Your client walks in and everything feels… different. Yesterday they were focused and engaged; today they’re flat, fidgety, or melting down. Is it the condition? The environment? Or the medication?

You’re not writing prescriptions — but you are on the front lines of seeing how medication shapes function. And parents, teachers, and even doctors often turn to you with questions.

This session bridges the gap between psychopharmacology and real-world therapy. You’ll learn how ADHD and autism medications impact attention, regulation, participation, and daily routines — and how to recognize when changes are tied to meds versus the diagnosis itself. We’ll cover what’s in your scope (and what isn’t), red flags you can spot first, and exactly how to document and communicate what you see.

How this session will help you in practice:

• Plain-language explanations you can share with families about what meds do, what they don’t do, and why therapy is still essential.
• Clarity to differentiate between a therapy problem and a med-management problem — so you know when to adapt treatment and when to refer back.
• Real-world case examples of clients whose participation, appetite, or regulation shifted dramatically with meds, and how to respond in-session.
• Collaborative phrasing you can use in IEP meetings, care conferences, and chart notes to advocate effectively without crossing into prescribing.
• Confidence and clinical language to answer parent concerns, partner with prescribers, and adapt sessions when medication is in play.

Walk away with the clarity, language, and strategies you need to turn one of the most confusing parts of care into a point of strength for you, your clients, and their families.