ADHD TESTING, DIAGNOSIS & TREATMENT

It seems that since the advent of social media, ADHD has become something people diagnose themselves with from a fifteen- second video. Some of those people genuinely have it. Many have anxiety, a sleep disorder, depression, a thyroid problem, another medical condition, or the ordinary consequences of an overloaded life. Telling these apart takes more than a symptom checklist — and getting it wrong in either direction has real costs.

What makes our ADHD evaluation different?

We use objective, computer-based testing rather than relying only on questionnaires and recall. Most outpatient psychiatric practices diagnose ADHD from a rating scale and a conversation. Both are useful, and both are subjective — they depend on how you describe your symptoms today and how accurately anyone remembers your childhood.

We add QbTest, which measures the three core domains of ADHD — attention, impulsivity and hyperactivity — against a normed comparison group of the same age and sex. It produces data rather than impressions.

What is QbTest and how does it work?

QbTest is a computer-based assessment performed in our office. You sit at a screen and respond to a repetitive task for 20 minutes while an infrared camera tracks movement. It captures three things at once: how consistently you sustain attention, how often you respond impulsively, and how much you move while trying to stay still.

Those results are compared against a normative database and returned as a report showing where you fall relative to people without ADHD in your age and sex group.

The value is that it does not depend on self-report. It is difficult to unconsciously exaggerate and difficult to unconsciously minimize, which matters in both directions — for the person who has compensated so well their symptoms are invisible on a questionnaire, and for the person who has read enough about ADHD to know which answers produce a diagnosis.

Can QbTest tell whether my medication is working?

Yes, and this is one of the more useful applications. Repeating the test after starting treatment shows objectively whether the medication is changing the things it should be changing.

This is genuinely helpful when a dose is being adjusted, when it is unclear whether a partial response justifies continuing, or when the subjective experience of “I think it’s helping?” is hard to interpret. Rather than guessing, we can measure.

Can adults be diagnosed with ADHD?

Yes. A large share of our ADHD evaluations are adults who were never assessed as children. This is especially common in women. The diagnostic picture most clinicians were trained on was the hyperactive boy disrupting a classroom. Inattentive presentation — drifting, disorganized, chronically overwhelmed but not disruptive — was routinely missed, and girls were far more likely to present that way. Many women reach their thirties or forties having been told for decades that they were careless, scattered or “not applying themselves.”

ADHD does not develop in adulthood and must have been present lifelong. However, it is frequently identified in adulthood, often when responsibilities finally exceed the compensations someone has built up over a lifetime.

What does a full evaluation involve?

• A comprehensive psychiatric evaluation, 60 to 90 minutes
• Developmental, academic and occupational history
• Screening for conditions that commonly mimic or accompany ADHD — anxiety, depression, sleep disorders, substance use, thyroid dysfunction
• QbTest, administered in our office
• A clear diagnostic conclusion and a treatment plan

The screening step matters more than it sounds. Untreated sleep apnea produces inattention. So does generalized anxiety, hypothyroidism, iron deficiency, and depression. Treating those as ADHD does not help, and stimulant medication can make anxiety considerably worse.

What does treatment look like?

When ADHD is the right diagnosis, treatment may include non-stimulant options, stimulant medication, behavioral strategies, and attention to sleep and nutrition. Medication is often the most effective single intervention, but it works considerably better alongside structure and sleep than it does alone.

Our background in nutritional psychiatry is relevant rather than incidental here — protein timing, iron and ferritin status, and blood sugar stability all affect attention, and are frequently overlooked.

For patients where medication selection has been difficult, pharmacogenetic testing can inform which medications your metabolism is likely to handle well.

Do you prescribe stimulants at the first visit?

No, and this is deliberate. Please read our prescribing policies before scheduling. Stimulants are controlled substances with genuine benefits and genuine risks. Prescribing them requires a diagnosis we are confident in, which is exactly why we invest in objective testing rather than writing a prescription at the end of a first appointment.

If you are looking for a same-day stimulant prescription, we are not the right practice. If you want to know whether you actually have ADHD, we are.

Who do you see?

Patients ages 16 and up. ADHD evaluation requires an in-person visit at our Glendale office, because QbTest is administered on dedicated equipment. Ongoing follow-up care can be delivered by telehealth anywhere in Arizona.

Treatment in person and throughout Arizona

We see patients in person at our office in Glendale (in the Arrowhead area) and via telehealth anywhere in Arizona — from Tucson, to Flagstaff, to the east valley, and everywhere between. Virtual visits are the same appointment with the same provider at the same rate.

Getting Started

Our comprehensive, new patient evaluations are $375 and require 60 to 90 minutes.

Our psychiatric follow-up visits are $125 and require 30 minutes.

(Thank you for arriving early, as we are unable to see late patients and must reschedule if life gets in the way of you arriving on time.)

We are out-of-network with all insurance carriers but will gladly provide a superbill you can submit to insurance to seek reimbursement.

For more info, please see our fees page.

Pinnacle Psychiatry

17505 N 79th Ave, Suite 309, Glendale, AZ 85308
Phone 623.321.2221 · Text 877.749.7502
Monday–Wednesday 8:00am–5:00pm · Thursday 7:00am–5:00pm