When we received Matthew's diagnosis, the Psychologists highly recommended we start with Applied Behavior Analysis Therapy, called ABA for short. ABA Therapy is used with individuals that have autism. "Behavior analysis focuses on the principles that explain how learning takes place. Positive reinforcement is one such principle. When a behavior is followed by some sort of reward, the behavior is more likely to be repeated. Through decades of research, the field of behavior analysis has developed many techniques for increasing useful behaviors and reducing those that may cause harm or interfere with learning. ABA is the use of these techniques and principles to bring about meaningful and positive change in behavior." (Autism Speaks website for more information)
When we discussed this therapy program with the Psychologists, we learned that it is very expensive. We needed to get on the waiting list for funding on the IO Waiver. This Waiver is called The Individual Options Waiver, IO for short, it's for people with mental retardation or other developmental disabilities. We immediately got on the waiting list through our case manager, but decided to try and fund the therapy ourselves. They stressed to us the importance of early intervention for Matthew.
The Psychologist had a Behavior Therapist that would be in charge of our program. They helped us get the program going. We put an ad in The Ohio State University paper, "The Lantern" looking for therapists for the team. We were told that we could get college students that were studying Special Education that do this for field experience. So we got our team together and therapy was set up for Matthew in our basement.
ABA therapy lasted six months for us. It was hard to maintain in the home. As you can imagine we had turnover with the college students plus it was expensive to keep up. One of the things that sticks out in my mind was how hard it was to have it in our home. Matthew did not transition well at all and when the therapist came he screamed all the way down to the therapy room. I was not allowed to help him transition. Many days he screamed in the transition and then all through therapy. This was so hard for me to listen to!! I wanted to help him really bad. There were many days that I put Brendan in his stroller and we walked the neighborhood until I knew therapy was over.
Another thing we discovered is that Matthew was catching on to the things they were teaching him fast. The therapists thought that some of the screaming was from being bored with going over the same things over and over. They said he was smart. He did not have much language so a lot of times the screaming was frustration from him not being able to communicate what he wanted.
I do not regret giving this therapy a try. Because Matthew showed them how smart he was with how fast he learned things, the Psychologist felt good about his future. He was diagnosed moderate to severe Autism in the beginning and the Psychologist mentioned High Functioning Autism as a possibility for him down the road.
