She got hands-on experience as an intern at a suicide crisis center in Buffalo, learned behavior therapy at SUNY Stony Brook and eventually landed at the University of Washington.

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The intensive, one-on-one, in-home therapy was meted out by behavioral therapist Rick Schroeder, who used a technique of behavior modification known as "applied behavior analysis" or ABA. ABA essentially breaks down behavior patterns in order to reward good behavior and not reward bad behavior.

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