ADHD Therapy and Testing for Athletes in Minneapolis, MN
ADHD therapy for athletes is sport-informed mental health care for athletes whose focus, impulsivity, and organization affect both performance and daily life.
Skadi Sport Psychology provides ADHD therapy in person at our New Hope office (Hennepin County) or online for clients located anywhere in Minnesota. We work with athletes ages 9 and older, along with coaches and parents living with ADHD, throughout Minneapolis and the Twin Cities metro.
or reach us at +1 (612) 208-2347.
ADHD Symptoms in Athletes: What Inattention and Impulsivity Look Like in Sport
"Lock in" is advice for a brain you don't have.
ADHD is a neurodevelopmental condition. The National Institute of Mental Health describes it as an ongoing pattern of inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity that shows up across multiple settings, not one. The CDC estimates about 7 million U.S. children aged 3 to 17 — roughly 1 in 9 — have a current ADHD diagnosis. In sport, it has its own fingerprint:
Missing a coach's cue mid-drill, then getting called out for not caring
Impulsive decisions in competition: the early swing, the reckless foul, the play that wasn't the play
Pre-game routines that fall apart, or transitions between practice, school, and home that take everything you have
Masking, because movement and structure carry you all season — until the season ends and the scaffolding disappears
Years of hearing "so much potential" and "lazy" from people who never asked what was going on
This is a studied population, not an invented niche. Han and colleagues (2019, British Journal of Sports Medicine) reviewed ADHD in elite athletes, Poysophon and Rao (2018, Sports Health) reviewed neurocognitive findings in athletes with ADHD, and Putukian and colleagues (2011) wrote the American Medical Society for Sports Medicine position statement on ADHD and the athlete.
If you compete collegiately, there's paperwork your teammates never think about: the NCAA lists stimulants among its banned drug classes, and stimulant medication used to treat ADHD requires a medical exception, with documentation kept in your medical record on campus.
Twin Cities club programs, high school seasons, and college sports all run long and demand a lot, and an athlete with ADHD is managing that load with a different set of tools. Want the fuller picture first? Read how ADHD shows up in athletes, as a double-edged sword.
ADHD Treatment for Student Athletes
Two-a-days plus a full class load is an executive functioning problem before anyone calls it a motivation problem. Planning, time management, emotional regulation, and task-switching all get taxed at once. The athlete who holds it together on the field often unravels over homework at 10pm. We work on that load directly, with strategies that fit a real season, not an ideal one.
ADHD Support for Coaches and Parents
ADHD doesn't stop at the athlete. Coaches juggle rosters, practice plans, and parent emails with the same brain, and parents often recognize their own patterns while supporting a kid who has ADHD. Avery Nelson works with coaches and parents as well as athletes, so you can get support for your own attention, routines, and stress, not just your athlete's.
If you've wondered for years whether ADHD explains how your brain works, a thorough evaluation gives you a real answer instead of a guess. ADHD symptoms can overlap with anxiety, depression, trauma, and poor sleep, which is why the assessment matters as much as the result.
Skadi Sport Psychology offers comprehensive ADHD testing through Dr. Quincy Guinadi, who works with our team as a contractor. Her written reports meet NCAA requirements for Therapeutic Use Exemptions if stimulant medication becomes part of your treatment. This is particularly relevant if you compete collegiately. We do not prescribe medication, but we can refer you to trusted colleagues who do.
Testing and ongoing therapy are separate services. You can start with testing, start with therapy, or do both. Book a free call and we'll help you decide where to begin.
ADHD Testing for Athletes in Minneapolis
Work With an ADHD Therapist in Minneapolis Who Understands Sport
Avery Nelson and Laurie Miller both provide ADHD therapy for athletes at Skadi Sport Psychology. Both are pre-licensed therapists and mental performance coaches practicing under the supervision of Dr. Erin Ayala, a licensed psychologist. Both are dually trained in mental health and sport psychology.
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Avery Nelson, MS,
PRE-LICENSED THERAPIST & MENTAL PERFORMANCE COACH
Holds two master's degrees from Minnesota State University, Mankato — Clinical Mental Health Counseling and Sport Psychology — and certification in Trust-Based Relational Intervention. His specialty is ADHD in sport and performance contexts, working with male athletes at all levels, along with coaches and parents.
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Laurie Miller, MEd,
PRE-LICENSED THERAPIST & MENTAL PERFORMANCE COACH
Holds a master's degree from Springfield College — Clinical Mental Health Counseling with specialization in sport psychology. A former competitive gymnast and USA Gymnastics coach, she works with teens and young adults, and she's the provider athletes in aesthetic sports — gymnastics, figure skating, dance, diving — tend to recognize themselves in. She gets the perfectionism and the pressure because she lived it.
Both are pre-licensed clinicians, and every case runs under the supervision of Dr. Erin Ayala — a licensed psychologist (LP), Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC), and provider listed in the USOPC Mental Health & Performance Directory. Two sets of clinical eyes on your care, by design.
"Dr. Ayala and Skadi Sport Psychology bring an incredibly empathetic, authentic, and holistic approach to mental health care and mental performance coaching."
You can meet Dr. Erin Ayala and our team before you reach out, or browse the full range of ways to work with Skadi if you're still deciding what kind of support fits.
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What to Expect From ADHD Counseling for Athletes
Reach out to schedule. Set up a first session with Avery or Laurie — whoever fits — in person in New Hope or online anywhere in Minnesota.
Initial session and goal-setting. We learn your sport, your symptoms, and what you actually want to change. For athletes under 18, a parent or guardian joins the first 15 minutes.
