Ethan’s Voice: A Journey of Joy, Advocacy, and Acceptance

By Ellise Hollie-Hayward, Disabilities Editor

Everything changed as a family when Ethan’s family realised Ethan was autistic.

"There is no need to apologise or look sad when someone tells you their child is autistic, instead, why not ask what brings them joy or is there anything you can do to accommodate their needs" says Ethan's mum Laura.

Ethan was diagnosed as autistic back in November 2022 and his mum, Laura, was also late-diagnosed as autistic in November 2023. This, Laura said, "positively threw us into a whole new world & one that we are embracing with open arms."

Laura turned into a fierce autism advocate determined to bust myths, breakdown barriers and support others.

Ethan is living his best sensory-seeking life and Laura knows that together they will change the world! 

Ethan would be considered fairly high-needs and he is non-speaking.

But aside from all that, Ethan is the most incredible little boy and the best human that Laura and her partner know.

"He’s opened our eyes up to a whole new world and he truly sees the joy in everything."

Laura can genuinely say she is a better person since Ethan came into the world - he’s her hero. 

Ethan attends a specialist school and is thriving there, supported in a way that best meets his needs. He communicates incredibly well using both Makaton and his AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) device which has been life changing for them all as a family. 

AAC devices are still widely unknown and/or misunderstood, even in settings and professions you would expect to be fully up to speed with this incredible communication tool.

AAC is far too powerful to be ignored, dismissed & reserved for a small few.

Laura wants to shout from the rooftops about how incredible AAC devices are and the change they can make, both to, in their case, an autistic non-speaking 5 year old but also to the parents.

Laura won’t stop raising awareness until AAC is widely offered & discussed & all the various myths are debunked. Ethan is a powerful advocate to show these myths are untrue, such as AAC stops talking, it delays other communication skills etc so Laura will keep showing the world this until the views change.

AAC has truly given Ethan a voice and in turn has noticeably made him more confident and connected to the world.

Ethan can request his favourite show on YouTube and his favourite chocolate bar, more importantly than that he can advocate for himself when he wants to leave & show us where on his body it hurts when he’s poorly.

What’s more powerful than that? AAC has also bought some verbal words on for Ethan, words such as “More”, “Go” & “Again” which are repeatedly pressed on his AAC device and also he signs in Makaton.

This is huge for him!

Laura’s hopes for the world is that AAC is widely recognised, accepted and available for all families.

She wants schools to recommend it, Speech Therapists to have devices to easily long-term loan to families and all the myths to be proven away.

Laura wants  AAC to be taught in length to speech therapists, educators and teaching assistants & for venues etc to consider these devices when making their accessibility adjustments.

Her hopes for Ethan is that he’s truly happy and truly accepted. The sky truly is the limit for Ethan and they will support him however they can as his parents to achieve whatever he wants to do.

The power of AAC Laura knows will support him in this, armed with his AAC voice he’s set to take on the world. 

Ethan’s parents want to spread the message that it’s always presume competence. Please don’t make judgements about non-speaking individuals, presume competence and proudly watch along as they show you just what they can do.

If you have a positive story or uplifting news to share, we’d love to hear from you!

Just email us at news@goodnewspost.co.uk. 

Whether it's a local hero, an act of kindness, or a personal win, your story could help spread joy and improve someone’s mental health. Let’s make the world a little brighter, one good news story at a time. 

And don’t forget—you can sign up for free to get the latest feel-good stories straight to your inbox!