Jacksonville covers 875 square miles, making it the largest city by land area in the contiguous United States. Nearly a million people spread across both sides of the St. Johns River, from the Beaches east of the Intracoastal all the way out past the Westside. That sprawl shapes everything about daily life here, including how you access ADHD support.

The coaching market in Jacksonville is thin for a city this size. Financial services professionals working at Fidelity or FIS operations, military families stationed at Naval Station Mayport or NAS Jax, healthcare workers at Mayo Clinic's Florida campus, all navigating ADHD in a city where the number of qualified ADHD coaches can be counted on one hand. Search the major coaching directories for Jacksonville and you'll see what we mean. The results are sparse, and the few that do show up require careful vetting to determine whether they have genuine ADHD expertise or are general life coaches who've cast a wide net.

Many people in Jax end up defaulting to therapy or psychiatry through their insurance or military benefits, which are valuable but serve a different purpose than coaching. Others look toward Orlando or Tampa and weigh whether the drive or the search for a virtual option makes more sense.

This guide walks through what ADHD coaching actually is, what credentials matter, and how to find quality support regardless of where you are in Duval County.

What is the difference between ADHD coaching, therapy, and psychiatry

These three forms of ADHD support get lumped together constantly, and the confusion is understandable. They're all in the mental health and wellness space, they all involve talking to a professional, and they can all help with ADHD. But they do fundamentally different things.

ADHD coaching is a collaborative partnership focused on the present and future. You work with a coach to build strategies, systems, and habits that help you reach your goals. Coaching is action-oriented. It addresses things like time management, task initiation, organization, follow-through, and prioritization. Your coach helps you develop approaches that work with how your brain actually operates rather than forcing neurotypical productivity frameworks that fall apart within a week.

Therapy addresses the emotional and psychological dimensions. A therapist helps you process anxiety, depression, grief, trauma, and the emotional weight that often accompanies ADHD. Many adults with ADHD carry years of frustration, shame, and self-doubt from living undiagnosed or misunderstood. Therapy is the space for that deeper work. In Jacksonville, where mental health conversations are becoming more open but still carry some stigma in certain communities, therapy is the more familiar and established path.

Psychiatry is the medical component. Psychiatrists can formally diagnose ADHD, prescribe medication, and manage your treatment plan from a clinical perspective. If you're considering medication or need an official diagnosis, a psychiatrist is who handles that.

These three approaches work best together. You might see a psychiatrist for medication management, a therapist for processing the emotional side of your ADHD experience, and a coach for building the practical day-to-day systems that keep your life on track. In Jacksonville, therapy and psychiatry are accessible through most insurance plans, TriCare, and VA benefits. Coaching sits outside those systems, which is one of the reasons it's less visible here despite being incredibly effective.

The distinction that matters most for coaching is the practical, forward-looking orientation. You're not analyzing your past. You're building systems for your future.

What credentials should an ADHD coach actually have

The title "ADHD coach" is not regulated or protected. There's no state license in Florida or anywhere else that governs who can call themselves an ADHD coach. Anyone can set up a practice tomorrow with zero training. In a market as small as Jacksonville's, where options are already limited, this makes careful vetting even more important.

PAAC certification is one of the strongest signals of quality. PAAC stands for the Professional Association of ADHD Coaches, and their certification requires completion of an ADHD-specific training program that meets detailed standards, supervised coaching hours, and demonstrated competency in ADHD-related challenges. A PAAC-certified coach has made a serious investment in understanding ADHD at a professional level.

ICF credentials matter too. The International Coaching Federation is the most recognized credentialing body in the coaching industry globally. ICF-credentialed coaches have completed significant training hours, accumulated real coaching experience, and passed an evaluation process. ICF credentials alone don't guarantee ADHD expertise, but paired with ADHD-specific training, they indicate a coach operating at a professional standard.

Lived experience with ADHD can make a coach more empathetic and intuitive about the challenges you're facing. But lived experience without formal training and a structured methodology is not sufficient on its own. The best coaches combine personal understanding with professional frameworks.

