Cole Stegman holding The Pickleball Brain — Bear and Hati Series 1 ADHD children's book for ages 5 to 12

🐻 Every great story starts with a child who just wanted to belong.

Cole Stegman was 6 years old when he was diagnosed with ADHD. Nobody sat down and explained what that meant. Nobody told him his brain was wired differently, not broken, just different.

What he felt instead, in the years that followed, was something millions of children feel every single day.

He felt like he didn't fit.

This is the story of how that little boy grew up, and decided to change that for every child who comes after him.

💛 The road was long. And it was hard.

By 16, Cole was on his own. Traveling across 28 states. Spending 2 years in Hawaii. Couch surfing his way through America trying to find out who he was and where he belonged.

His mother and father both passed away. And for a while, the darkness felt like it might win.

But it didn't.

Almost 12 years ago Cole met Bekah, his partner, his anchor, the woman who helped him believe he was worth loving. Their daughter Akira arrived first. Their son Brecken followed.

And with those two children came two stuffed animals that would change everything.

Akira chose Hati. Brecken chose Bear. And Bear and Hati became part of the family. They went everywhere. They survived everything.

🌍 Bear & Hati belong to the world now.

Four years ago, when Cole and his family moved to Arizona, something shifted. He couldn't stop thinking about Bear and Hati, about everything they represented, about the joy they brought, about the safety they held.

And then he thought about all the children out there, like the little boy he once was, who needed someone to explain the hard things.

So he wrote the book he wished someone had handed him at 6 years old.

Bear & Hati: The Pickleball Brain is Book 1 of 6 in Series 1 — all about ADHD. Not ADHD as a label. Not ADHD as a problem. ADHD as a different kind of brain that feels deeply, creates boldly, and when understood correctly, becomes a superpower.

Because every brain is different. And every brain is amazing. 🐻💛

Get the Book →