As the mother of a child with severe autism, Amber Horton sees firsthand the challenges that kids with sensory issues face in their everyday lives.
Everywhere the Muskegon mom goes – from the mall, to the grocery store, to the hospital – she sees ways that her son, Max, could potentially get overstimulated by the sights and sounds, leading to a sensory meltdown.
“You start seeing a need for awareness and the education about the autism spectrum everywhere in the public,” Horton told MLive. So as an emergency medical technician (EMT), it was only natural for Horton to look for ways to make her own line of work better for kids like Max.
That’s what led the mother to develop “sensory kits,” providing tools for patients with autism to cope with the flashing lights and sirens during an ambulance ride.
“When I considered how overwhelming an ambulance ride could be for a person with sensory processing issues, it was important for me to find a way to improve that experience,” she said.