I got a job that celebrates my autism
Before I say anything else, I do want to acknowledge that ABA has had a very harmful and controversial past. It has needed severe overhauls since its conception and there are still places today that practice unethical ABA. If talk about this is triggering to you or if you’ve experienced harmful ABA, this might not be the post for you.
With that said, I have been against getting a job in ABA for those reasons in the past. When I started working in schools, however, I saw RBTs doing it with kids and noticed that it had not only been modernized but also, at least where I worked, tailored to each individual child. I was so pleasantly surprised to see RBTs using ABA to encourage strengths that the kids already had, no punishments or forcing anything, and constant positivity. I did more research and started the 40 hour RBT training from Autism Partnership Foundation.
I interviewed for a position where I told them about my autism, which I don’t usually disclose, and about the annual neurodiversity event that I started when I was in college. Everyone was so excited with me, and I had so much fun just interviewing. I made a previous post here about my struggles with employment so this feels huge to me.