Red flags worth watching for:

• No credentials or training listed on their website

• The only claimed qualification is personal experience with ADHD

• Promises of specific outcomes or quick fixes

• No mention of supervision, continuing education, or methodology

• Sessions that sound like casual conversation with no structure

Questions you should ask any coach you're evaluating:

• What ADHD-specific training have you completed, and through which program?

• Are you certified through PAAC, ICF, or another recognized organization?

• Do you participate in regular supervision or peer consultation?

• What methodology do you use in your coaching sessions?

• How do you track and measure client progress?

• What does your support look like between sessions?

A qualified coach will welcome these questions. They've invested significantly in their education and practice and will be glad to walk you through it. Defensiveness or vague responses when asked about qualifications tells you what you need to know.

Why does virtual coaching make sense for ADHD in Jacksonville

Jacksonville's physical size creates a logistical problem that's unique even among large US cities. Someone living in Mandarin and a coach practicing near the Beaches are technically in the same city but separated by a 40-minute drive on a good day. Add in the bridges, the construction on I-295, and the general unpredictability of Jax traffic patterns, and getting to an in-person appointment becomes a significant time commitment.

That commute challenge is amplified when you're dealing with ADHD. On a day when task initiation is already a struggle, the mental overhead of getting ready, driving across town, finding the office, and being "on" for a session can be enough to trigger a cancellation. Do that a few times and the coaching relationship loses its consistency, which is exactly when coaching stops working.

Virtual coaching removes that barrier entirely. You can have a session from your home office, your car during a lunch break, or wherever you happen to be. The flexibility means sessions can fit into the natural rhythm of your day instead of requiring you to restructure hours around an appointment.

Beyond logistics, virtual coaching fundamentally changes what's available to you. Jacksonville's local coaching market is small. When you remove geography from the equation, you can match with coaches who specialize in your specific challenges, your industry, or your life stage. A coach who works primarily with tech professionals, or with military families navigating frequent moves, or with parents managing their own ADHD alongside their kids' needs. That kind of specialization simply doesn't exist in sufficient numbers within Jax's local market.

For military families especially, virtual coaching offers something unique: continuity. If you PCS to another duty station, your coaching relationship doesn't end. Your coach goes with you, regardless of where the Navy or your branch sends you next.

Virtual coaching also makes it easier to try different coaches without high commitment. If a match isn't working, switching doesn't require a whole new local search. You simply match with someone else and keep moving forward.

What does quality ADHD coaching methodology look like

The difference between effective ADHD coaching and an expensive weekly chat is methodology. A structured, evidence-based approach produces measurably different outcomes than a coach who just listens sympathetically and offers generic advice.

Evidence-based frameworks form the foundation of quality coaching. One example is the COM-B model, a behavioral science framework that identifies three drivers of behavior change: Capability, Opportunity, and Motivation. Rather than telling you to "just try harder" or "get a planner," a coach using COM-B helps you figure out whether a challenge is about skill (you don't know how to break tasks down), environment (your workspace sets you up to fail), or motivation (the task feels meaningless or overwhelming). That diagnosis leads to targeted solutions instead of generic advice.

Implementation intentions are another research-backed technique. These are specific if-then plans that bridge the gap between wanting to do something and actually doing it. Instead of a vague goal like "exercise more," an implementation intention would be "when I close my laptop at 5:30 on Tuesday and Thursday, I'll put on my running shoes and walk out the front door before I do anything else." This kind of specificity works with how ADHD brains process tasks and decisions.

Structured sessions should connect from one week to the next. Your coach should come prepared, sessions should follow a framework, and there should be a clear thread tying your progress together over time. Goals are tracked. Wins are documented. Setbacks are analyzed for patterns rather than treated as isolated failures.

Between-session support is critical because ADHD doesn't take a week off between coaching calls. Quality coaching includes ongoing connection, whether that's check-ins, messaging, or access to a community. That continuity is what helps new strategies actually become habits instead of things you tried once and forgot about.

Executive dysfunction-specific approaches separate real ADHD coaching from general coaching techniques repurposed for ADHD. Executive dysfunction is the term for difficulties with the brain's management system, affecting working memory, task initiation, emotional regulation, planning, and flexible thinking. A methodology designed for ADHD accounts for these challenges directly. It builds systems around time blindness instead of pretending clocks work the same for everyone. It addresses task paralysis with specific initiation strategies rather than motivational platitudes.

Community and peer support creates accountability and normalization that 1:1 coaching alone can't fully provide. Connecting with other adults managing ADHD reduces the isolation that many of us feel. Hearing someone else describe the exact same struggle you had last Tuesday is validating in a way that no amount of professional coaching replaces.

Coach supervision and ongoing training keeps quality high over time. Coaches who work in isolation can develop blind spots, rely on outdated techniques, or drift from evidence-based practices. Regular supervision from qualified professionals means your coach is being held accountable for the quality of their work, just like they're helping hold you accountable for yours.

The challenge is that none of this is visible from a website. Two coaches can present nearly identically online but deliver completely different experiences. Asking about methodology, supervision, and between-session support during your initial consultation is the most reliable way to evaluate quality before committing.

How much does ADHD coaching cost

Cost is a legitimate factor, and there's no point pretending otherwise.

Nationally, ADHD coaching sessions typically range from $150 to $300 per individual session. Ongoing monthly coaching arrangements fall between $300 and $600 per month depending on frequency, session length, and the coach's credentials and experience. Jacksonville's cost of living is moderate compared to major coastal cities, but coaching prices are largely set at national market rates since many coaches serve clients virtually across regions.

The instinct to find the cheapest option makes sense from a budgeting perspective. Coaches with lower rates tend to be earlier in their careers, with fewer credentials and less structured approaches. That's not a character judgment. It's the economics of professional development. Coaches who've invested thousands of dollars in PAAC certification, ICF credentials, specialized training, and ongoing supervision charge more because their expertise costs more to develop and maintain.

Insurance does not typically cover ADHD coaching. This is true in Florida and across most states. Coaching is distinct from therapy and psychiatry. Insurance plans, including TriCare and most employer-sponsored plans, don't recognize it as a covered service. For military families who are accustomed to TriCare covering most healthcare needs, this can be a surprise.

FSA and HSA funds can often be used for coaching. If your employer offers a Flexible Spending Account or Health Savings Account, ADHD coaching may qualify as an eligible expense. Florida has no state income tax, so the federal tax savings from using pre-tax HSA/FSA dollars is the primary benefit, effectively reducing your cost by your federal marginal tax rate.

Thinking about coaching as a return on investment changes the calculation. The cost of untreated or unsupported ADHD shows up in missed career opportunities, strained relationships, forgotten obligations, and the constant mental energy spent compensating for executive function gaps. Effective coaching that helps you show up consistently in the areas that matter most pays for itself many times over.

How do you actually find and vet coaches in Jacksonville

With an understanding of what coaching is, what credentials matter, and what methodology should look like, the practical search can begin. In Jacksonville, this process requires some patience.

Where to search:

The PAAC directory (Professional Association of ADHD Coaches) is the most targeted starting point because every listed coach has met specific ADHD training requirements. The ICF directory is broader and useful for verifying credentials. Jacksonville does not have a local CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder) chapter, which means one of the most common community referral sources for ADHD services isn't available locally. The nearest active ADHD communities are in the Orlando and Tampa areas. CHADD does offer virtual meetings through their national network, which can be a source of coach recommendations even without a local affiliate.

The vetting process:

Start by searching the PAAC and ICF directories filtered for Florida or for coaches who work virtually. Review each coach's website independently. Verify their claimed credentials through the certifying bodies directly rather than taking website claims at face value. Schedule consultation calls with your top candidates. Most coaches offer a free or low-cost initial conversation.

During consultation calls, pay attention to:

• Whether they ask about your specific challenges and goals or immediately pitch their program

• Their ability to clearly explain their methodology and approach

• Whether they mention supervision, peer consultation, or continuing education

• How their communication style feels. Is it comfortable and natural or forced?

• Transparency about pricing, session frequency, and what happens between sessions

When the first choice doesn't work out:

This is the uncomfortable reality nobody warns you about. You might invest weeks in research, commit to a coach, attend several sessions, and realize the fit isn't right. Maybe the methodology doesn't click. Maybe the communication style doesn't work for how your brain processes information. Starting the search over from the beginning, with the same limited local options, is demoralizing. For anyone with ADHD, the executive function demand of restarting that entire vetting process is a genuine barrier to getting the support you need.

