Frequently Asked Questions

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Coaching is talking for the sake of doing.  A coach will work with you to identify one or more goals you would like to accomplish and then become your partner in figuring out how to reach the goal.  The coach may offer you resources if you want them, but they will never tell you what to do.  Instead, they allow you to explore your feelings and options in a safe and confidential way so that you can devise and execute lasting change in whatever way works for you.

Yes, coaching is different than therapy.  Therapies are often designed to explore unresolved conflicts or disfunctions for the purpose of healing.  Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, for example, is often helpful if a person is suffering from depression, anxiety or post-traumatic stress.   Coaching, on the other hand, takes a focus on the future, not the past.  Using evidence-based techniques, your coach can help you identify your goals and create lasting momentum in the direction of your dreams.  Coaching and therapy can be complimentary, and both can be helpful.  Your coach can help you explore if there are therapeutic issues that would interfere with your progress in coaching and refer you to an appropriate therapist for help with those issues if desired.  

Yes!  CReW created a program called Walk With Me specifically for the parents of newly diagnosed neurodiverse children.  The beauty of the structure of CReW group classes is that your group coach can pull information modules as desired by the group members.  So, if you are a parent and would find a group beneficial, please submit a request to join a Walk With Me group.  If you are not a newly diagnosed family, please note that in your request, and we will do our best to match you with other parents near to you on the journey!

CReW also has a program to support you in the overwhelming task of advocating for your child's special education needs.  CReW coaches trained in your rights and procedures for obtaining special education services lead groups of parents who are traveling at a similar point in the journey. 

CReW even has a resident dog trainer, for those families who may wish for support in raising and training a service dog to help their neurodiverse family member.  

Yes!  There are several resources that may help you pay for private coaching and group coaching (classes.)   

For Regional Center clients, CReW services qualify for self-determination.  As you're developing your IPP and your annual financial plan  please reach out to us for help with budgeting for CReW services.  

CReW services are also qualified expenses under ABLE savings accounts.   For individuals with ABLE accounts, CReW services can be purchased with ABLE account funds with no withdrawl penalties.  

Lastly, CReW is continually searching  for scholarship funds and sponsorship dollars to help clients with financial need to afford services.  If you have financial need, please ask your CReW coach what options might exist for you. 

Individual coaching rates are set by the coaches.  However, one-on-one coaching is usually in the range of $100 per hour.  Many of our coaches offer some sliding scale rates and a limited number of free services on a need basis.  

Group coaching (CReW Classes) can often offer an affordable alternative to one-on-one coaching.  All CReW group classes are offered at $40 per classroom hour.  Most classes run for 60-90 minutes per session, one time per week.  Payment plans for all classes are available, and some scholarships are available on a financial need basis.

No.  Coaching does not use training or behavioral modification techniques to bring about externally motivated change.  Coaching is based upon a premise of deep listening to help an individual gain insight into their own needs, motivations and capabilities.  

A coach works with a client to gain insight and then facilitate growth in a process of client-driven change.  Coaching clients are fully empowered to explore their behaviors, motivations, capabilities and support needs in a process of defining and achieving self-motivated change.   Given a safe space and a mindful connection, any coaching client can be successful with self-directed change if they are motivated and empowered, regardless of age, neurodevelopmental condition, or intellectual capacity.  

Coaching is all about agency.  The client is 100% in control of the coaching relationship, because coaching is provided in support of the client’s goals. 

Many teens express reluctance to parents initially, because they assume the coaching relationship will be one where they are being directed to do something.   After an initial meeting with their coach, most teens decide that they like the idea of being in charge of the goals they set and how they pursue them.  

It may be helpful to ask your teen to agree to one initial, confidential consultation with their potential coach.  After the consultation, provide them the choice to continue or not.  Be clear that they can terminate the relationship at any time if they desire.  

If after speaking with the coach, your teen still says no, then that decision must be respected.  It is helpful to recognize that the coaching relationship will not be effective without full buy-in from the client, so it’s best to consider other resources if your teen is not open to coaching. 

If the coaching is for yourself, you should feel at all times that you are in control of the coaching direction and understand the value.  If you do not, then it would be a good time to discuss with your coach how to re-evaluate the coaching relationship.

In the case of teens, most parents report seeing changes in their teen very quickly after the beginning of coaching.  You may notice that your teen starts participating in something that they didn’t used to participate in.  They may speak to you without being prompted a little more often.  Or they may display another subtle behavioral change in a direction that they've previously stated as a goal, but not previously shown progress toward.  

In many cases, coaching is one of the few places that any of us experience complete acceptance.  From that place of safety, your teen will often begin to take measures of their own to pursue their goals and desires, and you will see those slowly begin to unfold. 

For parents who understandably want a regular status report on progress, your coach will work out a process of updating you periodically with a general sense of progress, without violating confidences of your teen.  This process is best worked out in the initial consultation with your individual coach so that it can be appropriate for both you and your teen. 

Absolutely not.   Neurodiversity takes many different forms, and there is no need to pinpoint a diagnosis to begin pursuing one's goals.

CReW’s coaching approach is strengths-based.  Regardless of any diagnosis, or lack of diagnosis, we will be focusing on evidence-based practices to help you identify and achieve goals that you set for yourself.  

It may be helpful to know that CReW’s coaches are all trained in neurodevelopment and will be happy to share information with you if you desire to know more about some aspect of your life experience.  However, CReW’s approach is never deficit-based.  

Your CReW coach will ask you about your strengths and capabilities in order to build on them.  If you experience an obstacle, you may discuss strategies to overcome it or work around it.  In all cases, the focus will be on what you DO want, not what you DON’T want.

Yes you can.  At CReW, every human is Creative, Resourceful, & Whole.  We don’t believe you are “disabled” either.  We all have talents and challenges.  The key to living our best life is capitalizing on our talents and strengths to work around our challenges.  This is a universal truth.

If you don't think you're getting value from your CReW activities, you can simply stop.  

CReW’s mission is to uplift the lives of neurodiverse people and their families.  If you try a CReW service and find that it’s not the right fit for you, there is no obligation to continue.  You will not be asked to pay for services you have not used, and if you have paid tuition for a class you do not complete, you will be refunded the unused portion with no questions asked.   

We do have one request.  If you find that you’re working with a coach who isn’t connecting with you, or you’re in a class that you don’t think is working out, please reach out and let us know your experience.  It may be that another coach or a different class would be a better fit for you.  We will do everything we can to support you, including refunding any unused tuition if you still decide it’s not right for you. 

We recognize the acute need for flexible and timely diagnostic services.  

At the present time, CReW does not provide diagnostic services.  However, several of CReW’s coaches are currently undergoing licensure for diagnostic services.  We hope to add a diagnostic clinic to CReW’s services in the future.  Please sign up to our email distribution list for updates on the status of this and other upcoming program developments.