ADULT ADHD TESTING & THERAPY
When you’ve always had to work twice as hard.
ADHD testing and therapy for adults in Newport Beach and Irvine
Many adults with ADHD have been compensating for years.
The adults who come to us wondering about ADHD are usually bright, accomplished and tired. They got through school on intelligence, late nights and last-minute adrenaline. Now the scaffolding is gone: the job has fewer deadlines and more moving parts, the household runs on details, and strategies that once worked have stopped working. Many have quietly concluded they are lazy, disorganized or not trying hard enough.
As psychologists and therapists working with adults with ADHD, we begin with a careful evaluation, because adult ADHD is easily confused with anxiety, depression, sleep problems and stress. ADHD testing gives you a clear answer and a concrete plan. Therapy then helps you build systems that fit how your mind works, and move past the story that something is wrong with you.
Adults are evaluated and treated in our private office at MacArthur and Jamboree, where Newport Beach meets Irvine and Costa Mesa. We work with adults from across Orange County.
Thorough evaluation
More than a checklist
Steady support
Unhurried work that lasts
Testing and therapy
Under one roof
Newport Beach office
MacArthur & Jamboree, near Irvine
WHAT ADULTS OFTEN NOTICE
What does ADHD look like in adults?
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Important work waits until pressure makes it possible to start. The work gets done, often well, at a high cost.
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Projects, books and plans begun with real enthusiasm, then left at the point where they became tedious.
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Running late, underestimating how long things take, and losing an afternoon without quite knowing where it went.
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Unable to sit through a routine meeting, yet absorbed for hours in something interesting. The inconsistency is often what confuses people most.
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Strong in the big picture, sinking under email, paperwork and follow-up. Many adults are first evaluated after a promotion adds the details they used to delegate or avoid.
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Late fees, missed appointments, forms that sit unsigned, keys and phones that go missing.
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In adults, childhood hyperactivity often turns inward: a busy mind, fidgeting, trouble relaxing, talking over others.
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Impatience, frustration that rises fast and fades fast, and strain in close relationships.
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Years of hearing you're capable but inconsistent, and a private sense of falling short of your own potential.
THE QUESTION WE HEAR MOST
Is it ADHD, or something else?
Many conditions can look like ADHD in adults, and some occur alongside it. This is why adults who think they may have ADHD should be evaluated by a licensed psychologist trained in ADHD assessment rather than diagnosed from a checklist.
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Worry pulls attention away from the task in front of you and can look a great deal like inattention.
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Depression slows concentration, motivation and memory. A careful history shows whether attention problems came first or followed the low mood.
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Dyslexia or a processing difference can make reading-heavy work exhausting, and is often mistaken for ADHD, or missed alongside it.
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Chronic sleep loss and conditions such as sleep apnea impair attention and memory in ways that closely resemble ADHD.
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A demanding job, young children and constant notifications fragment anyone's attention. The difference is history: ADHD shows a lifelong pattern, not a recent one.
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ADHD begins in childhood, but many adults are first recognized later, especially women, people with the inattentive presentation, and high achievers whose intelligence and structure carried them through school.
A clear answer about ADHD and support begins with one conversation.
In a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation, we'll talk through what you've noticed and whether an evaluation, therapy or both makes sense.
Why ADHD is about regulation, not effort
Executive functioning: the brain's management system
ADHD affects executive functioning, the set of skills that lets us plan, start tasks, hold information in mind, manage time and shift between activities. The problem is not knowing what to do; it is reliably doing it at the right moment. That is why effort alone so rarely solves it.
The three presentations of ADHD
ADHD is diagnosed in three presentations:
Predominantly inattentive: difficulty sustaining attention, following through and staying organized. Often missed in quiet, capable adults, especially women.
Predominantly hyperactive-impulsive: restlessness, impatience, and difficulty waiting or holding back.
Combined: both patterns together.
ADHD and emotions
ADHD affects emotional regulation as well as attention. Frustration, disappointment and enthusiasm can arrive quickly and strongly. Recognizing this often eases strain at work and at home.
Why ADHD often goes unnoticed until adulthood
Intelligence, a structured school, and a parent managing the details can hide ADHD for years. The symptoms surface when life asks for more self-direction than those supports provide: college, a first job, a promotion, parenthood.
Adult ADHD testing
How we evaluate ADHD in adults
A thorough evaluation does more than confirm or rule out a diagnosis. It shows how your attention, learning and emotions fit together, and what will actually help. Each evaluation is conducted one-on-one by a licensed psychologist in our Newport Beach office, usually over two or more sessions scheduled around your work.
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Interviews
A detailed history of attention, learning, work and relationships, from childhood to now, including input from a partner or parent when possible.
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Rating scales
Standardized questionnaires completed by you and by someone who knows you well.
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Testing
Measures of attention, executive functioning, memory, and cognitive and academic skills, with a careful look at mood, anxiety and learning.
