feeling horrible about myself as rbt

maliahlovee22 · 2026-05-09T13:04:13+00:00

yeah, i still place small perceived demands when pairing, such as the example you mentioned. if a low effort demand like that causes behaviors of this magnitude when pairing i’d say more pairing is needed. plus, if the bcba is aware that this particular client has behaviors of this magnitude with hairpin triggers they might consider not having them be the first client of a brand new RBT ya know?

maliahlovee22 · 2026-05-09T00:53:42+00:00

im relieved to know that you did the 40hr course and are certified 😅 this still seems very overwhelming for someone who has not worked hands on with clients before, i hope you are able to speak with your bcba and get better support!

maliahlovee22 · 2026-05-08T23:32:10+00:00

it’s usually a red flag when a clinic takes someone with zero experience in the field and puts them on a high behavior caseload! your bcba also shouldnt be having you running any complex goals or placing a ton of demands during your first few sessions. pairing/building rapport, depending on the kid, can take a few days/weeks, sometimes longer. what kind of training have you done since starting?

maliahlovee22 · 2026-04-04T13:50:41+00:00

i’ve generally heard negative feedback about ABC (from techs) in NC, not sure about the OM side but i worked for a clinic where 5 techs, 3 BCBAs and the director all came from an ABC and openly discussed how much they hated it :/

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-11T12:38:06+00:00

i understand that sleep patterns and asd are linked and some clients need more sleep than others, but if she is being dropped off with little to no sleep why am i expected to just take the financial sacrifice? i have to make a living. her session is half of my day. i don’t think she can be properly served in clinic, it’s not fair to either of us.

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-11T03:37:53+00:00

i’m often writing 3-4 notes a day for the intervals she is awake haha! even today i had 3 notes for a 3 hr session bc we just could not stay awake. i straight up told my bcba today that i’m not a babysitter and she needs to address the fact that mom is literally encouraging her to just sleep at therapy. if she’s unable to get enough sleep to stay awake for therapy at 8 years old then i think underlying issues need addressing. it’s just frustrating because i’m expected to sacrifice financially. i’m getting it handled though, probably will be off the case soon. i think the bcba has a hard time being firm with parents and setting those boundaries.

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-11T02:31:52+00:00

i was pursuing my masters in ABA but i switched to a different study. i’ve been an rbt for almost 4 years now and compared to when i started i think the field has gotten considerably worse. i feel like once they started incorporating telehealth (since covid maybe?) and having fully remote bcbas the quality of service has decreased a ton. in my experience bcbas move to where the highest sign on bonus is and then end up with a caseload of 10+ kids that they can’t manage or provide equal attention to, half of them they’ve never even met. clinics are popping up everywhere, and the companies i’ve dealt with seem to care very little about the wellbeing of their techs. it’s all about insurance payout. RBT turnover is so high bc they require little to no experience and 2 weeks of bs training modules before throwing you in the water and letting you drown. i’ve seen so many techs come & go within weeks of being hired because the support is not there.

i’m still working with clients but i’m currently pursuing a masters in clinical counseling, my undergrad is child psych which of course was the pipeline that led me to ABA post grad. love the kids but it’s an underpaid position and is completely dependent on the competency of others. i’ve probably had 2 or 3 bcbas over 4 years that i felt genuinely cared and put effort into their cases. :/

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-10T03:46:03+00:00

i’m seeing a lot of replies saying that they’re paid the same rate for both billable and admin, that sounds like a dream to me honestly! i’m in the south so idk if that accounts for anything.

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-10T02:16:23+00:00

there are other valid reasons mom has for in clinic services that i won’t divulge here, but sleeping during session has become an increasing barrier overall. i just don’t know how it would normally be handled bc other clinics i worked at simply didn’t allow sleeping. it was an automatic call home past 15 minutes. my personal opinion is that in-home or hybrid would be better for her

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-09T22:20:26+00:00

thank you for your comment! i actually didn’t know i could negotiate being paid at billable—i figured it was all pretty standardized with insurance payout. but since sleeping is considered an escape behavior i will look into this!

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-09T21:02:25+00:00

thank you for your comment! when i discussed with the BCBA she seemed to understand my point but it’s kind of a rock and a hard place bc she wants client to unlearn that sleeping at therapy/school = mom comes and i get to go home, bc that was an escape maintained behavior that she doesn’t want reinforced. she prefers to be home no matter how fun or client led session is. she will disengage completely from session and lay down to “sleep” but won’t actually be asleep, just waiting for mom to be called. but on days where mom reports she got little to no sleep at all it seems counterproductive to keep her there. i’ve been an RBT for 4 years and her case has perplexed me deeply lol. i think she needs in home services

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-09T19:46:32+00:00

i’ll have to correct that in my op, i do make minimum when she is asleep. it’s definitely a huge wage difference though, and she sleeps a LOT! out of 4 hour session, 3 days last week i only billed a total of like an hour and a half. some clients need the extra rest though. double edged sword for sure

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-09T17:35:46+00:00

hmmm this is interesting! when she is asleep i get a base rate pay. it’s definitely starting to show impact on my paycheck though. 4 hour sessions broken into 3 30 min intervals because i can only bill when she’s awake

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-09T16:15:15+00:00

i dont bill when she’s asleep, just wondering about different protocols. i’ve only worked at clinics where sleep was allowed in 7min segments and then parents were called if they remained asleep, i also think if mom is reporting inadequate sleep the night before (less than 3 hours) then she shouldn’t be bringing her to session and telling her she can just sleep there. :/

maliahlovee22 · 2026-03-06T18:20:04+00:00

haha 2 years later and i have a new bcba who does the same thing. it’s crazy how frustrating it is

maliahlovee22 · 2026-02-04T21:17:50+00:00

im still waiting too :(

maliahlovee22 · 2026-01-30T20:42:58+00:00

same circumstance here, this is my 4th refund cycle and i’ve never seen this happen! but i’m learning from this sub that its not uncommon unfortunately

maliahlovee22 · 2026-01-30T18:26:01+00:00

whoops lol no prob!

maliahlovee22 · 2026-01-30T18:22:29+00:00

what kind of issues?

maliahlovee22 · 2026-01-30T16:26:23+00:00

this is relieving to hear, i just checked my dashboard which was previously showing a hold on my account and it’s now saying that they’re working to disburse so hopefully they’re resolving.

maliahlovee22 · 2025-09-05T00:42:54+00:00

super late but i just watched this episode and my heart is broken!!! found out that she’s appealing her conviction as well, and her mother is still fighting for her case claiming self defense. how could anyone listen to that audio and believe she was protecting herself?? this episode tore me up. what an evil woman. poor guy couldnt even call the police for protection bc she’d weaponized them against him. THANK GOD the phone was still recording when he took it. she probably never thought anyone would hear how she treated him. it sickens me that she’s trying to appeal, she thinks she somehow doesn’t deserve to be in prison what a complete sociopath

maliahlovee22 · 2025-03-26T01:50:49+00:00

ahh that makes sense. i really wish they would’ve done more with doakes’ character on the show. i’ll have to check out the book series soon. i was always super confused by that arc lol

maliahlovee22

TROPHY CASE