Growing Up TSA with Maria Wojtila

Join Lynette and Rich as they explore an intervention model for Autism called The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach (SM). The model is designed to help you understand, respond, and help those in your world who live a life with Autism. Our goal is to help expand your thinking to better serve these amazing people, and to support you in your daily struggles and celebrations.  In this episode we meet Maria Wojtila who has known The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach (SM) her whole life as we look to the future in the next 25 years of The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach (SM). We learn all about how she sees TSA as beneficial for the future of growth and learning for those individuals on the Autism Spectrum. 

If you or someone you know could benefit from the full training for The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach (SM), you can take the course online.  Just go to https://www.thesuccessapproach.org/online-course for registration and other details.

The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach is a registered Service Mark protected under intellectual property law unless otherwise specified, all music, audio visual, and proprietary content shared in this podcast is property of AWEtism Productions, LLC and it’s sister agency Integrations Treatment Center. The use of this content is unlawful without the expressed written consent the proprietor.  

Transcript

CONNECT WITH S.U.C.C.E.S.S. 

Podcast Episode #9, Launch Date: July 7, 2021

With Dr. Rich Smith and Dr. Lynette Scotese-Wojtila

Guest: Maria Wojtila

Subject: Growing Up With The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach

Want to help your child and your whole family using The SUCCESS Approach? Check out our online course: https://www.thesuccessapproach.org/online-course

{INTRO MUSIC} 

LYNETTE: Welcome to connect with success with Dr. Lynette Scotese-Wojtila where we help connect you with knowledge. Our mission is to lead you to a new and exciting way of understanding, responding to, and helping all those with autism. We hope to expand your thinking about how to best serve these amazing people and to support you in your daily struggles and celebrations. 

RICH: Welcome everyone to the 9th episode of Connect with S.U.C.C.E.S.S., a podcast built around the S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach and the person who coined it, Dr. Lynette Scotese-Wojtila. And in this episode we are going to take a moment to meet an amazing up-and-coming superstar in the world of autism. She is the heart and soul of Dr. Lynette and I can’t wait for you guys to meet her. But first, let’s take a moment before we jump in to talk with Dr. Lynette and see what today’s term for the episode is going to be. 

LYNETTE: Well, I gotta be honest, coming up with the term for this episode was kind of a challenge, um, because of just the girth of this episode is just so great. So, I consulted with some of our AWEtism productions team who’s here in the studio and, uh, we concurred that the word should be “growth” and um we like the term growth for this episode because it encapsulates all that the SUCCESS Approach in its 25 years of existence has grown to become. It has helped children grow, it has helped us grow as individuals and parents and teachers and professionals, and perhaps most importantly, we believe The SUCCESS Approach can help society grow in the way that it understands, assesses, educates, treats, and embraces individuals on the autism spectrum.

[music]

RICH: Welcome back to our segment where we’re going to get to meet our guest for today. I got to know her as a student, and its so cool to be able to work with students on anything in life, but this podcast in particular, um, I’m going to let you Dr. Lynette, give you the opportunity to introduce her because you know her better than anyone

LYNETTE: I sure do! And our guest today our very special guest is Maria Wojtila, my daughter. 

RICH: Maria, welcome to the show!

MARIA: Thanks! Thanks for having me.

RICH: So, uh, we know you but why don’t you give everyone who’s listening a little idea of who you are and what you like to do.

Maria: Okay, um, as Dr. Scotese-Wojtila said I am Maria. And I am 22 years-old. I’m in my 4th year of college. I just finished up my undergrad. And I have 1 more year to like get my masters in May of 2022. And I’m graduating with a masters in occupational therapy.

RICH: That’s awesome! I’m not that old, there’s no way… that I am that old.

[laughter]

LYNETTE: Wait, wait. Excuse me, I’m not that old.

RICH: Right, nobody here is that old! Anytime I see or catch up with a student and they tell me what they’re doing, I always say, “You know what’s amazing.. I haven’t aged a bit!”

[laughter]

LYNETTE: It is a phenomenon. 

RICH: So, what do you like to do in your spare time, Maria?

MARIA: Um, I like to hang out with my friends. I’m blessed with a pretty large group of amazing people, uh that’s my friends, so we hang out a lot and do fun stuff. I’m also a fitness instructor so exercising is very important to me. I also have a musical background so I like to sing and dance, and I used to act a lot but I don’t do that much anymore, but.

