Autism Spectrum Disorder Evaluations
Maybe your pediatrician assured you that your child would “grow out of it,” but in your gut you know something is amiss.
Maybe you’ve noticed that your child isn’t connecting to others. Maybe you’re thinking, my kid’s just quirky. Maybe someone asked you if you’ve ever wondered if your child has autism.
There are a lot of reasons parents have considered having their child evaluated for an Autism Spectrum Disorder or Asperger’s syndrome. It can be scary to wonder what a diagnosis, or the lack of one, may mean for your child. We loved how one mom put it when her preteen was being assessed, “I think his give a damn is broken.”
1 in 54 children has an Autism Spectrum Disorder
Generally speaking, the best thing you can do when you have concerns about your child, is to have them addressed.
Autism can be screened for at your primary care physician or pediatrician’s office. However, more subtle traits may take time to become obvious, and it may be difficult for clinicians to recognize all presentations even amongst specialists. Assessing for autism characteristics in girls is often even more complex. Local screenings designed to identify children for special education may not result in an educational exceptionality of autism even when autism symptoms are evident.
Don’t wait. Interventions for social, language, and life skills have a cumulative effect on child development.
We use the “gold standard” instruments when providing autism spectrum disorder evaluations, and Dr. Keating is known as an expert in assessing autism spectrum traits in children and adults. She has experience assessing individuals with co-occurring conditions or other diagnoses, women, highly verbal and intelligent individuals, and children from diverse cultural backgrounds.
Assessing for Autism in Adults
You may have always felt as if you had trouble belonging or connecting with others. Maybe you happened upon the story of an adult with autism, and you found that their story reflected a lot of your experiences too.
Now you’re wondering if you have always had autism. We can help you know for sure.
Having a comprehensive autism assessment can help you to understand challenges you've had in the past. It can provide you with an opportunity to make choices for your future.
Translating Research into Everyday Practice
Dr. Keating and Associates