OCD & Anxiety Treatment
Battling with OCD and anxiety can make you feel stuck. You may feel trapped by routines and rituals you suspect don’t make sense but feel compelled to do anyway—just in case. You may be avoiding activities you need or want to do, but the risk feels too great to approach the situation. Your mind may be racing with all the worst-case-scenarios that you just can’t seem to quiet.
Or perhaps you’re a parent watching your child struggle with these issues. No matter how many times you reassure them that everything will be okay, they can’t seem to break away from their fear and try new things. Or they may take much longer than necessary to complete routine tasks (e.g., homework) because they are bogged down by needing to re-check, perfect, or repeat their work.
I work with individuals and families every day who struggle with these concerns. Read more about the evidence based approaches I use for anxiety and OCD.
Autism Testing
I use gold-standard, evidence-based assessment strategies to conduct autism assessment for children, teens, and young adults. Autism testing can bring much needed clarity and provide a roadmap forward. Each assessment includes a comprehensive clinical interview with caregivers, cognitive testing, autism testing (ADOS-2), and additional academic and psychological measures that are carefully selected to match the needs of individual clients. For example, my evaluations often include assessment for co-occurring neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., ADHD, intellectual disability, learning disabilities). Feedback is provided to families shortly after testing, along with a high-quality report detailing assessment findings, diagnoses, and recommendations.
When and why does my child need an assessment?
Early detection of autism in childhood can help identify targets for intervention and set children and families up for long-term success. I evaluate children as young as 3 years old. The following may be signs that your child could benefit from an assessment:
difficulties communicating (including non-verbal communication, such as limited eye contact or limited non-verbal gestures)
decreased interest in and/or difficulty regarding interacting with others
repetitive motor movements or verbalizations
limited imaginative play or play that is especially repetitive
resistance to changes in routine and/or transitions between activities
significant sensory difficulties
What is involved in an assessment?
The assessment process is made up of three steps:
Intake. During the intake, I will meet with you and your child to get to know your family and gather information to inform the tests to be included during the testing day.
Testing. During the approximately 3-hour testing appointment, I will work with your child and engage them in a series of activities to assess abilities such as cognition, social-communication, and executive functioning.
Feedback. During the 60-minute feedback session, I will meet with you and other caregivers important in your child’s life to discuss the results of testing and answer any questions you may have. Following this meeting, you will receive a copy of your child’s written report.