From autism testing to testing for conditions such as ADHD, thorough testing is often necessary to reach a diagnosis. Mental illness and neurological conditions should always be assessed by a professional psychiatrist or licensed clinical therapist, as many symptoms are common across a number of conditions and mental illnesses.
ADHD is particularly common among children and around twenty percent of all children in the United States have some level of learning and attention issues. These issues often stem from ADHD and, also commonly, dyslexia. However, the majority of the parents of these children do not believe that these will be lasting problems in their child’s life. Though the diagnoses of ADHD and dyslexia are most commonly applied to people while they are still children, they are diagnoses that follow the children diagnosed throughout their entire lives, far past childhood and into adulthood. As any neuropsychologist will tell you, adults are often impacted by their symptoms of ADHD, and are even more prone to symptoms of depression, anxiety, and stress. They are also more likely to miss days of work because of these problems.
ADHD is often first diagnosed in childhood and though girls suffer from ADHD as well, boys are far more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD (which stands for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder). The average age of a first diagnosis for ADHD is just seven years old, and there has been a considerable amount of controversy surrounding medicating children that young, with many people claiming that ADHD is often misdiagnosed. However, ADHD is a very real condition and many an ADD assessment has found strong indicators of ADHD in many children – more than six million between the ages of four and seventeen in the United States alone.
Dyslexia is another common condition often first diagnosed in childhood and it is a condition that can make it difficult for a child to learn. Contrary to popular opinion however, dyslexia is not an indicator of overall intelligence and many incredibly smart people, such as Albert Einstein, have been diagnosed with the condition. In fact, many people are dyslexic without even knowing it. It is estimated that up to forty million people across the United States are dyslexic but only around two million have been formally diagnosed and treated.
Autism testing is also common among young children. Autism testing can identify the presence of autism in a child based on their developmental patterns. Autism testing has also been able to adequately assess the severity of the condition if it is, in fact, present in a child. Symptoms of autsim can be confirmed with official autism testing as early as two years of age, barely out of infancy. This is because the symptoms of autism manifest early, even in early infancy in some children. Much like ADHD, boys are more likely to be officially diagnosed than girls, but it is not certain if girls are simply likely to present with symptoms of autism in a different manner than boys typically do.
A psychoeducational evaluation can be beneficial for a number of children with suspected disorders and neurological conditions, from ADHD to autism. Once a condition is diagnosed, accommodations can be made, such as LSAT accommodations, even into adulthood.