RICH: She doesn’t just like to sing, folks, she’s amazing. If you;ve never heard Maria singing its like an angel dropped on earth and you just hear it and it’s an amazing experience. I got to work with you on Beauty and the Beast where she was Belle. Actually both of us were.. part of that 

LYNETTE: Yes, we were part of that production. Back in 8th grade. Way back when.

MARIA: I still had braces

[laughter]

LYNETTE: Yes you did.

RICH: Tell us a little about where you first started with the SUCCESS Approach

MARIA: Yeah. Um. I’m gonna be honest I don’t know if there was an exact start time I think I was just kind of forced in it. Um, one of my very first memories was laying on my mom’s chest, she was holding me during a meeting and I thought it was cool cause I could hear the vibrations of her talking through her chest. I was probably like 2 or 3 but that was a super salient memory I had cause it was kind of a cool sound. So, I think kind of since the day that I was born I’ve been involved with The SUCCESS approach. Once I was old enough, probably around 4 or 5, I started coming in as a typical peer and actually working with the kids with autism, um, which was always super fun. And I loved all the toys here. It was like a huge playground for me. And then when I was 15 and could legally work, I was brought on board as a transdisciplinary aide and have been serving as that. I do some more administrative stuff now like scheduling and, um, kind of the ‘behind the scenes’ work. But yeah I don’t think I’ve ever had a start or a stop time in being involved with The SUCCESS approach. 

RICH: Right, we just were coming in to close out the 25th year, the anniversary of the SUCCESS approach. 

LYNETTE: That’s right. July 24. It’s our 25th anniversary

RICH: So yeah you were literally part of the success approach when it was standing womb only

[LAUGHTER]

MARIA: Yup, Best view in the house. 

RICH: Wait that’s where I got to put that in there as well. So what was it like growing up with the SUCCESS Approach?

MARIA: Yeah. Um, It’s kind of hard to say what was the SUCCESS Approach and what was my mom, cause, yaknow, the success approach came from her. So, it is kind of hard to divide those two apart. Um, but something that I noticed at a very young age is the way that I learned things was a little bit different. Like, I went to a friend’s house when I was little and she was trying to learn math through flashcards. Um, and I learned math through my mom who was singing songs, and dancing, and counting and painting numbers and things like that so, it was a learning experience. So, although I wasn’t technically on a treatment plan, I was on the SUCCESS Approach. The SUCCESS Approach was kind of prescribed to me in that way. Um, and also, on the social pragmatic side of things as well, um, driving to preschool we would sings songs about “What’s your favorite color?” with other kids that would carpool with in the car or um, “What do you like to do?” things like that to practice that social pragmatic stuff. And, yaknow, I was 3 or 4, I didn’t know what was going on. But, once I’m learning this stuff now in school I’m looking back and I’m like “Oh, that’s what she was doing” whether she even noticed it or not, that’s kind of what she was doing. And then, another thing, this is kind of a traumatic memory for me, low key..

LYNETTE: Oh no.

RICH: Oh I love it, let’s hear it.

MARIA: But, I was only positively reinforced for positive behavior. So, I um, and there was never really punishments or anything like that. Um, I was never grounded thank God. But what I mean by only positively reinforced for positive behavior, it actually comes from psychology, it stems from psychology. And I remember being probably 6 and I wanted something, I don’t remember what. And my mom said no. And I threw a temper tantrum, I was balling. I was screaming and I went behind the couch, and I hid behind the couch just blowing my head off, throwing the biggest temper tantrum ever. And I kept peaking out to look at her to see if she would like come over and like calm me down. She ignored me like I was not even in the room, she did not give me the time of day! I kept peaking out like fake crying like aaahh and she did not even look in my direction. So, I stormed up to my room after probably about 10 minutes and I was like “Welp, that’s never going to work.” And I learned my lesson and probably never threw a temper tantrum again!

LYNETTE: Absolutely. And it’s so funny to hear that I don’t even remember that episode. But, I can tell you a lot of parents out there can absolutely remember when your child threw an ep..uh, a tantrum like that because it happens all the time. It’s there M.O., it’s how they operate. And it doesn’t need to be that way.

RICH: That was going to be my next question, like, do you remember that?

