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Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

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Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#41

Post by christalwang »

munk-a wrote: post #38
christalwang wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Appreciate the feedback! I'm the author here (Christal)...unfortunately I definitely have ADHD! Many of our members and team need the emojis for the visual relation but I definitely see your point. I will tone down the emojis and make the newsletter show up only at the end of the article. I'll also send this to a content editor for the confusing wordings, etc.! If there are any specific examples, don't hesitate to le…

As a person with ADHD myself I'm definitely on the same wavelength with finding emojis distracting but a friend of mine finds them extremely engaging. I suspect that the emoji appeal is more whether you were raised in a setting with them embedded into speech or appended at the end of speech. That's all to say that I don't think the OP was really accurate when they said emojis distracted people with ADHD - it distract…

Thanks for this perspective. I generally try to make it at least not distracting for most people, even though I know no 1 style will work for everyone.

Yes, I hear your point on neutral tone as well, I'm a bit dramatic at times.

I am the same with brackets. I use brackets so often-I type them then delete them (or at least reduce them to a "normal" amount) before hitting send, usually.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#42

Post by christalwang »

Apreche wrote: post #40
christalwang wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Appreciate this question, it's one we've gotten a lot and quite frankly I agree we haven't nailed the best way to articulate it. To answer a few of your questions... - We don't use psychologists or psychotherapists as the front-line helper because there is a severe shortage of them and our main goal is accessibility. There is a provider shortage (psychologists, psychiatrists, therapists, etc.) in the US and most plac…

You say you haven't found a way to articulate it. You should articulate it exactly the way you do in this comment. You are not providing licensed medical services. Just come out and say it, since it's true. Yes, saying that will cause people to distrust you, and well it should. You are right about there being a shortage, but there is no substitute for a real doctor. That said, being upfront about it instead of trying…

Shimmer is NOT clinical and we do NOT provide licensed medical services. We are most definitely not trying to substitute a real doctor. Full stop. We hope that is clear in all of our communications and website, and do NOT try to obscure that.

However, we do a lot of work to work with the right experts (which include clinicians, psychiatrists, etc.) to ensure what we do it safe, follows best practice, is science-backed, and is effective. And we definitely want to highlight this work that has been done and the importance of it.

We will update the language to better reflect this immediately.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#44

Post by dsp_person »

hartator wrote: post #39
dsp_person wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> I doubt the author has a grasping of ADHD Do you? It can be hurtful to tell someone they "aren't ADHD enough". First line of the article: > I was diagnosed last year & wasn’t able to find an affordable, quality ADHD coach ADHD people might like the animations, emojis, and colors, and might not read a long boring plaintext article linearly from start to finish. Everyone has different preferences though... Personally…

> It can be hurtful to tell someone they "aren't ADHD enough". The author can have ADHD, but not have a grasping of how to solve this. One doesn't preclude the other. Keep in mind they are the ones trying to sell a ADHD solution. Cutting off on visual and auditory distractions is very 101. It doesn't inspire lot of trust if they don't grasp that. Even if they all have ADHD for real.

Cutting off visual and audio distractions is very 101 for what goal though? We aren't doing homework or taxes. In one situation it may be "distraction", in another it may be "stimuli" and enjoyable. ADHD people like to stim. In this situation I think the visual stimuli were good.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#45

Post by dsp_person »

christalwang wrote: post #41
munk-a wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As a person with ADHD myself I'm definitely on the same wavelength with finding emojis distracting but a friend of mine finds them extremely engaging. I suspect that the emoji appeal is more whether you were raised in a setting with them embedded into speech or appended at the end of speech. That's all to say that I don't think the OP was really accurate when they said emojis distracted people with ADHD - it distract…

Thanks for this perspective. I generally try to make it at least not distracting for most people, even though I know no 1 style will work for everyone. Yes, I hear your point on neutral tone as well, I'm a bit dramatic at times. I am the same with brackets. I use brackets so often-I type them then delete them (or at least reduce them to a "normal" amount) before hitting send, usually.

Maybe you should have a big switch at the top for "Stimulus mode" and "Distraction-free reader". And maybe another one that shoots fireworks.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#46

Post by ranting-moth »

christalwang wrote: post #42
Apreche wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You say you haven't found a way to articulate it. You should articulate it exactly the way you do in this comment. You are not providing licensed medical services. Just come out and say it, since it's true. Yes, saying that will cause people to distrust you, and well it should. You are right about there being a shortage, but there is no substitute for a real doctor. That said, being upfront about it instead of trying…

Shimmer is NOT clinical and we do NOT provide licensed medical services. We are most definitely not trying to substitute a real doctor. Full stop. We hope that is clear in all of our communications and website, and do NOT try to obscure that. However, we do a lot of work to work with the right experts (which include clinicians, psychiatrists, etc.) to ensure what we do it safe, follows best practice, is science-backe…

> Shimmer is NOT clinical and we do NOT provide licensed medical services

In which case I personally find the phrase "All of our Shimmer ADHD Coaches are licensed or certified mental health professionals" to be quite deceptive.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#47

Post by christalwang »

aidenn0 wrote: post #32
christalwang wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can you expand more on your perspective on positive psychology?

Much of what I have encountered in Positive Psychology (with a capital "P"; i.e. the relatively young field) falls into two categories: 1. Incorporating things from previous research that are relatively uncontentious (e.g. flow 2. Tainted by academic fraud (e.g. Critical Positivity Ratio) Given that you can have #1 without defining a new field of psychology, I associate the field of Positive Psychology with #2.

Thank you for explaining more. Positive Psychology as a field is very wide, with different schools of thought within it; the most important aspect to us being that we focus on the Strength-Based vs. Disability Model of Neurodiversity. The school of thought we are part of is equally applicable to other allied fields which help those with ADHD achieve a better quality of life - psychiatry, clinical and psychotherapeutic services.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#48

Post by christalwang »

dsp_person wrote: post #45
christalwang wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Thanks for this perspective. I generally try to make it at least not distracting for most people, even though I know no 1 style will work for everyone. Yes, I hear your point on neutral tone as well, I'm a bit dramatic at times. I am the same with brackets. I use brackets so often-I type them then delete them (or at least reduce them to a "normal" amount) before hitting send, usually.

Maybe you should have a big switch at the top for "Stimulus mode" and "Distraction-free reader". And maybe another one that shoots fireworks.

I laughed out loud at the end. That's a good idea. https://www.understood.org/ actually has a good example of this (reduce-motion mode)

We'll look into this for sure—I'd love a confetti mode.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#49

Post by nkohari »

hartator wrote: post #23

Funny this is one of the most distracting blog posts I've read in a bit. Emojis everywhere, boxes, Intercom, sign up to the newsletter, animations, confusing wordings, multiple colors for the text. I doubt the author has a grasping of ADHD.

This is an incredibly rude way to give feedback.

Re: Show HN: Shimmer – ADHD coaching for adults, now on web

#50

Post by k__ »

kstrauser wrote: post #31
ablyveiled wrote: post #4

[flagged]

I have some powerful coping mechanisms. I can manage my ADHD on my own. But earlier this year, I finally got around to working with a doc who prescribed me meds. It's amazing how much extra mental energy I have now that I'm not expending so much of it on those coping mechanisms. It's great to learn how to get by without meds. That's important, and the meds aren't a magic wand that will miraculously make you happy and…

This.

I got meds with 37.

Did a degree in CS and was successfully self-employed for years until that.

Everything worked out okay-ish, but meds are a game changer. It really felt like I was playing "life" on hard mode until then.

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