ABA therapy built around your child

I want to share our family’s experience with CBS because I hope our story can give other parents of children with special needs some hope.

My son was diagnosed with autism at age two. Before finding CBS, we had spent about six months at another ABA center recommended through regional center early intervention. Unfortunately, that experience was deeply disappointing. After his diagnosis, my husband and I were determined to find the right environment for him. That search led us to CBS when he was about 2¼ years old.

Today, he is six.

When we first came to CBS, he had essentially no language. He would have severe tantrums just from holding hands, drop to the floor, and cry inconsolably for more than an hour. Those first months were some of the hardest times our family had ever experienced.

But the therapists at CBS never gave up on him. They were patient, encouraging, and consistent. They focused not only on teaching skills, but also on helping him become emotionally regulated and ready to learn.

Around 34 months old, he said his first meaningful word. Within a month, he had about 10 words. Three months later, he had approximately 100 words. That progress meant everything to us.

Before CBS I had consulted five different speech therapists, and every one of them told me that he wasn’t ready to learn and that we needed to return to ABA. Finding a team that believed in his ability to learn was a turning point for our family.

One of the most incredible milestones came between ages three and four: potty training. Being out of diapers was a prerequisite for him to attend a regular preschool, and I was extremely worried about whether we could accomplish it. When CBS teachers told me they could help us do it in three days, I honestly thought they were joking.

They sent two therapists to our home who worked with my son for eight hours a day for three consecutive days. After those three days, he was out of diapers. Within a month, he was independently managing bowel movements as well. I still can’t believe how much progress he made.

CBS also helped prepare him for preschool through a transition program that simulated classroom schedules, routines, and expectations. When he eventually started preschool, he had a shadow teacher with him who already understood him and could help him navigate the classroom.

This was incredibly valuable, not only for my son, but also for us as parents. When challenges came up at school, the shadow teacher could communicate those observations back to the ABA team, and they could work on those specific skills through targeted intervention. That collaboration between ABA therapy, the school, the shadow teacher, and us as parents made a tremendous difference.

Now, after four years with CBS, my son has completed a full year of preschool. His teachers tell us that he is doing wonderfully. He is learning, participating in classroom activities, and making genuine friends. The little boy who once had no language and could cry for an hour is now a happy, talkative six-year-old who loves learning and being involved.

Our next goal is to help him transition into first grade as independently as possible, eventually without a shadow teacher.

I am incredibly grateful to everyone at CBS who has been part of this journey: every therapist, BCBA, and supervisor who has worked with my son over the past four years. You didn’t just teach him skills. You helped him find his voice, become ready for school, and believe that he could learn.