Even with the right directories and the right questions, the entire burden of research, outreach, evaluation, and decision-making falls on you. You're doing all the work to find help with the very challenges that make sustained research projects feel impossible.

Why did we build Shimmer

Every frustration in the previous sections is the reason Shimmer exists. We built it because the traditional path to finding an ADHD coach is broken, and it's especially broken in cities like Jacksonville where local options are scarce and vetting is difficult.

The quality question is answered before you ever show up. Shimmer coaches go through a selection process with a 4% acceptance rate. Every coach has ADHD-specific credentials, whether that's PAAC certification or equivalent specialized training. Beyond hiring, Shimmer provides ongoing supervision and continuing education for its coaching team. The methodology is consistent across the platform, rooted in behavioral science frameworks designed specifically for how ADHD brains work. You don't have to figure out whether your coach is qualified because that vetting has already been done rigorously.

Matching is built into the system. Instead of spending weeks searching directories, scheduling consultations, and guessing at fit, Shimmer matches you with a coach based on your specific needs, preferences, and goals. The match considers your challenges, your industry, your communication style, and what you're trying to accomplish. And if a match doesn't feel right, you switch with no penalty, no awkward conversation, and no restarting from zero. You simply get matched with someone new and continue your progress.

The methodology goes beyond a weekly call. Shimmer's coaching approach uses science-backed frameworks for behavior change and executive function support. Sessions are structured, with clear connections between one session and the next. Goals are tracked. Progress is measured. But the support doesn't vanish between sessions. Shimmer includes community access where you connect with other members working through similar challenges. That combination of expert 1:1 coaching and peer community creates a support system that no single weekly session can match.

The risk is genuinely low. Shimmer offers a 30-day money-back guarantee. Pricing is transparent and published upfront. You know exactly what you're getting and what it costs before you commit a dollar. Compare that to the traditional route of paying $200+ for an initial session with a coach you found through a Google search, only to realize after two or three sessions that their approach doesn't work for you.

Virtual-first means all 875 square miles of Jacksonville are covered equally. Whether you live on the Beaches, in Riverside, out in Mandarin, or on the Westside, you get the same access to expert coaching. No bridges to cross. No I-95 to navigate. No rearranging your afternoon around a drive across town. Consistent, quality support that fits into your life wherever you already are.

For military families at Mayport or NAS Jax, Shimmer's virtual model means your coaching relationship survives a PCS. When orders come through and you're headed to another duty station, your coach goes with you. That continuity is something no local coaching practice can offer.

Shimmer's coaches work with adults across the industries and backgrounds that make up Jacksonville. Finance professionals managing detail-heavy compliance workflows. Military families balancing service demands with household logistics. Healthcare workers handling shift schedules that make traditional appointment times impossible. The matching process accounts for these realities so you work with a coach who understands your specific situation.

How do you get started with ADHD coaching

The decision to start coaching can feel like one more item on an already overwhelming list. If you've been thinking about it for weeks or months without pulling the trigger, that's a completely normal experience. The executive function challenges that make you want coaching are the same ones that make starting feel like a big lift.

The actual process is simpler than the decision. You sign up, get matched with a coach, and have your first session. That initial conversation is about your coach getting to know you, your goals, and your current challenges. You don't need a polished list of objectives or a detailed history of your ADHD experience. Your coach is trained to guide that conversation and help you figure out where to focus first.

Early sessions are exploratory. You and your coach establish what matters most right now and start testing strategies that fit how your brain works. Some approaches will click immediately. Others will need adjustment. That iterative process is how coaching is supposed to work. It's personalized because your ADHD is personal.

Realistic expectations help. Coaching is not going to solve every executive function challenge in the first month. What it will give you is a structured starting point, a professional who deeply understands ADHD, and a framework for making steady progress over time. Most members start noticing meaningful shifts within the first few weeks as new strategies begin to stick and compound.

If you're ready to stop researching and start working with a vetted, expert ADHD coach who gets it, Shimmer is a good place to begin.