The Benevolent Society has been providing supports to Ryan, 19 years old, from mid-2017. Over that time, Ryan’s relationship with his mum, Deb has changed to be more positive. Deb explains how Ryan’s ability to communicate and express his needs has improved. 

“Ryan was born and a very, very quiet baby to start with. I got worried in the early stages with him because he never met his milestones, he wouldn't stay awake, wouldn't engage in the world. Then when he was about three, three and a half, we got a preliminary assessment of autism, and then at six years old he was diagnosed with autism and high sensory needs.” 

“At the time of his diagnosis, it was an absolute relief.”

“I knew that there was a reason and that there was going to be some light at the end of the tunnel. Hopefully, that we could get some help so that Ryan could make the best of his life.”

“From there we tried to get therapy in the local area here. Unfortunately, back then there was no therapy in country areas, and you had to travel to a city. But Ryan was unable to travel unless we had two people in the backseat travelling with him, and by the time we got there, he was in that much of a state so you could not get any therapy.”

“I still say, Ryan's age group is the skipped generation, because a lot of the time he was either too young or too old to get services.”

“So, it wasn't until NDIS came about, with the funding that we were able to get him to the stage that he is now. 

“Working with The Benevolent Society, they have taught me how to work with Ryan. They've actually taught me that some of Ryan's behaviours weren't necessarily Ryan. It was what I was doing, I was enabling it through the years of just doing the same thing every day. So, they've actually taught me some things.”

“Ryan’s behaviour, since he started with The Benevolent Society, means, I can actually stay in the house by myself with him. Because he was getting quite violent or too much in my personal space, so I could not stay alone with him.” 

“He can now stay home by himself for about half an hour if need be. So, he's now got a key to the front door and he can let himself in. He's able to catch the bus by himself, instead of totally relying on me to do everything with. He's now learning more independence himself. “

“We've told him that one day we'll never be around, so he has to start learning these things. And, he's now putting his hand up to learn things as well, which he's never done before. It's always just been video games, in his world, and that was it. Whereas now, through therapy and that, he's realising there is another world out there, and he needs to start learning.”

“The highlight of being Ryan's mum is you learn new things from Ryan every day too. And you have to learn to look through his eyes, not just through your own eyes because he sees the world so differently.”

To learn more about disability services with the Benevolent Society click here or call us on 1800 236 762.