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Psychological Assessments.
People may seek psychological assessments for a variety of reasons. Many clients come to us for diagnostic clarification, especially when they have experienced symptoms that have not responded well to treatment or because their healthcare provider recommends further evaluation. While there are numerous reasons that individuals may seek a psychological assessment, Dynamic Reflections serves to address the following common reasons for seeking assessments:
- Struggling to understand persistent feelings of anxiety, depression, or mood swings
- Supporting treatment planning for therapy or medication management
- Clarifying symptoms related to attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
By undergoing a psychological assessment, clients can gain a clearer understanding of their mental health and the factors contributing to their experiences.
Insurance and Cost of Psychological Assessments
We all recognize that insurance is a pain, this is especially true when it comes to psychological assessments. For some insurance companies, it is much harder to obtain psychological testing authorization than others. For example, some cover psychological testing automatically, others require that it is requested but will only provide a limited number of hours. Not all clients want to use insurance for their assessments and prefer to participate in private pay. The prices differ due to the cost of the assessments and the complexities associated with the assessments.
Psychodiagnostic Assessments
Psychodiagnostic is a fancy word referring to assessments that help identify and distinguish mental health related disorders for an individual. These kinds of assessments are helpful to determine treatment in both psychotherapy and with medications to ensure their treatment is getting at the root of the problem. Rather than trialing multiple medications for months or working in therapy to determine the ultimate underlying factors of symptoms, psychodiagnostic assessments provide a roadmap to facilitate a more rapid focus on the real issues at hand.
Evaluating Mood Disorders
Mood disorders, such as depression and bipolar disorder, can affect how you feel emotionally, how much energy you have, and even your physical health. If you’ve ever been in therapy, you may have seen short questionnaires like the PHQ‑9 or GAD‑7. These are helpful tools for tracking symptoms of depression or anxiety, but they are not the same as a psychological assessment.
What Makes a Psychological Assessment Different
- Comprehensive interview: A psychologist will talk with you in detail about your life, starting from early experiences up to the present. This helps them understand how long you’ve been experiencing symptoms and what factors may have influenced your mood.
- Specialized tests: You’ll be given assessment tools that are designed specifically to measure emotional functioning. These are not simple checklists—they are carefully developed instruments that require professional training to administer and interpret.
- Validity checks: The tests include built‑in ways to see if fatigue or effort might be affecting your answers. This ensures that the results are accurate and consistent.
How Long Does It Take?
Others are more in‑depth and can take 7–8 hours, including both the interview and testing.
The length depends on what questions need to be answered about your mood and overall functioning.
Some assessments are fairly short, lasting about 2 hours.
Psychodiagnostic assessment cost WITHOUT insurance
|
Adolescents |
$2,700 |
|
Adults |
$2,500 |
ADHD Assessments
Adults, and kiddos who struggle with attention, maintaining their focus, and/or impulsivity that has impacted relationships, school, work, or daily life may be appropriate for ADHD testing. It is important to distinguish the differences between distractibility, restlessness, or difficulty finishing tasks from ADHD or other causes like stress or anxiety. Thorough evaluations give insight to an individual’s strengths and areas that they struggle which can help with developing accommodations, identifying useful skills and generally improve quality of life through self-awareness.
Assessing ADHD
Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) is a condition that is known as a neurodevelopmental disorder. This kind of condition is something that individuals do not develop later in life (unless there is a significant life event change that comes with brain-related impacts) and is needed to be seen in the life of an individual prior to the age of 12.
It impacts the executive functioning components of the frontal lobe of the brain which means that people who are diagnosed with ADHD may have difficulty organizing and planning tasks, following through on assignments, focusing on a single topic at a time, attending to a conversation, inhibiting responses when they are in a relationship, etc. The assessments we conduct for ADHD differ for adults versus children; however, both involve a combination of standardized questionnaires, clinical interviews and various assessments evaluating attention span, impulsivity, hyperactivity, inattention, inhibition, set shifting and so on.
For children, more assessments are sent to teachers and parents to obtain collateral information on various environments in which the child is in to gain a better understanding of how the symptoms may be impacting their lives.
ADHD assessment cost WITHOUT insurance
|
Adolescents |
$3,000 |
|---|---|
|
Adults |
$2,700 |
Determine Your Path Forward with Psychological Assessments
Dynamic Reflections provides thorough and compassionate psychological assessments that empower clients to understand their mental health. By gaining insight into their challenges, clients can work collaboratively with our team to develop effective treatment plans and strategies for personal growth.
If you are considering a psychological assessment or have questions about the process, call our office, at (661) 788-5354.
Book Your Session today.
Reflect. Grow. Thrive.
To learn more about the providers working within this area of focus, click on the names below:
Dr. Katie Card