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Comment by endisneigh | Hacker News Reader

I like the site but it seems overpriced - a good therapist is cheaper and can do the same thing. A psychologist and psychiatrist can both clinically diagnose you and give you pharmaceuticals if needed at prices similar to the ones mentioned if you have insurance.

Personally I would argue from working with some kids who have adhd in the past that more gamification and reasons to use their phone will exacerbate some of the worst symptoms of their adhd.

I don’t see the niche this fills. In any case, good luck.

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Thanks for the kind words on our site!

We're definitely aligned / agree that it's really hard to get affordable care. Unfortunately, we've found that our members have tried (but haven't succeeded) in finding a good therapist who is ADHD-informed and can do the specific things they are looking for in regards to coaching. Additionally, we definitely acknowledge that we provide a completely different service than psychologists / psychiatrists, and we work hand in hand with them post diagnosis. We do not offer diagnostics or pharmaceuticals and rely on other medical professionals externally to do so.

Also agree on not using gamification to worsen symptoms. That's something we consider very deeply with our clinical team to ensure we don't exacerbate our relationships to our phone. I'm personally a client on our platform and have that in mind constantly!

Thank you so much for the good luck!

Thank you for your comment which clearly stems from your experience of working with the ADHD folk. We are fully aligned on being cautious about the negative behavioural implications of digital tools which includes gaming.

As a coaching psychologist and senior member of Shimmer team, I concur with the prevalent view that the way to improve the quality of life of someone with ADHD is through integrative approach comprising each of the helping strands: the clinical, psychotherapy and coaching.

In this “holy trinity”, the niche filled by coaching reflects on the state of affairs which demonstrate that while humans are fairly capable of navigating their past experiences and manage the “present immediate”, we are not so successful at thinking about, and getting the best out of the future. This gave rise to the areas of psychological sciences which are focused on goal setting, planning, self-motivating and developing through the entire life-course. These pretty much inform our trademark Shimmer approach to coaching psychology and what happens during the coaching sessions, therefore.

Thank you so much for the good luck wishes. These are especially valuable since our aspiration is to evolve efficacy and the evidence-base of ADHD coaching, and to help ADHD folk have an active role in moving towards a better quality of life.

> I like the site but it seems overpriced - a good therapist is cheaper and can do the same thing.

These ADHD coaching services come up a lot, and this is the general advice I give out:

Always start with your insurance options first. Many people are surprised to learn that they can get therapy (for ADHD or otherwise) for as little as $10-20 per session through their normal health insurance. Telehealth has been normalized, too, so it's likely you can do it from home.

Always check insurance first to evaluate costs. Consider how deductibles play out through the course of the year, too. This coaching service is a lot to pay out of pocket relative to what many people in tech would expect to pay with insurance involved.

My problem is finding a good ADHD focused therapist. That task seems hard, so I've never gotten around to it. I'll definitely thought in the past hey I should find an ADHD focused psych... But it never happened.

I just realized part of it is not knowing how to vet them, part is figuring out how to find availability for a psych, and then part is me not wanting to call in to set up my initial appointment.

Where are you getting therapy cheaper!? most therapists I've found around me are $xxx/hr and don't take insurance.

New York - check your health insurance site or call them and ask for in network therapists. If you're paying three figures an hour you're getting screwed.

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