At Connections Therapy, our primary goal is to help guide and support you through navigating the system. Getting a diagnosis of Autism can be one of the most difficult things a parent can go through. Parents often feel isolated and alone when facing the challenges of getting their child the services they need to make progress towards independence. Building connections with family members, teachers, and other therapists such as Speech and Occupational Therapists is essential to any successful ABA program. Collaboration between all who are working with the child fosters the generalization of skills across all settings. Our therapists want to go wherever behavior support is needed for the child who is having difficulty, whether that be at home, in the school, at the park on a playdate, or even in the supermarket.

Connections therapists take an expanded multidisciplinary approach when using the principles of ABA. No child enjoys doing drills at a table for hours on end. We believe in using a more naturalistic approach when implementing ABA principles. The same goals can be met by using things like music and play-based learning to engage a child when working on building foundational skills. We have found that when a child enjoys what they are doing, they are more receptive to developing new skills, and as a result, behaviors associated with ASD begin to decrease dramatically. Every child is different. If one approach does not work for one child, we continuously work together to find the right strategy needed to help your child reach their optimal outcome.

We also love to support families that are using various forms of AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication), because we have found the communication is key to helping reduce a variety of behaviors. We work together with other providers to make sure a consistent mode of communication is being used in every environment.

When developing a behavior treatment plan, it is important to us that we implement a wholistic approach. We want to consider and respect differing parenting styles, sibling dynamics, underlying psychological stressors, learning disabilities, physical sensory issues, and any underlying medical issues that can effect a child’s behavior. Our goal is to help unlock all of the many pieces of the puzzle. As parents, you know your child best. Our job is to help give you and your child the evidenced-based tools needed to help reach their unlimited potential.