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To ABA or not?

L

Lissa

New Member
My high functioning daughter with autism has been "doing" aba for exaclty one year. I am not seeing its benefits. As an educator myself I look closely, and it's been nothing that we couldn't have helped her with. She only tantrums now when they are forcing her to do something she is just not ready for or is too tired for. (Full school day, some form of therapy 2 hours a day, every single day.) She is 5. They never ask her why she does anything.
Do any of you have HFA or parents of HFA kids have a negative or positive experience with ABA? I read how it causes PTSD in 80% of ASD patients when they become adults. Speech is great for her... Just not sure about the ABA.

Comments are appreciated. Parenting is confusing.
 
Welcome to Autism Forums!

Given your question, it might be more beneficial for you just to type "ABA" in our search engine's text box.

Lots of responses will come up in many threads. A subject that strikes many of us as a "hot topic". :eek:
 
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Indeed Welcome to the Forum. Glad you have found us.

Root around and read the current or older threads.
 
We as a whole hate ABA. It's torturous mind control that very few people look back on as adults with fond memories.
 
Lissa said:
Comments are appreciated. Parenting is confusing.
Click to expand...
It sure is! I never had this dilemma because my high-functioning autistic daughter was not diagnosed until late teens or early 20s. She coped with life's challenges by internalizing, lots of avoidance, mental self abuse, wanting to stay home sick from school (which I didn't allow), digestive upset, resulting in her being a wreck of panic disorder, social anxiety, and constant depression in adulthood.

I'm going out on a limb to say, perhaps you could suggest taking a 3 to 6 month break from ABA and see where that leaves things?

The same money and energy you as a family are putting into ABA, might better be spent on family outings, community involvement (she's a little young for Brownies, but soon? Maybe Sunday school or play dates?), and just creating a loving atmosphere at home.

I especially recommend that autistic children be encouraged to pursue a special interest, talent, or activity that they love. It could be music, programming computers, horseback riding, drawing... this gives them an area of life where they can excel and have pride in their efforts, which is probably the best gift you could give a kid.
 
I have a child on the opposite end of the spectrum and from what I've read and heard it is torturous and rarely helps. I wouldn't put my child through it. I sure would love to get him some speech therapy though. He's 7 and still does not speak.
As others have said, check for past threads by searching the forums for "ABA". Good luck and I hope whatever you decide is the best for you and your child.
 
Lissa said:
My high functioning daughter with autism has been "doing" aba for exaclty one year. I am not seeing its benefits. As an educator myself I look closely, and it's been nothing that we couldn't have helped her with. She only tantrums now when they are forcing her to do something she is just not ready for or is too tired for. (Full school day, some form of therapy 2 hours a day, every single day.) She is 5. They never ask her why she does anything.
Do any of you have HFA or parents of HFA kids have a negative or positive experience with ABA? I read how it causes PTSD in 80% of ASD patients when they become adults. Speech is great for her... Just not sure about the ABA.

Comments are appreciated. Parenting is confusing.
Click to expand...

From the way you described it, I'm pretty sure you already know what you are going to do, and you're just looking for affirmation.

I grew up without knowing I was on the spectrum until age 40. When I told my parents, they responded with interest, concern about what it means to apply a "label", but with the general consensus that it didn't change who I was. I have always felt loved and accepted by my parents for who I am, before and now. I think that is what your daughter will need the most as well. Forcing her to go to therapy she gets upset about is only going to reinforce that you think she is broken and needs to be fixed.
 
Major Tom said:
I have a child on the opposite end of the spectrum and from what I've read and heard it is torturous and rarely helps. I wouldn't put my child through it. I sure would love to get him some speech therapy though. He's 7 and still does not speak.
As others have said, check for past threads by searching the forums for "ABA". Good luck and I hope whatever you decide is the best for you and your child.
Click to expand...

I did speech therapy for being nonverbal in 2nd grade, and i'm now almost 40, and you still can't shut me up! Some of my happiest memories are of speech therapy :)
 
Welcome Lissa!
Definitely have a look through previous discussion on ABA via 'search', but be prepared for a lot of negativity and very strong opinions. None of what it said is a judgement on you :)
GadAbout said:
I'm going out on a limb to say, perhaps you could suggest taking a 3 to 6 month break from ABA and see where that leaves things?
Click to expand...
Seems like a good idea.
 
There's an article on WikiHow entitled "How to tell if ABA is harmful" that you should probably check out. Personally, I die a little inside every I hear someone has put their kid in ABA and I think the people who claimed it helped them or their kids were brainwashed.
 
Lissa said:
My high functioning daughter with autism has been "doing" aba for exaclty one year. I am not seeing its benefits. As an educator myself I look closely, and it's been nothing that we couldn't have helped her with. She only tantrums now when they are forcing her to do something she is just not ready for or is too tired for. (Full school day, some form of therapy 2 hours a day, every single day.) She is 5. They never ask her why she does anything.
Do any of you have HFA or parents of HFA kids have a negative or positive experience with ABA? I read how it causes PTSD in 80% of ASD patients when they become adults. Speech is great for her... Just not sure about the ABA.

Comments are appreciated. Parenting is confusing.
Click to expand...
I AM NOT AN EXPERT, but it seems to me that ABA is based on the hypothesis that autism is a learned or developed behavior, and can be unlearned. What it boils down to is a form of forced behavior modification. No wonder there are many reports of PTSD associated with the treatment. My opinion is that autism is a genetic variation present before birth, and as such, attempts to change it go against the natural neurology of the person being treated. The best treatment is to teach a person with autism how best to live with it.
 
Shamar said:
I AM NOT AN EXPERT, but it seems to me that ABA is based on the hypothesis that autism is a learned or developed behavior, and can be unlearned. What it boils down to is a form of forced behavior modification. No wonder there are many reports of PTSD associated with the treatment. My opinion is that autism is a genetic variation present before birth, and as such, attempts to change it go against the natural neurology of the person being treated. The best treatment is to teach a person with autism how best to live with it.
Click to expand...

I wonder if it is based off of research from Mkultra?
 
We did not use ABA with our autistic daughter, because nobody told us about it. And I am SO glad we didn't. She is a fabulous, smart, kind, hard-working person--and oddly enough, she has just started training to be an ABA therapist.
She is wonderfully gifted with children, and has considerable experience with behavioral methods, so she easily got a trainee job. But she has been horrified by what her boss insists she has to do. She is working on toilet training a 3-year-old (not her idea, and probably way to early for this developmentally) and the boss demands that she use punishment when he has an accident. She wants to be able to do ABA right (no punishment, no attempt to make someone "not autistic"), but the only way to get there is to train with these unethical idiots.
 
One of my children is autistic as am I (both professionally diagnosed). My son went through speech therapy which was helpful, but we chose not to do any ABA and I'm another person that's glad we didn't do ABA with him. We have no issues with his stims, etc and I wouldn't want to suppress them in the least.

I have an autistic niece around the age of our son. My sister chose intensive ABA therapy for their daughter, the Lovaas Method. The Lovaas instructors came to their home every weekday for years to do the "therapy". On the occasions that their family and ours would meet on holidays, I was sickened by a certain "therapy", namely:

  • My sister interrupting my niece when my niece was talking to us to remind my niece to make eye contact with us. I told my sister that I cared not the least that my niece was not making eye contact with me when she was talking.
My impression of this Lovaas method was that it was trying to "cure" her of autistic traits and force her to act NT.

The other issue that disheartened me regarding my niece was the fact that the Lovaas instructors would meet with my niece in the home during weekdays for years. When I was young my saving grace was knowing that my home was a safe space and a sanctuary from the harsh world. Having someone come into my safe space regularly to "modify" my natural behaviors would have left me nowhere to be myself.
 
Lissa said:
My high functioning daughter with autism has been "doing" aba for exaclty one year. I am not seeing its benefits. As an educator myself I look closely, and it's been nothing that we couldn't have helped her with. She only tantrums now when they are forcing her to do something she is just not ready for or is too tired for. (Full school day, some form of therapy 2 hours a day, every single day.) She is 5. They never ask her why she does anything.
Do any of you have HFA or parents of HFA kids have a negative or positive experience with ABA? I read how it causes PTSD in 80% of ASD patients when they become adults. Speech is great for her... Just not sure about the ABA.

Comments are appreciated. Parenting is confusing.
Click to expand...


I won't bother to comment on ABA because I'm certain everyone else is already on it (I haven't read the entire thread yet).

But holy crap, 2 hours of therapy a day is a LOT. On top of a full day of school, that would be a lot for anyone. If I worked my 8 hour job and then went to 2 hours of therapy every day, I would probably feel overworked and overwhelmed (I am already feeling a time crunch just with my 8 hour day job!)

If your daughter can handle that, I think she's doing just fine.

The fact that they don't listen to her bothers me. In order to actually help her, a therapy needs to consider HER needs, not just what the therapist thinks she should be doing.
 
Magna said:
One of my children is autistic as am I (both professionally diagnosed). My son went through speech therapy which was helpful, but we chose not to do any ABA and I'm another person that's glad we didn't do ABA with him. We have no issues with his stims, etc and I wouldn't want to suppress them in the least.

I have an autistic niece around the age of our son. My sister chose intensive ABA therapy for their daughter, the Lovaas Method. The Lovaas instructors came to their home every weekday for years to do the "therapy". On the occasions that their family and ours would meet on holidays, I was sickened by a certain "therapy", namely:

  • My sister interrupting my niece when my niece was talking to us to remind my niece to make eye contact with us. I told my sister that I cared not the least that my niece was not making eye contact with me when she was talking.
My impression of this Lovaas method was that it was trying to "cure" her of autistic traits and force her to act NT.

The other issue that disheartened me regarding my niece was the fact that the Lovaas instructors would meet with my niece in the home during weekdays for years. When I was young my saving grace was knowing that my home was a safe space and a sanctuary from the harsh world. Having someone come into my safe space regularly to "modify" my natural behaviors would have left me nowhere to be myself.
Click to expand...

Many posts here make me wish this forum had "sad react" like FB does but this one especially.

This kind of thing is making me think that not being diagnosed as a child has definite upsides.
 
Lissa said:
They never ask her why she does anything.
Click to expand...
This single sentence - this bothers you because you feel it's wrong?

Go with that feeling. If they don't care what the child feels and thinks, you can be sure it's the wrong therapy.
 
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