RBT: ONE
I began my career working as a humble ABA technician in an eastern suberb of Detroit. I remember the job title was “PEDIATRIC THERAPIST”.
15/hr working (barely) 20 hrs per week.
believe it or not THAT was a come up
oooof
That sounds important.
I worked my way from clinic to clinic
From ABA Technician to RBT
From Clinical
To Educational
From Detroit
To Ann Arbor
From Ann Arbor
To New Mexico
Being that I was a terrible student I never thought I would have such pride in working in education. I was horrible academically, If I’m being honest I failed every single class at least once from 3rd grade to 12th grade and in that 12th grade year i hat a failing grade in EVERY CLASS.
2…4…6…8… How the HELL did I graduate? (Thank you Mr. Copeland)
anyways, today I take the educational process seriously. Given the nature of my certification I work exclusively with special education kids. IEP’s BIP’s BSP’s and yada yada. Autistic kids, OHI kids, behavioral kids, violent kids, mentally disturbed kids, you name it, if they have some kind of maladaptive behavior, learning disability, or other health impairment then they’re mine.
I LOVE IT
Raising the confidence of a child who may not have it within themselves to be successful and different. That’s what it’s all about.
Children respond positively due to many factors but none more than my gentle nature and patience with them.
I identify with their wonder of the world and whimsy (and some of the defiance too)
I think it’s because I didn't have it at that age. I didn’t have somebody right there with me smiling, encouraging, and pushing me. No, every adult in my life was antagonistic, and every peer I had was adversarial and uncaring. So, it is incumbent upon me to give to those innocent babies every bit of positivity and principle that I didn’t have so they can have a a god damn chance especially considering the labels that follow these children throughout their scholastic career, and for some completely defines them well into adulthood.
Unconditionally one must love and suffer to protect these youths, one must guide them and put up with a lot….A LOT of abuse. I’ve been kicked, stabbed, punched, had chairs thrown at me, had my dreadlocks ripped out of my head, screamed at, rocks thrown at my head, threatened with a sharp objects,called I don't know how many niggers, and motherfuckers, idiots, and bithces.
Two years ago a kiddo that was having a tragically bad time playing a game of capture the flag (I think) outside without telling the other kids he was going to beat their ass , or saying” You fat dumb bitch you, skinny motherfucker, suck my fucking dick” Now, when he started to lunge at the kids , and claw at them with his uncut nails and unwashed hands and was picking up whatever he could to fuck-a-kid-upwit.
“We are using appropriate language while playing with friends”
“FUCK YOU YOU FUCKING BITCH YOU STUPID SHIT I’M IF YOU GET IN MY GOD DAMN WAY I WILL FUCKING KILL YOU”
….. UH…..
“Okay friend time to go inside”
[This boy got me fucked up]
The social worker had said if he couldn’t play appropriately then we’d have to take him inside. She was there, I was there, the young man was there, and IT WAS ON
It’s Time to go inside
“NO BITCH IM NOT FUCKING GOING INSIDE IM GONNA KILL CAROLINE RRRAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH”
The social worker grabbed and said “2-PERSON TRANSPORT”
[Awe Shucky Duckies its bout to be some shit]
Before I could get there to grab his forearm, put it near his pocket put my other arm under his arm then turn 180 degrees, have him in a Jesus Christ pose and tug him towards the door [Safety Care Training] he kicked the social worker hard in the side of the knee with a thunderous thud.
[The attack was super-effective] [social worker has fainted]
She down… maybe even dead…Carmen didn’t reserve such a fate
I grab him One-Person to Child’s Pose
“We’re going to calmly go inside… If we can calm down before the end of the game we can come back out and try again”
“RAWWWWAAAHAWHHAHHARAAAHHHAHHAHRAAWWW”, his primal scream pierced through the air.
The Social Worker was back at it like a bad habit! [woooh CARMEN]
“2-person”
BAM!
“DAYUM!”
Another kick to the knee and CARMEN GOES DOWN…
Then the young man grabs my dreadlocks with both hands
“I GOT YOU YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT YOU FUCKING ASS-BITCH”
Inside
he tried to kick me
LEG CHECK
he tried to kick me
ANOTHER LEG CHECK!
“IM NOT FUCKING GOING INSIDE PUSSY BITCH”
Inside
[oh yes we are]
He dug deep in the drealock roots in the back of my head
He jumped
He pulled down with gravity aiding him
Now he holding my beautiful locks like a swing
on the back swing he loaded his legs
on the front swing he kicked my stomach (ngh) and yanked sommore
“YEA BITCH OH YEA BITCH NOW IM REALLY POWERFUL SMASH YOU FUCKER RAWAAAAAA”
*rip*
We’re going inside
I held my hair tight held on to him and calmly told my fallen comrade and the feral child
We’re going inside
and so we did
the tussle continued inside the building
he yelled he brawled he shrieked he kicked he hit he cursed he broke things he was intent on fucking shit up
the class they played outside, we managed inside to calm the demon that had embrewed his body with malicious intent
I didn’t know until the dissolution of the incident that my hair had been ripped out from the root. Remember the *rip*
that shit hurt once I realized I had some hair that was no longer attached to my scalp and deadlock not connected to the root.
and by the end of it, we had prepared to have a Poke-Mon battle with hand-drawn and hand-cut-out monsters…
That was it… We moved on…
Gotta love’em and there’s no way around it. To be effective and unaffected you have to transcend your reaction to the violence, the anger, the viciousness, all while dealing with the politics.
