Karen Conlon, LCSW

Call Directions Website

Karen Conlon, LCSW Hi, I’m Karen. Psychotherapist • Coach • Podcast Host
Break old patterns. Build deeper, more fulfilling relationships.

🎙️ Emotionally Wealthy.

New episodes twice a month on Tuesdays.

10/06/2026

For Mental Health Awareness Week, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Scott Grates from Referrals Done Right to discuss some of the costs of being a high achiever who is unaware of the costs of being the best of everything to everyone. It was a genuine, vulnerable and impacting conversation. I invite you to tune in!

10/02/2026

A bad experience with one ABA therapist doesn’t necessarily mean ABA itself isn’t right for your child.

For the second part of my two-part conversation on autism with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin, we talk about how parents can sometimes judge ABA based on one difficult experience with a new or undertrained therapist or RBT.

It’s important to remember that not every therapist will work well with every client. Just as one difficult experience with a dentist doesn’t lead most people to reject dentistry altogether, a difficult experience with one ABA provider may be a reason to look more closely at the provider, their training, and whether they are the right fit for your child and family.

Examine what specifically went wrong in the bad experience before deciding what it means about ABA as a whole.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

10/01/2026

ABA therapy may involve learning difficult skills, but the experience itself shouldn’t feel like a constant struggle for the child, the family, or the therapist.

In Part 2 of my two-part conversation on autism with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin, we discuss why therapy should be enjoyable for everyone involved. If the therapist isn’t having fun, imagine what the experience might feel like for the child.

Enjoyment doesn’t mean therapy lacks purpose. It can actually create more room for connection, participation, and learning, while helping a child feel comfortable with the person supporting them.

When children feel engaged and supported, learning can become something they participate in rather than something simply being done to them.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

One of the goals of therapy should be helping children use what they’ve learned when their therapist isn’t there.Picking...
09/30/2026

One of the goals of therapy should be helping children use what they’ve learned when their therapist isn’t there.

Picking up on our first conversation about autism, I’m joined again by Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin for Part 2, where we explore how therapy can support children beyond the therapy setting.

Therapy isn’t meant to become something a child, or their family, has to rely on forever. The skills being taught can become useful beyond the therapy setting, whether that means communicating a need, managing a situation, or participating more independently in daily life.

That process also includes parents and caregivers. When they understand what their child is learning and how to support those skills, they become part of helping that learning transfer into the home and other environments.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

09/29/2026

Finding an ABA provider is not just about finding someone who is available, but finding someone who understands your child’s needs and can work well with your family.

Our two-part conversation on autism continues with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin, as we explore the questions he encourages parents to ask when choosing an ABA provider:

How long have you been doing this work?
How many children have you worked with?
What experience do you have with my child’s specific needs?

Parents should be able to ask questions throughout the process and understand why a therapist is using a particular approach.

Therapy should be collaborative, and families should feel comfortable with the person coming into their home and working with their child. Most importantly, the goals should come from what the child and family actually need.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

ABA therapy isn’t meant to be a one-size-fits-all approach to autism, and parents should feel comfortable asking questio...
09/28/2026

ABA therapy isn’t meant to be a one-size-fits-all approach to autism, and parents should feel comfortable asking questions about what their child is being taught and why.

This week, we’re continuing Part 2 of my two-part conversation on autism with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin. We talk about what parents can look for in an ABA provider and why the relationship matters. Good ABA starts with the skills a child and family actually need, rather than a predetermined list of behaviors or goals. Parents should feel comfortable asking about a provider’s experience, asking questions, and being part of the process.

ABA should ultimately help families need the therapist less, not because the work wasn’t valuable, but because the child and family have learned skills they can continue using on their own.

🎙️ Emotionally Wealthy Podcast. Listen to the full episode tomorrow, with new episodes every other Tuesday. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, and YouTube.

09/26/2026

A child screaming in the car may seem completely out of nowhere to a parent, but from the child’s perspective, there may be a very clear reason.

In this first part of our two-part episode series on autism, I spoke with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin about how a child with autism may recognize a familiar routine and remember what happened the last time they experienced it. That memory can bring up an emotion that we may not understand, but that makes complete sense from their perspective.

Becoming curious about what the child may be experiencing and what they haven't yet found a way to communicate is a great first step towards learning to understand what’s behind the discomfort.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

09/25/2026

A professional may see an hour of a family’s life, but a parent is living all of it.

Part 1 of this two-part episode series on autism with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin looks at what it means for professionals to truly understand a family’s experience. This week’s conversation helped us consider why professionals should be mindful about saying, “I know it’s hard,” when we’re not the ones living with the challenges after the session ends.

We can observe, support, teach, and offer perspective, but there is humility in recognizing that we don't experience a family's reality simply because we spend time inside their home. Empathy means acknowledging what we don't know, while holding space for the ones experiencing difficulty.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

09/24/2026

It can be easy to look at a child crying to get something they want and call it manipulation. But wanting a particular outcome isn't necessarily the same as intentionally manipulating someone.

In Part 1 of this two-part episode series on autism, Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin and I talked about how children learn that certain behaviors get a response from the people around them.

When language is limited, crying may remain one of the ways a child communicates a need, frustration, or desire. That doesn't necessarily mean they're trying to control or manipulate the person responding.

The more helpful question is not, “How do I stop this behavior?” but “What is my child trying to communicate, and what skill could help them communicate it differently?”

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

When a child with autism cries, refuses, or becomes overwhelmed, it can be easy to focus on stopping the behavior withou...
09/23/2026

When a child with autism cries, refuses, or becomes overwhelmed, it can be easy to focus on stopping the behavior without first understanding what is behind it.

In Part 1 of the Emotionally Wealthy conversation with Board Certified Behavior Analyst Dr. Mike Marroquin, we explored what those behaviors can teach us about a child’s experience.

Communication and language differences, sensory experiences, transitions, and difficulty with unpredictability can all affect how a child responds to everyday situations. Sometimes a child may know exactly what is wrong but not have a way to explain it.

That changes the question we ask. Rather than assuming a child is being difficult or manipulative, we can look more closely at what happened before the behavior, what the child may be trying to communicate, and what skills or support might help.

Understanding the behavior is an important part of understanding the child.

🎙️Emotionally Wealthy podcast. Listen to the full episode. Link in bio for Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeart.

Address

100 S. Bedford Road
Mount Kisco, NY
10549

Telephone

+19292425680

Website

,

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Karen Conlon, LCSW posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category