A Good 1:1 Therapist

I was asked today was differentiates a good 1:1 behavior therapist from one who struggles. Here is my answer:

"There are two main abilities that differentiate a good therapist compared to one who struggles. First, the ability to not take things personally. A student may not be acting out towards you because they don't like you. They may be doing it because they have learned it gets them out of work. At the end of the day, I can't beat myself up just because a client had a bad day. Instead I need to be able to analyze it and formulate a plan. This leads me to the second ability, and that is how I am able to analyze behaviors and situations. I am able to see them in simplistic, almost black and white, terms. I can remove extraneous information and take out the "touch feely" and determine the function of the behavior rather quickly."

Do you agree?

Sensory Friendly Movie

Saturday morning one of my clients and I headed off to our local AMC to watch the Tooth Fairy. When we got there we discovered there were actually two showing of Tooth Fairy at 10am. One was the sensory friendly and one was just the regular showing. I found that interesting that there were two options. It's a great way for parents to be able to start in one (the theatres were next to each other ) and move to the next.

Sadly, it was not as crowded as I had expected, but there were some. Overall, it was just less intense of a movie. The sound was down, so much at times I had trouble hearing some dialogue. This part was especially useful for the louder scenes however. The lights remained on, but dim which made it much easier for parents and children alike. I thought they weren't going to show previews, but they did. I wish they hadn't for my client was only prepared for the movie, not for mini bits of other movies.

Overall, I think the sensory friendly movie is a FANTASTIC option out there. It is at a easy time (Saturday mornings) and allows parents to see how their child will do in that setting. Another nice aspect is the community feeling for parents and other caregivers. I spoke with a few other parents and caregivers.

If you get a chance, check it out!

AMC: Sensory Friendly Movies

AMCs around the country are hosting another sensory friendly movie tomorrow, February 6, 2010. The movie is the Tooth Fairy and most showings are at 10am.

To quote the AMC website:
"In order to provide a more accepting and comfortable setting for this unique audience, the movie auditoriums will have their lights brought up and the sound turned down, families will be able to bring in their own gluten-free, casein-free snacks, and no previews or advertisements will be shown before the movie. Additionally, audience members are welcome to get up and dance, walk, shout or sing - in other words, AMC’s “Silence is Golden®” policy will not be enforced unless the safety of the audience is questioned. "

I will be taking a client tomorrow and will provide a review on the experience shortly.

Wakefield's Study Retracted

On February 2, 2010 the Lancel officially retracted an Andrew Wakefield study. To quote the journal:


"Retraction—Ileal-lymphoid-nodular hyperplasia,
non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder
in children
Following the judgment of the UK General Medical Council’s Fitness to Practise Panel on Jan 28, 2010, it has become clear that several elements of the 1998 paper by Wakefield et al1 are incorrect, contrary to the findings of an earlier investigation.2 In particular, the claims in the original paper that children were “consecutively referred” and that investigations were
“approved” by the local ethics committee have been proven to be false. Therefore we fully retract this paper from the published record.

The Editors of The Lancet

The Lancet, London NW1 7BY, UK

1 Wakefield AJ, Murch SH, Anthony A, et al. Ileal-lymphoid-nodular
hyperplasia, non-specific colitis, and pervasive developmental disorder in
children. Lancet 1998; 351: 637–41.

2 Hodgson H. A statement by The Royal Free and University College Medical
School and The Royal Free Hampstead NHS Trust. Lancet 2004; 363: 824."