Psychological Assessments & Testing
Are Certain Behaviors Causing You To Suspect That More Is Going On Than Meets The Eye?
Do you or your child battle with behaviors, emotions, or mental health challenges that you’re struggling to understand? Have you suspected a possible diagnosis of Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), or a mood disorder for you or your child? Or are you a primary care physician or therapist looking for providers that offer psychological assessments?
Maybe you have noticed physical, social, and emotional symptoms that have disrupted your or your child’s daily life. Perhaps you waver between low energy and hyperactivity. Or it could be that poor performance at work or school has you wondering if cognitive obstacles are getting in the way of your success.
It’s likely that some degree of social anxiety has impacted your relationships. Maybe you have trouble regulating your moods or struggle with angry outbursts that are out of your control. If this is the case, you may grapple with co-occurring symptoms of anxiety and depression, though you can’t seem to pinpoint the cause of your distress.
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Alternatively, you may be a primary care provider or therapist in search of additional support for your clients. Perhaps you’re looking to refer your clients out to a clinician who can perform psychological evaluations. Or maybe you do not feel comfortable prescribing certain medications until you have an accurate diagnosis from a mental health expert trained in psychological testing.
Living with an undiagnosed disorder can make life unnecessarily difficult and isolating. You just want to understand why you or your child behave a certain way so that you can create an effective blueprint for the future. And at Journey Mental Health, our clinicians specialize in psychological assessments that can provide you with the answers you’ve been looking for.
Most Neurological Disorders Are Misidentified And Misunderstood
When it comes to developmental, cognitive, and mood disorders, we as a culture are still very much in the process of effectively understanding and identifying a wide range of conditions. Take an autism diagnosis, for example. Many adults are just now discovering that some of their symptoms and challenges align with a diagnosis of ASD. And women, in particular, are finding out more often than ever that they were misdiagnosed or improperly assessed as children for certain emotional and behavioral issues.
Though it’s great that awareness surrounding these conditions is steadily rising—slowly chipping away at the stigma that has, for decades, obscured the importance of psychological testing—there is still a lot of misinformation and inaccuracy occurring within these diagnoses.
Unfortunately, many providers rely on their own judgment instead of expert evaluators to identify the source of their client’s issues. When this happens in the context of therapy, clients may get stuck during the course of treatment or could even be inaccurately diagnosed. And when diagnosing children, in particular, school systems often insist that a formal assessment is unnecessary even when parents are seeing their child struggle or perform at a level below where they should be.
Yet, psychological evaluations are not meant to invite scrutiny, judgment, or labels, but should be treated as opportunities to understand the neurological and emotional needs of each unique individual. This kind of testing needs to be done by a psychologist (doctoral level) who can provide an accurate diagnosis and resources that can offer additional support.
At Journey Mental Health, we pride ourselves on administering accurate and life-changing psychological assessments to our clients.
Psychological Assessments Are The Key To Understanding What’s Happening Beneath The Surface
In the context of psychological testing, it’s important to find a licensed psychologist who uses verified assessments that have been studied and refined for decades to ensure accurate diagnoses. Because so much information has been collected on a wide variety of populations, these assessments use thousands of data points to create norms that our clinicians use to determine the cause of specific symptoms and challenges.
At Journey Mental Health, there is no referral necessary to receive a psychological assessment. Instead, you would simply need to contact us to schedule an intake session (typically over Zoom), during which we would plan for a more extensive in-person evaluation for either you or your child. The psychological assessment itself will range anywhere from three to eight hours depending on what kinds of tests are required.
Testing is administered by one of our caring, objective, and professional psychologists, who will perform a battery of psychological evaluations to pave the way for a precise diagnosis. From there, an individualized treatment plan—including necessary accommodations—will be created that you can then provide for your employer, therapist, psychiatrist, healthcare provider, or child’s school.
Our psychological assessments are rigorously vetted within the mental health, medical, and scientific communities, and we are committed to providing customized treatment plans that will meet the needs of each individual. When our clients receive a proper diagnosis of a neurological, developmental, or mood disorder, they can get the support they need at home, work, and school so that they can be more productive, successful, and happier in their day-to-day lives.
Moreover, our clinicians are available to provide continued care to those clients looking to mitigate disruptive behaviors and improve their mental health through counseling. Oftentimes, a developmental or neurological diagnosis is accompanied by co-occurring issues of depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress, and we are devoted to helping our clients find relief from all of these challenges in their daily lives.
However, we also recognize that many of these individuals have already established a trusted connection with a therapist outside of Journey Mental Health, and we are not interested in removing clients from a treatment trajectory and therapeutic relationship that is working well for them. Instead, we want to ensure other clinicians that psychological assessments can provide clarity and direction for a client to take back to their established therapist and enrich the work they are already doing.
A psychological assessment can provide you with the insight you’ve been looking for. At Journey Mental Health, we view a diagnosis as a point of hope for you and your family—signaling the bridge between frustrating behaviors and a meaningful explanation for the obstacles that have impacted your or your child’s life for too long.
Testing Fees
The cost of testing and assessments ranges from $750-$2500, depending on complexity and need (see below). We offer different types of assessments to meet various needs.
