ABA Therapy and Kid Crying

[usmangh]

HI

My SON is 4 years old , he is getting ABA therapy from last 7 months but every day he cries
a lot during ABA session especially when his mom does session with him. Is this normal or how we can overcome this issue.
Its very heart breaking for his mother when she is doin session with him.

Regards
Usman

Some of the reason could be (am not professional, just talking from experience, best is to speak to consultant) but:
-baseline too long (for exemple if initially can't match any cards start with 1 pair, then 2 pairs, don't jump to 10 pairs, or 1 mn at table, then 1mn 10,....)
-lack of reinforcement: never forget to reward appropriately after completion, even if fully prompted
-lack of prompt: teach errorlessy with least intrusive prompt possible, and always ensure the child understand what he needs to do (modelling, hand over hand first if not yet at modelling level).

But again, get advice from ABA consultant, it is their role.

I would get you aba consultant/supervisor involved. impossible to say.

I suppose his mum does some of this sessions to keep cost down and is not a 'real' (sorry, could not think of a better word) ava tutor? I did that a long time ago too and needed to get our supervisor involved quite a few times to find out where I went wrong (on various things). It is a steep learning curve.

Can the mother video herself for the consultant to feed back. Not for very long though. The boy should not be engaging in prolonged crying. It is not good for him and not good for his relationship with his mother. If he is clearly distressed you need to stop until you have proper advice.

Occasional crying is okay, in the same way that it is of any child of that age when they find something frustrating or anxiety triggering. But the incident should be recorded and learned from, plus the anxiety or frustration should be dealt with swiftly. The child should be willingly and happily engaging in the therapy. That is the whole POINT. Skills learnt reluctantly and unwillingly will be forgotten and/or hidden away.