​I’m late diagnosed AuDhD, and self diagnosed PDA (Autistic + ADHD with a PDA profile). I’m the parent to two neurodivergent teens, ages 18 and 21.  Before having kids, I taught high school and college for 7 years, and earned a masters degree in English.  

 

About five years before my oldest was born, when I started thinking about having children of my own, I switched my professional focus from teaching upper grades to early childhood education.  Much of my early ECE experience centered around Magda Gerber’s RIE philosophy, one that focuses on treating young children with respect and dignity. I completed the RIE Foundations 80 hour course in 2001, along with 24 ECE credits, and worked in child care centers and as a nanny before having my own kids, when I shifting to being a stay at home mom (by far the hardest job I have ever had!).  During that time, I maintained a steady focus on building collaborative skills within our family. I completed the P.E.T. instructor training course in 2016, when my kids were 9 and 11.

 

After discovering I am AuDhD in 2021, I realized the field of neurodivergent parenting has been my focus all along, specifically PDA. Before transitioning to be a PDA specific parent coach in 2024, I worked as a special education at a private neuroaffirming therapeutic school, with a focus on working with autistic children who have a PDA profile.  I’m an EEC certified Lead Teacher: preschool and EEC teacher: infant/toddler.  I also continue to work 1:1 with PDA’ers in a school setting as a consultant.  

 

Though my work as a teacher clarified a lot for me about working with PDA’ers (in a nutshell, "hey, this approach works beautifully for other people's kids, too, what do you know?!"), I found it was the challenges of parenting over the years that helped me develop and clarify the collaborative skills specific to PDA.  Collaborative and autonomy/equity focused approaches to communication with children have been my own personal hyperfocus for 25+ years.  

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About Coaching Sessions

 

On a personal level, I understand how hard it can be to navigate parenting when none of the traditional approaches to parenting work.  So that is where I focus in coaching, on helping you as a parent to honor both yourself and your own needs and autonomy, right along with your child’s, through building concrete collaborative skills and understanding.  Our joint focus in coaching often largely becomes, “if not traditional discipline, then what? How do we approach this conflict/ problem/ situation collaboratively?”, and also on understanding the specifics of PDA, and why shifting our mindset can have such positive impacts on family dynamics.  This process can be deeply affirming and reassuring for parents, as we move away from common behaviorism/ manipulative methods of raising kids, and move towards a focus on relationship, connection, and effective support.  
 

Parent coaching happens on Google Meet, so it isn’t limited by geography. I schedule sessions at 9am, 10:30am, noon and 1:30 Eastern Standard time, Monday through Friday. Occasionally I will drop the 9 and add a 3.

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I ask that all interested parents of kids ages 2-15 start watching part one of my PDA communication training before reaching out to schedule, and commit to finishing it before we meet for the first time.  

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The training prerequisite seems like a lot to ask, but it helps keep coaching accessible by making it a little harder to book with me.  It filters out parents who are looking for a behaviorist approach, creating more space and access for families who are seeking neuroaffirming support.  It also benefits you in that the training functions like a jump start on coaching, so we can dive right in, and you should be able to get a really good sense of what a typical coaching session is like during your introductory hour.  

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I offer intro sessions at a discounted rate ($75) on Google Meet, and we can chat a bit about what you’re struggling with right now, and how I can help.  I don’t have an agenda in coaching sessions, so we just talk about whatever is on your mind.  (My agenda is all in the above training series!)

 

I am not able to bill through insurance, as I am a consultant/coach, not a therapist, but I try to keep my rates accessible for most families.  My rates are:

 

Intro (60 min) session: $75

1 “as needed” (60 min) session: $150

Prepaid package of 5 (60 min) sessions, scheduled weekly or biweekly: $600

 

When you reach out (keri@pdaparentcoaching.com), let me know either that you've seen the training, or that you intend to do so before we meet, and I’ll send you my next available dates and times.  

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Coaching Session Details and Process:

 

All sessions and scheduling are tracked via email.  The day before any session, I’ll send you a reminder email with the google meet link, as well as payment information and details (Venmo and PayPal, sent to my business account).

 

Payment for the intro session and individual sessions is not due until the session is complete.  
 

Payment for a prepaid package of 5 sessions is due prior to the first package session.  

 

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