Cognitive Assessment
What is Neuropsychology?
Neuropsychology is the study of how the brain works and how it affects thinking, learning, emotions, and behaviour. In children with conditions like sickle cell disease and thalassemia, these conditions can sometimes affect brain function in ways that may not always be obvious.
For example, children may experience challenges with concentration, memory, or processing information. A cognitive assessment helps to understand these challenges by looking at how the brain is functioning and how it might be impacted by the medical condition. By doing so, it helps doctors, schools, and families understand how best to support the child’s development, learning, and emotional well-being.
Our Pathway
If a referral is accepted, your child will usually be helped by our service through the following pathway:
What can I get asked in a cognitive assessment consultation?
During a cognitive assessment consultation, you can expect the clinical psychologist to ask questions about your child’s medical history, development, and behaviour. They may ask about your child’s current strengths and challenges, how they are doing at school, and any concerns you may have noticed in their everyday life, such as difficulties with attention, memory, or emotions.
The clinical psychologist might also ask about your family’s medical history, as some conditions can run in families. They will likely discuss your child’s condition, like sickle cell disease or thalassemia, and how it might be affecting their thinking skills and behaviour. Additionally, they may ask about your child’s mental health, as emotional well-being can often be linked to cognitive functioning. This information helps the psychologist create a full picture of your child’s needs and decide on the best approach for assessment and support.
What happens in a cognitive assessment?
A cognitive assessment helps to understand different thinking skills like attention, memory, problem-solving, and how they process information. During the assessment, your child will be asked to complete tasks that are suited to their age and abilities, such as puzzles, answering questions, or working with blocks.
The assessment will be tailored to your child’s unique needs and will cover different types of thinking skills, providing a clearer picture of how they are doing and where they may need extra support. The results can help guide any necessary treatments or interventions to support their learning and development.
Areas of cognitive functioning
Verbal Comprehension – This is the ability to understand and process information using words.
Visual Spatial Processing – This is the ability to use your mind to visualise and rotate 2D and 3D objects.
Fluid Reasoning – This the ability to think logically when you have no previous experience to help you solve the problem.
Working Memory (short-term memory) – This the ability to temporarily hold information in your head.
Processing Speed – This the time taken to understand and react to information.
Executive function – A set of complex thinking skills which help to control a coordinate our mental processes and behaviour. We use these skills to learn, manage daily life and help achieve our goals.
How can a cognitive assessment report help my child?
Once a cognitive assessment has been conducted, a clinical psychologist will write a detailed report to help understand your child’s strengths and areas where they may need extra support.
The report provides an in-depth look at your child’s cognitive abilities, and examines how their condition, like sickle cell disease or thalassemia, may be impacting their brain function and behaviour. With this information, the report can guide doctors, teachers, and therapists in creating a personalised plan to help your child. Whether it’s adjusting school strategies, offering specific therapies, or recommending further medical support, the report helps ensure your child receives the right kind of help to thrive.
Emotional Wellbeing
Stress and your health
What is stress?
Stress is a sense of feeling under pressure. It’s a normal body response when we sense a threat. Some stress can be helpful and can motivate us, but too much stress can negatively impact us. For those with sickle cell and similar conditions, stress can impact the experience of pain, so it is important to consider how you look after yourself.
What causes stress?
Stress can be linked to lots of things in our day-to-day life; this might be a change, a situation or event. Some of these things can be positive.
Having a health condition can cause stress due to having to attend the hospital, missing out on school or important things with friends.
Other challenges in life can cause stress like falling out with friends, changing schools and exam pressure.
I am a young person with sickle cell…
How do I know I’m feeling stressed?
- Stress can lead to changes in our feelings and what we do.
- You might notice feeling more irritable and annoyed. Stress is also linked with feeling more worried and anxious.
- You might struggle getting to sleep and staying asleep.
- You might be quieter and not want to spend time with others.
- You might notice physical signs like stomach aches, headaches or feeling dizzy and faint.
Tips for looking after yourself
Talking to someone can help when we are feeling stressed. It can help to talk through the problems or challenges that are bothering us and how we are feeling.
Give yourself time to relax; this might be time doing something you enjoy, or listening to music that helps you to relax etc. When we feel stressed, our muscles can become tense. Progressive muscular relaxation is a technique that involves tensing and releasing different muscle groups to help release some of the built up tension.
Exercise can be an effective way to manage and reduce stress. If you’re experiencing pain related to stress, it may be difficult to perform your usual activities. Instead, consider what exercises or tasks might be more manageable for you.
When feeling overwhelmed by a long list of responsibilities, breaking them down into smaller steps and scheduling time for each can help make things more manageable.
I am a parent of a child with sickle cell…
How do I know my child is stressed?
- They might be more irritable and annoyed or more anxious and worried. This might look like them becoming snappy or having bigger emotional responses to smaller things. Your child may be more withdrawn and not want to spend time with others.
- They might have difficulty focusing.
- They might struggle with getting to sleep and staying asleep.
- They might complain of physical signs like stomach aches, headaches or feeling dizzy and faint.
How can I help my child?
Give them space to talk to you about how they are feeling and what is going on. They might need help thinking about how to approach their problems. You can help them explore potential solutions to problems and plan out the next steps.
Give them time to relax. This might be time on their own or time to do something they enjoy or to exercise.
For younger children, it might be helpful to support them with a relaxation exercise. Five finger breathing is where you trace around the edge of the fingers of your hand. As you go up one side, you breathe in and as you go down the other side you breathe out. The breathes in and out should be slow and even and it is helpful to practice for a couple minutes.
For younger children, it may be helpful to use a worry box. This is where your child can write down what has been bothering them or worrying them. On a regular basis, you can have a look at the things they wrote down together and think about what might help. Avoid doing this right before bed.
If you are concerned about your/your child’s mental health…
- Contact your healthcare team to explore what support is available
- If you have concerns about risk of harm coming to them due to their mental health, call 111.
Useful links
YoungMinds | Mental Health Charity For Children And Young People | YoungMinds
The Mix – Essential support for under 25s
Patient support | University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust