Most houses are not designed to work with the needs of physically challenged people or those with neurodiversity. One woman has gone viral on TikTok for building a house to suit the life of her autistic brother.
The video shows that life can be made easier for people with disabilities by customising the interior design of the house and adding some pieces of technology.
TikToker @depomarker's house tour video shows how a woman and her family members built and personalised a house in their old shed for autistic family member Chris. The video begins with an outdoor view of the house and the condition of the building before renovation.
The sister jokes that she replaced herself with Amazon's Alexa which reminds Chris of daily tasks like when to sleep and brush his teeth. She added that Chris listens and responds to Alexa which is a huge game changer for his independence.
Her brother lives his best life when there is a set routine. There is a whiteboard with checklists to help him keep track of his life. In the video, Chris was seen using the board and ticking tasks off the list. The house is designed to prompt him to begin his week with grocery shopping and then meal prep for the entire week. The fridge is also prepared to store lots of food.
Since Chris tends to use more shampoo and soap than other people, the family set up a refillable soap dispenser that he can refill at the local store. The kitchen has received special attention in order to be as accessible as it can be because he loves cooking. In the video, Chris was seen cooking his own food and looking at the utensils. He also has a pet bird on his shoulder.
The voiceover states that the family's goal was to come up with a long-term, independent living situation for Chris. The newly built house is only 20 feet from the main house. They wanted to make it as fun and inviting as possible. All of Chris' habits were taken into consideration in designing the house.
Chris has scored living on his own a 20 out of 10, says his sister.
After being shared on Twitter, the video has been viewed over 1.3 million times. Many autistic users commented on the video sharing their struggles to build an independent lifestyle.