Adult Autism - for self-knowledge : $1000
This type of assessment includes an interview with a clinical psychologist who specializes in neurodiversity, some formal assessments (completed online), and a brief written summary of tests, diagnosis, and recommendations.
Adult ADHD - for medication/ therapy referral only: $750
This type of assessment includes an interview, some formal assessments, and a brief written summary of tests, diagnosis, and referral for medication/therapy.
Child Autism - for ABA or other therapy referral (ADOS-2) : $1000
This type of Autism assessment is typically for those children who have already been diagnosed in another setting but need an ADOS-2 for referral to or to continue therapy services. Includes an interview, ADOS-2, a parent questionnaire, and a brief written summary of tests, diagnosis, and referral for therapy.
Child or Adult Comprehensive ADHD or Autism Assessment: $2000
This type of assessment is typically needed to request school or work accommodations or services. Includes an interview with a clinical psychologist who specializes in neurodiversity, formal assessments (may include IQ/cognitive testing) and a written summary of tests, diagnosis, discussion of specific skills and challenges, and recommendations.
Comprehensive Child or Adult Assessment including psychological and/or learning challenges: $2500
This type of assessment is typically necessary for school or work accommodations as well as standardized testing accommodations (SAT/ACT). It includes an interview with a clinical psychologist, formal assessments (including IQ and Educational testing), and may include additional tests for specific learning challenges or psychological issues (PTSD/Bipolar/personality). A written summary of tests, diagnosis, discussion of specific skills and challenges, and recommendations is provided.
Meet Our Testing Team
PSYCHOLOGISTS
Dr. Erica Skidmore, Psy.D.
Dr. Erica Skidmore conducts psychological assessments for children and adults for a variety of concerns including ADHD, Autism, learning challenges, cognitive functioning, and more. She is a trauma-informed professional and an LGBTQ+ ally, and she affirms the value of neurodiversity/neurodivergence.
Dr. Shannon Cosentino, Psy.D.
Dr. Shannon Cosentino graduated Summa Cum Laude on the National Dean's obtaining her bachelor's degree at DePaul University located in Chicago, IL. She then went on to earn her masters and doctorate in clinical psychology at the Illinois School Of Professional Psychology. She completed her clinical psychology internship in Colorado where she gained experience working with clients throughout the lifespan providing expert testimony and neuropsychological evaluations. Dr. Cosentino then moved to Texas and currently completes neuropsychological evaluations for children with neurodevelopmental delays and adults primarily with dementia, stroke, and/or traumatic brain injuries along with providing expert testimony.
Dr. Daniel Cohen, Psy.D.
Dr. Daniel Cohen received his Doctorate in clinical psychology (Psy.D.) and a Master's in Forensic Psychology from the Arizona School of Professional Psychology. Dr. Cohen specializes in the assessment and treatment of children and adolescents. He has worked with youth in forensic state hospitals, inpatient units, intensive outpatient care, and drug and alcohol treatment.
Dr. Cohen’s specialization in the assessment of all childhood disorders began in 2014. These evaluations occurred in various settings, including private practice, state-related organizations, and for the states of Wisconsin and California. In his free time, Dr. Cohen coaches basketball and soccer where he gets to tap into his passion of helping youth develop their sense of self-efficacy and emotional regulation.
Dr. Ashley Salter, Psy.D.
Dr. Salter graduated as the president of her Psi Chi chapter from Dalton State College with a Bachelor’s of Science in Psychology with a minor in Criminal Justice. She then went on to earn her Masters of Arts from the Georgia School or Professional Psychology. She received her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology from the Florida School of Professional Psychology at National Louis University in Tampa, FL. Dr. Salter completed her internship in Florida where she specialized in trauma-informed treatment of trauma and sexual assault survivors.
Dr. Salter’s specializations for psychological evaluations includes clinical/psychological, psycho-educational, and forensic (disability, psychosexual, parental fitness, custody, and risk evaluations, etc) assessments. These evaluations and training occurred in various settings, such as private practice, community mental health, and for state-related organizations. In her spare time, Dr. Salter spends time with her family, cat (Maui), and doing photography.
ADMINISTRATIVE TEAM
Venus Simone
Psychological Assessments FAQs
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We acknowledge that psychological assessments are an investment. We do not accept insurance (though most insurance providers do not cover the cost of psychological assessments anyway). However, we strongly believe that by receiving an accurate diagnosis, you can save years and thousands of dollars in therapy or other ineffective treatments not suited for your specific neurological, developmental, or mood disorder.
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This can be true for some providers—especially when it comes to psychological assessments for autism. Our waitlist at Journey Mental Health is typically about three weeks and is likely to shorten as we grow our team. In general, clients can get into our doors relatively quickly to receive a psychological assessment.
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The school system process for psychological assessments is often lengthy and bureaucratic, and the evaluations used by schools are often less extensive and effective than what we can provide for your child. Moreover, schools are not qualified to give a medical diagnosis that is essential for insurance coverage of some treatments. At Journey Mental Health, we can provide an accurate and formal diagnosis so that your child can be eligible to receive the support, accommodations, and services they need.
Are you ready to take the next step?