LYNETTE: No absolutely not. I remember for all my children, for Paul, Dominic, Adam, and Maria, I remember always taking their perspective in life. Always climbing in their shoes literally so if they were at eye-level with something, it wasn’t much for me to join them because that’s what occupational therapists do. They join children and they help meaning happen by joining them. Um, but I remember enjoying that. It brought me to a place of “Hey, if they’re seeing it this way and I could see it with them, we are sharing a fun learning experience.” And then I would very carefully make sure that what was supposed to be salient about that experience was what I commented on or what I made happen, um, in that particular experience. And then I remember then as the mommy, which I was always thinking about it from a mommy, but part of that was a clinical kind of thing, but from the mommy in me would then look to my child to watch the wheels turn and like almost um, memorize or video tape what this salient thing was. And im like “yep! Check! Done! That’s got in the brain that’s good.” Yeah and it’s such a joy to be such a it was empowering to me as a mom to be such a distinct catalyst in that understanding.

RICH: That’s amazing. So, any other fun stories about growing up TSA. That’s how I’m going to categorize this, by the way, growing up TSA.

MARIA: Um, I think older on in life, it’s not really a story, but it’s something that will always stick with me. That was obviously when I was younger, but older in life in my teen years, um, the number one message, and this might be more OT, occupational therapy. But, it was always “Be balanced. You have to be balanced” If you’re going to hang out with your friends one night then you have to stay home with me one night. You know what I mean, it was always about being balanced. And that’s something that, you know, a lot of people my age don’t have right now and a lot of people, you know, even older than me never learned, never practiced, and so they don’t know how to do it. And that’s how I am able to be so involved with so many things and have so many different hobbies and so many groups of friends and things like that because I have been practicing being balanced in my very young teens.

RICH: All that balance. Go ahead.

LYNETTE: It reminds me of something that we used to have, Maria, if you remember. We used to have in our kitchen we used to have like “House Rules” and they didn’t last very long. Cause they served its purpose and they didn’t have to last but one of the most important rules if you remember was “You must do the beginning, middle, and end of everything.” And so that is such an important message to human beings in general and I need to take my own advice about that by the way because there’s plenty of times that I don’t do all those things. But for a child in their formative years as they’re forming schemas and understanding how to conduct themselves and be a steward in their homes or a helper in society, you must must must do all of an activity. So, you can’t just eat your food. You have to clean up when you’re done. And if you make your food, that’s even better. If you make it, eat it, and then clean it up or the portions of it that you’re supposed to clean up, clean it up. You have that completeness of a task and that is how I raised my children. That they should be thinking in sets of three: start, do and complete.

RICH: Great message. And how is that going for you?

MARIA: Good! 

[laughter]

MARIA: Yeah, now I’m the one telling her to finish.

LYNETTE: Absolutely! Such a truthful statement. [laughter]

MARIA: Yeah. And the only other thing that is really memorable from growing up, um, is just we had so much fun all the time. All of my friends that came over, it was always so fun. Um, and that’s because you’re an OT so, you play!

LYNETTE: I do, I play. I know it’s a child’s work and play is easy. When you understand how children work, play becomes very easy. The other thing I wanna say and this comes from my son Paul, quite a bit, my oldest son. He always tells me that his friends growing up would comment to him, not in front of us, but he would, um, hear his friends constantly commenting about this and the comment was: When do your parents fight? When do you guys fight in your household? And Paul’s like ummm? I.. I don’t know. I’ve never heard fighting? Like Paul didn’t even know how to answer the question. And I think that, of course, there’s disagreements. Disagreements and fighting are two different things. But the reason I think that some people “fight” is because they don’t communicate well about their differences, or they don’t take the perspective of the other person. And that’s just not how I raised my children, that’s part of my faith. That’s part of my formation, in my case, a Roman catholic, a devout Roman Catholic very much governed by their faith. So, you know, if I was talking to my daughter versus talking to Christ, my response would be the same. I’m going to stop and listen to their perspective. I’m going to own what they think, too. And that kind of partnership is a beautiful way to live life. Partnering with the people around you.

RICH: And that’s the foundation of the SUCCESS Approach is that perspective in finding the members of your transdisciplinary team to help meet the perspective of where that person is.

LYNETTE: That’s right. And when you take the perspective, there’s a sharing that happens. And it’s easy to hold up what becomes an extension of yourself. So, holding up Maria and her goals in life and holding up her energies and her stamina and her time and her talents to live out the way her life is going and the way she wants her life to go. I’m an extension of that energy, an extension of that process, and vice versa. Um, yaknow, she’s carrying on so many ideals and beliefs and from our belief system as a family in the work she’s doing and her formation into adulthood. So, that partnership leads to joining and sort of mutual ,uh, mutual goals, but lived through separate people, so to speak. The greater good, serving the greater good is certainly part of what our family aspires to do and that’s not an accident, again, that’s rooted in my faith. And I would say that everyone has their own unique take on what it is to be part of the bigger picture or to do work for the greater good. Mine is very concretely grounded in Integrations Treatment Center. And you know, my sons didn’t choose healthcare but they’re very much trying to contribute to the greater good of their careers and help whether that’s architect or civil engineering or project management, they’re all doing things to help society in their own way.

