There will be a documentary concerning autism airing soon on PBS:
A documentary focusing on how people with autism experience love and manage romantic relationships is set to appear on PBS.
“Autism in Love” will air on the network’s “Independent Lens” series in January.
The film, which debuted
earlier this year at the Tribeca Film Festival, follows four people on
the spectrum as they seek out and maintain relationships.
Dave and Lindsey both have autism and are considering marriage after
eight years together. By contrast, Lenny lives in Los Angeles with his
mother and struggles mightily to meet girls and date. Meanwhile, Stephen
– whose autism symptoms are more apparent than the others featured – is
coping as his wife of 20 years battles ovarian cancer.
“This film allows us to get to know four remarkable people, who have
opened up their lives in such an intimate and deeply personal way in
front of the camera,” said Lois Vossen, executive producer of
“Independent Lens.”
“Their courage to reveal the struggles and challenges they face allows us to understand and empathize with them,” Vossen said.
“Autism in Love” will air on PBS on Jan. 11 at 10 p.m. ET.
*******************************
Meanwhile, therapeutic horseback-riding for those with disabilities is more than just horse play:
HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. – Eddie Brennan is all charged up. The hyper
4-year-old, who has autism, has already charged through a puddle, and
writhes as his nanny struggles to remove his shoes and socks.
But when Brennan climbs on the back of Kattie, a dark bay therapy horse, something magical happens.
The kinetic little boy becomes like Jell-O, melting into the horse,
contented and somehow soothed. He sits or lays on its back – even rides
backward. It’s as if he has a connection to the horse.
For 25 years, the nonprofit Therapeutic Riding Center at the
Huntington Beach Central Park Equestrian Center has offered riding
therapies to people with special needs ranging from autism to epilepsy.
For much of that time, Donna Brandt, president of the group and the
lead instructor, has been at the center of the action. A longtime
horsewoman, Brandt became involved after her daughter, Jamie, was
diagnosed with severe developmental delay.
Like many parents with children who have challenges, Brandt tried
numerous activities and therapies to find one that engaged her child.
“We tried them all. This is the one she liked best,” Brandt said.
“She’ll sit around all day and wait to go riding. This is the one that
stuck.”
Parents and caretakers are almost unanimous – there’s something about
horses. The relationships and bonds the children form with the animals
can be transformative.
Katy Prill is all about drama, according to her father, David Gill.
The 17-year-old, who has Down syndrome and recently recovered from
leukemia, often tries to make big productions out of small things and
can act out.
But on this day, she hops right onto Wilma, a big bay, without any histrionics.
“Hey, dad, look at me,” she calls out, waving.
“She’s almost unrecognizable,” Gill, 44, said of his daughter and the
progress she has made since becoming involved with therapeutic riding.
On the horse, Prill is focused and confident, two things lacking
since her move from Redding, in Northern California, to Huntington Beach
four years ago.
“When she came down, this was one of her first activities,” Gill said. “She was very fearful.”
On a warm, dusty day at the Huntington Beach Equestrian Center,
parents talked about the self-confidence it gave the children. They feel
the experience improves cognitive, physical, emotional and social
well-being.
Brandt said people who use wheelchairs can build core strength by
riding a horse. It also builds self-confidence. Brandt said something as
simple as a change in perspective – looking down from horseback rather
than up from a chair – can feel empowering.
Plus, the lessons are conducted outdoors and away from therapy rooms.
“This is one of the therapies (people with disabilities) don’t give up on,” Brandt said. “There’s something about animals.”
Gill said when his daughter plays softball or soccer, it is about the social experience. On a horse she is more purposeful.
“There’s a maturity that comes with it,” he said.
Karen Starky, 54, says the program has been a “savior,” for her
daughter, Angie, 28, who has epilepsy. Starky says before her daughter
developed the condition, she was a fearless athlete and skier.
Epilepsy took that away. Therapeutic riding is bringing her back.
“When she started, she could barely get on (the horse), she was so weak,” Starky said.
Now Angie rides confidently and mugs for a photographer.
Danielle Stanback, 32, is a volunteer who also has epilepsy but is
rebounding. She said the riding is particularly important because it
pulls people out of isolation.
At the Therapeutic Riding Center, most of the riders are accompanied
by three volunteers, one who leads the horse and two side-walkers, who
protect riders from toppling off. Classes are an hour, once a week,
Monday through Wednesday and Saturday. Riding is divided into 10-week
semesters, which cost $410 per semester. There also are scholarships for
those in need.
In addition to classes, Brandt often offers special extras. This
year, there was a Halloween horse parade, and she took 30 students to
the 2015 Kiwanis Equestrian Competition for Special Athletes at Hansen
Dam Equestrian Center in Los Angeles.
Brandt said a film crew from South Korea was scheduled to visit to
make a documentary film and possibly create a similar program.
The therapeutic capabilities of working with horses date to ancient
Greece. In the 17th century, interaction with horses was prescribed for
ailments ranging from gout to low morale. It was not until the 1960s,
however, that equine-assisted therapy and hippotherapy was formalized.
Brandt said insurance programs don’t pay for riding as therapy, but she hopes that will change.
“It’s becoming more mainstream. One of these days it will be
accepted,” she said. “I encourage everyone to file with their insurance.
One of these days …. ”
Karinna Barlow, 42, watches as her 9-year-old son, Leo, is led around
the ring. He has a rare genetic defect called agenesis of the corpus
callosum that affects the white matter that connects the hemispheres of
the brain.
“We were trying so many things that we were overwhelmed with therapies,” Barlow said.
When Leo found horse riding, she described it as something akin to souls communing.
“It’s so good to know there’s always a way for them to participate in
the world,” she said. “You realize it’s just in a different way.”
© 2015 The Orange County Register
*****************************
One negative note for today--unfortunately unemployment for those with disabilities appears to be on the rise:
Despite strong job growth last month, new federal data suggests that
unemployment among people with disabilities ticked up sharply.
The jobless rate for Americans with disabilities hit 12.1 percent in
November, the U.S. Department of Labor said Friday. That’s a steep
increase over the 10.5 percent reported the month prior.
The shift comes as figures show fewer people with disabilities were employed and more sought to join the workforce.
At the same time, the economy as a whole added 211,000 jobs and
unemployment for the general population remained steady at 5 percent,
the Labor Department said. Overall, government data indicates that the
number of unemployed Americans has declined by 1.1 million over the last
year.
Federal officials began tracking employment among people with
disabilities in October 2008. There is not yet enough data compiled to
establish seasonal trends among this population, so statistics for this
group are not seasonally adjusted.
Data on people with disabilities covers those over the age of 16 who
do not live in institutions. The first employment report specific to
this population was made available in February 2009. Now, reports are
released monthly.
*********************
No comments:
Post a Comment