Community – Isaac's Autism in the Wild

Episode #104 | Housing Options for Adults

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | July 19, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

In this episode we are joined by Desiree Kameka Galloway of The Autism Housing Network. Holly had first learned of their work as well as the Madison House Autism Foundation a few years back while attending a conference about “Life After High School.” Holly was so impressed with Desiree’s presentation and has used their site as a reference to our families for years. The ISAAC Foundation has been receiving more and more calls from parents regarding concerns for long term living situations for their adult children in recent years so we reached out to Desiree to see if she could explain some of the housing options that exist and what the Autism Housing Network can do to help families as they determine the long term plans for their loved ones.

Contact Info:

Desiree Kameka Galloway

Director, Autism Housing Network

National Coordinator, Coalition for Community Choice

Madison House Autism Foundation

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Episode 103 | Self Advocate: Sydney

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | July 15, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

This week on ISAAC’S Autism in the Wild our host Holly is joined by Sydney. Sydney is a 27 year old self advocate that just relocated to Spokane from Alaska. We cover it all in this episode: from her diagnosis as a child, to her career in Alaska, and now how she is settling in to life in Spokane. Sydney is an ambitious young woman with a strong sense of self and will be a great ambassador for self advocates in Spokane, we are happy to have met with her and look forward to collaborating with her again soon!

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Episode 102 | Bullying

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | July 6, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

In this episode we discuss bullying, we have talked about this in the past in other episodes but felt that we had enough content to re-visit and dedicate an entire episode. We have three moms joining our host Holly and all of them have dealt with bullying to some extent when raising their children. Each of the parents recount the situations and share how the issues were resolved. We also discuss how the world has changed and cover how the bullying of 2021 compares to the “bully standards” of the 1990s when we were living the middle/high school experience.

UPDATE: Be sure to listen after the closing statements, we get a little update from Holly regarding Caleb’s rocket project in school

References:

Power of words: TikTok video by _iamdiosa_

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100th Episode | PART TWO

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | July 2, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

Welcome back to Part Two of our 100th episode special recording! We have a great group of parents together–in person–for the first time since before the pandemic. In this section of the recording we discuss our favorite podcast episodes and discuss how podcasting has affected each of them.

If you are interested in joining us on a podcast and telling your story please complete this form and we will be in contact to get you scheduled so you can meet the network of amazing families we work with!

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Episode 98 | My Life on the Autism Spectrum, Tracey Cohen

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | June 14, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

Today we are very excited to introduce our listeners to a truly inspirational self advocate, Tracey Cohen. Tracey reached out to us to share her resources with the intent to educate and inspire individuals, families, professionals, and anyone willing to learn about Asperger syndrome/autism. She wants to share her story to prevent others from the hardships and pitfalls of her past. We asked her to be on our podcast and share her story and we are so glad to have made this connection. Listen in, and we are sure you will be just as captivated with her and her story as we are!

About Tracey:

There have been many misunderstandings in Tracey’s life. The most impactful misunderstanding was learning she was on the Autism Spectrum at the age of 39. A lifetime of feeling unheard and misunderstood suddenly had a name and a reason. Since her diagnosis Tracey has continued to study and learn about her diagnosis and how it influenced the choices that were made for her growing up.

Tracey currently helps facilitate a non-profit meetup group for adults on the spectrum, this group is based out of Michigan, however, all events are currently online so are available for anyone on the spectrum to take part in.

She has also written and published three books, all which can be purchased in print or audio/kindle.

Finally she is featured on the website: Growing Up Autistic where she shares her story, accolades, and links to her work.

To reach Tracey directly please email: tracey@growingupautistic.com

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Episode 97 | Launching Adult Children

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | June 7, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

In this episode we are joined by two moms that both have young-adult children that are preparing to launch towards independence. Phara has a 23 year year old son and is currently preparing for their second-attempt at launching her son into independent living. Gerriann has an 18 year old son who is just graduating high school and will be continuing in the school system through a transition program.

We discuss with each parent the issues they are facing, the barriers to employment/living situations they are encountering, and the programs they have been utilizing to make positive progress. We also have a conversation about the needs of the parents and the importance of finding a support network and planning for the future.

If you have questions for any of our guests, please feel free to email us at hello@theisaacfoundation.org and we would be happy to get you in contact with them!

