Frequently Asked Questions

Parents know their child best and can trust their instincts when discussing the evaluation with their child. Many children do well with discussing more generally about how everyone learns differently and an evaluation helps to identify areas of strength as well as areas that are more difficult for them. The evaluation will provide specific information about your child so that their parents and teachers will know how to help them to feel their best. It can sometimes be helpful to ask your child about how they feel about school such as what they like about school and what is hard for them. If you want to discuss more specific concerns with them that you have noticed, you can do that as well. You could then talk about how the evaluation can help with those concerns.

Absolutely! Comprehensive evaluations allow adults to obtain a complete understanding of themselves, often uncovering areas of strength that they didn’t realize were there, as well as identify underlying causes for maladaptive behaviors. Therapists often refer adults for a comprehensive evaluation for diagnostic clarity, or if their client is feeling stuck. Many adults self-refer for concerns related to occupational performance, issues with social relationships, depression, and anxiety. Questions about potential ADHD and autism are also common referral concerns for adults.

Being neurodiversity-affirming means recognizing and respecting the natural variations in how people think, learn, and process information. It involves seeing the inherent strengths and value in neurological differences like autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other cognitive variations, rather than focusing solely on the negative aspects.

Testing includes a wide variety of activities for me to learn a lot of information about you or your child. The tasks are administered in a variety of ways such as through play, verbal response, paper and pencil, iPad, computer, manipulatives, and selecting a response from several choices. Other information is gathered through clinical interviews, rating scales, standardized questionnaires, and a review of educational, clinical and medical records.

Things to consider on the day of testing:

• Get a good night’s sleep

• Eat a full breakfast

• Bring water and snacks to the appointment

• Have all necessary paperwork (e.g. intake forms, previous evaluations, school IEPs, 504 plans or evaluations) completed in the Client Portal.

The terms psychological evaluation, neuropsychological evaluation, and psychoeducational evaluation are sometimes used interchangeably. Generally speaking, psychological evaluations focus more on personality, mood, and mental health. Neuropsychological evaluations focus more on cognition, brain functioning, and executive functioning. Psychoeducational evaluations focus more on academics and behavior within an academic environment. White Bear Psychological Services provides all three types of evaluations and often combines aspects of all three.

The entire evaluation process takes about four weeks from the initial intake appointment through the final feedback session. After the evaluation process is complete, we will continue to be accessible to answer any further questions you have about the results or recommendations.

White Bear Psychological Services is an out-of-network provider for all insurance companies. Some insurance companies have out-of-network reimbursement options. The best way to find out if you have out-of-network coverage is to call the number on the back of your insurance card and ask about the mental health benefits for your specific plan. We will provide you with all the documentation needed to submit to your insurance for possible reimbursement.

Visit the Fees section to learn more about insurance and the cost of the services.

Please reach out with any questions you have and we will respond within one business day. You can also schedule a phone call with our client care specialist to discuss if an evaluation is right for you!