ABA/Lovaas/Discrete trial

[Guest guest]

This is the second week I have been working with an aquantaince's 8yr medium

functiong child with autism and downs. I am doing Lovaas/ABA with him. I feel

guilty right now becasue I do not want to continue doing the therapy with him.

I promised I would help her until the end of the school year but I can't make

any promises after that.

The child was in a school that provided the therapy until 2 weeks ago when

he was release from the school by the school's choice. The mother says it was

mutual but I don't agree. I think he would still be going there if the school

would allow. The mother is very protective and does everything for her

children, including her 7 yr old typically developing daughter. Such as

putting her underwear on for her and completely dressing her. Putting her

shoes on her and tying them. & etc.

My issue with doing therapy for the son is that as a Mom of a child with

Autism I know that a child with autism is not going to progress until the

parents/people at home make the child do for him/her self. I will be in the

therapy room working with him - and of course if he can get away with not doing

the program he will try - and she will come in and intervene for him. Once she

comes in the room then it takes me 30 minutes to get him to be cooperative

again because she is teaching him that if he does do what I ask of him Mommy

will come and make everything better.

Now, don't get me wrong, I know he has issues that are very challenging. I

also have a daughter with autism. I lived this life when my daughter was

younger.

The mother only asked me to come work with the son because she said she

trusts me. She is VERY reluctant to let anyone else work with her child. She

will also not let her NT (neuro-typical) child ride the bus. I know buses

aren't the greatest envirnoment in the world but she also said that she would

never let her daughter play at my house without her there. I honestly don't

take that personally, I just feel that she is harming her children by being too

sheltering to them.

I don't want to do therapy with him because the mother is not willing to use

behavior training i.e extinction, delayed reinforcement and the like in his

everyday life. I feel like I am fighting a losing battle. She doesn't want

anyone to be " too hard " on him or " mean " to him. I feel that she would think

not giving him something until he signs for it would be mean.

I guess I'm looking for someone to tell me it's ok to not continue therapy

with him in the summer. I so far am her only therapist other than herself.

And she lets him get away with so much when she does the programs with him.

She is not strict with her reinforcers at all. In my opinion for discrete

trial to work he has to be able to proform across numerous therapists. I just

don't think she is going to try to let anyone else work with him. I don't know

what she thinks they are going to do. She will be right there in the home. I

mentioned her setting up her video camera in the therapy room if for no other

reason so that we can review the tapes as a means of trying to improve so that

she can critique my therapy with him so I can see what I should be doing

differently.

Please comment and tell me what you think.

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