ADHD ASSESSMENTS
Attention Deficit / Hyperactivity Disorder
It is not uncommon for people of all ages to experience forgetfulness, lose track of time, lack focus when completing tasks or during conversations or to procrastinate when a task is perceived as boring or difficult. However, if these issues are occurring on a daily basis and impacting you, or your child's, academic, social, and interpersonal relationships it is possible that you, or your child, may have undiagnosed Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD).
Completing an ADHD assessment at The Mind Clinic will help you understand your, or your child's, cognitive strengths and weaknesses and confirm whether or not you have met criteria for a diagnosis of ADHD. Regardless of the outcome, the ADHD assessment will help a psychologist work with you to learn to manage areas of your, or your child's, life that are currently difficult to navigate. The assessment will also contribute to a paediatrician or psychiatrist's ADHD diagnostic process and their decision whether or not to prescribe medication.
The Mind Clinic's rigorous ADHD assessments for children, adolescents, and adults have been developed in consultation with clinical and educational and developmental psychologists and in review of the Australian Evidence-Based Clinical Practice Guideline for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AADPA Guidelines 1st Edition, 2022)
Summary of Assessment Process
CHILDREN AND ADOLESCENT ADHD ASSESSMENTS
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ADHD is usually identified during school years due to its impacts on learning and/or classroom behaviour. And although boys and girls are diagnosed with ADHD at similar rates, their presentation usually differs. Boys will commonly exhibit more hyperactive and impulsive tendencies which are easier to identify, while girls tend to be more inattentive (which can look like daydreaming) which is often overlooked.
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With an ADHD diagnosis your child will be able to access tailored psychological interventions which commonly involve lifestyle adjustments to reduce symptoms, parent, and family training, and cognitive-behavioural interventions. The assessment will also contribute to a paediatrician or psychiatrist's ADHD diagnostic process and their decision to prescribe medication.
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Our child and adolescent assessments run over 3 to 4 weeks and typically occur in the following stages:
Summary of Assessment Process
ADULT ADHD ASSESSMENTS
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If you are an adult and think you may have undiagnosed ADHD, you probably experience difficulty organising your thoughts, managing time, meeting deadlines, meeting your relationship needs and may generally feel overwhelmed by day-to-day activities. If this is you, you have likely managed to get this far because of your environment, upbringing and/or your individual capacity to adapt to challenging situations. Researchers have found that as more significant life events or life transitions accumulate, such as parenthood and starting a new career, people with ADHD find it harder to compensate, and their symptoms tend to increase.
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The benefits of having an ADHD assessment are multiple. Firstly, you will understand why you have struggled to do what others appear to do with more ease and in less time, which may allow you to be kinder to yourself and less self-critical. Secondly, you will have an increased understanding of how your mind works so that you can receive targeted psychological interventions to improve your day-to-day functioning. And finally, you will have an assessment to augment a diagnostic interview with a psychiatrist to ascertain if medication is likely to be beneficial.
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Our adult assessments run over 3 to 4 weeks and typically occur in the following stages: