At MacIntyre, we see the benefits of Intensive Interaction techniques every day.
But ‘techniques’ is such a mechanical word isn’t it? What we see is connection. One young person at a time, one staff member at a time, building relationships and shared connection.
During July, we’re celebrating what Intensive Interaction means for us and for the people we support.
So what is Intensive Interaction?
Some of the people who draw on our support have little or no verbal communication.
Especially at our school and children’s homes, staff work closely with children and young people, using the instinctive mirroring that we usually see between loving parents and their babies.
If a child smiles, the staff member will mirror that smile back to them. Perhaps the young person nods or shakes their head, or makes a sound. Whatever the communication, we will mirror back. We engage on the person’s own terms. It makes them feel seen, acknowledged and understood.
We’ve seen some amazing results, with people growing in confidence every day.
Becoming more independent
Looking back to the beginning of this year, we shared Mary’s story.
Prior to MacIntyre, Mary had not left home for nearly two years, had not been receiving any form of education and was completely nocturnal - sleeping all day and awake all night. Her independence skills were minimal.
We were able to build a relationship with Mary through Intensive Interaction, and she has come so far.
More stories to come
There are so many stories like this that we’ve shared over the years, and we’ll be sharing more during July.
Ending with a poem
But to end today, we’re re-sharing a poem written by Kate Boyer, our Intensive Interaction Facilitator and Mentor. We shared it last year but it describes Intensive Interaction so beautifully that we’ve no hesitation in sharing it again!
In the Supermarket Queue
They stood in the queue in the supermarket and he was rocking to and fro
She sensed his need for reassurance and decided to give it a go
She started to rock in imitation to him and also widened her eyes
He put up his hood and turned away but couldn’t quite hide his surprise
She had noticed this and put her own hood up so she could tune into him
He sneaked a peek he just had to do so and then he began to stim
She did the same and while they stimmed together he removed his hood
It was obvious to her that what she was doing was making him feel good
It was making sense and each time he looked she was right there
He stopped his stimming and stood very still then gently touched her hair
She was receptive to this and touched his hair not quite sure what he would do
She gave a look which clearly told him ‘I am enjoying being with you’
He made eye contact and reached for her hand then started to vocalise
She paused for a moment then imitated aware of their difference in size
She lowered her height to position herself so she could properly join in
He completely forgot about the long queue and then he started to grin
She held back well not doing too much letting him lead and set the pace
The approach she was using worked so well and he allowed her into his space
A wonderful moment when he was learning so much to support his communication
She had pitched it just right following his lead but avoiding over stimulation
So much to gain from someone like her who was willing to try for his sake
She would do this again because she knew the difference it would make
Using Intensive Interaction can positively impact on a person’s well being
MacIntyre believes everyone has the potential to learn and this is what we are seeing
Positive relationships and learning how to enjoy being with another
Feeling good, things making sense and what was a dark world now full of colour!
