6 Nov 2026 07:00
They’ve Been the Struggling Young Adults -- Now They’re Answering Your Questions
When Your Adult Child Feels Stuck: Mentorship, Boundaries, and Our Role as Parents
What happens when the people answering parents’ questions have experienced the struggles their children are facing?
In Season 8, Episode 136 of Bite Your Tongue, we welcome Hayley Caddes and Colin MacDonald, co-founders of Not Therapy Coaching. Drawing on their own difficult teen and young adult years, they offer mentoring and coaching to young people working toward greater independence.
Together, they tackle listener questions about rescuing, ADHD, self-confidence, moving home, and the sometimes exhausting work of supporting an adult child.
One starting point is an “accommodation audit”: identifying what parents are doing for their adult children and considering which responsibilities they could gradually hand back. Hayley and Colin discuss starting small, communicating changes in advance, and offering encouragement as young adults learn to take those steps themselves.
In this conversation:
- Moving from directing your child’s life toward becoming a trusted guide.
- Setting boundaries after years of financial or practical support.
- Responding with compassion when a family member puts themselves down.
- Asking young adults what they want before helping them build a plan.
- Finding routines and structures that fit the individual.
- Establishing expectations when an adult child moves home.
- Making space for parents to enjoy their own lives and seek support.
- Understanding the role a mentor can play outside the parent-child relationship.
A recurring message: progress can begin with one manageable step—and parents don’t have to navigate these challenges alone.
About our guests
Hayley Caddes and Colin MacDonald co-founded Not Therapy Coaching to provide mentorship informed by lived experience. Their approach focuses on helping teens and young adults build confidence, practical skills, and greater independence.
Connect and listen
Not Therapy Coaching: NOT THERAPY WEBSITE LINK
To send us your own question for a future episode:Call our Listener Line: 719-347-1106Email: [email protected]
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Huge thanks to Connie Gorant Fisher, our audio engineer.
Website: biteyourtonguepodcast.comSubstack: Behind the MicListener Line: 719-347-1106Email: [email protected]
And remember…sometimes you just have to bite your tongue.
This conversation shares coaching perspectives and personal experiences. Mentorship can complement clinical care; it does not replace mental health assessment or treatment.
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