RICH: Yeah and it’s less about employment or career and more about vocation.

LYNETTE: That’s it. Yeah, good distinction. Very good distinction.

RICH: Right. So, speaking of Integrations Treatment Center. What was it like growing up in Integrations Treatment Center? We mentioned the play…

MARIA: Yeah. I was always here all the time, every summer helping out, like I said serving as a typical peer. And I think that every child should do that. I think every child should have to do that, at least for one summer, because the amount of understanding that I gained from working with these different kinds of people, my tolerance and my patience for people that don’t talk the same way or don’t look the same way, you know my increased communication skills, my creativity, all of these things are because I was working with a huge spectrum of different kinds of kids and developing true friendships with them, which is very unique, I think. 

And then another thing that I learned at a young age is not to compare myself to other people, which is so important now. And it’s hard for a lot of people especially nowadays with social media and all these things being kind of shoved into your face. But you know, if you compare yourself to someone with autism, yeah, they might not have the same social skills that you have, but they’re brilliant in a lot of other ways and they have all these hidden talents and special things. And it’s hard when you go to, you know, school with people that look like you and talk like you, it’s easy to compare. But when I was forced out of that and was coming here to volunteer at ITC, it was much easier for me to see “Oh wow, this person’s my same age and we’re doing the same things in life. And they’re really good at this, and I’m not good at that. But we’re still friends!” And we both, there’s no reason to compare us. Especially into my pre-teen years when that was a lot more prevalent.

LYNETTE: Mm-hmm. Age appropriately.

MARIA: Yes, that was definitely a good lesson to learn at a young age.

RICH: And I’m just inspired by the parallels here because you’ve had this Integrations Treatment Center life growing up and how that’s made an impact on your future career choice which we’ll get here in just a minute for you, but, just the fact that you and this whole idea of what Integrations Treatment Center is today is more out of your experience with Katie.

LYNETTE: YES. Yes. Beautiful Katie. Absolutely, she was my inspiration for, um, sort of understanding and, at the time I didn’t know that I was supposed to accept, but at least understanding that there was a disconnect between what kids with special needs, in this case, Autism, could do, could amount to, could aspire to be, and what they’re supported to become. And so, all I knew when I was a little sixth grader myself running around at Integrations Treatment Center campus, which wasn’t ITC back then, but it’s the campus of the Borromeo seminary and center for pastoral leadership. That’s where Camp Happiness was. That was part of the Catholic charities programming then. So, as a volunteer working with Katie and other children, it gave me the opportunity to embrace her and relate, kind of like Maria was talking about, like she’s not quite a peer but I’m not all that much older than her, I was a junior camp counselor in sixth grade and what was she, maybe like third grade, something like that? And so, by kind of embracing her and accepting her where she was, and seeing her uh, how autism manifested in her, it was okay because she was beautifully unique and free-spirited and so gifted in, like Maria said, in so many ways, but to know that she was here for a service it wasn’t just come and play, it was a service. And when she wasn’t here in summer, she was being served somewhere else for a specialized program. My concern was “is it enough?” This beautiful, free-spirited wonderful child, um, has so much to give and is it enough to bring out um, really her God-given talents and the best version of herself that she could be? And I think back then, historically, 30 now some years ago now 40, the answer was “No.” They didn’t have a lot of resources then, they didn’t know neurodevelopmental care, they didn’t know transdisciplinary care, they didn’t know the neurology of autism like we do today. And so, the Katies of the world were sort of disadvantaged just in the history of ed, and special ed, and the healthcare. And so, I wanted to be part of the difference, and that’s why ITC kind of came into being and why, people like Maria, who were in my family, were along for the ride because I was so called to it. 

RICH: And so what was your final catalyst in saying this is something I want to do? Like its not just how you grew up, but I mean, now you’ve chosen to take on this vocation?

MARIA: Yeah, I think I always knew. I wrote in kindergarten, it was like “What do you want to be when you grow up?” And I said “occupational therapist.” I did not spell it right, but I did write it! 

