Today, we’d like to introduce you to Lisa Zimmerman. Lisa was introduced to us by the brilliant and talented LeeAnn DiTomaso and Samantha Paros Samantha Paros.
Lisa, thank you so much for joining us today. We’d love for you to bring our readers up to speed – can you introduce yourself and share your story?
My daughter Talia, 24 years old, was diagnosed with autism when she was three. Until August of 2023 – she had never communicated more than basic needs – “I am hungry, I want ice-cream,” etc.. This lack of communication led to severe behavior problems which as parents we felt helpless to control. We tried everything we could to help her – speech therapy, icons on the iPad, special diets, you name it. After 24 years we had resigned ourselves to the sad fact that the guessing game would continue – what does she want? What is she thinking about? Does something hurt? And worst of all – is someone hurting her?
We had also assumed, wrongly so, that Talia’s comprehension was limited.
In the summer of 2023 I ran into a friend who encouraged me to read a book called “Underestimated” by J.B. Handley. It was written in 2021 by the father of a 17 year old with autism who had also tried EVERYTHING to help his son communicate. They finally tried a form of communication called “Spelling to Communicate (S2C)” and his son caught on immediately. Though still “non-speaking” – his son fully communicates at age level and helped his dad to write the book.
Years of effort and thousands of dollars spent have made me a skeptic. There is always one person this stuff works for and a book is written. I thought “good for this dad and kid but it probably won’t work for Talia.” It wasn’t until I went to observe my friend’s son that I was hooked.
Talia started Spelling to Communicate at Access S2C in August of 2023. I can’t begin to explain what we are witnessing. Talia is spelling difficult words, answering complicated questions, doing math without a calculator, and has started to communicate her thoughts and feelings. We have learned that her favorite color is red, that she has always wanted to go to Sweden, that she likes thrift store clothes, and that she is a huge Cleveland sports fan – naming both the Browns and the Guardians as her favorite teams.
I will never be able to fully express the gratitude that we have for LeeAnn and Samantha at Access S2C. They unlocked her world and changed our lives. The future is suddenly much brighter.
Let’s talk about your work and career – what else should we know?
I am Vice-President of Operations at a healthcare technology company headquartered in Cleveland Ohio.
Access S2C has been a great friend to us and I know you’ve got a great relationship as well. Maybe you can tell our audience a bit about Access S2C and your experience with them.
Talia’s first session was with LeeAnn in August 2023. LeeAnn read a paragraph about astronauts. She read softly and the language was geared for adult readers. She then asked recall questions. Talia was able to spell all the answers perfectly with only prompts to scan all of the letters. She did this by pointing at letters on a board.
Paragraphs on various topics are read out loud at each session. Topics range from current events to technology topics to historical events. Recall and prior-knowledge questions are asked. We were floored when we discovered that Talia could name cities in Russia, that she knew Rubens was a baroque painter, and that silver iodide is a pollutant. We have many many examples like this. Talia did not watch a lot of TV growing up, she has never opened a book, and we have never seen her search the internet. We were not even sure she knew the alphabet.
Math questions are also asked at each session. Who know that Talia could do division and multiplication without a calculator?
Talia is now opening up with full, fluent, and sophisticated language. She has talked about healing her mental health, having her own Instagram account, baking sweet treats to relax, and she has thanked me for never giving up on her.
We did not think anything would work. We thought we had the hardest case. This communication method has worked for everyone I know – though progress is different for each individual. In Talia’s case – she quickly went from three letterboards to one. Next she will keyboard. We can’t wait.
Website: https://www.accesss2c.com/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/accesss2c/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/accessS2C
