Comprehensive evaluations for autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

Specialized ASD Testing for Women and Girls

Neurodiverse women and girls are often overlooked or misdiagnosed. Symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in girls and women can look very different and many providers, teachers, friends, and family may overlook the fact that a female has ASD. This can have very painful impacts on one’s self-esteem and identity development, with many also developing depression and anxiety co-occurring with ASD, further complicating diagnoses.

At Hope+Wellness, we specialize in evaluating and providing comprehensive neuropsychological evaluation for ASD in girls and women. Many of the clients we see are girls and women looking to get tested for who are seeking clarity and insight into potential ASD diagnoses. It can be very difficult to find testing psychologists who specialize in the assessment of ASD in girls and women. We have uniquely designed our program to address these critical needs.

Many people come to us after years of feeling as if a part of them has gone unseen, unnoticed, or misunderstood — symptoms which they may have had to mask or which have caused difficulties in the school or workplace. Over time, many people find their self esteem to be affected; what has gone unnoticed or unnamed is attributed to who you are as a person. ASD testing can be greatly empowering and many people who have sought testing with us have found relief — simply from better understanding their strengths, personality, and gaining insight into ASD or potential neurodivergence.

Expert diagnostics for Women and Girls

We specialize in autism testing for women and girls. Many of the women and girls we see have experienced symptoms for much of their lives which have gone unrecognized and undiagnosed for their entire lives, or may have subtle or complex symptoms of ASD. Testing is completed by a doctoral level psychologist who specializes in testing, using gold-standard, evidence-based methods.

This type of testing is extremely comprehensive in nature in order to rule in and rule out other potential, differential diagnoses.

• Intellectual Ability/IQ

• Academic functioning

• Memory and learning

• Language

• Visuo-Spatial functioning

• Brief and sustained attention and concentration

• Executive functioning

• Emotional and behavioral functioning

• Social Cognition

• Autism Spectrum

complex cases

• We also specialize in complex cases where an individual may be experiencing symptoms that have gone unnoticed for a long period of time. Many of our clients often tell us that they’ve had to ‘mask’ their symptoms and that they’ve had many challenges that have been going on their whole life but feel unnamed. Sometimes they have received prior testing with inconclusive results. Testing with us is therefore a relief — to find a diagnosis and a name for what it is you are experiencing. We can help provide you with clarity, answers, and relief.

girls, teen girls, women

• We test all people but one of our specialties is in testing women and girls. This is because ASD and other neurodevelopmental conditions often look different in girls or women and go unrecognized by clinicians. We are here to help you with this — many of the individuals we test are women who have experienced many years of symptoms going unrecognized, undiagnosed, untreated, and all the associated emotional impacts — looking for answers and relief.

Why get testing done?

Many times people find relief from learning whether or not they have ASD. Testing provides comprehensive documentation that you can also bring to your workplace or academic environment to seek personalized accommodations. A feedback session is included in testing so that you can best understand and gain insight into how your brain works — enabling you in turn to improve your ability to navigate the workplace, relationships with others as well as yourself.

What will I get out of testing?

You will receive a comprehensive evaluation — not only for autism, but for any potential co-occuring concerns such as ADHD, depression, anxiety. You will receive a thorough report documenting the findings as well as personalized recommendations individually tailored for your needs. The report is then often used by individuals to make accommodation requests in school or work settings or for disability services.

Each participant will receive a comprehensive report detailing the findings from various assessment tools, conclusions drawn, and personalized recommendations. This report can serve as justification for accommodation requests in various settings.

Most importantly, you will gain insight into yourself. Insight is invaluable so that you can understand your areas of strength and areas where support is needed — so that you can best help yourself thrive.