"Seeing the old Greg"

Change is hard for people with developmental disabilities. And sometimes change can be devasting, like it was for 41-year-old Greg Kanney.

Greg had lived in the same group home in Warsaw, Indiana, for four years. His staff was relatively consistent, and he thrived living with others. But out of the blue, the entire staff left and was replaced by new people. Around the same time, Greg’s father died, and the very next day his best buddy from the group home died.

When the changes seemed to cause problems for Greg, his mom, Carol, decided to move him to a group home closer to her, in Indianapolis, where she was living in 2020. That’s when she and Greg met Damar Behavior Clinician Michael Malone. Assigned to help Greg with social skills, behavior management and daily living, Michael initially found Greg to be extremely cooperative and easy to be with. He loved music, joked around and enjoyed all kinds of social outings – Pacers games and the Zoo were favorites.

But big shifts in Greg’s demeanor and behavior made it clear that things at the group home weren’t right. He started acting out. He cried and began exhibiting aggressive behaviors. There were incident reports about struggles with roommates and staff. Greg didn’t want to go out and slept a lot.

“He regressed so far back,” said Michael.

After an especially troubling visit, Carol decided it was enough. She moved Greg into her home for a while.

Then she and the Damar Behavior Management (B-MAN) team worked to get the old Greg back. They found a new group home with good staff, and located a mental health therapist, Mary Rembusch at Damar, to help Greg deal with past trauma and reestablish trust. The team also consulted with his providers for medication management.

“It took a while, but we’re finally seeing the old Greg,” said Michael. “He smiles, he sings and he’s expressing himself again. He’s back in music therapy and we’re getting ready to start Special Olympics bowling.”

Carol said “It’s been hard for both of us. I used to feel like I couldn’t go anywhere in case Greg needed me. But now that I feel he’s safe, I’ve taken a girls trip to San Diego and went on a Disney Cruise with my granddaughter and family.” Plus, she’s rekindled a relationship with a guy from high school, and the two of them are going on an Alaskan cruise soon.

“Our whole team has been phenomenal in helping Greg,” said Carol. “I am so relieved.”