Chess and ADHD: For Therapeutic and Educational Purposes

By Andrea Elrom, Certified ADHD & Executive Function Coach

The Pandemic has allowed me the luxury of watching way more Netflix and Hulu than I ever could have imagined. A year ago, I would not have seen this as a positive but now I can confidently say that it has opened my eyes into new worlds and has sparked interest in areas that I would have never taken the time to see.

“My Octopus Teacher”opened my eyes to a love story between a mollusk and a man on a journey of self discovery, “ Unstoppable” the one armed surfer who proved with determination almost anything is possible and “The Queen’s Gambit,” bring a focus to the game of chess.

As an ADHD coach and an Adder myself, this opened up an awareness to the incredible impact chess can have on the ADHD brain. Spending most of my coaching career on teaching and strengthening Executive Function skills, I am intrigued by the power that chess has on attention/concentration, decision making, problem solving, flexibility, sustained effort and self
regulation.

Why had I not thought of this before? I am always looking for ways to gamify Executive Function skills, to find interests to ignite the brain, find passion and increase self
esteem; maybe Bobby Fischer was on to something.

I do believe that the treatment for ADHD/ADD takes many shapes and sizes but one shape I am looking forward to getting acquainted with is that of the — king, Queen pawn bishop and other pieces of the board. Having had the pleasure of working with Evan and Premier Chess,
my son and I are awaiting the beginning of the
Winter Rookie class. I am not sure I will be the next Beth Harmon but  am anxious to learn how to focus and solve problems.

Although Chess will not take the place of medication, it may be a component of strengthening executive functions. 

Learn more about Andrea Elrom’s ADHD and Executive Function consulting here.