A collaborative plan. We shape the direction together, because an ADHD diagnosis on its own says very little on its own about what any one athlete needs.
Ongoing sessions, athlete-informed. Each session draws on approaches chosen for you, then adapted to your training and competition calendar. Sessions for athletes ages 9 to 14 are often shorter, lasting 30 to 45 minutes, to accommodate their attention spans after a full school day.
Supervision and consultation. Avery and Laurie work under the supervision of Dr. Erin Ayala, a Licensed Psychologist and Certified Mental Performance Consultant, which adds a layer of clinical oversight to your care.
ADHD Treatment in Minneapolis, MN: Approaches We Use
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT): Makes room for the thoughts and feelings that come with ADHD without letting them stall what matters, on and off the field.
Anchor Relational Network and/or Internal Family Systems: Gets curious about the different parts of you, including the harsh inner critic that ADHD tends to feed.
Motivational Interviewing: Sorts out what you want from what everyone else wants for you, which changes how change actually happens.
Solution-Focused Therapy: Starts from what's already working in your routines and builds out from there.
Two things worth saying plainly. Skadi doesn't prescribe or manage medication, and we don't promise a certain diagnosis or outcomes. Your care is collaborative, individualized, and yours to steer. Your care is collaborative, individualized, and yours to steer.
There's no one-size-fits-all plan for ADHD, and no single approach works for everyone. These are the approaches Avery and Laurie draw on to help you build something that actually holds:
Telehealth is available for any client physically located in Minnesota at the time of the session. Travel schedules, away meets, and a commute you don't have time for are all real reasons to choose online over in-person, and the work is the same either way.
Online ADHD Therapy for Minnesota Athletes
In person: our New Hope office, serving Minneapolis and the greater Twin Cities metro area.
Online: available to clients located anywhere in Minnesota
Athletes served: Minneapolis, the greater Twin Cities metro, and across Minnesota
Ages: Athletes ages 9 and older, plus coaches and parents. Provider availability varies by age.
ADHD Therapy for Athletes Across Minneapolis and Minnesota
ADHD Coaching for Athletes — Available Anywhere
Therapy is a Minnesota thing. Coaching isn't. If you're outside Minnesota, Skadi offers mental performance coaching for athletes with ADHD, anywhere in the world.
Coaching is non-clinical and performance-focused: executive functioning skills, routines, focus systems, and the structures that hold up in training, competition, school, and everything in between.
The honest distinction, because it matters:
Therapy treats ADHD as a mental health condition. It's clinical care, available in Minnesota only, and insurance may reimburse part of it.
ADHD coaching builds skills. It's available anywhere, and insurance doesn't cover it — because it isn't healthcare.
Same sport-informed lens either way. If you're not sure which one fits, that's what the free call is for.
Comprehensive ADHD Assessment: Stop Guessing, Get an Answer
Maybe you've wondered for years. The white-knuckled semesters. The six-hour ride you can hyperfocus through, next to the three emails you can't send. The anxiety treatment that helped a little, but left something unexplained. A quick online quiz can't answer that question. Neither can a fifteen-minute appointment.
Skadi's comprehensive ADHD assessment runs 3–4 appointments with a licensed psychologist: a structured clinical interview, about four hours of one-on-one cognitive testing, input from someone who knows you well, and a feedback session in plain language.
You leave with a written diagnostic report, a real answer, and a plan, including documentation built to meet formal standards for academic accommodations and NCAA medication requirements. Athletes and adults ages 16 and up.
We're known for catching what others miss, especially in women, high achievers, and athletes whose ADHD never looked like the textbook version.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Both. Sessions with Avery or Laurie happen face-to-face at our New Hope office or by telehealth if you're physically in Minnesota when the session takes place.
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Our ADHD therapy serves athletes ages 9 and older, from youth and high school athletes to collegiate, masters, and professional competitors. Laurie Miller works with athletes ages 9 to 25, while Avery Nelson works with athletes at all levels. We also support coaches and parents with ADHD.
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Yes. Skadi offers comprehensive ADHD evaluations led by Dr. Quincy Guinadi, a licensed psychologist — structured clinical interviews, objective cognitive testing, informant input, and a full written diagnostic report, typically over 3–4 appointments. Ask about testing when you reach out, and we'll walk you through the process and cost before you commit to anything. An evaluation and ongoing therapy are two different services. Dr. Guinadi handles the assessment and diagnosis; ongoing ADHD therapy is provided by Avery Nelson and Laurie Miller, with sessions focused on how symptoms affect your sport, school, and daily life.
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No. Skadi does not prescribe or manage medication. If medication becomes part of your treatment, we can refer you to trusted colleagues.
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Skadi is an out-of-network concierge provider. You pay the full session fee upfront, Skadi submits the claim, and any reimbursement comes back to you directly from your insurance company. Read more on how out-of-network benefits work for therapy or why Skadi is an out-of-network provider, and what that means for you.
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Avery draws on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy, Anchor Relational Network and/or Internal Family Systems, Motivational Interviewing, and Solution-Focused Therapy, adapting each approach to your sport and schedule. The right approach looks different for every athlete, so it's chosen with you, not for you.
See all frequently asked questions.
Start ADHD Therapy for Athletes in Minneapolis, MN
Carrying the mental load of your sport alone isn't the only option. Sport-informed ADHD therapy in Minneapolis and across Minnesota treats the whole person. The performance follows.
Schedule your first session or call +1 (612) 208-2347. Questions first? Email hello@skadisportpsychology.com.
Curious where an athlete stands across performance and well-being? Explore our youth athlete assessment, or take the longer Athlete Wellness & Performance Assessment if you want a fuller sport psychology snapshot before your first session.