Medical and emotional factors
Depression and anxiety change how thinking works.
Difficulty concentrating, remembering, or making decisions is often assumed to be neurological. Emotional factors produce the same symptoms, and an evaluation can help tell them apart.
Why an evaluation
The question this answers
Depression, anxiety, stress, and trauma have a substantial effect on cognitive functioning. People experience difficulty with concentration, memory, mental speed, decision-making, or motivation — and reasonably enough, they often worry that the cause is neurological.
A neuropsychological evaluation assesses cognitive and emotional functioning together, which is what allows the two to be weighed against each other rather than one being assumed.
The aim is to clarify whether cognitive symptoms relate primarily to mood and emotional factors, to a neurological condition, or to a combination of influences.
What testing examines
Cognitive and emotional functioning, assessed together
A comprehensive assessment of cognitive abilities is conducted alongside assessment of emotional functioning, so the relationship between the two can be described rather than inferred.
- Attention and concentration
- Memory and new learning
- Executive functioning and decision-making
- Language
- Processing speed
- Mood, anxiety, and personality factors
Who it is for
Who is referred
Referrals come from primary care physicians, psychiatrists, psychologists, and neurologists — commonly when cognitive complaints and emotional difficulties are present at the same time and it is unclear which is driving which.
What you receive
What the evaluation gives you
A written report describing both cognitive and emotional functioning and how they appear to be interacting, with recommendations about the kinds of care that would address what was found — for example psychotherapy, medical treatment, stress-management strategies, or rehabilitation, each provided elsewhere.
A clearer picture of where the difficulty originates is what makes a targeted plan possible, instead of treating a cognitive symptom without knowing its source.
Neuropsychological Associates provides assessment and consultation only. The practice does not provide counseling, psychotherapy, cognitive rehabilitation, neurologic consultation, or psychiatric assessment. Recommendations in the report are carried out by your own physicians and treating providers.
If you need help now
If you are experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 or go to the nearest emergency department. This practice does not provide emergency or crisis services.
Arranging an evaluation
A letter of medical necessity or a physician's office note is required. Our office verifies your insurance benefits before anything is scheduled. Prefer to talk it through first? Call (631) 366-3369.