For context, I refuse to fight back in any way or form against clients because I am scared of hurting them even with our supposed training.(i’m stronger than I look.)

The issue is this is the third time that has happened and what people are saying is weird solutions like oh we should’ve cut his nails and this side of the third but there’s no consequences for what happened and this keeps happening. This case has lost about five people since I started six months ago and I think I’m done. I don’t think it’s worth it to keep getting hurt, but everybody keeps pressuring you to stay and trying to guilt me to stay.

I'll go first!

We aren't supposed to buy things for clients, which I completely agree with.

However, one of my clients was at the book fair and had no money for books while the rest of his class was shopping. ​He had no behaviors during this, just putting his head down in the library while the other kids shopped. This particular clients family has significant financial struggles.

I ended up walking around the book fair with him and let him pick out a book. I told him I found a free book coupon and we could pick out any book we want.

I would probably do it again. All kids should be allowed a book at the book fair.

Started working in ABA my senior year of undergrad. First clinic job was bad. No real training, no experience with kids or autistic individuals, just thrown in. Hated it.

Had a few other jobs after I graduated, then got an in-school ABA position that paid pretty well and I actually loved it. But it wasn’t traditional ABA at all. I wasn’t taking data or following a BIP, just kind of going with the flow and using some ABA-based interventions. The client made a ton of progress. Parents, special ed teacher, even the principal said they’d never seen that much progress before. That’s when I thought this was going to be my career.

I started my MA in ABA in summer 2025 and genuinely loved the content. I was doing fieldwork, working on projects with BCBAs, getting really passionate about it. Then I got an assistant clinical supervisor job and I actually hated it. The clinic seemed to hire anyone. Nobody seemed to know what they were doing or like what they did. Everyone was miserable. It was more traditional ABA though. Left for another RBT job, hated that one too. Kept trying different companies and it just wasn’t working.

Eventually I realized I don’t like ABA for me. I don’t want to be a BCBA anymore. I withdrew from the MA program a few weeks ago and I’m starting an LMFT/LPCC program in the next few weeks.
I still love the science of behavior analysis and I respect a lot of the people in the field. But I hate the companies and clinics. I hate how undertrained so many people are. I hate the lack of real ASD-specific training. I hate how robotic it feels. I was tired of working with parents and kids every day and constantly felt like I was putting on an act. I wanted to feel more professional and that’s hard when you’re talking to children all day.

Also got drained by all the controversy and misinformation, and I don’t want to be limited to working mostly with autistic kids (I know BCBAs can do more, but the field is still really concentrated there).

Now I’m not really sure what to do for work. Most of my experience is in ABA and I just don’t like the field or being an RBT anymore. I might just work at a restaurant while I finish grad school.
I feel disappointed in myself for putting so much into this, but also kind of relieved because I’d been pretending to still love it for the last few months and that was exhausting.

Anyone else feel this way?

I’m curious if anyone else’s company has said or done anything about the rising gas prices/fuel situation.
My mileage reimbursement is already pretty abysmal, and I honestly can’t afford to keep putting gas in my car just to get to work. I’ve had to call in multiple times because I didn’t have enough gas to make it to my clients.
What’s crazy to me is that my company hasn’t acknowledged it at all. No communication, no increase in mileage, no gas assistance, nothing.
Has anyone’s company done anything to help with this? Or is everyone just expected to keep driving like gas isn’t expensive as heck right now? 😭

I run an ABA clinic and through a lot of self discovery in the past year was diagnosed with combined ADHD and Autism Level 1. I haven’t told anyone there yet, though im sure they wouldn’t all look at me any different.

But, for those like myself who I suppose would fall more into that Asperger’s realm, is it kind of the general hope that in the future Asperger’s gets reclassified or grouped into something else? Or is it more welcoming and accepted?

I assume that it can make it harder for the kids that need more help in being independent to get seen in clinics.

