Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Twice Exceptional Gifted and ADHD?

Hi Petunia,

A neuropsych is much more able than a regular psych to do detailed testing work that differentiates one diagnosis from another. They specialize in diagnosis, not treatment.

You might find information about where to locate a tester at the "Help and services" links on the left side of this page (searchable by state): http://www.aspergersyndrome.org/Home.aspx

In addition to IQ and achievement testing, I would want to make sure the tester would do most or all of the tests listed here, or their equivalents. I draw this list from the things the tester did with my DS when he was dxed with Asperger's (autism spectrum disorder) at age 5.

Children's Memory Scale (memory)
VMI-V (visual-motor integration)
NEPSY Social Perception (social awareness/understanding)
ADOS (autism diagnostic observation schedule)
Vineland (adaptive behavior - parent report)
PDDBI (ASD characteristics - parent report)
CBCL/TRF (general behavior - parent/teacher report)
PLSI (pragmatic language - teacher report)

Hope that helps,
DeeDee

Thanks, we do have some of those tests so we'll see. I don't see that the school will cooperate much since they just did their autism assessment last spring and he's so well-behaved at school.

Does the neuropsych also do sensory stuff or would that be on OT?

We had the sensory stuff tested by an OT while we were on the waiting list for the neuropsych - best decision we made in this whole mess.

This is a problem of professional discipline. Many neuropsychs are skeptical about sensory issues. Many OTs overplay them as "THE" answer to what is really a more complex problem. You definitely can't replace a neuropsych with an OT, because an OT's toolkit is much more limited. But if you are looking for someone to evaluate solely for the sensory piece, a qualified OT would do.

I would never want to limit this investigation to an OT, however; the science of SPD is in its infancy and that diagnosis is very often a cover for other disorders that would be identified by a fuller evaluation.

DeeDee

Ditto to what DeeDee said

polarbear

Shucks, Polar. :-)

DeeDee

Hi, Zen, missed this in my first readings of responses, sorry. What you say makes sense but it that's part of it, what would you do about it?

np, Petunia, it's a lot here and just looking to offer another pov. Hard to guess how it works out, mine's only 6.5. More seeing how things played out with my older brother conflicting with my parents and such; I didn't much go through it myself. Personally, I'd go the "hey kid, it's your life, what can I do to help you make it better?" and pull out controls and measures from my end, then maximize respect given; cold turkey. But it is a personal philosophy thing for me and everyone has unique challenges in their own situations.

Bad morning. Can I just put my head down and cry?

I think that depends on whether you feel worse or better after you cry.