Orange to feature in SBS Documentary

Navigating the dating world can be tricky for anyone, but for young people with intellectual or learning difficulties, the challenges and stigma surrounding relationships can be overwhelming.

A new documentary screening on SBS next week aims to break down the silence, stigma and prejudice that still exists around this subject. Love Me As I Am follows six individuals with intellectual and learning disabilities in a quest for romance that leads them right here to Orange.

Relationship coach Liz Dore is known as a pioneer in the field and has spent more than 20 years providing relationship coaching and sexual advice to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Too often, she said, parents and educators focus solely on teaching protective behaviours around relationships, but she felt there was no one teaching how to build a good relationship.

“I felt like in order to teach people about bad relationships or bad interactions, if side-by-side with that you were teaching them how to develop good relationships, and how to tell the difference, it might be more fulfilling for them,” said Liz.

Liz’s workshops, the subject of the documentary, teach people with intellectual disabilities and people on the autism spectrum social skills and relationship skills, starting simply with how to ask someone out on a date.

Some of my clients face challenges because of their social disability or their intellectual disability and are unaware of how to make those first steps in dating. They might be attracted to people, but it's another thing to then approach someone,” she said.

“My workshops include a coffee shop outing and so they go through the process of asking each other out and having good conversations.

“And I talk about what is the evidence that person is interested in a relationship and what's the evidence that they would be safe in a relationship and talk about how you introduce them to your friends and family to get to know them a bit better.”

Liz also organises regular single’s dances, which see people come from all over Sydney. But for Love Me As I Am, Liz’s six clients got the experience of a lifetime, travelling by train to Orange to take part in LiveBetter’s Debutante Ball in November last year.

“We had a fun trip up on the train and a fun night!” said Liz.  “I would hope that after watching this show they would rethink how they support people with disability… I would really love for carers and families to think about relationships in the person’s future plan — put relationships in their plan along with employment and residential and living skills. It is an integral part of our lives and I think it needs to be thought about more.

LiveBetter’s Marketing and Public Relations Manager, Sim Madigan, said Love Me As I Am is a real celebration that love is for everybody.

“I think it is important that everyone realises that people with a disability have the same needs and wants as anyone else in that regard,” said Sim.

“We are all the same, so it is really important to let people know that it is a basic human right and a right for everybody. And it’s just beautiful seeing people try to find that love.”

Catch Love Me As I Am, Wednesday, 7 August on SBS.