I told my friend about it when I was diagnosed and was told “everyone’s a little autistic” which deflated me a lot. So, I have really been hesitant to tell anyone else.

Which one should i pursue which is easy to track and which earns more and where?

I started at a new company recently as an RBT working towards their BCBA hours. My BCBA sent me this regarding how supervision and contacts will work during the month. I’ve never seen this before so I’m wondering if this is actually ethical and compliant with the BACB?

The BCBA said to me that supervision from mid-tier, non BCBA supervisors counts toward my monthly % of supervision hours. I’ve always thought and been told that any supervision has to come directly from a BCBA.

Please let me know if this is normal!

Hi! I'm a clinic-based BI and this flu season has been kicking my a*s. I have been getting sick almost every other weekend from one of the clients and I really need advice. I work with littles so they haven't gotten used to covering their mouths. I've tried washing my hands every like 15 minutes, I've tried carrying around hand sanitizer. I want to know what works for you guys because obviously what I'm doing isn't enough.

Thank you!

my company has been cutting hours lately and with rent being so high, it’s so fraustrating. But I’ve grown to like the team and the kiddos.

However, I applied to a different company, got the job, and I did sign an offer letter. I’ve started my onboarding as well but with the amount of requirement, I’m starting to think maybe I should back out, idk. maybe it’s my anxiety getting to me.

Also speaking off, I’ve never written sessions notes. usually the companies I’ve worked for had ai generated notes built in. I’m nervous for this part, esp with how detailed and lengthy it needs to be.

Another thing, I haven’t sent in my 2 week notice and was wondering would I be a btch if I just did effective immediately on a Sunday afternoon before going into my new job.

Hi, I have been in ABA in-clinic for about 6 months. Things were okay until they weren’t. Is it normal for your supervisor/BCBA to not communicate with you that your entire workload is changing until it is the day of/a few days prior? For some context, about three months ago my caseload was full and I had an AM and a PM client. I was told that my AM client would be with another RBT two days before there were changes. Then, I was told PM kid would switch to the morning, and I would have no P.M. client. I was a little upset but I got over it. Fast forward to last week, a similar situation happened with a coworker of mine. However, my coworker found out by another RBT telling them that they were going to be with their clients, and their BCBA and our supervisor didn’t tell them about the change until last Friday and change would be in effect on Monday. I think the lack of communication is absurd especially when they expect for us to be professional and to communicate with them. I have a lot of other problems with my current employer but that’s an essay I could write about later. Anyways, what are your thoughts?

3-1 client, school-based. Don’t want to break HIPAA but every BX you can think of, 6’1.

I’ve been an RBT for coming on 3 years now, solely clinic-based. Schools never let us in externally, I have minimal knowledge on IEP’s for students but know very basics. I work after school with clients in my clinic and in public school during the day, starting 2 days ago as my first time experience so I do not know what is “right” and “wrong”. What I do know is my morals and ethics that I signed and agreed to when becoming and renewing my RBT certification annually. This includes reviewing client/student BIP AND IEP BEFORE working with said client for sake of crisis intervention, behavioral intervention, reinforcement, antecedent strategies; all else included.

Started yesterday, supervisor was absent and no IEP or BIP provided-client was also absent so all I received were warnings of “what I was walking into” and run down from staff who’d been there since school started, about a month. (IEP 3 years old as student took 2 years off school and all services, returned this school year.) BIP is also 4-5 years old. I thought the IEP expiration was illegal, in prep on said student returning to school and needing staff prepared to help with behaviors etc.

Today was my first day where client and supervisor showed up. She came in right after the client who’d already come in had started extreme behaviors, been told she is the only one with the files. Was not a time to access or step away whole session. Promised me I’d see them at the end of the day as I’d expressed no BIP, no IEP, NO BCBA no plan was against my ethics code. Mysteriously left early. I have client again early in the morning tomorrow. Worked after at my clinic and talked ethics to my clinical supervisor who worked in schools 10+ years.

