The 10 ADHD Lookalikes

Does your child have an ADHD diagnosis, but meds don’t seem to help? Does your instinct say there’s more to the story? There might be one (or more) of the ADHD lookalikes in the mix. These are remarkably common but under recognized and can have pervasive impact in learning as well as whole body health and development. Even the very best neuropsych evals do not consider all of these; several need their own specialist. Learn how to screen your student, and where to seek formal diagnosis and supports.

Dr. Austina De Bonte (she/her) is a consultant, researcher, and advocate for gifted and twice-exceptional students with Smart is not Easy, LLC (smartisnoteasy.com). She is also President of the WA Coalition for Gifted Education (wacoalition.com), Past President of NW Gifted Child Association (nwgca.org), member of the WA State Highly Capable Advisory, and member of the NAGC Public Policy and Advocacy Committee (nagc.org). A dynamic and engaging presenter, Dr. De Bonte speaks regularly at regional and national conferences, as well as conducts professional development workshops for educators, and provides consulting for individual families. She works with school district teams to develop and fine-tune their highly capable program models, especially concerning equitable identification and service strategies. Her signature style combines synthesized research, current district practices, and cutting-edge neuroscience alongside her experience as a parent and family consultant. She has particular passion for supporting gifted and twice-exceptional students in public schools and helping families get to the root causes of their child’s challenges, looking beyond the usual suspects. She received an NAGC Research & Evaluation dissertation Award (2025), NAGC Carolyn Callahan Award (2023), People to Watch by Variations 2e Magazine (2020), WAETAG Advocacy Award (2019), has won three PTA Outstanding Advocate awards, and is a SENG facilitator. She has a Masters degree from MIT (1998) and a Doctoral degree in twice exceptional education from Bridges Graduate School of Cognitive Diversity in Education (2024). 

Contact Dr. De Bonte at austina@smartisnoteasy.com