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âBless you and thank you, iSocial!â
Mike is the grandfather of a neurodiverse youngster and is head of a large disability-inclusion not-for-profit organization. See below for a heartwarming note that he wrote about his grandsonâs experience with iSocial.
Thank you for making iSocial available to high-functioning individuals with autism!
My grandson is thirteen years old. Prior to completing the iSocial sessions with five other young men like him, it was very difficult for him to engage in conversations. He was awkward in almost every social situation. We watched him often standing apart from others, not participating or engaged with his classmates or teammates. When he was comfortable, he often interrupted, he would talk about sports results and statistics that interested him, never picking up the non-verbal signals of those with him that although they were impressed with his incredible amount of knowledge, that it quickly became boring listening to his monologue of sportâs reporting.
Whenever he faced situations where he did not understand why someone was correcting him or trying to explain something that he was having difficulty with, it most often resulted in heightened emotions and loss of control. Also, my grandson lost his father a year ago. Iâm his maternal grandpa. Iâm also trying to be dad too.
We were not sure if he would engage in the bi-weekly one hour iSocial sessions. He did! After a month, I picked him up to take him to soccer practice. He got in the car and said to me for the first time ever, âHi Grandpa! Whatâs up?â and âwhat did you do today?â Next, âDid you watch the Blues game last night?â When he noticed tears on my cheeks he asked, âWhatâs wrong Grandpa?â I explained my tears were happy tears caused by him asking me questions showing he cared about me.
My grandsonâs family, friends, classmates, teammates, teachers and counselors all are so happy to see him engaging in conversations. They see how much happier he is now. His special education aids and his mom and I are able to help him calm himself when he starts to melt down. Sometimes he struggles at first, but by assuring him by getting calm we will listen then and we will try to help him, he now is able to calm himself.
iSocial has given a fine young man the tools to be able to use his remarkable abilities and to be not only accepted but liked. Bless you and thank you, iSocial!
âThe iSocial program really has made a huge difference in our lives and in Christian. And we still see improvements every day with him! iSocial works!!! We hope other families can get some benefit from iSocial also. We are so appreciative of the program and all of the wonderful people involved who have touched our lives. â€â
âShe has love-love-loved this whole program, and she looks forward to every single session. :) Thank you so much for everything! She has developed so much through the program, and it has been great. I have seen huge growth in her communication. She can start up a conversation with almost anyone these days! We really appreciate everything. Thanks!â
âWhen I think about my own son, I would like to say I wouldnât change him for the world and so Iâll change the world for him.â
âiSocial spread out all of my actions and reactions in detail in front of me so I could see them. Then it showed me which ones to focus on: what was actually happening with myself and others and what was just my paranoid fear. When I learned where to focus my attention, I discovered I actually had the skills I needed to succeed. This program gave me both the clarity and the confidence to use my skills effectively. Tearing down my doubt about making mistakes and replacing it with confidence means that Iâm empowered to go to bat for myself.â
âOur kiddo is getting so much from the classes. I have to say it is almost a day-and-night difference in him and how he interacts with those around him. I have no clue what all you are doing in class, but keep up the great work. His mom was telling me that her son is getting other students in his science class to pay more attention and start turning in assignments. The teacher is seeing what he is doing and can see the results.â
âAutism affects us all differently. iSocial provides tools, clarity, and processing techniques to help us cope with aspects of communication that we often struggle with. Social networking, for example, is a somewhat advanced social concept that can be effective to those able to make use of it. iSocial's programs teach us how and why it worksâas well as the benefits of understanding and using it. Other concepts, like self-advocacy, goal setting, and relationship structures, are discussed in the same way. For those of us that see these concepts as exotic or alien, mastering them can be life-changing.â
Empowerment for a better life and a better world