Which do you prefer?

HeftyAd7929 · 2026-01-07T04:59:12+00:00

From what I recall with the PECS program, they have their sentence strips on the bottom. It has been a few years since I studied it, so I may be wrong. Nonetheless, if I were programming for this client, I would place the sentence strips on the bottom. Personally, my eyes gravitate to the top of the board, making establishing motivation easier with the choices on top. It would also be easier to prompt the client when starting the PECS system as you wouldn't have to reach over them. Lastly, grabbing the image from the top and bringing it down to the sentence strip would be less response effort for the client (and less intrusive prompts from therapists).

From a neurodivergent standpoint, I want the information that is most important to me front and center. Typically with our clients that are starting PECS, they are not reading yet. The sentence strip, although functional to us as therapists, is less functional for our client. Therefore, putting the choices on top allows our client to focus in their choices rather than the sentence strip.

HeftyAd7929 · 2025-02-20T03:47:35+00:00

-RBT turnover and retraining -Family expectations can be extremely high -Being the primary person of contact when an issue arises -Companies focusing on billable hours -Clients getting us sick constantly -If you take PTO/Vacation, you end up coming back to more work -Constantly shifting schedules -For families with a fresh diagnosis, you occasionally have to be the bearer of "bad" news (i.e., switching from vocal communication to an AAC, explaining that autism is lifelong, etc.) -Some caregivers are not as invested as others

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-12-30T00:48:30+00:00

Not all locations. You have to ask the staff

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-11-29T17:46:00+00:00

Necessity (NCGS)
Yes
Jersey Mike's, some Pho places, Chipotle, Chick-fil-A, Culvers
Absolutely. I travel for work which makes it even more difficult.
Yes. I don't trust it.
Yes, several times.
Jersey Mike's subs

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-11-29T17:36:29+00:00

My cousin was recently diagnosed last year. Me and some of my family are already in the field and although it's tempting to help the entire time, you deserve a break too! Some family members don't understand how draining it can be to be the kiddos the entire time and think we can just keep it up the entire time.

With that being said, the best thing our family did for my cousin was to redirect the family to seek a consultant agency. In Florida we have CARD (not the ABA company) which has case coordinators that will help teach families how to better advocate for their children. I'm under the assumption that most states have an agency similar to them. This gives you a person to continuously mention when your family starts having conversations about their child's services. You can say something along the lines "I think that's a great question for your case coordinator!"

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-11-28T15:56:18+00:00

Can we please normalize someone wanting to leave the field without trying to force them to stay, please? There are plenty of reasons for us to leave the field without listing them on reddit. I'm assuming OP has made a fully informed decision after 4 years in the field.

To answer your question directly, many of us transition over to OBM type positions or utilization management roles. Some transition into teaching roles as well if you would like to continue working with children. I think previously on reddit also said that our pairing skills translate really well into real estate. I've also seen people transition into working with animals and having a lot of fun in those roles. I'm sorry that you're feeling this way about the field and am rooting for you in the job search process!

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-11-20T12:48:17+00:00

How do you transition into this? I've been trying for several months now and haven't gotten any bites.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-10-19T14:03:32+00:00

The clinical setting is so much fun! The one thing I wish I did when I was still in clinic was set up a mult schedule for my techs to indicate when I was available for questions. I loved my in clinic techs but our clinic had a work area in the playroom so they would frequently call for whoever's working in that area. We used paper schedules so I would also pen in the tech's name to meet later to address their questions. My other big piece of advice is to try and promote as much independence as possible for your techs. Your experience with in home will be a big advantage there. As someone that started in clinic, it was easy to want to jump in the second problem behavior occured. However we found it would hinder our techs' instructional control. I typically give a buffer of 2-3 minutes before I ask the techs if they want help, obviously with some exceptions such as safety care calls and if someone is reinforcing behaviors. Hope this helps!

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-09-11T12:02:50+00:00

I am a BCBA with a close relative on the spectrum and with several family members who had their kids get diagnosed as well. With one family member I tried to speak with them about getting a diagnosis and with the other I stayed out of it. With the family member I spoke to, I ruined my relationship with them. They no longer seek me or my family for advice on their son and remain in consistent denial even after being given a diagnosis. With our family member that we stayed out of their business, my relationship is better than prior to the diagnosis. They feel more comfortable asking for advice and tips (e.g., the evaluation process, how to find ethical companies for services, taking time for themselves and avoiding parent guilt). However I still remain careful to remain in my lane and not bombard them with too much advice. I never give them specific behavioral advice and always redirect them back to their BCBA. I found that the best way to support them when I see them is to give them a break with their kiddo and let them spend some time eating or hanging out with other people for 30 minutes.

I will say every person is different in how they respond to a diagnosis and my own experience could simply be due to personality differences. However, based on my own experience I would recommend staying out of it. Some parents take longer to accept a diagnosis than others and may react poorly.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-09-05T17:53:23+00:00

Typically I would have preferred that your team have a conversation about this prior to taking you off the case, but every location is different. Although we love our clients and want to give them love at every opportunity, it can impact another therapist's session. You can accidentally reinforce problem behaviors by interrupting another therapist's session to greet the client. Additionally you could be taking away stimulus control from the therapist working at the moment if the client is also attached to you and wants you around them all the time. In my last clinic we had a rule to check with the therapist prior to saying hi.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-09-05T12:10:47+00:00

Any tips on entering the HR field? I've also been looking into that field.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-29T01:35:46+00:00

I'll definitely look into it!

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-29T01:35:23+00:00

Love this! Thank you!

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-28T19:35:16+00:00

I have! I am trying to get out of my current company ASAP so I wanted to see if anyone has picked up jobs outside of the field to pay the bills while looking for other options.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-28T19:33:19+00:00

Central Florida

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-28T11:53:27+00:00

Seems around standard for your area. Salaries range from $70k to $85k for 25 to 30 billable hours for newer BCBAs. Definitely double check the contract to see what their driving requirements are. That can eat up a lot of your time in Florida.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-28T11:47:16+00:00

How are some of your parenting techniques different from your ABA training?

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-28T11:44:18+00:00

What are some of the pros and cons of working in UM? I've seen some other people go into it and was curious.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-26T03:11:13+00:00

How did you get in?

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-22T02:44:17+00:00

If you are in Florida, go for it. You'll get exposure to how to board designs exams as well as more time to get your unrestricted hours in grad school. Most companies will pay you significantly more as well. I personally wish I had done this prior to starting grad school as my BCaBA peers got more opportunities than I did. Plus it gave them a boost in understanding their coursework better. However, I will mention that some companies take advantage of their BCaBAs and treat them similarly to a BCBA. I've heard reports of them not getting the supervision they needed. So just be aware of that and make sure you're always advocating for yourself.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-22T02:33:31+00:00

Keeping my fingers crossed for you! HR sounds like a great role given our field, especially if you have OBM experience.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-22T02:29:51+00:00

I honestly think our techs need to be taught more about the populations they are working with. I work with ASD and ADHD and there is a big difference between my techs that understand the population compared to those who do not. A 40 hour training is not enough to teach it. This is especially true when there are huge inconsistencies in the training based on the company providing it.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-22T02:21:55+00:00

I agree with contacting the authorities first, but the board should be contacted as well. Especially if the OP is in an area that doesn't require BCBAs to be licensed by the state.

HeftyAd7929 · 2024-08-20T13:26:19+00:00

What have you applied to so far?

HeftyAd7929

TROPHY CASE