I did the testing first, too, because I wanted to have the information so I could speak intelligently with the school. Also, for a long time I was unaware of anything such as an IEP.
In hindsight, I would have requested the IEP evaluation sooner. If there is educational impact, you can still get the ball rolling and get her some help in school. You can always call an IEP meeting at a later date when you have more answers to revise the IEP. If she is found through the IEP evaluation to have negative educational impact - and you are part of the IEP team - it really doesn't matter what her diagnosis is. The diagnosis and subsequent negative educational impact are used to determine eligibility only. That's it. The IEP is written based on her individual needs. Frankly, I wouldn't care if the school came up with a diagnosis of difficult child having two heads as long as they got interventions in place.
ETA: Whatever the school comes up with has no bearing on her medical diagnosis. It's just the process they have to go through. If she has specific learning disabilities, etc, then those have to be identified so the proper educational interventions can be put in place. But with issues such as anxiety, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD), etc, you're looking for accommodations different than you would for someone with a reading learning disability. I hope I'm making some sense.
Hopefully someone with more IEP experience will come along and clarify what I'm trying to say.
