Diagnosis is the FIRST step in a lifelong journey of self-discovery.
This journey can often involve feelings of grief, relief, joy, and fear.
Joy about finally having a name for something that explains why we do, feel, see, act, or experience things in a certain way.
Grief about what this means about whether some of our challenges will ever “go away,” or grief for a life that could have been different if a diagnosis came sooner.
Relief to learn that we aren’t broken, lazy, or deficient in any way.
Fear about what this means in our relationships to ourselves, others, and the world.
I’m here to walk this journey with you and find answers and pathways along the way.
Self-Assessments via NovoPsych
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Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ)**
Statements: 50
Purpose: The AQ is a widely used tool for identifying autistic traits in adults. It examines areas like social skills, attention to detail, imagination, communication, and preference for routine. It’s particularly useful as an initial screening tool to assess whether further evaluation for autism might be beneficial.
What It Measures: Social and communication skills, attention to detail, routine preference, and sensory sensitivities.
Ritvo Autism Asperger Diagnostic Scale–Revised (RAADS–R)**
Statements: 80
Purpose: The RAADS–R was designed to identify autistic individuals who may go undiagnosed due to masking or presenting with subclinical traits. It’s particularly useful for those who have adapted to neurotypical expectations but still experience significant challenges.
What It Measures: Emotional, social, sensory, and motor functioning across different life stages.
Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale (ASRS v1.1)**
Questions: 18 (6 core questions in Part A, 12 supplementary questions in Part B)
Purpose: This screening tool identifies symptoms of ADHD in adults. Part A focuses on the most predictive traits, while Part B provides a broader view of symptoms that may warrant discussion with a clinician.
What It Measures: Core ADHD symptoms such as inattention, hyperactivity, and impulsivity.
Wender Utah Rating Scale – 25 item version (WURS–25)**
Statements: 25
Purpose: The WURS–25 is a retrospective self-report tool designed to assess childhood symptoms of ADHD in adults. It’s particularly useful for identifying ADHD that may have been missed earlier in life.
What It Measures: Inattention, impulsivity, emotional reactivity, and academic/behavioral challenges in childhood.
Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory (CATI)**
Statements: 42
Purpose: The CATI provides a broad and updated view of autistic traits based on newer models of autism, such as monotropism and sensory integration. It’s designed to capture a fuller range of autistic experiences beyond traditional tools.
What It Measures: Social traits, sensory sensitivity, rigidity, executive function, and deep focus.
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Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q)**
Statements: 25
Purpose: This tool measures how much effort an individual puts into camouflaging or masking autistic traits in social settings. Higher scores often correlate with lower scores on other autism assessments due to the energy spent suppressing traits.
What It Measures: Social camouflaging, masking behaviors, and the impact of adapting to neurotypical norms.
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Empathy Quotient (EQ)**
Statements: 60
Purpose: The EQ assesses emotional empathy, focusing on the ability to tune into and understand others’ emotions and thoughts. It’s particularly helpful in exploring social cognition and emotional awareness in autistic individuals.
What It Measures: Emotional empathy and social cognition.
Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS–20)**
Statements: 20
Purpose: The TAS–20 assesses difficulties in identifying and describing emotions, a key component of alexithymia often associated with autism and ADHD.
What It Measures: Emotional awareness and introspection.
Multidimensional Assessment of Interoceptive Awareness – Version 2 (MAIA–2)**
Statements: 37
Purpose: The MAIA–2 evaluates how attuned an individual is to internal bodily signals (interoception). It’s especially relevant for people with alexithymia, sensory processing differences, anxiety, and trauma histories.
What It Measures: Emotional-body connection, distress tolerance, self-regulation, and awareness of internal signals.
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Executive Skills Questionnaire – Revised (ESQ-R)**
Statements: 48
Purpose: The ESQ–R expands on the original ESQ by offering a more nuanced assessment of executive functioning in adults. It breaks skills into distinct domains for clearer intervention planning.
What It Measures: Task initiation, emotional regulation, organization, time management, and response inhibition.
