Whale Sharks, Underwater Photography and Autism

A Personal Story as Told by Tanya Houppermans

Here’s something a little different.

Tanya Houppermans’ son, Richard, has autism. She is a photographer with a love of scuba diving. Even though he enjoyed snorkeling in the swimming pool she never thought that her son would get to enjoy the thrill of scuba diving.

Two years ago she found a local dive shop that was willing to allow him to take a PADI Discover Diving class. And his world changed.

Richard joined Tanya and her husband, Scott, on their most recent trip to Mexico.

Below is an excerpt from an article written by Tanya Houppermans.

…Within an hour of first donning a regulator, Richard was swimming in the deep end of the pool in full scuba gear, completely at ease. Thanks to the Handicapped Scuba Association, Richard earned his Open Water scuba certification, and is now able to join my husband, Scott, and me on our dive adventures.

Whale Sharks and Mantas—A Family Affair

Our most recent adventure took us to Mexico, where Richard came along on a trip to photograph the whale sharks and manta rays of Isla Mujeres. We decided on Isla Mujeres as a destination that would be appropriate for Richard because of the ease of traveling there from our home in the U.S, and also the high likelihood of seeing the whale sharks and mantas.

From early on, Richard understood not to touch the animals, and he was always careful not to do anything that might scare them. That usually had the effect of the animals coming closer to him because they didn’t fear him. Richard loves these interactions, which is always evident by the huge smile on his face.

We prepared Richard for the trip to Isla Mujeres the same way we did in the past, which included showing him pictures of the animals that we would see on the expedition. Richard, like many autistic people, is very visual; he learns best by seeing something rather than being told about it.

My Son’s First Whale Shark

When the first whale shark appeared, Richard had a huge grin on his face as he watched the shark swim by. When Richard lifted his head out of the water, I asked him, “What did you see?” He responded with an enthusiastic, “I saw a whale shark!” Richard typically does not respond in complete sentences, so just hearing him say that was well worth the trip.
The next day, we were very fortunate to be joined by several manta rays. Again, Richard joyfully entered the water to snorkel with the mantas. After one of the groups of mantas had passed, I asked him again, “What did you see?” He replied, “I saw five manta rays!” It was such an incredible moment to hear him speaking in a full sentence, again with a broad smile across his face.

Richard and his step-dad, Scott, are dwarfed by a whale shark as it swims past just under the surface of the water

 

Next Stop: Cave Diving

On what was to be our last day in the water, the seas were a bit rough, so we decided to scuba dive in Mexico’s beautiful cenotes. We ensured that the caverns were shallow and had plenty of areas to surface since Richard had never dived in a cavern before. As it turned out, he was very excited to get to scuba dive in the caverns, and he performed flawlessly.

I am so grateful to be able to share my love of the ocean with my son, and also proud that the images I take are helping him to learn to express himself. But when all is said and done, the biggest reward of all doesn’t require any words: His smile speaks volumes.

To read the entire article at divephotoguide.com click here.