A woman who gave up college to care for her autistic foster brother has described how he inspired her to start her own behavioral therapy center.
Risca Solomon, from Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, first met Dan when he was four years old.
Because of his challenging behavior, his previous relief spots had collapsed.
But Mrs. Solomon, whose parents were foster parents, wanted to help.
“When I first met Dan, I was 18 and doing an internship at a special education school, and he touched my heart,” Ms. Solomon said.
“I begged my parents, who have been foster and respite caregivers since I was 11, to step in.”
Her parents were reluctant at first because Dan would need so much care, something they felt was beyond their level of experience and expertise.
But they agreed after Mrs. Solomon promised to be one of his main carers.
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“It changed my life,” Ms. Solomon said.
“Instead of going away to study, I signed up for a course at the Open University so I can still be around and help Dan.
“I started looking into behavior analysis, and when I saw the positive impact it was having on him, I knew I had to spread the word.”
Behavior analysis focuses on understanding why people behave the way they do and how behaviors can be changed.
Ms. Solomon said when Dan first came to live with them, his behavior could pose a challenge.
“It was hard not to take it personally; we gave all that love and care, but it was difficult for us,” she said.
“But over time we learned about his trigger actions and showed him that there was an easier way to get what he needed.”
Part of the therapy is desensitizing the trigger points that can produce challenging behavior.
Autistic young people can be hypersensitive to noise and light, but a quieter environment can reduce symptoms.
Within a month of living with Mrs. Solomon and her parents, Dan was able to use sign language to communicate.
Mrs. Solomon then helped Dan learn to speak.
“We knew he wanted to talk, he made some noises and tried to mimic what we were doing,” Ms. Solomon explained.
“The more I got to know him, the more I realized that it wasn’t a developmental issue, he just didn’t know how to manipulate his mouth into the shape needed to speak.”
After earning her Masters in Challenging Behavior from Cardiff University, Ms Solomon attempted to teach Dan to speak using applied behavior analysis.
After finding the right combination of techniques, Dan began developing language.
Ms. Solomon documented Dan’s progress on YouTube and began receiving requests for support from other families.
At that time, she was preparing for a behavior analyst exam and was then able to start her own therapy company, Skybound.
Alongside 38 staff, Ms. Solomon now provides therapy and care to those who need it.
“We use a system called speaking tools, a series of plastic mouthpieces that help mold the lips and tongue into position to make the sounds needed to speak,” she said.
This therapy method fell out of favor in the 1960s for being considered too intrusive, but Ms Solomon says it’s all about how it’s taught.
“I wouldn’t ask anything of our customers that I wouldn’t do myself. I put the pieces in my mouth and show them the shapes they create.
“We then look for signs of approval so we can help them with the tools.
“It’s entirely consent-based, and for many it’s their favorite part of therapy; they try to push us to the point where we pull out the conversational tools.”
Describing the people she works with, Ms Solomon said: “What is a good result depends entirely on where we start.
“At one end of the scale is a young girl who can use a switch with her head to get attention because she loves music, and when she pushed the switch, she heard a pop song.
“On the other hand, there are guys who are very talkative but whose diet is so severely restricted that they were at risk of being tube-fed.
“We were able to desensitize their food phobia to the point where they made their own sandwiches and ate all kinds of things they had never tried before.”
Skybound is now trying to open a new residential center to educate customers along with their families.
Dan now lives with Risca, her husband and their two young children two days a week and spends the rest of the week with Risca’s parents.
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