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Feedback and report
We meet to review the results: a diagnosis where one applies, specific recommendations, and a written report you can share with your physician.
Evaluations range from a focused ADHD assessment to a comprehensive evaluation when other concerns may be involved. We'll recommend the right level during your consultation. Fees are fixed, with no hourly overages.
Compare our evaluation options →OUR APPROACH
How does therapy help adults with ADHD?
An adult diagnosis often brings relief and grief together: relief at an explanation, grief for the years spent believing you weren’t trying hard enough. Therapy gives you room to work through that, and to understand how ADHD has shaped your relationships, your career and how you see yourself.
Our work brings together both sides of the picture. We look at the patterns ADHD has left in your life, and we build practical systems for planning, focus and follow-through that fit the way you think. The aim is steadier days, fewer of the old frustrations, and your strengths more within reach.
Over time, many adults find they:
- Understand how ADHD shows up for them
- Catch patterns before they become problems
- Feel ADHD take up less room in daily life
- Use their strengths more deliberately
- Argue less and communicate better
- Treat themselves with more understanding
Looking beneath the symptoms
Years of compensating leave their mark: perfectionism, avoidance, the fear of being found out, and a harsh inner critic. In-depth therapy looks at these patterns and at how ADHD has shaped your relationships, your choices and how you see yourself. As they ease, so does much of the daily strain.
Practical systems, built around how you think
Cognitive behavioral therapy is among the best-researched treatments for adult ADHD. Together we build ways of planning, starting tasks, managing time and following through that fit your work, your household and the way your mind actually works.
A private, unhurried space
Sessions are confidential and unhurried, in our Newport Beach office or online throughout California. We review the work together along the way, and you decide how long to continue.
Meet the Team
Explore our clinicians’ backgrounds, specialties, and approaches to care.
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![Aaron R. Montgomery, Psy.D., licensed psychologist and Clinical Director at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Dr. Aaron Montgomery, Psy.D., ABSNP
Founder & Clinical Director • Licensed Psychologist
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![Carrie Kimpton Heald Ph.D.., licensed psychologist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Dr. Carrie Kimpton Heald, Ph.D., Ed.S.
Licensed Psychologist
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![Deborah Naghi, Psy.D., licensed psychologist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Dr. Deborah Naghi, Psy.D., ABSNP
Licensed Psychologist
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![Brittany Bell, Ph.D., licensed psychologist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Dr. Brittany Bell, Ph.D.
Licensed Psychologist
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![Dr. Antonio Becerra Psy.D., licensed psychologist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Dr. Antonio Becerra, Psy.D.
Licensed Psychologist
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![Dr. Reem Qaqish, Psy.D. LPCC, Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Dr. Reem Qaqish, Psy.D., LPCC
Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor
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![Poppy Peluce Fune, LCSW, licensed therapist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Poppy Peluce-Fune, LCSW
Licensed Therapist • EMDR Certification
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![Cindy Ficken, LMFT, Licensed Therapist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Cindy Ficken, LMFT, LPCC
Licensed Therapist
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![Rubi Lopez Becerra, LMFT, Licensed Therapist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Rubi Lopez Becerra, LMFT
Licensed Therapist • EMDR Certification
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![Jennifer Heers, AMFT, Associate Therapist at OC Psychology Center in Newport Beach]()
Jennifer Heers, AMFT
Associate Therapist
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
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Yes. Licensed psychologists diagnose ADHD through a comprehensive evaluation. If you choose to explore medication, your report can go to your physician or psychiatrist.
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Testing is usually completed over one or more sessions of a few hours each, depending on the evaluation, followed by a feedback meeting and a written summary or report.
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Yes, when the findings support it. We prepare documentation to the standards testing agencies require.
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Yes. When both are in question, a comprehensive evaluation looks at each and at how they interact.
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The evaluation still answers the question. If something else explains your difficulties, such as anxiety, depression, a learning difference or sleep, you will know what it is and what to do next.
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No. Our psychologists evaluate and provide therapy. If medication may help, we share findings with your physician or psychiatrist, with your permission, and coordinate care. Many adults find therapy and medication work well together.
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No. We are a private-pay practice with fixed evaluation fees. On request, we provide a superbill you may submit for possible out-of-network reimbursement.
CONTACT US
Request an ADHD Consultation
Choose a time on our calendar for a complimentary 15-minute phone consultation. We’ll listen to what’s going on and talk through how we can help.
Prefer to leave a voicemail or text?
OUR OFFICE
In Newport Beach, close to home.
We provide counseling and psychological assessment in Newport Beach from our private office in Koll Center Newport, where Newport Beach meets Irvine and Costa Mesa. Many of the families we work with come from Irvine and nearby communities, and online sessions are available throughout California.
We’re five minutes from UCI & John Wayne Airport, with easy access from the 405, 73 and 55, and free visitor parking.
OC Psychology Center
4000 MacArthur Blvd - East Tower, Suite 600
Newport Beach, CA 92660