[laughter]

MARIA: Um, so I think I’ve always known. I thought about broadcast journalism, because I do have a background in performing arts, so I thought about going down that road. But then I thought about, what am I gonna come home from work and say everyday “I’ve done something really good today and I’m changing the world and I’m helping as many people as I can.” Cause, I mean, I’ve always been an empath and anyone can talk on a microphone in a crowd, but not anyone can look at someone and really understand them and want to understand them and love them and care for them, so, I think that’s a little bit more of a special talent that I have than any other thing in my life.

[music]

RICH: Now, you are kind of the future, then, as we start looking forward ahead of the next 25 years, right so, how are you seeing this in your studies as something that’s speaking to you and saying this needs to be out more, this needs to be top of mine, this holistic approach to service?

MARIA: Yeah. We’re actually conducting a research study right now. And I think that there needs to be as much research as possible on this. I think that’s what’s going to kind of really open people’s eyes up because right now, there’s no answer. There’s no “this is what you should do” and that’s causing parents to be frustrated and at a loss and often times they go down the wrong path and they get stuck there, and their child could have progressed much more somewhere else. So, I think that getting the research out there, because people aren’t going to listen to words anymore. People want the facts and the truth and it’s easy to find if you just Google it. So I think people really if we hit them over the head with the numbers and really prove it, um, that’s what’s going to be most beneficial in our immediate future for getting the word out there.

LYNETTE: And I think Maria, you’re on to something really important. I will add that, in the twenty-five years that Dr. Smith talked about, the ITC entity being in existence, um, we have plenty of anecdotal information, plenty of our own internal facts, if you will, about “we didn’t have The SUCCESS Approach for this kid when they started, we gave it to them, and within 8 weeks, 5 weeks, 3 days, whatever it is, we see changes. It’s not an accident. My favorite thing people that people know me to say at ITC, it’s not my favorite thing but it’s what I’m known for is “And that’s not an accident.” [laughs] Um, and it’s not when you’re systematic and intentional about neuroscience and about neurodevelopment and meet the child where they’re at and develop their just-right critical curriculum, it is elicited. 

We talk about the SUCCESS Approach acronym, and that ‘e’ being elicited, it’s not an accident. It’s facilitated to happen. It’s prompted to happen and then it happens! And then it stays, which is beautiful. A lot of our biggest concerns about some of the programs out there is that it’s transient. Well, they were good for awhile but then it stopped or it seemed to help for a little bit but then they seemed to have lost the skill. And I’m like well then it wasn’t really a skill, it wasn;t really in there. Yaknow, so that’s a concern of mine. So when we see these games in these kids that we facilitate and predict and predict well, we want to capture that now in empirical data. Um, and so, this is the whole point of trying to do more concrete research through Gannon University, um, where I got my doctorate and where Maria is in the Master’s level fast track program there, wonderful program, um, and other local and non-local universities that have demonstrated a recent interest in wanting to send their students here and/or um, be part of research. They want to make a difference as well. Particularly the programs and universities that have occupational therapy because we see the unique role that occupational therapy plays in my biased opinion as the profession who truly understands all the aspects of autism and how the SUCCESS Approach can address many of those aspects.

RICH: So, let’s take a step back for a second because I think, um, I don’t know if we actually did this in the first episode. Let’s talk about the SUCCESS Approach for a second, what does the acronym for the SUCCESS Approach mean?

LYNETTE: Okay, so it’s actually a methodological sentence or a methodological belief and the belief is that Strategic Use of Critical Curriculum Elicits Supported Sense-Making. And when, um, I created my training program and now what Ellen does in rendering that information as our instructor, what we do to help people understand that is break it down in terms of the components of the acronym. So, strategic use is just that intentional employment of something, okay. Critical curriculum is the just-right and ONLY the just-right methods that apply to a child, um, and what they need to eventually have understanding and sense-making. The ‘e’ is ‘elicits’ and that’s an important word because we’re yielding, we’re producing, we’re prompting, we’re the catalyst to the outcome, and the outcome is supported sense-making. So, we’re eliciting understanding, we’re eliciting learning by what we strategically do by introducing the just-right curriculum or critical curriculum. And so, another way to say that is ‘by using the just-right methods and only the just-right methods, we’re gonna help the kid learn.’ 

RICH: And I think that goes back to what you’ve been saying on all the episodes, being intentional. That it’s personalized for each individual and that, uh, the hope is that the team can build supports necessary to make it ongoing.

LYNETTE: That’s right. And it’s not a one shoe fits all kinda thing. It’s definitely not cookie cutter, that old saying, a cookie cutter approach. It is so not. I always say we’re baking a pie, we’re baking a cake and those ingredients are just as unique as the cake. And parents get to decide with us, which is the beauty of the SUCCESS Approach, what parts or what ingredients are most helpful, are tolerable, are appreciated, are valued. Not all of them are! And so, we don’t use some if they don’t make sense to the family. And just a quick example, so no one’s wondering what that means is: there may be a technique where we are doing some brushing of the skin and some pressure to different parts of the body, or whatever, um, and there’s a very specific part of that particular protocol that we call TheraPressure or what is sometimes called Wilbarger protocol or brushing where the parent has to or the person doing the technique should very carefully and very appropriately and very systematically put pressure on the top of the head and sort of straight down to give this calming input. And I had a mom tell me, “I’m not comfortable pushing on my kid’s head.” It’s like “Okay, well, we’ll cut that part out and instead, they can wear a heavy hat for a minute or they can just skip that part or they can go upside down on a pillow or they can try to balance books or something.” Okay, we’ll go around it. Not to sacrifice the benefits of the approach, but to go around what wasn’t comfortable. So tiny little example. So, that child’s critical curriculum would be a modified version of the Brushing Protocol. 

RICH: And I think that’s so important because you’re not only playing to the child’s comfort zone, but you’re looking at the parent’s comfort zone to helping them meet that need.

LYNETTE: That’s right. And so, when Ellen teaches our class, she may see through the journal entries that a parent has a particular question or concern or doesn’t agree with something or doesn’t know enough to agree or disagree. So, she can piece apart and individualize that response in the journal program or the journal system um, that puts that parent at ease or explains it better or individualized to that child. And the program for our training, what it allows is for parents to film themselves with their child or to film the child with somebody else, whatever they want to do, so that Ellen can have that opportunity to see that child and give more meaningful feedback. [28:00]

RICH: Right, now and taking all this in then Maria, you’re doing continued research on this. Where are you finding more common trends leading more this way in general?

MARIA: We’re still in the beginning stages so, we haven’t actually seen any of the data yet. So, we’ll be collecting and kind of crunching numbers a couple months from now in the fall.

LYNETTE: But, can you speak, and I’m curious about this too, can you speak to the literature? Are there trends in the literature about autism? Are there trends in the literature about transdisciplinary care? Are there trends in the literature about any of our seven theories that together we know constitute the success approach but aren’t often used together? They’re kind of isolated or used separately. 

MARIA: Yeah. So, basically what we found when we did our literature review, which was a very extensive research in all of the different databases and articles that’s out there. And, what we found is there is contradicting evidence for a lot of what’s being done right now and, if there isn’t contradictory evidence for things like sensory integration that are based in occupational therapy, there’s not enough evidence. So, similar to the SUCCESS approach, there’s not necessarily contradicting information, but there’s not enough of it because the people that would be researching it are busy doing it.

LYNETTE: Absolutely.

RICH: So, this could be the hole that the SUCCESS approach fills.

MARIA: Right, exactly. 

LYNETTE: I’m going to speak to that because so many people said, “Well why haven’t you been researching this?” And I said “‘cause I’ve been busy developing it!” [laughter]. And you know it’s the people who say that vary from parents to grant writers that are looking for some more ‘umph’ in their written information about us because they’re looking for funding. I’m sure it’s out there. I know it’s out there, but it might be specific to certain kind of intervention because even grant funders only know what they know, too. You can only know what you know. And so, we’re trying to empower the people who are willing and able to, um, support financially and to teach like the SUCCESS approach and new models like the SUCCESS approach, um, by telling them why we’re different, how we’re different. And the rate of progress, I mean, Maria, I don’t know, you’ve been in the trenches so long, but one of the things that new staff tells me when they come on board and new families is “I cannot believe…” A) that this kid can do this – this is often the parents saying ‘I can’t believe my kid can do this, and that they’re doing it and how fast it developed! How fast the skill developed. Didn’t know they were going to “pee on the potty” but the fact they did it in 3 days? Unbelievable. Or I didn’t think that they’d be able to say ‘mom’ but the fact that they did it in 3 weeks? Unbelievable. Like this is common discussion, common comments that we hear at ITC, so, is that a perspective you can share as well?

MARIA: Yeah, it’s really, I mean, that happens to me every time that I come back for Christmas and summer break. And the cool thing for me, it’s not just when they first start, it’s seeing kids that have been here for 4 or 5 years or however long they have, and I come back one summer and they’re talking all of a sudden when they were nonverbal their entire life up until 10 years old. So, it’s really amazing to not only see the large amount of progress and growth, but also to see that it’s quick, but it’s also never changing, or the only thing that is changing is they continue to progress. 

