Savva Laboratories

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Developmental & Psychological Services

A specialized practice for children, adolescents, young adults, and families.

The Foundation: Diagnosis Precedes Development

Struggles in children and teens are rarely about effort. They signal a structural mismatch between their brain’s wiring and the demands of their environment. Generic labels fail because they miss this underlying architecture. Our premise is that a rigorous, comprehensive diagnosis is the non-negotiable first step to effective change.

We Don’t Speculate.

We map the entire system:

Cognitive: How your child thinks, learns, and processes.

Neurodevelopmental: Foundational systems like attention (ADHD) and social cognition (Autism).

Emotional: Regulatory patterns and core beliefs.

Environmental: The family, social, and academic systems.

Who We Are For:

We specialize in complex developmental diagnostics for children , adolescents, young adults, and their families.

Children & Adolescents: Facing challenges in learning, emotional regulation, attention (ADHD), social development, anxiety, or depression.

Young Adults: Struggling with the transition to university or career, executive function deficits, or building a coherent life path.

Families: Seeking a clear, unified plan to support their child and restore family function.

Clients: Who have had prior, incomplete evaluations and need a clear, actionable path forward.

We provide precision diagnostics and evidence-based interventions grounded in developmental neuroscience. Our work is to build a comprehensive map of a person’s unique cognitive and emotional architecture. This will allow us to understand why they are struggling and what to do next.

The Savva Method: A 4-Stage Process

A formal process for mapping and building the mind.

1

Diagnosis (The Map)

A deep, multi-modal assessment (cognitive, neuropsychological, academic, emotional) to map the individual’s foundational architecture—its strengths and bottlenecks.

2

Formulation (The Blueprint)

We synthesize all diagnostic data into a single “blueprint” of your child’s mind. It explains how their patterns are a logical result of their underlying structure, answering the “why.”

3

Development (The Intervention)

Based on the formulation, we build a targeted plan. It’s a structural approach to build the specific cognitive habits, emotional skills, and environmental supports needed.

4

Autonomy

The goal is resilience. We equip the individual and family with the tools to internalize their new “operating manual” and navigate future challenges.

“Development is not growth by addition but reorganization by tension—the system’s power to turn contradiction into higher coherence.”

– Andreas Savva

Case Study:

The Diagnostic Formulation

Problem: A 15-year-old “bright but unmotivated” teen, failing classes and withdrawing.

Outcome: The “motivation” problem resolves as the structural barriers are removed. The family has a clear plan, and the teen re-engages.

Measured Change:

  • Coursework completed on schedule with extended-time access and staged plans
  • Teacher ratings show improved output fluency under time pressure
  • Avoidance stance recedes; self-report shows increased task initiation and lower dread
  • Family reports fewer homework conflicts and clearer routines

1. Diagnosis — data

Cognitive (WISC-V): spiky profile. Verbal reasoning 98th percentile; processing speed 15th percentile; working memory 20th percentile.

Executive function: deficits in initiation, organization, task monitoring.

Emotional: core belief “I am a failure,” masked by an “I don’t care” stance.

2. Formulation – why

The “low motivation” is protective.

  • Core problem: processing-speed deficit plus executive dysfunction. High-level ideas outpace output capacity, especially in timed or multi-step classroom tasks.
  • Defense: to protect a smart self-image, avoidance is selected; being seen as lazy is safer than being seen as incapable.
  • Synthesis: treat the neurodevelopmental bottleneck, not “motivation.”

3. Development – plan

  1. Environment (school): extended time; reduced simultaneous demands; scaffolded task plans; keyboard access when output length matters.
  2. Skills (cognitive/executive): initiation scripts; 10-minute momentum starts; visual planning; monitoring checklists; speed-building drills 3×/week.
  3. Emotion (belief work): test and replace “failure” appraisals; track successful completions; install a competence ledger.
  4. Family: shift narrative from “lazy” to “overloaded system”; align routines and cues.

Cross-lab interfaces

  • SAL (Symbolic Analysis Lab): deconstruct the “failure” signifier and the “I don’t care” defense; rewrite the family narrative so effort is not identity-threatening.
  • GNL (Geometrical Neuroscience Lab): model the profile as a control-flow constraint: high representational capacity with a throughput bottleneck; translate to simple visuals for school.
  • ISL (Isomorphic Systems Lab): select tools—typing fluency trainer, task-sequencing app, low-friction capture; optionally a lightweight agent that prompts initiation and checks completion.
  • PSL (Pedagogical Systems Lab): redesign coursework as state-space control—fewer simultaneous constraints, staged proofs of work, credit for process.

Begin with a clear diagnosis

Change starts with an accurate, comprehensive, and compassionate map.

Contact to schedule a diagnostic consultation.