The Funhouse part1

Has I mentioned in a previous blog, I had worked at a residential house for Adults with challenging behaviour and Autism.

Having never done anything like this for a job before, it was one hell of a shock.

When I started there, the house was just getting started. Out of 13 rooms, only 7 had residents in them, these were the ones I worked with the most. The house was split in 2, upstairs is where 5 of them lived.
I will use the first letter instead of names.

M was a 50 year old woman, who didn't talk much. But when she got upset, which was a lot with these residents, she used to slap herself in the face. When I say slap, I mean SLAP. You could hear her anywhere in the house. She slapped herself so hard, that over the years both her eyes were ruined. The men were only allowed to support her in the afternoons, due to personal care. But I always got a 'thank you man' in a deep voice, at the end of the day.


K was a 23 year old man. He couldn't talk, felt no pain and ate and drank anything, and I mean anything (Picka), including himself, hands mainly. He could shit through the eye of a needle, and because of this, he had to wear male pads (nappies). He was the one I learnt basic sign language for, so I could at least say hello to. Because of the way he was, unfortunately most of the other residents hit out at him.


S was 19, 6ft 3 but with the mind of a 8 year old.
He was one of the frequent 'kick off' residents, and when he went, it took 4 of us to hold him down. But I got on well with S and earned his trust, so he hardly went for me unless I got in the way of him 'getting' someone else !
'I'm gonna get you' and 'bastard cow' were often shouted. And when he said 'get you', he ment it .

IB was asian, and to be honest a good breeze would of blown him over. He could talk .... A lot !
You could have a conversation with him, but most of the time he repeated 80's Tv programmes.
'how are you'?
'James Bond' ! Or Magnum, A-team, Knight Rider etc.
Why ? Probably due to the fact that when he was young, he was locked in his bedroom with a Tv. Autism is frowned upon in certain cultures.
He was also an expert at stacking anything and often all over the house. But he always made me laugh, no matter what.

J was a 5ft male of 25, he suffered from Multiple sclerosis, Autism and sometimes a serious bad attitude. From the minute you walked into his room, it was a battle. From getting him in the bath to getting him dressed, I've had many slaps and punches. He had a problem with most of us in the house. He always made out he was helpless and innocent, but that was far from it. When he was after you, he could move like the wind and fight like a cage fighter. He often got the people he was after too, then all hell broke loose. I've seen him fight his dad in the hospital car park. That was a day to remember, they both ended up in there.

So that's the top half of the house, they each had there problems, but every now and then, they were a pleasure to be with. I had a good support relationship with each of them, especially with J.

Part2 is the 2 that lived downstairs, and that's a totally different story.

Thanks for reading,

Offski.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone