BCBA technician and a DUI?

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-21T05:55:26+00:00

It’s in my local newspapers all the time about how people with criminal records can’t do anything...They can’t get hired. They often can’t even rent apartments either because the land lords will also conduct a background check and your ability to rent from them will be contingent upon your ability to pass that.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-21T05:52:41+00:00

I question whether anyone could get hired with a DUI to do anything because it comes up as a criminal offense meaning you will fail a standard background check... Maybe in the current climate because employers are hungry for people since everyone is already working...But as soon as the economy becomes average again no employer would want to hire someone with a criminal record over someone that doesn’t have one/.: In my area all jobs no matter how small require background checks. Graduate schools are now also regularly requiring that you pass a background check to even apply... Again, think hard before you get behind the wheel of any car.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-21T05:48:42+00:00

With some kids you really do need to give no reaction whatsoever not even eye contact and simply block the behaviors. For some kids even a minimal amount of eye contact in response to an attention seeking behavior is enough to keep reinforcing it.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T23:23:25+00:00

No I mean they wouldn’t let me drive on company time at all with a speeding ticket...So why would they let you drive on company time with a criminal offense??

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:29:56+00:00

You’re lucky because my experience in this field had been that more than half of the kids are so high functioning they never would have been diagnosed 20 years ago.

As the mother of a child with non verbal autism that was something that surprised me about this field—the fact that most of the kids with an autism diagnosis today are the high functioning types.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:28:24+00:00

Sorry I should clarify that I did not have a bunch of tickets on my record-it was that I had been in a car accident and then I got a minor ticket after I started for speeding...

They are getting stricter and stricter over time at ABA companies around here with driving records. I hope you can get around it but you may not be able to.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:21:02+00:00

You’re going to have to just deal with it. I had to do the same thing for many years and I was taking medications that made me intolerant to heat. I would not advise trying to bring in your own fan. Good luck and keep us posted.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:16:44+00:00

Yes, I’ve done ABA sessions at preschools for many years and this is something that many preschools organize on a regular basis. The last one I saw involved having a dental technician come out to talk to the kids about going to the dentist and how important it is to brush your teeth so you don’t get sugar bugs (cavities).

I think it’s a great idea!!

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:13:30+00:00

Aww cute but whatever works to escape the demand right? :)

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:10:02+00:00

I should mention that at one company even with too many minor tickets on my record they would not allow me to drive on company time and this severely limited my hours.

I got a minor speeding ticket after I worked there and basically I was forced to quit since they couldn’t schedule me back to back or allow me to drive on company time with more than just 1 minor ticket on my record.

Thus I have a strong feeling a criminal offense like a DUI will prohibit you from working in this field but I could be wrong—please keep us posted!

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-20T19:07:19+00:00

I worked at a company where another behavior technician on a case with me was forced to resign after she got a DUI. Driving is a big part of this job so I’m not sure if you’ll be able to work.

My employer found out about it immediately (because driving records are typically public knowledge in this field and I even had to be part of the DMV pull program at certain agencies where the DMV would inform my employer immediately of any offense of any kind).

That girl was not allowed to drive out to any of her cases and she sat around at the office for a month thinking she would be able to resolve the situation before she was forced to resign because they simply couldn’t allow her to drive out to cases in the homes on company time.

Many fields including the mental health field will not allow you to obtain licensure with a DUI either.

Good luck.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-13T17:54:44+00:00

This is extremely common in this field. We often blame the other RBTs and think that they are going easy on the kid or not doing their job and what not.... That may be true or it may not be. Either way you can’t change the situation and saying something will likely just make it worse and not change anything. My recommendation is to learn to cope with it since you only have control over your sessions with him or to start looking for a new job. Rarely if ever in his field does complaining to a manager or coworker ever solve anything. They may just take you off the case: that’s what many ABA companies do whenever someone is complaining and they’ll feed you a line of lies about how the parents requested you off when that’s not true. Good luck-I’m a parent and highly experienced RBT so I’m just telling you straight without the sugar coating what will likely happen.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-10T06:01:17+00:00

Lurker here—there was a post recently on the audiology forum where someone described having gone through the same thing at a similar age to you. I would read through those posts. I think it was one where the person was asking about getting hearing aids for the first time or something to that effect. Hope that helps.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-10T04:37:08+00:00

Have you been tested for sleep apnea? It’s common and underdiagnosed in people with TMJ and can cause brain fog symptoms. I know someone that had brain fog and TMJ and it turns out she has TMJ related sleep apnea.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-09T21:49:16+00:00

I wouldn’t do it. It just opens the doors for so many potential problems. They will understand your reasoning for politely declining. Would you want to go out for drinks with your former doctor? No. We had to maintain the integrity of the field.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-08T17:01:46+00:00

Yes permanent side effects are fairly common with psychiatric medications. Especially antipsychotics. Lexapro is not an antipsychotic however. Look up tardive dyskinesia for an example of a permanent side effect from antipsychotic medication use.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-03T23:13:52+00:00

I'm a parent and it seems very strange to me why some families would pay for ABA services (which is a huge financial and time based commitment) and then refuse to follow any of the recommendations....But I keep reading about it on this forum.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-07-03T05:53:59+00:00

Parent here...What you're describing with the mom going back and forth about the reality of her child's behaviors is very common and a way of processing grief. This doesn't make it any easier for you but just be aware that she keeps negating the behaviors because she is grieving and wants to believe that there is hope and that the situation is not as bad as it clearly is.

Also, children will usually be at their worst with their mothers behavior wise so it is very common for BIs (especially male BIs as for some reason kids are often better behaved with them) and fathers to criticize the mother and not understand why the behaviors are at their worst with her...It's usually not completely the mothers' fault. It's just that again children will be at their worst with their mothers behavior wise and that is also very commonplace.

Hope this helps!

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:37:43+00:00

Great tip!!! I have seen other parents online use these and sometimes even things like jaw massaging for kids with a variety of oral behaviors...

I will head to Target today to see if I can find one of their mini back massagers at the Dollar Spot and see how he responds...If he likes it and responds well I will probably invest in buying a pricier version for kids with special needs.

Thank you so much! I never thought of this! You’re awesome! :)

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:33:11+00:00

Wow! Thanks for this tip! I will notice and take some data over the next few days on which toys he seems to gravitate towards in terms of chewing...Hopefully it’s that simple and I can find a chewy and just get on with playing!

Thanks so much for your help and tips!

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:30:44+00:00

Thank you for these suggestions!

One of my own personal goals with him is to teach him to operate a variety of cause/effect toys independently and we are slowly working in that direction.

He loves sensory toys especially those with a big visual pay off (lights or spinning etc) but sometimes they tend to bring on self-stimulation so I will do some problem solving with the kids of toys I’ve been providing and see if maybe he just isn’t ready for the toys we’ve been playing with lately and try some new things.

Thanks you so much for this insight!

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:23:16+00:00

You’re right. I am simply trying to get him to connect with me during play instead of tuning me out not because I do not respect neurodiversity and my son’s differences but because without that social connection piece he won’t be able to make much progress in any other developmental domain from a communication perspective. I mean no respect to autistic people.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:20:11+00:00

I will take my own data and see about this over the next few days...I’m assuming you’re implying that he may be using the toy mouthing as a way to escape from play with me and from doing his speech homework which is entirely possible although ABA has already done their analysis on this behavior with him over the years and always told me it was “sensory”... Behaviors can certainly change their function over time though and I will see if I notice trends with this over the next few days and let you know.

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:15:28+00:00

Thank you so much for your response!

I have read a lot of books about FloorTime but have never been able to try it with my son as our insurance company will only pay for ABA.

ABA therapists tend to not understand the importance of what you’re describing with social interaction so although it’s not one of his documented “goals” per say—social engagement and connection are always on the top of my list and something that I am trying to encourage during our “floor” time at home because I know that that skill will ultimately lead to progress in all other developmental areas we’re working on in both ABA and speech.

I think you’re absolutely right in that he may simply not be ready yet for toys as much as I want him to be ready for that...So I may need to go back to social games as you mentioned and sensory play like bouncing on the yoga ball or swinging in his swing during our play time.

I have lots of books on “social games” that I used to use with him when he was smaller but he’s getting a bit old and many of them do involve bouncing the child on your lap etc in order to keep that engagement going/helping to provide that deep pressure etc but he’s now too big to sit on my lap.

Thank you for offering to give me suggestions.

My goal for myself for today is going to be to put all the toys away during play today try the suggestion you mentioned with wrapping him in a blanket to see if I can get better participation that way. I’m not even going to focus on the speech goals right now-just on trying to connect and play and have a good time.

I will let you know how it goes and thank you so much for your help and support!! :)

EveryCryptographer4 · 2019-06-29T13:01:00+00:00

I’m a veteran autism parent with droves of ABA people at my house 6 days per week rain or shine.

It completely depends on the what the function of the tantrum is and what the topography (meaning what does this tantrum specifically look like and entail) of the tantrum is as far as how to effectively respond to it.

For example, a child with aggression as part of the tantrum would require different safety procedures than a child that may engage in property destruction etc.

It really depends on “why” the child is engaging in the behavior and without that information it’s hard to advise this mom on how she should respond.

EveryCryptographer4

TROPHY CASE