My Bio

My training

My name is Kristina Sullivan and I am both an environmental scientist (M.S., 1999) and a certified co-active life coach. I no longer work as a scientist, but I did for many years, including managing projects and employees. I have been a life coach, specializing in working with neurodiverse individuals with Asperger’s, autism, and ADHD since 2001.

I also continue to increase my training and knowledge on an ongoing basis, as both the fields of life coaching and knowledge about ASD and ADHD grow and develop.

In addition, I have been working and living with ASD and ADHD on a personal level my entire life. The youngest of my two children, Callan, was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome as a child, and with ASD and ADHD more recently. Callan has a Master’s Degree in Civil Engineering and a Professional Engineering License, and currently works as a water resources engineer. Callan’s girlfriend, Guen, also has a diagnosis of both ASD and ADHD. My daughter, Laura, identifies as being sensory sensitive. Several other family members are also thought to be on the autism spectrum, but have not pursued a diagnosis.

My location

I am originally from California, was raised in Oregon, raised my kids in Washington, spent numerous years in New Mexico, and am currently enjoying the desert in Tucson, Arizona. I work over the phone, so I can work with you no matter where you are located. (For more info, see how coaching works).

My pronouns

I have recently started including “her/they” after my name in signature blocks. I have always identified as female, but I’m including “they” as an option because I believe it makes sense to have a gender-neutral option for pronouns in our language. It doesn’t have to be the word “they”, but “they” is what is currently most often used when gender is unknown, such as in the sentence, “They left their umbrella under the table in the lobby.” This example sentence uses the terms “they” and “their” in reference to a singular person with an unknown, and thus unspecified, gender.

Why do I work with clients who identify as neurodiverse?

I love the way your mind works. It’s different, and those differences can be useful. I enjoy the neurodiverse mind; the creative logic, the straightforward honesty and the ability to piece together intricate puzzles. It is a challenge and a delight to keep up with your mind.

Testimonials From My Clients

These comments are unsigned. Names have been omitted to protect client confidentiality. Please remember these are my client’s successes, not my own successes, meaning, they did it, not me. They deserve all the credit. I’m quoting them here because I’m proud of them, and because I want you to enjoy their positive comments.

“It’s the positive approach that makes this so different from anything else. Kristina makes me realize that I am glad I have Asperger’s.” –Teacher, age 30

“Very comforting to speak with someone who just “got it” right from the start of the discussion.” –Medical Professional

“I appreciate that you see her in a humane, generous and compassionate light and not as a broken, less than human being…No one has seen her the way you do.” –Parent of an adult client

“I spent my whole life knowing that I was different than everyone else, frustrated that I didn’t fit in and couldn’t understand things that seemed so obvious to everyone else. Kristina is very insightful, helping to bridge the gap between the way I think and the way the rest of the world does. It’s been an eye-opening experience and unbelievably useful.” –Successful Entrepreneur, age 43

“I never realized how useful non-informational conversation can be.” –Physicist, age 66

“Having a weekly appointment devoted to looking at what is (and what is not) working in your life in a way that is objective, holistic, and without judgment is by itself invaluable. Add to that Kristina’s uncanny insights into human behavior and communication, and her seemingly endless toolbox of practical and easy-to-implement techniques for addressing a whole host of life issues, and you have a pretty fool-proof recipe for getting what you want out of life. I always come away from our sessions not only with a clear, succinct understanding of the underlying issues that are holding me back, but also with specific actions I can take immediately to address them. More often than not these actions are amazingly simple, and I’m left wondering, ‘Why didn’t I think of that?'” — Business Owner, age 40

“You get in there and get at it; no chit chat. I like that.” –Business Owner, age 45

“We have all seen a positive change in her since you started working with her. She has enthusiastically shared some of the exercises with me. It’s encouraging hearing her sort out how she is moving about in the world and how she knows what she needs to do.” –Family member of client in her 40’s

“Thinking this way helped me to feel less self-conscious; it was easier to relax and be myself. I also noticed that I smiled more and said thank you more often. It was easier to relax around others, look for things to like about them, and make allowances for things that were annoying. This made it easier to enjoy life and be myself, easier to look for and see good things in others, and helped me to be less afraid of rejection from others.” –Early Career Young Adult

“This has changed my life. Kristina said to beware because coaching can change your life and she’s right.” –Home Health Care Specialist, age 41

“Your approach is right on. These are the things that changed a total geek and misfit at age 21 into a successful engineer and executive who could retire at age 60 with a good fortune and many interests to indulge.” –Grateful Fan

“At first I wanted Kristina to cure me of Asperger’s but now I am excited about how I can use my Asperger way of thinking to do things that the NT world can’t do.” –College Student

“Oh my god, you’re such a good coach. I’m going to learn a lot from you being my coach. I mean, all the way through I was thinking, holy smokes I can learn a lot from this person.” –Interior Decorator, age 35

“You’ll never know how much you’ve taught me to be strong and to stand up for myself. Thank you.” –Self-Employed, age 38

“I especially admire your quiet approach and careful listening.” –Retired, age 70

“Wish I’d known all this a long time ago.” –Engineer, age 43

“I’ve had a lot of conversations about this with people and our conversations by far have been the most concretely helpful. You’re doing a good job, I thank you very much.” –Manager, age 36

“Your answers have been a great stride for success for me. Your heart is in the right place…and your work is vital to people like me. THANK YOU for being here for me.” –College Student

