Evidence-Based Supplement & Herb Guides

Psychiatrist vs Psychologist vs Neuropsychologist: Who Diagnoses What?

Learn when to see a psychiatrist, psychologist, or neuropsychologist, including who diagnoses depression, ADHD, memory problems, brain injury, and complex cognitive changes.

When someone needs a mental health, cognitive, or brain-related diagnosis, the first confusion is often not the symptom itself but who is supposed to...

Psychoeducational Testing: What It Is, What It Includes, and When a Child Needs It

Learn what psychoeducational testing actually covers, which school and behavior concerns it can clarify, how school-based and private evaluations differ, and how parents can use the results to support a child more effectively.

When a child struggles in school, the cause is not always obvious. A student may work hard but read slowly, understand lessons out loud...

Psychosis Evaluation: How Doctors Assess Hallucinations, Delusions, and Disorganized Thinking

Learn what a psychosis evaluation includes, how doctors assess hallucinations and delusions, what tests may be ordered, and when symptoms require urgent care.

Psychosis can be frightening for the person experiencing it and confusing for family members, friends, or caregivers. A person may hear voices others do...

PTSD Screening: How Doctors Test for Trauma and PTSD

Learn how PTSD screening works, which tools doctors use, what a positive result means, and how screening differs from a full PTSD diagnosis.

PTSD screening is a first step doctors use to find out whether trauma-related symptoms may need a fuller mental health evaluation. It is not...

PTSD vs Anxiety Disorder: How Doctors Tell the Difference

Learn how doctors separate PTSD from anxiety disorders by looking at trauma history, intrusive symptoms, avoidance, screening tools, overlapping signs, and treatment implications.

PTSD and anxiety disorders can feel similar from the inside. Both can involve fear, racing thoughts, poor sleep, muscle tension, avoidance, panic-like body sensations,...

qEEG Brain Mapping: What It Is, What It Claims, and What It Can Really Show

Understand what qEEG brain mapping measures, where it may have real clinical value, why many claims go too far, and what questions to ask before paying for the test.

qEEG brain mapping can look impressive: colored maps, frequency bands, numerical scores, and reports that seem to translate brain activity into clear explanations for...

SAGE Test for Memory Loss: What It Measures and How It Is Used

Learn what the SAGE test checks, how it is scored, what the results may suggest, how it compares with other memory screens, and what follow-up usually comes next.

The SAGE test is a brief cognitive screening tool that can help identify possible memory or thinking problems early enough to discuss them with...

School-Based ADHD and Learning Evaluations: What Testing Usually Includes

Understand what school teams usually review, which tests are commonly used for ADHD and learning concerns, how results may lead to an IEP or 504 plan, and when outside evaluation may still be helpful.

When a student is struggling with attention, reading, writing, math, organization, behavior, or school performance, a school-based evaluation can help clarify what is getting...

SCOFF Eating Disorder Test: What It Measures and What Results Mean

Understand what the SCOFF questionnaire checks, how its score is interpreted, what a positive result means, and when eating disorder symptoms need follow-up or urgent care.

The SCOFF is a short eating disorder screening questionnaire used to flag when someone may need a fuller assessment for an eating disorder. It...

Screening vs Diagnosis in Mental Health: What Is the Difference?

Understand how brief mental health screens differ from full diagnosis, what questionnaires can and cannot show, and what usually happens after a positive result.

A mental health screening and a mental health diagnosis can feel similar because both may involve questions about mood, anxiety, sleep, attention, trauma, substance...

Sleep Deprivation vs ADHD: How Doctors Tell the Difference

Understand how doctors separate chronic sleep loss from ADHD by comparing symptoms, developmental history, daytime sleepiness, sleep testing, and the signs that point to one condition, the other, or both.

Poor sleep can make a person look unfocused, restless, forgetful, emotionally reactive, and disorganized. ADHD can cause many of the same difficulties, often for...

Sleep Study for Brain Fog, Fatigue, and Poor Concentration

Learn when a sleep study helps with brain fog, fatigue, and poor concentration, which test may be ordered, what the results can show, and when other evaluations should come first.

Brain fog, fatigue, and poor concentration can come from many causes, but sleep is one of the most common and most overlooked. A person...

Sleep-Deprived EEG: Why It Is Done and What to Expect

Learn why sleep-deprived EEGs are used, how to prepare, what happens during the test, what the results may mean, and when further seizure evaluation is needed.

A sleep-deprived EEG is a brain-wave test performed after you have had less sleep than usual. Doctors most often order it when they are...

SLUMS Test: What It Measures, Scoring, and What Results Mean

Learn what the SLUMS test checks, how its education-adjusted score ranges are interpreted, how it compares with MoCA and MMSE, and what a low result usually leads to next.

The SLUMS test is a brief cognitive screening tool used to look for signs of mild cognitive impairment and dementia, especially in older adults....

SLUMS vs MoCA vs MMSE: Which Cognitive Test Is Best for Older Adults?

Compare SLUMS, MoCA, and MMSE for older adults, including what each test measures, which one catches milder decline best, and what abnormal results should lead to next.

Brief cognitive tests can be useful when an older adult, family member, or clinician notices memory lapses, confusion, word-finding trouble, poor attention, or changes...

Social Anxiety Screening: How Doctors Test for Social Anxiety Disorder

Understand how doctors screen for social anxiety disorder, which questionnaires may be used, how diagnosis is confirmed, and what a positive result usually means.

Social anxiety can look like shyness, avoidance, panic, low confidence, or even irritability, but the clinical question is more specific: does fear of being...

SPECT Scan for Brain Disorders: What It Shows and When It Is Used

Learn what a brain SPECT scan measures, when doctors use it for epilepsy, dementia, and other neurologic questions, how it compares with MRI and PET, and what its limits mean for real-world diagnosis.

A SPECT scan is a nuclear medicine imaging test that shows patterns of activity, blood flow, or specific chemical targets in the brain. It...

STOP-Bang Questionnaire: Sleep Apnea Screening, Scores, and What Results Mean

Learn how the STOP-Bang Questionnaire screens for sleep apnea, how scores are interpreted, what a positive result usually leads to, and where the tool’s limits matter most.

Obstructive sleep apnea can affect far more than sleep. Repeated airway blockage during sleep may contribute to daytime sleepiness, morning headaches, poor concentration, mood...

Suicide Risk Screening: What It Is and When It Is Used

Understand how suicide risk screening works, where it is used, what common tools look for, and what usually happens after a positive screen or urgent safety concern.

Suicide risk screening is a brief, structured way to ask whether someone may be having suicidal thoughts, has recently acted on those thoughts, or...

Tau Blood Tests for Dementia: What They Measure and What Comes Next

Understand what tau blood biomarkers can show, which forms of tau are most clinically relevant, how these tests fit with amyloid, imaging, and CSF studies, and what usually happens after an abnormal result.

Tau blood tests are part of a fast-changing area of dementia diagnosis. They look for certain forms of tau, a protein linked to Alzheimer’s...