Like one, for example, one summer, I went away to go to school and then I came back that December, and a girl, who probably spoke maybe 100 words, was talking like a typical 6 year-old girl. And you wouldn’t even recognize her! It was like a totally different child.

LYNETTE: And I wanted to speak to that because you just had an example of a child who was here for 5 years and that they’re now age 10 and they’re talking, and you’ve seen the evolution of that. And then this little one you’re talking about who was relatively fast number of months, the difference, ‘cause if I’m a parent listening like ‘why did one progress and one didn’t?’ And I got to tell you as a clinician, the neurology and the child’s constitution, like what they’re made of, how their brain is wired, their environment, how early they did or didn’t get services, what kind of services, the nutrition, their overall health, the number they are in the family, are they the only child or one of seven? All these things influence the rate of progress and their God-given potential is elicited at different rates. So, the child who needed 4 or 5 years to find his voice was probably neurologically very involved and had huge holes in their development which took not just a little bit of foundation but the pouring of new cement, which can take years and years and years. And those children, always, we approach with the capacity, the hope, and the capacity, and really the belief that they’re going to talk, walk, pee on the potty, eat, whatever their parents come most concerned about them not doing. So, we always expect they’re going to live out their best version of their talking self, or their walking self, or whatever that is and we set into motion the plan of action to get there. Some take longer than others based on the holes. So, in the second analogy, Maria, you talked about a little girl coming back talking in full sentences. She probably had less holes. But, what probably happened for her is she was finally in the right environment where we still fill the little holes, the little patch work, but we flooded her with the just-right challenge everyday, the just-right environment everyday where she could rise to the occasion to develop these skills and master them in a very short time. Neither child is better or worse than the other. Every child is individual, and every case is individual. What doesn’t vary is our ability to quickly identify as a team what they need and deliver it, and then sort of like mother nature kicks in, and their pace evolves from there. 

RICH: So, having taken all of this, where do you see the SUCCESS Approach in the future?

MARIA: That’s a really good question. I hope, especially learning all of the occupational therapy courses and things like that, I hope, and pray, that eventually every future occupational therapist and eventually special education teacher and speech language pathologist, I hope that everybody learns it and everybody is certified in the SUCCESS Approach and everybody takes the online course or whatever medium or platform it will be at that time. I think that is going to be the way that we see the most change is when everybody is doing it. I think learning about it and actually becoming certified in it is going to be the best way to do that. So, that’s where I see it in the future and I think then, people will not be so frustrated because it will be like “How do you treat autism? Oh yeah, it’s the SUCCESS Approach.” It’s as simple as that, as long as the world moves in that direction.

RICH: Wow.

LYNETTE: And what I wanna say is kind of a quick synopsis of that hope and prayer that I heard you suggest that you’re gonna hang onto is a shift in the paradigm. This work and our model that we are contributing to and developing and refining over time really can result in a paradigm for how we understand, assess, educate, and treat children on the spectrum and adults for that matter.

RICH: You just never know how much of an impact the center has. Obviously, you’ve grown up with it, you’ve created this whole thing to look at the child, per say. I will tell you from my perspective, Madison has been here since she was 3.

LYNETTE: Mhm. On and off.

RICH: On and off, for sure. Right, and she came here full time in 5th grade

LYNETTE: Right

RICH: I just gotta say right now, as a testimonial, how amazing it has been to see Maddie make that transition because of the loving staff and the transdisciplinary care offered here at ITC. And I realize it even outside. So, we start out here and we work with Ellen and we work with you, Lynette, and all the great staff here, but you’ve gotta know that even the stuff you do outside makes an impact on these students. So, like Madison, for example, is always singing, she came out of the womb singing, I’m convinced. And then dance became part of her therapy plan to help with the gross motor, she really took to that. But it wasn’t until she saw you on stage in Beauty and the Beast and then again in Fiddler on the Roof where she decided that she’s going to go to Lake Catholic, first of all, that became her goal. And that she wants to do performing arts as her career choice. And so, to see all of that coming through just because you are who you are and what you’re studying and carrying on this mission of the SUCCESS Approach, you’ve got to know that that has made a huge impact on our lives. So, thank you for that.

MARIA: Of course.