“Thank you very much for all that information, I feel a thousand times better! I cannot tell you how much better this has just made me feel. I am so glad to hear that people out there care like you, it makes such a difference.” –Young Adult with Asperger

I get along with my professors much better now. And they don’t seem so stupid to me.” –Student, age 21

“Thank you, thank you for your support. It’s so wonderful to be understood and not blamed. I’m not a flunky mom, I’m a hero!” –Parent of a child with Asperger

“I printed the Asperger Advantage page from your website and posted it in my office for inspiration. Thank you!” –Investor, age 52

“You are awesome.” –Professor, age 39

“You ask good questions.” –Student

“You really have a way of cutting through the shit and telling things like they are.” –Analyst, age 48

“You’re helping us through hard struggles. For me, that’s Asperger’s. I wouldn’t be doing such a good job if it weren’t for you.” –Parent with Asperger who has a son with Asperger

“You are good at this stuff. You know what to say.” –Student, age 23

“I want everyone to know about Kristina’s coaching because Aspies shouldn’t have a bad life just because we think differently. We’ve been through enough already and we deserve to be successful.” –Customer Service Specialist, age 35

“You know what you are doing and you know that you do it well with your passion and commitment.” –Author, age 57

“Really did enjoy the coaching. You are good at it. If you can coach me you can coach anybody.” –Publisher, age 48

“I really enjoyed last night’s session. I know now that there is hope, I’m glad that you’ve understood me so quickly and again I’m glad that we’re working holistically. I’m looking forward to seeing how much I’m going to achieve.” –Trainer and coach, age 36

“P.S. I really appreciate all the help you’ve given me.” –Student

“I’m just starting to realize how much value you really are. I’m interacting with everyone around me. I’m feeling like a human being for once in my life.” –Father, age 50

“I just wanted to let you know that after our phone call on Tuesday, I realized that in many ways my own responses are on the negative side, like when I see behavior I don’t like but is not of a life-threatening sort, or even a movie I wasn’t fond of and being overly critical about it — he has definitely picked up on this. Finally being alerted to how my own responses have been affecting him – it’s a big eye-opener.” –Family member of individual with Asperger

From the Mother of a Teen, Part One
“I am absolutely astounded in the change in Mike’s behavior since you began coaching him just 2 weeks ago. It’s truly amazing! Prior to your phone consults with Mike, it was impossible to get him to even make a phone call to a friend, even ones he had known since he was a kid. If one of his friends called him and invited him to do something, Mike might initially say “maybe”, but then would come up with every excuse in the book as to why he wouldn’t go. Yesterday I overheard him on the phone with a friend (Tom) he plays basketball with at school. Mike had taken the initiative to make the call by himself (a ‘first’) and asked Tom what he was doing for the weekend (another ‘first’) and then proceeded to ask him if he wanted to get together and ‘hang out or do whatever’ (in the past he would only call after lots of prodding and only if he had a specific purpose to call).

“Every day this weekend he has been busy doing things with acquaintances (who I guess now could be classified as ‘friends’ since he interacts with them outside of school) and they have all happened through Mike’s personal initiative.

“Mike seems happier, more confident, more honest, and more social than I have seen him since he was 5 and his behavioral idiosyncrasies became apparent. We have given advice, support, encouragement, psychological support, pharmacologic support and anything else we could think of for years in an attempt to help Mike communicate and ‘connect’ with others. But we had very frustrating results. Kristina, I think that you may be the answer to our prayers. The insight and knowledge you possess has been the key to unlock my son’s fear and inhibition and reluctance to come outside of himself and take part in the joy of connecting with the world. Thank you so much!” –Mother of a teen

From the Mother of a Teen, Part Two
“It’s been a long time since we’ve communicated. I hope you remember us. You worked with my son Mike during his freshman year of high school. I read my testimonial that you have on your website (mother of a teen, part one) and it was hard to believe that I wrote it. But it brought back memories of how things had been with Mike.

Mike is a senior now and will be graduating in June. He received an academic scholarship and will be attending and playing basketball in Ohio. Kristina, I sincerely hope that you have had success like you did with Mike with many of your clients. In my earlier testimonial, I wrote that I thought you might be the answer to our prayers. Well.. I can tell you now that you WERE the answer!

The past 3½ years have been amazing. After Mike worked with you for a few months, we took him out of our very large, public school system and transferred him to a new, smaller Christian school. There, he was able to completely apply all of his newly acquired skills in a fresh environment where he couldn’t get lost in the crowd. He met and developed close relationships with a large group of friends almost immediately. Most every weekend our house is full of his friends who are all great kids that we love to have over.

I remember you teaching Mike skill in having conversations with girls. The confidence he received from those sessions gave him the nerve to ask the prettiest girl in the school out. She accepted and they dated several months. Last year he met a beautiful, lovely girl whom he has now been dating for over a year. They are completely in love and he spends hours on the phone with her. That whole “phone phobia’ is a thing of the past. Mike still is the more quiet and reserved guy in his group of friends, but he is well liked and very popular at school. He is having a lot of fun, he is happy, he is able to make and maintain relationships, and he continually is improving his communication skills.

It is strange to think that someone who has helped my son so much is a person we have never met, who lives halfway across the country and has only communicated with us by telephone. You have a special gift and I am so grateful for all you have done for us.

I would like to thank all my clients for your support. You are the reason I am here!