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Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
71–80 of 264 posts
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#72I really resonate with this and I just signed up for the month intro package!
It seems like a small price to pay if it works! My therapist (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy/CBT) and Internal Family Systems (IFS)) always says that the key to ADD/ADHD is to have structure, and this looks like shimmer could fit that prescription!
Chris, I am in your knowledge learning section of the app and your videos are not able to be played on Android because they are stuttering. I think maybe your server is getting hit too hard? I finally got through the welcome video in the app but it did stutter a bit.
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#73Im really surprised to see the intense skepticism here. As someone who is just stumbling into this world and studying ADHD as an otherwise successful adult, Chris’ description (and $99 price frankly) resonated with me and made me think I might be in the target market. Even one of his responses to someone thanking someone for feedback is being downvoted. Is there a connotation of ADHD being associated with snake-oil o…
ADHD runs very strong in my family. My mom never learned to control it and lets it ruin her interactions. Changing topics 2-3 times in a sentience is not uncommon. My career was a mix of major success and failures. Basically depending how routine or novel the problem set was.
Took medication at 40 for the first time.
First time in my life I was able to work on something boring where it didn’t feel physically painful to be doing it. Sadly I don’t tolerate the medication well. (Pain) so I do without it.
Alternatives are always very attractive.
I’ve often thought it would be awesome if I could just pay someone minimum wage to sit behind me and tap on my shoulder every time I got off task.
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#74Im really surprised to see the intense skepticism here. As someone who is just stumbling into this world and studying ADHD as an otherwise successful adult, Chris’ description (and $99 price frankly) resonated with me and made me think I might be in the target market. Even one of his responses to someone thanking someone for feedback is being downvoted. Is there a connotation of ADHD being associated with snake-oil o…
> As someone who is just stumbling into this world and studying ADHD as an otherwise successful adult, Chris’ description (and $99 price frankly) resonated with me and made me think I might be in the target market. The issue is that this is likely more expensive for someone with health insurance than it would be to go out and engage with a guaranteed licensed medical professional for ADHD therapy. They use some vague…
Oh - I’m a professional with insurance, as is most of their target market, I’m sure. But most things I do medically require co-pays, feel complicated, require referrals, etc. This feels as accessible as a meditation app subscription, with a better value proposition to me. So I think I was weighing it against that sort of “guided-‘self’-help”, rather than therapy. And I say that as someone who just talked to a therapist, so I’m pro therapy. They just occupied a different headspace to me.
But I can see your point. If I had been looking at this as more of a medical condition that insurance would cover for me, this wouldn’t be my go-to substitute. I also see what you mean about the wording. I gave them the benefit of the doubt since they are trying to convey meaningful authority based on science without trying to claim to be your therapist…they are in an in-between space. But I admit there is likely a way to describe such a positioning without such likelihood of being perceived as being misleading.
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#75What differentiates you offering from Inflow (https://www.getinflow.io)?
The description of your app sounds almost like a one to one copy.
EDIT: I checked the Inflow offering and even the pricing is similar to yours.
2nd EDIT: Also, the 'coaching, but not therapy' thing is similar.
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#76Interesting concept. Personally, I'm not a fan of therapy (tried it 3 times and it didn't stick) because I felt like I wasn't learning anything tactical that I can apply to my life. I'm a founder with ADHD so I'm very focused on building and "unblocking" myself -- e.g. getting myself to do the thing I know I need to do but can't do for some reason. If having a coach who can help unblock me quickly when I'm in a state of executive dysfunction, I can see how it'd be worth the monthly fee.
Thinking of giving it a shot. I'm curious though, how long does it take to start seeing results from the coaching? I suspect that it'll take some time for your coach to get familiar with you and recommend strategies that actually work.
Also curious about what retention looks like. I tend to try a bunch of different methodologies to manage my ADHD but have trouble sticking to them -- I've tried so many productivity tools lol. What's going to get me to stay?
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#77What, specifically, is a whole life narrative?
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#78Why do you describe your product as "coaching", and not "therapy"? Is this a marketing decision because of a perceived stigma around the term "therapy"? (The re-branding of CBT/ACT to "coaching" and "training" instead of "therapy" strikes me as odd, I don't understand the emphasis on avoiding the term.) Will your company be accepting medical insurance? $350/mo (~$90/session) is roughly half of what billed-to-insuranc…
I heard of coaching in relation to ADHD over a decade ago, it's not something they invented.
I don't know anything about Shimmer, so I don't know how well they fit the mold, but as I understand ADHD Coaching: The general idea is that the coaches are there to supplement therapy and/or drugs with practical "in the weeds" advice. A Therapist would worry about making you feel better, and might point you in the direction of some resources to learn practical coping skills. A coach is one of the resources to help you learn practical skills.
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#79Earlier quoted context omitted.
The closest sister discipline our coaches practice is Health & Wellness coaching, but we also draw on the foundations of positive psychology, CBT, etc. depending on the member's situation. The practices of coaching & therapy, although they have some overlap, are largely different in both practice and outcomes. For example, in the context of ADHD, coaching is very focused on future-oriented outcomes and tactic-oriente…
> For example, in the context of ADHD, coaching is very focused on future-oriented outcomes and tactic-oriented skills, whereas therapy is often focused on disentangling thoughts, unpacking trauma, etc Respectfully, in my experience therapy is very focused on outcomes and skills. (A very short list of examples: CBT's thought records, DBT's DEAR MAN, ACT's defusion.) Is the distinction pedantic, or does it have more t…
Firstly, it’s a pleasure to meet someone as informed in the current debates across the helping professions as you are.
As a coaching psychologist and a member of Shimmer team, I should firstly confirm that we work in close alliance with the other helping professions in the clinical and psychotherapeutic space and we understand each other’s limitations.
And while each of the helping professions pay attention to the outcomes and skills, ADHD coaching we do at Shimmer is characterised by the relentless focus on the future vision, goals and tactics to help the ADHD folk get there. Think regular coaching supercharged by the power of prospective psychology, coaching psychology, health psychology and neuro-developmental perspectives.
We all stand on the shoulders of helping professions’ giants, but our focal areas are different. And considering the time limits involved in helping, the focal areas do matter.
Re: Launch HN: Shimmer (YC S21) – ADHD coaching for adults
#80Im really surprised to see the intense skepticism here. As someone who is just stumbling into this world and studying ADHD as an otherwise successful adult, Chris’ description (and $99 price frankly) resonated with me and made me think I might be in the target market. Even one of his responses to someone thanking someone for feedback is being downvoted. Is there a connotation of ADHD being associated with snake-oil o…
Probably going to get downvoted - but I'll hypothesize anyway... I imagine for the younger folks on HN, we grew up with what seemed like >50% of people claiming to have ADHD, OCD, Tourettes - or some other TikTok-fad "cool" disorder - which obviously not that many people actually have these problems. At least not too long ago when I was young enough to be in that crowd - ADHD was the king of "cool" disorders. Everyon…
Oh! Your hypothesis makes a lot of sense to me, so I appreciate you risking the downvotes. I missed the ADHD over-diagnosis and that TikTok self-diagnosis stuff by a generation, but seen through that lens, I could imagine people are tired of exploitative fad-chasers in this space. I have recently talked with a couple of adults who were only recently diagnosed with ADHD and it sounded enlightening/clarifying for them, so that’s the lens through which I initially read this.