May 24
In this episode of ADHD for Smart Ass Women, Tracy introduces you to 21 year-old, Mikayla Kee. Mikayla is currently a senior, finishing her bachelor’s degree at The Evergreen State College in Washington. She will be entering the Master’s in Teaching program next. Mikayla also volunteers as a para educator at a local elementary school and, in true ADHD fashion, Mikayla has been doing all of this while working as a semi professional soccer player for the past three years.
Mikayla shares: The circumstances surrounding her ADHD diagnosis, Her ADHD symptoms, Her struggles during her first year in college, How collegiate athletics is the perfect ADHD compliment to her education, When she connected soccer as a workaround for her ADHD, How her college addresses different learning styles and why this works so well for her ADHD brain, How important trust is in dealing with emotional dysregulation, What has changed since she was diagnosed, The ADHD traits that she feels are responsible for her success, The key to living successfully with ADHD, Her number one ADHD workaround.
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"I think like, realizing that, like, I have all these awesome superpowers. And I also have things that are hard for me, but there's workarounds."
- Mikayla Kee
"I am really empathetic and I can see when somebody is feeling left out or sad and I I am very good at helping them out and making them feel better."
- Mikayla Kee
"I think being a creative thinker. And being so energetic has helped me coaching."
- Mikayla Kee
- Mikayla describes herself as a very emotional person, which she uses to fuel her passion for soccer.
- Mikayla discusses her experience with ADHD, including feeling overwhelmed in college and struggling with emotional dysregulation.
- Mikayla struggled in her first year of college, feeling like a failure and experiencing emotional distress.
[23:26 - 30:02] College Experience with ADHD and Learning Differences
- Mikayla describes Evergreen College as a supportive environment where teachers are understanding and accommodating of their students' needs.
- Mikayla highlights the college's focus on interactive learning and providing students with the tools they need to succeed, such as art projects and brain breaks.
- Evergreen College offers individualized support for students struggling in classes, including reducing course units and providing personalized assessments for job applications.
[30:02 - 36:24] ADHD, Education, and Soccer
- Mikayla plans to pursue a master's in teaching at Evergreen while continuing to play soccer and manage ADHD symptoms during COVID-19.
- Mikayla recognizes her ADHD strengths in empathy and social cue reading, and attributes her success in soccer to her ability to anticipate plays.
- Mikayla shares her experience with ADHD and how she turned her struggles into strengths.
