Frequently Asked Questions
6
Can you prescribe medication for ADHD?
1
I am a licensed marriage and family therapist and ADHD certified clinical services provider. I am qualified and credentialed to assess and diagnose “mental disorders” according to the DSM-V. I can talk through potential medication options during your assessment, but I cannot prescribe medication.
Can you tell me the severity of my ADHD?
2
Severity is based on the impact of ADHD on your daily functioning and can vary throughout your life—even from month to month. We can talk about how your symptoms are currently affecting you, but the severity is not a fixed measure. My hope is that pairing a better understanding of how symptoms affect your unique situation with ADHD-related strategies and/or medications can decrease the severity you are experiencing.
What makes you different?
3
Many people complete a full neuropsychological examination with a psychologist or a quick survey with a primary care doctor. I offer a happy medium.
On the one hand, a full neuropsychological examination is especially useful for individuals who are concerned about learning disabilities or autism. But these exams are often cost prohibitive for families, and they can make false negative determinations for ADHD because they assess responses during the testing, when ADHD brains can feel more engaged and stimulated to perform.
On the other hand, primary care providers often lack the time for a full diagnostic interview, and they may or may not feel comfortable when standard ADHD assessment tools are inconclusive.
I have been trained to use an ADHD diagnostic model that leverages assessment tools while also considering how current and historical life contexts may or may not contribute to symptoms.
Do you take insurance?
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I do not currently have any insurance openings for ADHD diagnostic assessment sessions. I do have a couple sliding scale spots each month and you are welcome to inquire regarding availability.
Why does it seem like ADHD diagnoses are on the rise?
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The evidence is stacking up that technology demands on our attention are contributing to more challenges with distraction, sleep disruption, and other ADHD-like symptoms. Often, when people decrease their use of these stimulating devices and their frequent notifications, symptoms decrease. In other words, current research suggests that technology does not in fact cause ADHD, but it can increase the likelihood of ADHD-like symptoms.
That’s why a thorough clinical assessment is the best method for investigating whether someone actually meets the criteria for an ADHD diagnosis.
Spoiler alert: either way, less disruptions to sustained attention tasks will benefit your brain.
We are also recognizing a wider array of symptoms and how people develop coping skills to mask challenges until they can’t. And in many places and families the stigma around ADHD diagnoses has decreased so that people feel more comfortable seeking treatment.
What does the process look like?
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What age range do you work with?
I generally schedule at least two weeks in advance to give clients time to complete the paperwork. This will include, whenever possible, having clients ask someone (a teacher for kids or a partner, family member, or close friend for adults) to offer an external perspective on possible symptoms.
If paperwork is not completed within 48 hours of the scheduled appointment, I will contact you to reschedule.
The interview takes about 80 minutes and covers the client’s current life as well as historical patterns in school and at home. By the end of the interview, I will generally summarize how the client may or may not match the diagnostic criteria and what the next steps could look like. This may mean discussing further treatment options and referrals or school/work strategies and accommodation suggestions.
I have assessed clients from age 5 to 75. There is definitely no upper limit. But because ADHD has so much to do with executive function skills and very young children are still very much developing those skills, I prefer to work with kids who have at least completed kindergarten so that we can incorporate feedback from teacher(s) in assessing how symptoms look in the school setting.