So, DS7 is finishing up with evaluations at school for an IEP related to problems that he has been having with spectrum-ish/ADHD/anxiety issues. He has seen a private psychologist who has deferred any diagnosis to someone more "specialized" in gifted/2E kids but that's just not an option at the moment. So far the only thing that we know is that he has one or more of these diagnoses that may be causing symptoms of, or exacerbation of, any of the other possible diagnoses. Confusing, to say the least...
Yesterday, the school psychologist that has been doing his evaluations called to set up an appointment for a developmental interview. I asked her how the rest of the assessments have been going and she responded that he has been fun to work with and that his assessments have been "interesting". Now, I'm not in the mental health field but I do work in health care and "interesting" is usually a euphemism for "complicated" or "I give up, I don't know!"
My question is, considering that we're having these evaluations done because of problems at school (difficulty interacting with others, trouble with attention issues, anxiety/panic attacks etc...)could the problems themselves actually get in the way of a valid result on the assessments?
For example, the psychologist told me that his IQ test went "really well" the first day but "not so good" the second day. Apparently the second day he was up out of his seat, not paying attention, etc... His "overall" score (I don't have the breakdown yet) was 129 with some sub-tests higher (135+) and some lower. The first day was also the same day that he later developed a high fever and was diagnosed with strep throat.
They also administered an ADOS which she again described as "interesting" and then said that she probably wouldn't be able to actually score it. I understand the basics of the assessment (play based scenarios with the psychologist while someone else notes specific behaviors) but don't know specifics about it. The psychologist basically told me that he wouldn't 'play ball'. He wanted nothing to do with role playing and instead kept asking about the blocks from their previous session (the IQ test). She also said that he almost seemed 'angry' with her when she used toys for things other than their intended purpose. At one point she put a toy soldier on top of a toy UFO and said "Look, he's canoeing down the river." and the only thing he would do was glare at her and state "That is NOT a canoe."
I don't care if his IQ is 129 or 159. I don't care if he has Asperger's vs ADHD vs anxiety disorder. I just want to figure out how to help him. Does anyone else have experience with this kind of thing? I talk to the psych again tomorrow so maybe I'll get more info then but just hoping someone might have some insight.
Thanks
