Life transitions coaching
Executive function support for times of change, such as starting or leaving college or moving toward independence.
Young adults, 18–25
Executive function coaching for young adults with mood disorders
Support with planning, starting and following through, built around how mood-related difficulties affect executive functioning.
Who is this coaching for?
Meghan Michalski offers executive function coaching for young adults aged 18 to 25 whose depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder or overlapping conditions can make planning, starting, organizing and following through harder. When routines, deadlines or bigger goals keep slipping out of reach, coaching offers steady, practical support with the skills involved.
This page describes who Meghan works with. It is not a checklist, and it is not a way to tell whether someone has a condition.
If you are a parent, caregiver or member of a care team reading on behalf of a young adult, you are welcome here too. The young adult is the client, and family involvement is part of Meghan’s approach.
How does executive function coaching for young adults work?
Meghan’s work is built around how mood-related difficulties get in the way of executive functioning. She starts by learning how the person in front of her thinks.
She starts with how you process information
Meghan prioritizes trust and rapport while assessing how each client processes information. She then teaches concepts and organizational strategies adapted to the way that client perceives and understands them, so the tools fit the person.
Research-based attention training
She uses research-based attention-training techniques to help clients cultivate awareness and increase concentration.
Writing and the creative process
Meghan also uses a writing and creative-process method as a way to build self-esteem and executive function skills.
Practiced with support, then used independently
Clients first use new strategies with Meghan’s support. She works so that the client can implement them independently later, while building confidence, skills and an understanding of why each strategy matters.
Her approach draws on more than 10 years of experience in social science research, public health and education, and on a master’s degree from Harvard University with a focus in clinical psychology. She has studied the effects of executive functioning strategies on emotion regulation.
What do sessions focus on?
Sessions build the executive function skills that support daily life:
- Planning
- Prioritizing
- Communication
- Thought organization
- Cognitive flexibility
- Time management
- Emotion regulation
Alongside these skills, Meghan builds confidence and helps clients understand why each strategy matters. She also uses meditation and mindfulness techniques to support self-awareness, concentration and emotion and thought regulation.
Coaching is one-to-one and ongoing, meeting at a regular cadence rather than as a fixed-length program. Sessions are offered virtually or in person; see where Meghan works for the places she serves.
For a wider look at the skills and the method, read about executive function coaching with Meghan.
How does coaching fit with the rest of the care team?
Meghan works as one coordinated part of a whole care team, which includes psychiatrists, psychologists, parents and the young adult, not as a standalone service. She also collaborates with existing care teams and a network of mental and physical wellness coaches.
A coach, not a clinician
Meghan is a coach and mentor working alongside licensed clinicians. Coaching is not a substitute for clinical care, and it does not replace a young adult’s therapist or psychiatrist.
Clinicians can read how Meghan works with your care team. Parents and caregivers can read what coaching looks like for families.
Questions people ask
Does coaching replace therapy or other care?
No. Coaching works alongside a young adult’s clinical care, not in place of it.
Will Meghan work with my psychiatrist or therapist?
Meghan works with the client’s existing care team, as one coordinated part of it. The team can include psychiatrists, psychologists, parents and the young adult. For more, see the page for clinicians.
Is this something my parents arrange?
The young adult is the client, and family involvement is part of Meghan’s approach. Parents can read more on the page for parents.
Is coaching online or in person?
Meghan offers one-to-one sessions both virtually and in person. The locations page has the details of where she serves clients.
Related pages
Executive function coaching
The skills Meghan builds and how she goes about it.
Recovery coaching
Support with planning, routines and follow-through for people in recovery, as one part of their care team.
Locations
Serving clients in Asheville, NC, New York City and online.
About Meghan
Her background, her approach and what guides her work.
Contact
Ask a question or start a conversation about working together.
Contact
Let’s start the ascent.
Email Meghan to ask about working together. She serves clients in the Asheville, NC and New York City areas, and online.