(REC Rejected 2025 – Dec 18) Both Client and Clinician: A Mother’s Trauma, a BCBA’s Truth — and the Compassion That Could Change Everything

Compassionate care is an essential, yet underemphasized, component of effective Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) service delivery. While practitioners are well-trained in behavioral interventions, the emotional needs of parents often receive less attention, despite their critical role in treatment outcomes.

This presentation offers a dual perspective: that of a Board Certified Behavior Analyst and a mother whose first child was born blind with Down syndrome. The trauma of receiving such a life-altering diagnosis reshaped both her parenting and her professional practice. Personal reflections will be interwoven with evidence documenting the heightened stress, depression, and anxiety parents face (Ritzema, 2011), the financial strain and social isolation they experience (Shahali et al., 2024), and the shame that can further complicate their adjustment (Marcinechová et al., 2023). These compounding factors can make it difficult for families to fully engage in therapy, even when interventions are evidence-based.

Recent discussions in the field have argued that compassion is so central to effective treatment that it should be considered an additional dimension of ABA (Penney, Bateman, Veverka, Luna, & Schwartz, 2023). In this session, compassionate care will be defined and differentiated from empathy and sympathy. As Taylor, LeBlanc, and Nosik (2019) emphasize, compassion requires action—offering a solution to suffering—rather than simply acknowledging it. Attendees will learn practical strategies to recognize caregiver fatigue, respond to trauma with sensitivity, and build collaborative partnerships that empower parents. Real-life examples—including both clinical cases and personal experiences—will illustrate how compassion not only strengthens the parent–analyst relationship but also improves child outcomes.

By the end of this session, participants will leave with actionable tools to balance evidence-based interventions with compassion, ensuring families feel understood, supported, and valued throughout their ABA journey.

Learning Objectives:

• The participant will describe the impact of trauma, stress, and social factors (e.g., anxiety, depression, financial strain, and shame) on parent engagement in ABA services.
• The participant will differentiate between empathy, sympathy, and compassion, and explain why compassion requires action to alleviate suffering (Taylor, LeBlanc, & Nosik, 2019).
• The participant will identify strategies behavior analysts can use to recognize caregiver fatigue and respond to families with sensitivity and compassion.
• The participant will analyze real-life examples illustrating how compassionate care improves parent–analyst collaboration and child outcomes
• The participant will apply practical tools to integrate compassionate care into ABA practice, balancing evidence-based interventions with empathy and family-centered support.

Monica Castro is a board-certified behavior analyst and proud mother of two daughters, Rio and Riz. Rio, who is blind and has Down syndrome, has been at the heart of Monica’s journey, teaching her resilience, joy, and the power of compassionate care. As both a provider and a parent, Monica brings a unique dual perspective to the field of ABA—understanding what it means to sit on both sides of the table.

With over 30 years of experience working with children and adults with disabilities, Monica has dedicated her career to creating meaningful change for families. Her professional path has included school-based services, community programs, and parent training, but it was her experience as a mother that shifted her practice forever. Living through the challenges and triumphs alongside her daughters, Monica came to see that true progress only happens when families feel seen, supported, and cared for.

Today, Monica is the founder and owner of an ABA company serving families across multiple states. She continues to advocate for parent support, mentor professionals, and push the field toward more compassionate, family-centered care. Her life’s work blends professional expertise with lived experience, guided by one central belief: that compassion is not optional—it is essential