Client Stories & Testimonials | Autism & Beyond Coaching

Client Success Stories & More Testimonials

Client Success Stories

Overcoming Shyness & Building Resilience

Before:

Winston (nine years) had very low self-esteem and confidence as well as lacking a father figure in his life as his father passed away at a young age. He didn't enjoy team sports because he didn't feel good enough to participate, which left him withdrawn and spending too much time on his tech devices.

After:

After only 12 weeks of 1:1 sessions with me, (one session per week) he was a completely different child. The mix of natural movement and roughhousing that we did during his sessions allowed him to really come out of his shell, both mentally and physically and feel good about himself.

I was excited to hear that Winston joined a Brazilian Ju-Jitsu class after finishing our block of sessions, because he was more confident and motivated.

Clint

Not Letting 'Nerdiness' Get in the Way

Before:

Aiden (11 years) came to me as a self-confessed nerd. He lacked physical fitness, co-ordination, self-esteem and confidence. He had never managed to spend a whole night at a sleepover with friends because he would easily become overwhelmed by fear and anxiety.

After:

During our time together not only did Aiden's self-esteem and confidence increase, but his physical abilities and fitness also improved. He achieved things he never thought he would, such as signing up to the school cricket team and coming 3rd place in sprints at his school sports day.

He also no longer has worries about sleeping at friends' houses and is not afraid to try new things.

Clint

From Zero (Confidence) to Hero

Miss G. (seven years) was a tiny little thing compared with her older and much taller sister. Whenever it came to any of the physical games we played together, she'd often give up easily. This all changed after some time together; she was becoming very capable at the games and movements we did together.

During one of our sessions, we played a game called Bull in the Ring. The object of this game was to push your opponent out of the circle drawn on the beach. Miss G had never won this game against her sister and it looked like during this particular session that wouldn't change. Early on her sister was pushing her around and it looked like the game would end early, but nobody told Miss G this! With an almighty push, she managed to shove her sister out of the ring giving her a hard-earned victory!

Miss G's mum later told me that since that day Miss G had newfound confidence, started giving everything a try and no longer letting her sister push her around. She said she was "like a different person" in a good way.

Clint

Finding Unicorns on Chambers Island

I work mostly with boys because they're diagnosed on the spectrum easier and more often than girls are, and parents of boys find out about us and what we do more so than parents of girls, but we do absolutely work well with girls and they need just as much help, support and play as boys do.

Take Piper for example. She needs help with feeling more confident in herself, overcoming sleep issues, improving her coordination skills and increasing her desire to be active outdoors. I use a gentle approach with kids like this, who don't need so much rough play and mucking around but need more relationship-based coaching.

We spend a lot of time exploring the island, walking through and talking about mud, climbing in the trees and chatting about unicorns - her obsession!

One session I created a unicorn adventure for her by arriving early to place unicorn hair (coloured wig strands), hoof prints (star-shaped punched paper pieces) and a hoof-written letter in and around a tree to encourage Piper to climb, as she was previously quite scared to do so. She had an absolute blast and ended up at the top of the tree. Later on her mum sent me a photo of her and her dad in a tree together.

Creating a unique personalised experience with a positive purpose helped Piper gain confidence doing things all kids should be able to do with ease, such as tree climbing.

Clint

Creating Calm to Avoid Meltdowns

Before:

Mr. H (eight years) is Autistic, likes things to go his way, lacks focus, often experiences intense meltdowns and has poor body awareness.

After:

During our time together I noticed significant positive changes with Mr H. He had a lot fewer meltdowns than he once did and if he was getting close to experiencing one, I was usually able to avert the crisis and help him to calm down and feel in control again. The activities and the games we played helped him become more focused and present, allowing him to get more out of our sessions.

Throughout my time coaching ASD children, I feel comfortable not only being able to spot a meltdown coming but being able to prevent them, in most cases.

I have a knack for communicating with children in a way that calms them down, removes the focus from the stress if needed, or removing the cause of the stress altogether.

I've realised I'm really good at helping kids overcome their meltdowns, and as many parents and educators know, once a meltdown kicks in it can mean the end of the activity that was in place, and a lot of work to get the meltdown to stop and for the child to feel calm again. I have the ability to stop meltdowns, using a few different elements such as communication techniques and movements.

This is a natural skill I'm really grateful to have.

Clint

As Long As They Need, I'm Here

I worked with Brenton, an Autistic adult in his 20s, for about seven years. In that time we accomplished a lot together and I saw him improve with his fitness, his motivation, his understanding of and desire for healthier eating and supported him through both his ups and downs.

He and his parents often told me how patient and understanding I was, and that no other PT would have been as much of a friend and support for Brenton as I was.

When he eventually had to stop training due to changes to his location and overall personal situation, I was sad to see him go but happy for all the work we did together and how far he had come.

I'm grateful to have played such a big role in his life and to have contributed to better health and happiness for this great young man.

"Clint, thank you so much for the wonderful friend and mentor you have been to Brenton" - mum Julie

Clint

More Testimonials from Parents

Jennifer

Our family have experienced Clint's Private Kid's Coaching sessions, which have been a thorough success for us. Clint immediately struck up a good rapport with our kids and excels at encouraging them to push themselves, and supporting them to learn new skills. He has a natural way with kids; putting them at their ease, treating them with respect, and valuing their autonomy. I would have no hesitation in recommending these sessions. His communication is great and any paperwork is online, efficient and timely.

Emma C.

Our 11 yo son has ASD and CP and struggles with his strength and mobility development, social interaction with unfamiliar people and communication. During the very first session with Clint, our son was laughing, joking and running around participating with all of Clint‘s ‘exercises’.

He is now able to more easily participate in all the school lunch time activities like tag and touch football with his able bodied NT friends and best of all our physio has assessed his legs as the best stretch and flexibility we have had to date. This will delay Botox injections to his legs which is fantastic. Fully recommend Clint to get your kids outside, active and happy to come back each week

Tash L.

My son has been seeing Clint for around 6mths now and the changes in his confidence are amazing!! My son loves going to Clint's sessions! It’s one of the only ‘therapies’ he actually looks forward to!

A couple of years ago we went camping and my boy wouldn’t even go near the water in the dam because if his fear and the tadpoles in it! Last weekend we went back to the same spot and I was so pleasantly surprised when he got in a kayak, paddled around and then fell in, with NO bad reaction at all!! I had even bought him aqua shoes but he didn’t even care about wearing them! He spent the whole weekend practically in the dam! I feel all the confidence building, water wading, and activities Clint has done with my boy is a major part in this awesome step forward!! Thanks Clint!!

Sally

Clint has been working with my kids for over a year now, every Wednesday morning, and now Fridays too for my son. My kids' ability to climb trees and balance has grown exponentially, my son is now interested in nature and animals, and is hooked on fishing, thanks to Clint.

This says a lot for a boy who is addicted to his screens!

We can't recommend Clint enough. He is a great role model, and gets down onto the same level as the kids, while also guiding them. My daughter always comes back smiling, and my son's self-esteem is growing.

Thanks Clint!

Sarah & Stuart

A good friend told us about Clint and we were thrilled to enroll our eldest child (one of three, all with additional and complex medical needs) into 1:1 coaching.

Two of our three children had 2 terms, out of formal education, last year, and Autism & Beyond offered the ideal solution to keep our 12 year old engaged, build his confidence, work on his impulse control and risk taking and, most importantly, offer him some support and something special and exciting to look forward to each week.

We are excited to continue working with Clint and to see ongoing progress.

We are very grateful for such a wonderful opportunity for our children, thank you!