes, and she was thoroughly overwhelmed.
“Please excuse me,” she murmured, and fled from the room, sobbing.
“I feel that went quite well,” stated the Queen.
“Agreed,” replied the King.
After a while, Princess Audrey was able to take enough deep breaths to calm herself down, and could view the situation with a clearer perspective.
“There is no way I can be Queen,” she lamented. “Being Queen requires being diplomatic, well-organized, and Making Big Decisions.
“She must be even-tempered and always act rationally and logically. Those are not my strong suits. It is hopeless. I am Royally Screwed.”
As if by Magic, a little bird flew into the room. “Perhaps you could hire a Coach,” he tweeted helpfully. “There’s an excellent one named Kathleen in the Village; here’s her card.”
The Adult ADHD Life Coach was soon to arrive. “I have arrived!” she announced. “Let’s begin.”
So the Princess expressed her concerns: “Even with all the counseling I have already had, I feel like a disorganized mess. I get distracted easily, and I frequently act on impulse rather than logic. I am unworthy of becoming Queen.”
“I understand you may feel overwhelmed right now,” replied the Coach. “We need to look at your strengths. You want to do the best job possible, which indicates you have integrity and drive. Let’s see what else you have to offer. Are you Creative? Funny? Loyal? Compassionate? High energy? Are you willing to take a risk?”
Princess Audrey had to agree that she was all that, and a great deal more.
Together, they established A Plan to transform the anxious Princess into a glorious, confident Ruler of her Realm.
“To start,” explained the coach, “you’ll need a timer, a day planner, and a pad of writing paper.”
“Timers haven’t been invented yet,” the Princess reminded her, “although I do know a fairy named Siri who can tell time.”
“See? An excellent example of thinking outside the box. Now let’s find someone who can help you declutter.”
They began by making lists of Princess Audrey’s greatest strengths and the things she hoped to accomplish. Then they discussed what barriers she felt might be standing between her and her goals. Once they had decided what she wished to achieve, they broke everything into small steps that the Princess felt she could easily tackle.
Within a few weeks, the Princess’s self confidence had grown and she felt ready to meet the challenges ahead.
“I want an extravagant Retirement Party for my parents!” she exclaimed exuberantly. “We’ll invite everyone in the entire Kingdom! It can be a carnival, and we’ll have roving Court Jesters, and mimes, and balloons and elephants, and a bounce house! It will be so fun, and everyone will be amazed and impressed!”
The Coach smiled. She admired Audrey’s impulsive generosity and enthusiasm, but she was a bit concerned about the execution of such an elaborate event.
“And who will plan all this?” she inquired. “Who will schedule the entertainment, or estimate the amount of food and drink that will be needed? Can the Royal Kitchen handle making all the refreshments, or will a caterer be required? Where can an elephant be acquired, and what accommodations will be necessary? Will you need assistance with the organization, or do you … ?”
“I knew it!” the Princess sighed. “I’m already a failure and I haven’t even become Queen yet. I could never plan and execute such an extravagant Gala. I’m doomed to be a horrible Regent.” And with that, she burst into tears,
“Let’s stop and contemplate for a moment,” suggested her Coach, handing her a tissue. “I’m sure you could handle such elaborate festivities, if you broke it down into small steps and delegated anything you didn’t feel ready to handle. But why tax yourself so early in your reign? How about hosting a tasteful brunch, for close associates and family?”
“Could we still have balloons?”
“You can have anything you want, as long as you are ready and willing to allot the time and energy to make it happen. Just think things through, and remember to…”
POOF! With that, Glinda the Good reappeared in a cloud of glittery smoke. “I knew you could do it,” she said in her syrupy voice. “The knowledge was there all along. Now simply click your heels together, and …”
“Go away!” Audrey and her Coach encouraged her in unison.
And so she did.
