KDHD COACHING & ACADEMIC CONSULTING
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​About KDHD Coaching

​What is ADHD Coaching?

ADHD coaching is a collaborative process that helps clients gain deeper awareness of themselves and their unique challenges. Unlike therapy, psychiatry, or counseling—where the professional typically guides the client toward broad or pre-defined goals—ADHD coaching is client-driven. This means you decide what’s discussed and what goals you want to pursue.

The coach’s role is to support you in reaching your desired outcomes by helping you build on strategies that already work for you. ADHD coaching is all about using your creativity, resourcefulness, and self-knowledge to better understand yourself and your environment.
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When clients shift their perspectives on their challenges, they often uncover new insights—and more importantly, their own solutions. These self-generated solutions are empowering and long-lasting. One of the key benefits of coaching is that it equips you with a framework for solving future problems independently.
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Academic & Professional Life

Katherine Karayianis is the founder of KDHD Coaching & Academic Consulting. Diagnosed with ADHD and dysgraphia as a young child, she experienced firsthand the frustrations and stigma of learning differently. For many years, she wished she could be “normal”—but over time, she came to recognize that her ADHD wasn’t a weakness, but her greatest strength.

Her neurodivergent brain fueled her creativity, energy, curiosity, and passion for understanding how people learn—particularly how sleep, stress, and environmental factors influence academic performance.

Katherine earned a Bachelor of Science in Psychology and Neuroscience from University of Maryland, College Park. During her undergraduate studies, she served as a research assistant in several psychology and neuroscience labs, where she deepened her interest in cognitive science and education. She went on to complete a Master’s in Social Ecology at University of California, Irvine, where her graduate research explored how sleep, stress, and educational technologies impact learning across the lifespan.

In addition to her academic background, Katherine is a Certified ADHD Life Coach (CALC), having completed the CALC Training Program through the International ADHD Coach Training Center (iACT). This specialized training allows her to integrate evidence-based coaching practices with an ADHD-informed lens to help clients develop sustainable strategies for growth and self-advocacy.

After years of academic research, Katherine returned to her original passion: helping students with ADHD recognize their strengths and take ownership of their learning, growth, and future success. Having personally experienced the challenges of navigating the education system, she understands how overwhelming it can be for families to secure the accommodations and support their children need.
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Inspired by her own journey—and the advocacy her family had to undertake on her behalf—Katherine now offers educational consulting services alongside ADHD coaching and tutoring. She supports families by attending 504 & IEP meetings, reviewing documentation, and advocating for the services and accommodations students are legally entitled to receive. Her goal is to help families feel empowered, informed, and confident as they navigate the school system.
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Publications

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  • Karayianis, K. A. (in preparation). The moderating effect of attention: Examining children’s learning from AI-assisted dialogue while watching television programming.
  • Scruggs, X., Dier, S., Schlaupitz, C., Karayianis, K. A., Lukowski, A., & Bohanek, J. (2024). What does this mean for our future?” An application of Uncertainty Management Theory to mothers’ narratives about the diagnosis and birth of their child with Down syndrome.
  • Lukowski, A. F., Karayianis, K. A., Kamliot, D., & Tsukerman, D. (2022). Undergraduate student stress, sleep, and health before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Presentations

  • Karayianis, K. A. (2024, February). Eyes on the prize: Novel techniques in analyzing sustained attention . Talk presented at the 10th UCI Grad Slam Semi-Finals.
  • Karayianis, K. A. (2023, June). Attention & children’s learning via conversational TV. Talk presented at the Human Abilities in Bilingual Language Acquisition Research Blitz.
  • Karayianis, K. A. (2023, April). The moderating effect of attention: Examining children’s learning from educational dialogic TV shows. Poster presented at the 2023 International Conference on Learning and Memory.
  • Karayianis, K. A. (2023, March). Potential educational benefits of AI-conversational agents in TV in children with ADHD. Talk presented at the Human-Computer Interaction (CHI) 2023 Workshop on Child-Centered AI Design: Definitions, Operation, and Considerations.
  • Karayianis, K. A. (2023, January). Teaching kids with ADHD through conversational TV. Talk presented at the 9th UCI Grad Slam Semi-Finals.
  • Karayianis, K. A. (2022, January). Helpful or hindering? The role of doctors in communicating a Down syndrome diagnosis. Talk presented at the 5th UCI Grad Slam Semi-Finals.
  • Kamliot, D., Karayianis, K. A., Tsukerman, D., & Lukowski, A. F. (2021, April). Undergraduate student sleep and well-being before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Poster presented at the 101st annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association.
  • Karayianis, K. A., & Lukowski, A. F. (2021, April). Sleep and health in female undergraduate students during the COVID-19 pandemic: Does ethnicity matter? Paper presented at the 101st annual meeting of the Western Psychological Association.
  • Karayianis, K. A., Ewell, A., Allard, T., Weinberg, B., & Riggins. T. (2020, March). Relations between hippocampal volume and story recall in early childhood. Poster session presented at the annual meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association, Boston, MA.
  • Karayianis, K. A., Silverberg, B., Sirota, J., Balogun, O., & Hyman, J. (2019, April). Accessibility of playgrounds for children with disabilities. Poster presented at the University of Maryland 2019 Disability Summit, College Park, MD.
  • Patel, S., Karayianis, K. A., Botdorf, M., & Riggins, T. (2019, April). Associations between cortical thickness & episodic memory in young children. Poster presented at the University of Maryland Undergraduate Research Day, College Park, MD.
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​Personal Life

Katherine lives in Los Angeles, California. In her free time, she enjoys swimming in the ocean, reading at the beach, doing jigsaw puzzles, and being silly with her friends. She laughs often, soaks up the California sunshine, and loves reconnecting with her community of family and friends.​
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Social Media

Katherine’s professional Instagram offers insights into what it’s like to live with ADHD, practical strategies she uses, and how coaching can empower individuals with ADHD to overcome challenges and reclaim control of their lives. Follow her @kdhdcoach to learn more!
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She’s also active on Facebook and LinkedIn—click the icons below to connect with her on social media.
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