Libby Ingram
Appearances
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
I'm Houston's mom. I'm Libby Ingram. I'm John Paul's mother. And I'm also a speech language pathologist.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
Well, John Paul, he also saw angels and he saw the good and the bad. And he was so adamant that we love each other. And he talked about love all the time. That was sort of his message was that I just don't think he had a lot of fear because he knew there was something so much better than that. Love is what's important.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
So, you know, if someone was ugly or unkind, he would spell, they don't understand, just love them. And he could see that in them. And I thought, what a gift that he just is so comfortable with who he is. I think his teacher, Ms. Susan, I think I made a post about this because it was hysterical. She said, John Paul, what do you like best about yourself? And he spelled everything. Yeah.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
which I thought was fabulous because he had so many limitations, but he was just happy. I think when you see the things he saw, why would you be unhappy? You know, there was just something so much better. And that's a gift. And I try to remember that all the time with him having not being here anymore. Just remember what he taught me when he was here.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
Go ahead, Libby. The first thing I think anyone can do is to have positive thoughts, positive loving thoughts in their head because they feel it, they hear it. And I think you can improve... Even if it's your child or your student, their quality of life right away by keeping loving thoughts and not, I mean, there were times, of course, John Paul frustrated me to no end.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
I mean, he did some very bizarre things. And in my head, I would say to him, I still love you. I said, I'm just going to have to clean this up. A little annoyed because I'm human, but I still love you. It's okay. I think that is such an easy thing to do. It doesn't cost a cent. to make them feel good about themselves. I mean, because they're already caring so much.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
That's a burden to take off of them. I think that's right away something that can be done.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
A lot of the people I hear about that have done these tests, first of all, have never had the spelling training. so they don't even know if they'd had the training they might understand why it doesn't work but not only that what infuriates me when people do this is how soul-crushing it is to the child or the young adult or the adult who is being tested it is it's so cruel
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
Because this person is, I've just heard some terrible things, graduate students trying to test this to disprove spelling, possibly for their professor or whatever. I just, it makes me so angry because it's so unloving. and not supportive that I just don't even understand why it's even done. But don't do it. And if you've never been trained, then you don't even know what you're doing.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
And if you have been trained, you probably wouldn't do it because you know that it's not going to work. But I have had people that I know where the autistic went into a severe depression afterwards because it just it was soul crushing. So I just I wish that if any young therapist or professional hears this, they will just refuse to do it. Don't do it because you don't have the training to do it.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
So that's my two cents. It makes me crazy, Kai. I find it infuriating.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
For me, it wasn't. John Paul wanted to do it. I presented it to him and John Paul said, said, spelled, it had to be done because he wants to see change for, at the time he wanted his friends to have a better life. And he too wanted a better life and to be educated and to be taken seriously and presumed competent. So it wasn't even, it was more like, mom, we're doing this. So jump on board.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
So I didn't really have a choice, but I would have done it anyway. Love that.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
Libby, go ahead. I've gotten texts and emails from parents about, one, if they have lost a child, wanting to find out how they can find out if they're okay, if their child's there, do they hear them? And it's been great to be able to comfort parents that have been through this situation. Also, parents who want to know how do we find the spelling because it's not in my community.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
I don't have anyone close. And that is a huge problem. There needs to be more teachers, caregivers, parents that are able to have access to spelling. And there are some limitations. One, it's expensive. And that needs to change because that's another way of gatekeeping. parents from being able to communicate with their child is the expense of it. So that that needs to change.
The Telepathy Tapes
Talk Tracks Ep 3: Q&A with Parents, Scientists & Educators from Season One
So whether it's ASHA saying speech therapists are allowed to learn this method, so they can do it more in the public school or more special ed teachers having access to the training, but that needs to happen. Yeah.