Repetitive Behaviors Questionnaire (RBQ–3)**
Statements: 20
Purpose: This questionnaire assesses restricted and repetitive behaviors, one of the core diagnostic criteria for autism. It distinguishes between behaviors related to insistence on sameness (IS) and repetitive motor behaviors (RMB).
What It Measures:
Insistence on Sameness (IS): Preference for routines and resistance to change
Repetitive Motor Behaviors (RMB): Actions like rocking, flapping, or ritualistic behavior
Self-Assessments Outside of NovoPsych
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Statements: 20
Purpose: The MQ explores monotropism, a tendency to focus intensely on specific interests or stimuli. This can provide insight into how individuals prioritize attention and manage focus.
What It Measures: Attention focus, difficulty shifting focus, immersive engagement, and interest patterns.
Complete the Self-Assessment:https://dlcincluded.github.io/MQ/
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Questions: 121
Purpose: While not as rigorously validated as other tools, the Aspie Quiz provides detailed insights into autism-related traits. It is widely regarded as a favorite among autistic individuals due to its rich data visualization and comprehensive approach.
What It Measures: Autism-related traits, sensory sensitivities, and systemizing tendencies.
Complete the Self-Assessment: Aspie Quiz
Understanding the Role of Self-Assessments
As part of the Autism, ADHD, and/or AuDHD assessment process, you will be invited to complete a series of evidence-informed self-assessments. These tools offer important data points that are reviewed in conjunction with our clinical interview sessions — they do not determine any diagnosis on their own, but rather provide a helpful lens for understanding your experiences.
These tools:
Offer additional language and perspective on your experiences
Support reflection on areas that may be difficult to describe in conversation
Provide context, not conclusions
Self-assessment results:
Help highlight themes to explore together
Sometimes reveal contradictions that are meaningful (e.g., high empathy alongside high masking)
Provide a shared reference point for discussion
What the Assessments Cover
These measures explore many aspects of your experience, including:
Attention, focus, and executive functioning
Sensory sensitivities
Emotional regulation
Masking or camouflaging behaviors
Social communication and empathy
Patterns of interest or repetitive behaviors
In some cases, I may include additional screeners for co-occurring experiences (such as anxiety or depression).During your sessions, I’ll be using questions drawn from MIGDAS-2, a narrative-based clinical interview format alongside questions that have become a part of my assessment process that show insight into commonly overlooked features of Neurodivergence.
What to Expect When Completing the Assessments
Most self-assessments are completed online via NovoPsych
Most take 5–30 minutes each
You may complete them at your own pace
They are not timed
It’s normal to feel uncertain about some questions. If something feels confusing or emotionally activating, feel free to make note and we can work to make sense of it together during sessions.
For the Assessments not available through those platforms (AspieQuiz, Monotropism measure, etc.), you will need to upload PDFs or screenshots of your results to your SimplePractice Client Portal or send them to me via secure message on Spruce.
Optional Body Doubling Support
If getting started and/or staying focused on forms feels difficult, you’re welcome to request to schedule a body doubling session.
This is a virtual co-working session where:
I’m present while you work through forms
You may ask questions as they arise
Or simply have quiet, supportive presence
This support is optional and available by request.
A Final Note about Self Assessments
Self-assessments are one way of putting words to lived experience.
They are tools—not tests you can pass or fail.
If something feels validating, confusing, frustrating, or surprising, that information matters. You’re always welcome to bring those reactions into our work together.
Why might my results look contradictory?
This is very common—especially for autistic and AuDHD adults.
Different tools are measuring different layers of experience:
Some assess internal traits
Some assess observable behaviors
Others focus on coping, masking, or effort
For example, someone may score:
High in empathy and high in masking
High in sensory sensitivity and high in avoidance skills
Low in observable traits but high in internal exhaustion
None of this means the tools are “wrong.”
It usually means your nervous system has adapted in complex ways.
That’s why results are never interpreted in isolation—and why your lived experience always carries the most weight.