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Episode 95 | Vaccination Schedules

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | May 28, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

Did you vaccinate your child along a traditional vaccination schedule? We chat with a few special needs moms in this episode that have varying views regarding vaccination. We discuss how they worked with their doctors to protect their children from disease in a way that was most comfortable for them and their children. We also dissect information from both sides of the vaccine debate and dip a toe into the controversial topic of Covid-19 vaccines. Listen in to hear the decisions these parents made to ensure their children meet public school vaccine regulations, stay safe from disease, and how they handle the criticism of others with differing views.

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Episode 94 | Sabita Finds Her Voice: Advocacy for the nonverbal

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | May 24, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

This week on ISAAC’S Autism in the Wild podcast Holly is joined by an amazing mother, entrepreneur, and advocate for the nonverbal community, Dr Stephanie Vavilala. We were honored to zoom chat with Dr Stephanie about the amazing facility she is opening as well as the services she is currently offering in St. Augustine Florida through her LMH practice Therapeutic Expressions and her nonprofit organization Sabita Speaks. Listen in as we discuss important programs that have been created to fill the many gaps in special needs care across the country and the release of Dr. Stephanie’s book, Sabita Finds Her Voice which serves as a flagship for educating the youth about AAC Speech Devices and how they can better bridge the gap between the verbal and non-verbal populations.

Dr. Stephanie Vavilala, Ed.D, LMHC, BCBA, RPT-S is the CEO and founder of Therapeutic Expressions and Awetism Wonderland (an autism therapy center), as well as the author of the children’s book Sabita Finds Her Voice. She is the mother of a daughter who has autism and is non verbal, Sabita. Stephanie’s daughter inspired her to become a leader in the space of special needs. Her therapeutic style is holistic, empowering, and action-oriented. She and her daughter reside in St. Augustine, Florida.

The main link that Stephanie uses as a one-stop shop for her initiatives: https://stephanievavilala.com/

Sabita Speaks: A nonprofit which seeks to raise awareness around AAC devices for non-verbal folks: https://www.sabitaspeaks.org/

The website for her main practice (which isn’t limited to special needs) is here: https://therapeuticexpressions.com/

Purchase Sabita Finds Her Voice: https://www.amazon.com/Sabita-Finds-Voice-Stephanie-Vavilala-ebook/dp/B092Q2GFTW

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Episode 91 | Self Advocate, GW of Autism Chose Me

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | April 30, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

Today we are joined by Gillis Williams or GW of “Autism Chose Me.” GW is an incredible self- advocate for persons affected by autism spectrum disorder. Listen in as we discuss the controversy between the “light it up blue” and “red instead” movements and discuss how both missions have impactful goals that are beneficial to the autism community.

About GW:

When I was five years old, I was diagnosed with autism. From grade school to high school issues I had included listening problems, struggles following directions in class, and repetitive behaviors such as flapping my hands and repeating random words or sentences. I also struggled making friends because kids in school didn’t understand my behaviors. Even my teachers, who tried to support me in all the ways they could, didn’t understand me either. However, with my supportive family at my side, we worked TOGETHER to get me help. They placed me in occupational and music therapies in grade school that assisted kids with disabilities, and also with hard work and dedication, I have become a successful speaker and entrepreneur, something that scientific research 15 years ago stated that hardly any autistic individual would have been able to accomplish. Most importantly, I have made friends along the way that understand me and support me. Without my family and friends for support, I would not have had any helpers throughout my life to “HELP” me overcome and accomplish! As the great Mr. Fred Rogers stated, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”

Social Media Advocates to look up: @paigelayle @reberrabon_bon @blackautisticking @raincloud.heart @resident_cryptid @autistic.alex @evelyn.jeans @lafilledani @autienelle

Follow GW on social media at: Autism Chose Me, info@autismchoseme.com

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Episode 90 | Dirty Looks in Public Revisited

By isaac-autism-in-the-wild | April 12, 2021 | Comments 0 Comment

One of our most downloaded episodes of ISAAC’s Autism in the Wild has been our “Dirty Looks in Public” recording. It seems that no matter where you are in your autism journey, you have a story to share about that time you were in public and felt the shaming glances from strangers, judging you and your parenting abilities. It is inevitable, and it is one of the worst experiences as a special needs parent. Today we are joined by a new panel of parents and talking about all of those cringey moments, how we dealt with them in the moment and how we would like other’s to respond when we are in a moment of meltdown at Target.

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