Kate Owens Heins, the visionary CEO and founder of Sensory Safe Solution for Individuals with Autism, has 24 years of experience as a hairstylist and 13 years as a salon owner. In addition to her professional expertise, she brings a deeply personal touch as the parent of a son with autism.
The challenges of autism were real, but for Kate, this was an opportunity to learn and grow by “thinking outside the box.” As she persevered through endless hours of therapies and the demands of parenting an autistic child, she became keenly aware of the lack of education and empathy within the beauty industry. Other parents recounted the horrors of having their children restrained by numerous adults to receive a haircut, being asked to leave the salon or shop, or even worse, being refused at the door. Many parents were left with the task of cutting their children’s hair at home or while they slept.
Families were being traumatized by industry professionals. Kate knew she had to do something; she knew they could do better.
This revelation led to the development of an elevated educational platform designed with research-based tools and strategies to address autism spectrum disorder, sensory processing disorder, and other sensory-sensitive differences. The Sensory Safe Solution provides a 2-hour certification for industry professionals to learn about autism spectrum disorder (ASD), behaviors that may be present during a salon service, and the best practices recommended to alleviate the sensory overload or increased anxiety that impacts many individuals.
In twelve months, Kate and her team certified over 1,300 providers across 30 states and four countries, firmly establishing The Sensory Safe Solution as an educational model impacting individuals, families, professionals, and communities, and changing the world.
Interviewed by Winn Claybaugh, Kate vividly shares her story of raising a son with autism (now 11 years old) and the work she has done to educate herself, provide resources and therapy for her son, and create a curriculum and certification for her fellow hairdressers to create sensory safe experiences. Kate describes the unique challenges that individuals with autism face in everyday situations and how families with children with autism are being traumatized by something as simple as receiving a haircut, visiting a restaurant, traveling in an airplane, and many other environments. Kate’s journey has led her to create a nonprofit organization and become a vocal advocate, even addressing government leaders in her state’s capitol.
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