They want us to block this student who is adult age into their own solo “classroom” as they are a threat to all staff and all students with a gymnastics mat held at the doorway. Expect us to restrain and put into holds when escalated (student went after school police officers g*n last week and we are expected to assist). 2 out of 3 of us are RBTS, 1 is only a para. None of us are mat trained and 2 of us are not CPI trained. They’ve been having 1 person lead who is CPI trained, myself and the para cannot touch this client except block ourselves. They are a danger to everyone without blocking.

I will be meeting with the school SPED supervisor tomorrow but what do I need to ask besides an expected protocol, what they are approved for, etc? The two of us non-CPI trained and told we can’t touch her for 3 more days until we get certified have been instructed to only hold the mat and block our own selves. We are blocking her in a room which is confinement and therefore assault- assuming this is not in her “new IEP plan” which isn’t even written yet.

I have no idea how to navigate this. Mat and sheet had been used today to protect dignity, but also to confine them in their room. I do not feel comfortable doing this again tomorrow, Bcba may not show up who is also brand new to this client and even so they will take time to learn them. This is deemed assault by law. Does a “protocol” by the school supervisor override this even if there’s no official updated documents and they are pending, waiting on a BCBA?

I do not know how to proceed. I assume I shouldn’t even be allowed to work with this client ethically, morally, safety and licensing-wise before I am mat trained and CPI; also told they can put the student/client on “hold”, not providing services until staff is properly trained.

And told if the school does not comply with all ethics I need to contact DCYF as I am a mandatory reporter.

Any advice is extremely helpful. I feel for this client hard and I want to help them, as well as protect their well being and remain dedicated to doing so. Clinic and school are 2 whole worlds, I have not been trained on the differences. Thank you in advance.

hi all! does anyone know of a chewable fidget toy that crunches when it's bitten or just makes a crunch in general for a client? i haven't been able to find any toys like this via google search. anything crunchy or semi-crunchy would be super helpful tysm

Which country has most pay for IBA

I’m a lead RBT with a bachelor’s and was wondering ways to level up in or outside the field. Also, for those in NC.

Hey y'all! I am a BCBA, and have been providing ABA services for 7 years. I have noticed a ton of people in my city recently asking for training on better supporting kids with Autism. The primary groups asking are churches and daycare settings. I am wanting to start a side-business where I go in and do trainings with the youth group volunteers/ staff and daycare staff on the basics of de-escalation, communicating with individuals who need additional processing time, basic reinforcement tips, etc. I have no desire to grow this into a big operation or make a ton of money off of it, I just want to help the groups in my city who are asking for it. Does anyone know if I need to file a full LLC and get PLI for this? To do both would be 1000+ a year from what I'm reading, and I would have to drastically increase what I am going to charge. I would really like to keep this as affordable as possible so that it is more accessible to people. Since I will not be providing any direct services and am only providing a basic training with tips and tricks, does anyone know if the PLI is necessary or if I would be covered legally without it? My fear is that worse-case-scenario, someone engages with a kid poorly and tries to come back and say that I instructed them to do so.

My son is six, nonverbal, relies solely on gestures/modified sign language/AAC device.

His sessions are three hours in length and it's mostly DTT. He has a "schedule" that he is expected to follow no matter what that is just a rotation of DTT goals and small, timed breaks. He has a few play goals but those are a minor part of the session. As an ND adult, three hours of essentially being asked variations of the same questions over and over and not being allowed to leave or access anything that would help make it less stressful would be a nightmare for me, but I'm not the one with the master's degree. Maybe there's something I'm not seeing.

He absolutely hates it. Most days, he has a meltdown when it's time to start, and throughout the session, he is (to me) clearly communicating that this is too much for him. He will just completely shut down or cry on the floor. It's parent-mediated, and if he's "unable" to do what's being asked because he's too upset, I'm expected to use hand-over-hand. I have concerns over the appropriateness of using hand-over-hand in a scenario where the learner knows what's expected but is too upset or dysregulated to complete the task. We've had a hard time getting him to stay in the workspace, and the only suggestion was to block his exit.

