Too Many Hats: BCBA hat? Mom hat? Fedora?

In grad school, one of our professors always used the analogy of wearing hats to describe what role  you are filling at the moment. So my friend (who I want to be like when I grow up) brought a bunch of hats to class one day and we were all decked out when our professor walked in. I think she enjoyed it. We got As in the class. Probably. Maybe.

Anyway, this week I have been wearing two conflicting hats: Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and Mom. My Little hasn’t been feeling her best and somehow forgot all we learned through sleep training when she was a wee infant. 

My BCBA hat said, do you want to reinforce the behavior of screaming after you put her in her bed for a nap?
My Mom hat said, how can you let your sweet girl scream when you know she doesn’t feel good? 
Also, I have talking hats. Think Harry Potter.

In the end, my Mom hat won out. Sometimes you just have to use your extraneous knowledge. There were extra factors at play that affected the normal contingency we had in place. Those extra factors of not feeling so good = Mom hat for the win. 

We have to look at the WHOLE picture in making decisions for our children. Same goes to BCBAs working with clients. 

Outside factors MUST be considered when making day to day decisions regarding kids. 

• Are they feeling okay?  
• Did they stay with mom or dad last night? 
• Did they get enough sleep?
• Was there a change in their routine? A change in medication?
• Is it a full moon? (This one is wacky but elementary school teachers swear by it.)
• Any number of other things to consider….

We want the best for our children and for our clients. Lucky for them, we know how to make that happen by taking in all the information available to us and making informed decisions. 🙂