Meet Nancy Armstrong

Certified Parent Coach

Emmy-nominated Producer

ADHD Advocate

Creator of The Disruptors,

Award-winning documentary on ADHD

Co-founder, MAKERS

Named one of Forbes' 100 Best Websites for Women

Let me guess

You're exhausted. You have parental fatigue. You've tried every sticker chart, consequence system, and "helpful" suggestion from well-meaning relatives. Your child with ADHD is brilliant, dynamic and creative and drives you absolutely insane, sometimes in the same five-minute span. And you're wondering if you're the problem.

Hi, I'm Nancy. And I'm here to tell you: it's not you. It's the mindset and the approach.

I say this not as a doctor — I'm not here to diagnose or prescribe. I say this as a mom — one who's ridden through the tornado of ADHD, day in and day out, 24/7, 365. I'm also a storyteller, a certified parent coach, a former TV actor, a communications pro, and the executive producer of The Disruptors, a documentary born, not out of curiosity, but out of necessity.

Because when everything in your home is spinning — your child can't focus, emotions explode by breakfast, normal parenting isn't working, and you feel like a "bad parent" — you crave clarity, truth, and someone who gets it.

My Own ADHD Journey

Growing Up

Growing up, I was a highly imaginative and creative person and performer. At five, I memorized an entire play without being able to read yet. My report cards said things like "Nancy is delightful… if only she'd stop talking long enough to learn something." I wasn't a "bad kid," but I was “hypersensitive,” outspoken, and always felt different—like something must be wrong with me. What was going on in my imagination was always way more interesting than anything happening in any K-12 class I'd ever been in.

I didn't know it then

I didn't know it then, but what I was experiencing was ADHD—inherited from my mother's own unrecognized ADHD. I learned to wrangle it because I was terrified of getting in trouble with my overly strict parents. Performance—on stage and in life—became my outlet.

In my early 20s

In my early 20s, I became an actor and singer, eventually writing and starring in my own one-woman show. But after hitting an emotional bottom, I knew I had to make a change, to elevate myself to a place of self-reliance and empowerment. Being an unemployed actress wasn’t it.

I recalibrated

So right at the moment when my brain was fully developed (finally at age 30—late by most accounts) I recalibrated. Hard. I became meticulous, committed, organized. I was fascinated to see that I could pivot in this way just by making a decision; it was a little addictive! I pursued a Master's in Communications at Boston University, built a career in PR at Ogilvy, married the man of my dreams, and later co-founded MAKERS, a women's leadership media platform lauded by Forbes.

But nothing was as humbling, or illuminating, as motherhood.

When Normal Parenting Didn't Work

All three of my kids—and my husband Tim—have ADHD. Add my residual struggles to the mix, and you begin to understand why I often describe my first half of motherhood as being in the center of a tornado. Living inside that storm meant witnessing intense brilliance, compassion, and creativity. It also meant desperation and rage. There were days we dumped the kids’ electronics in the sink and submerged them in water. I ran over an Xbox once with my car. This was very far from the parenting vision I'd had.

After years of jumping through hoops to control, fix, and “manage” my children, the truth hit me like a freight train:

It's not the child, it's you.
Not because you're failing, but because you're the solution.

There was nothing wrong with our family. The parenting manual we were all using just wasn't designed for their type of brain. I had to come to terms with the fact that we don’t architect our child's mind, personality or emotional life; we’re just there to love, guide and shepherd—and in that role, we can make a massive difference.

From Desperation to Direction

What I needed didn't exist: real, unfiltered, evidence-based, relatable information that told the truth about ADHD. Something to say that this is not shameful, this is a trait that can actually be a super skill—an asset—if you can find ways to manage the inherent challenges of this uniquely wired and extraordinary brain.

So, I made it

The Disruptors leverages the known voices of people like Will.i.am, Paris Hilton, and Terry Bradshaw, and groundbreaking researchers like Dr. Ned Hallowell and Dr. Russell Barkley, to reframe ADHD from a deficit to a difference, one packed with extraordinary potential.

After the film was released, I had countless conversations with parents who were grateful for the film’s message, but were left craving more: "Now what? What do we do?"

I became a certified parent coach to be a firewall against misinformation and to champion what I wish I'd known: Parenting is the cure for childhood ADHD. You have the agency to make a difference, but it takes a methodical, intentional approach where runaway emotions don't dictate your actions.

The truth? You're not a bad parent. You're not alone. And you're absolutely the right parent for your beautifully wired child.

Join thousands of parents rewriting the adhd story.

Get strategies, myth-busting insights, and hope from experts, advocates, and influential voices who’ve walked this path.

You're not failing.
You're not alone.
Your child's brain
is F.A.S.T.
and beautiful.

Let's unlock its potential together.