LYNETTE: It’s an honor, isn’t it? To be part of such a journey as Maddie’s. And it hasn’t  been a smooth path always, but it’s been a path that became more clear with the partnership of Mom and Dad, which is unique, and the partnership of other people in their lives that have supported them: special teachers or our own staff that have gone above and beyond. And it’s fun for us because loving these kids the way we do, they’re an extension of us as a big family, Maria and I will go to see Maddie in a play to see her perform, not just because we are friends but because we do that for all of our kids. It’s a blessing when parents involve us in their child’s life to that extent and it’s bittersweet for me ‘cause one of the first things I’ll tell a family, and out there listeners if you are a new family and you come to me I will tell you, you can say that you’ve heard me say this if you’ve been here, “I don’t know your child (this is usually what I’ll say on the phone calls) but I’m sure I will come to love them, but in so doing that’s going to sound like I want to not have them in my life for long. ‘Cause that means that they’ll need me if they’re here. And so, I love your child and I want them to be the best they can be, and maybe in the future, I’ll be dancing at their wedding and that’s how I’ll be involved. But they shouldn’t have to be here for as long as some parents think they need to be getting special help if you use a neurodevelopmental model, and specifically the SUCCESS Approach, and specifically for kids on the spectrum who can and do learn naturally and normally as long as they’re given a neurodevelopmental opportunity to do so.

RICH: Amen. Well, Maria we wish you nothing but success in the future and I really hope that I’m around long enough to see it. 

LYNETTE: I second that 

[laughter]

RICH: But thanks for being here today and taking some time out just to talk to our audience about how powerful the success approach has been through you as being a generational participant. Take care and we’ll be right back with the next challenge

 [music]

LYNETTE: So today, listeners, I’d like the challenge for you to be this: Please take a moment to reflect on who has facilitated growth in your life or your child’s life and take a moment to thank them.

[music]

RICH: What an amazing review of what the SUCCESS Approach is and the powerful impact it’s had on our children and our families. I love what Maria said about her hope for TSA becoming the future, becomes a part of life, not just to supplement it. A beautiful portrait of hope and growth as we start thinking about the next 25 years of the SUCCESS Approach. I’ll tell you that as a teacher, one of the things that’s most important to me is that my students walk away, facts and figures are one thing and being able to do things is another, but having that growth mindset, just being able to propel yourself forward. Growth supports momentum to move up and forwards and so it’s been such an amazing opportunity as a teacher to get updates on one of my favorite students’ paths in life and how that journey is leading her to her vocation. What was it like having a proud mom moment this episode?

LYNETTE: Oh my goodness. Here’s the real truth: I have proud mom moments every single day for all of my amazing 4 children. But, in a special way, Maria is a very quick to elicit a sense of pride in me because she is the complete package. She was born that way. A lot of people think it was, you know, more nurture than nature, and it really wasn’t. I can tell you. Being the therapist that I am, I can see in other people’s skill sets, it is kind of what I do for a living. And I saw in her from a very young age that she has what it takes. The fact that she has chosen to use that part of herself to contribute to the vocation that I’ve chosen is what chokes me up, because she can do anything. The girl can do anything. And I’m just honored that she is part of our amazing field and I know Ellen feels the same way. Many therapists feel the same way, it’s like we’re getting a diamond on our side. It’s great.

RICH: And a double diamond coming from you, who has created this amazing approach and just being able to bring somebody who’s going to help bring it life in the next 25 years is an amazing opportunity. So, what else should our listeners take away from this episode today?

LYNETTE: Well, I think Maria kind of highlighted some of this in her conversation with us, but I like to think that the takeaways are that the SUCCESS Approach can be, is for many, and should be a way of life. It’s not just an intervention model. I also think we need to acknowledge that in our particular country, we really need to do a better job of understanding that learning and development can be supported by fun and enjoyable activities. It’s not about pushing a pencil. And I think we can come to understand that if we first take the perspective of the child and ground absolutely everything we do in a neurodevelopmental approach. The other takeaway is that SUCCESS Approach as a lifestyle choice can be paradigm shifting in the field of education, healthcare, mental health, and our overall quality of life. We hope that you learned something today to help you on your journey with autism. We’ll share more on our next Connect with S.U.C.C.E.S.S. podcast. Until then, expect SUCCESS!

The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach (SM) is a registered service mark protected under intellectual property law. Unless otherwise specified, all music audio visual and proprietary content shared in this podcast is property of AWEtism Productions, LLC, and its sister agency Integrations Treatment Center (Wickliffe, Ohio). Use of this content is unlawful without the express written consent of the aforementioned agency.

For more information about The S.U.C.C.E.S.S. Approach (SM), please go to our website at www.thesuccessapproach.org.

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