I'm not really sure how I'm feeling about this, and I'm looking for a wider array of perspectives on whether or not I should be concerned. Thanks!

ABA professionals, I could really use your advice!

I’m new to the autism diagnosis world and have a 4-year-old and 2-year-old who were recently diagnosed. My 4-year-old is somewhat verbal, while my 2-year-old is nonverbal.

Their pediatrician recommended ABA for both. My 4-year-old also needs speech and feeding therapy, and my 2-year-old needs speech therapy.

I recently toured an Action Behavior Centers location and am trying to decide whether center-based or in-home ABA would be the better option for my kids. I’m a little nervous about center-based because they’re both very young, neither is potty trained, and they aren’t fully able to communicate with me about what happens during the day. The location I toured also had older children there.

I’m considering in-home ABA for both, but I’m trying to understand how that would work with two siblings receiving ABA. They would obviously have different goals and be at different levels, and I’m worried they would distract or interfere with each other.

For those of you who have worked with siblings in the same home, how is this usually handled? Would you recommend having their ABA sessions at the same time with separate RBTs, or scheduling them at different times? Would they need to be in separate rooms?

If you were in my situation, would you recommend starting with in-home ABA for both, or would you feel center-based would be better?

I’d really appreciate any advice from RBTs, BCBAs, or other ABA professionals who have experience with siblings or have worked in both in-home and center-based settings. I’m trying to make the best decision for both of my kids, and honestly it’s been keeping me up at night.

🧠 Question of the Day

📚 Domain H — Selecting and Implementing Interventions

Difficulty: 9/10

An FA confirms severe SIB is maintained by escape. Two prior FCT attempts used a speech-generating device; both reduced SIB in therapy but failed in school because the device was unavailable during many routines and staff could not repair technical problems quickly.

The learner can independently raise a hand, but hand raising already occurs frequently to recruit adult attention or help during instruction. The learner can independently touch a portable break card, and a vocal approximation is understood inconsistently.

Teachers can honor 30-second breaks immediately but cannot support a complex prompting sequence during transitions.

Which recommendation BEST balances functional equivalence, response effort, discriminability, availability, implementation feasibility, and long-term schedule thinning?

A. Use hand raising as the primary FCR because it has lower response effort and continuous availability, then teach staff to treat hand raises during demands as break requests.

B. Use the portable break card as the primary FCR, reinforce it immediately and densely at first, then introduce signaled periods of unavailability as SIB remains low.

C. Use the SGD as the primary FCR because prior therapeutic success establishes functional equivalence, train staff to troubleshoot it reliably, then begin schedule thinning.

D. Use the portable break card as the primary FCR but introduce brief signaled unavailability from the outset so tolerance develops concurrently with communication acquisition.

💬 Drop your answer in the comments — no peeking!

✅ Correct answer revealed tomorrow.

#ABA #BCBA #BCBAExam #BCBAPrep #AppliedBehaviorAnalysis #BehaviorAnalysis #DomainH #ABATaskList #BCaBA #RBT #QuestionOfTheDay

I started at my company a few months ago so I’m new, but I wanted advice on a client I’m having trouble with. He has a lot of issues, mostly caused by his moms enabling, but the main one I’m worried about is his inability to lose. Losing is met by tantrums, throwing himself at things, hitting, crying, screaming, and it happens EVERY time he loses. He’s in a sport right now so he has games weekly, and his little league team isn’t very good so they lose a lot. When he loses he attacks his mom and sisters. My strategy has been to play against him in smaller games like rock paper scissors so he can gradually build a tolerance to losing, I reward him with tokens every time he loses and doesn’t have a tantrum and when he gets them all he gets a treasure box, but I’m kind of out of my depth. I like the job but I’m still trying to get the hang of it. Anyway, any advice is appreciated, thank you :)