Hi all,

After several years of getting snippets of information about the challenges facing our intense, perfectionist, gifted kiddo, we decided to get a full neuropsych evaluation for DS (6.5 years old). We are investing in having this done by a highly regarded tester in the SF Bay Area who specializes in gifted kids. She is doing a swath of tests including IQ, achievement, hearing, etc.

We had scheduled for four 2-hour sessions. After the first session, the tester said she was having to spend a very long time because DS was answering many hard questions. And - she was having to "negotiate" with him to get him to persevere on the hardest topics. So she suggested we might need more sessions, and we put a bunch more on the calendar.

I really appreciate her skill in getting the best from him. But we have now gone to seven 2-hour sessions, and she is not yet able to estimate how many more it will take! Even assuming he is only productive during half a session, that's seven hours of time. When I ask, the tester explains that the results of one test often lead her to give another so that she can get a fuller picture.

I have considerable confidence that there is no problem with running up a bill or anything. This office has an incredible waiting list so that's just not an issue. And we very much want as complete a picture as possible of DS's strengths/weaknesses/challenges. But - should I be pressing more for details as to where we are and how long this will take? Do any of you have experience with this sort of testing taking such a very long time? I'm trying to be patient, but I'm starting to chafe. Some perspective from you guys would really help.

Thanks,
Sue

I would politely inquire as to what kind of questions testing was raising. I do find that sometimes one result leads to another test, but always with a hypothesis of some sort, not just a fishing expedition. It sounds like she was anticipating about six or seven hours of straight testing (based on four two-hour sessions, plus some rapport and interview time). A cognitive would take up one to two hours. Achievement could be anywhere from one to four hours, depending on the instrument and the depth. Memory usually takes about an hour. EF tests vary, but could be a few minutes to an hour plus.

The length of the testing does not surprise me per se, but the fact that an evaluator experienced with gifted young children can't predict how long it will take is clinically significant. My guess would be that she is chasing down a suspected 2e or severe case of perfectionism (which might be considered a variant of anxiety, which I would also consider 2e).

We did a psychoeducational profile on our son and their estimate of time was way off as well (possibly the same well regarded office). They had said one 3-4 hour session and it ended up being two 4 hour sessions. That was double the time they expected. A highly gifted kid could easily use up way more time than expected just on the IQ and achievement tests.

Perhaps you could ask to do longer sessions to finish faster? Two hours seems to be a rather short session. I think it's important to get a list of what tests have been completed and definitely ask about the 2e scenario. A learning disability is common with highly gifted kids.

The neuropscy I talked with today told me a typical full evaluation could take 6-8 hours depending on what tests were given and how it went. But since my son was a teen we could probably fit it into two long sessions.

Have you had a conversation about what tests you son is doing? And if he needs all of the tests? This amount of time seems quite long. My DD was tested back when she was 8 and I only remember it taking 2-3 hours in one session.

6-8 hours sounds appropriate.

Thanks a ton for these responses. At a minimum, we are dealing with anxiety/perfection. And the reason we asked for the eval was concern that there was another 2e source of difficulty. I think based on your answers, I'll ask for a summary of the tests being done. But generally it sounds like we aren't too far outside the norm.

One other point - we are doing shorted sessions because DS just gets fried after about an hour and a half. Tester says this is because he is working so hard on very difficult questions. I have a feeling she's saying that to be nice. But in any event, longer sessions would just be flushing money, it sounds like.

Patience is a virtue I suppose ...

Hi all,

I just wanted to follow up to let you know how this all turned out. The testing ended up taking about 24 hours! It was frustrating being patient, but we are getting some very, very useful information. I'll be posting scores and asking for help understanding them, but I can already say that the results are fascinating. They will be very helpful in supporting our DS who, it turns out is profoundly gifted and dyslexic.

The cost was through the roof, but in contrast to the "snippets" we got from previous piecemeal work - this will give a full picture that we can use to really help DS with his struggles. So for us - worth every penny.

Talk to you soon!