A Re-Introduction..

Sometimes owning a business feels like an endless cycle of going through puberty. There’s lots of changes inside and out, big feelings and simply growing with a side of discomfort along the way. With some of the changes in Blended Aquatics, it felt like a good time to reintroduce ourselves and our ongoing vision...

I’m Brea, an independent BCBA who can’t help but question the phrase “because that’s not how we do it.” From a young age, I remember feeling frustrated whenever I was given directions, or tasks that were outdated, and you couldn’t question its reasoning.This fueled my desire to create a meaningful future, leaving stale ideas behind.

Growing up in Minnesota, I had access to stability but life lacked innovation. With an adventurous spirit motivated by connection and creativity, I found myself pursuing odd jobs, travel and problem solving outside the box. One of those unique jobs included being a swim instructor. Minnesota is known as the land of 10,000 lakes, where water activities are everywhere in the summer and swim lessons are most popular during the winter. But most Minnesotans’ main professions don’t include aquatics.

Loving the job, but still searching for more, I moved back to Seattle where I previously ventured. I landed a job in an inclusive preschool setting where I was introduced to behavior analysis (the study of why specific behaviors occur and how to teach new ones). This was an aha moment where I learned naturalistic ways of supporting and including different abilities in a variety of activities. And luckily for me, I was offered an opportunity in the community to teach private swimming lessons during the summertime. I naturally invited my preschool families to join.

This is where I learned the biggest lesson that jump started my business idea. Autistic children are highly vulnerable to drowning; drowning was and continues to be one of the leading causes of death for autistic children. A far too common story includes parents enrolling in swimming lessons and missing the fine print, we don’t have the means to accommodate. My relationship with parents strengthened as I learned about the fear of water and the embarrassment and disappointment surrounding failed swimming lessons. If something isn’t working, why wouldn’t you try something else? The response of “because that’s not how we do it” isn’t good enough, there are better ways to practice, and the ongoing support and connection with parents supports this.

I combined my love for behavior and water instruction to build something better than the status quo. What if I could save lives through connection and education? What if I could modify swimming lessons so a child could be successful who was previously turned away?

What if I could equip parents to feel confident with safety skills around the water? What if I could create a more inclusive environment in the pool setting?

Throughout the years, I built up skills in both aquatic instruction and behavior analysis. Needless to say, these years were full of big ideas, questions, conversations, and tears about how to make the ‘What If…’ possible. My best friend, who is also my husband, was forced to come along for the ride😊. In 2021, I became a BCBA and in 2022 I co-founded Blended Aquatics with him.

Due to a variety of barriers, challenges and opportunities, Blended Aquatics officially started business in Rapid City, South Dakota in 2022. We had access to a private and community pool which allowed for a great inclusive model offering adaptive swimming lessons for individuals with autism and developmental disabilities. A striking difference between affluent Seattle and rural South Dakota was resources and accessibility.

We had families in both settings who needed our services. However, it wasn’t uncommon for our South Dakota families to travel an hour plus one way, once a week for our swimming lessons. The value of our lessons stood out because parents were able to access swim instruction that was built around their child's needs, not the other way around. For these families, the investment was worth it.

Less accessibility to resources also means less access to overall support and opportunity. We were achieving our goals of ‘What If’s’ but also recognized the lack of resources affected our families access to school support, therapies, and inclusion in the community. Foundational and safety skills that could be learned in other settings weren’t necessarily available, making safety around water more complex for starting swimming lessons.

This was a light bulb moment. Our impact, while valuable, was also limited because of compounding factors. What do you do when the aquatic industry standard doesn’t include neurodivergent learners? What do you do when challenging behavior increases the risk of drowning? What do you do when behavior analysts are trained to assess behavior and teach new skills, but most don’t include safety skills around water?

We built a framework to support just that. A framework that includes a compassionate approach that doesn’t have room for “because that’s not how we do it.”

In a nutshell, we moved Blended Aquatics to Minnesota in 2025 to be closer to resources to help grow our goals of ‘What If’s’ across settings, states and professions. Families of autistic learners need help with safety around water, but the professionals around them aren't equipped. The BRIDGE to Safety Framework™ shows behavior analysts how to build water safety into their clients' routines, and shows swim instructors how to support autistic swimmers, so skills carry from home to the community.

Like any growing pains, this season has come with big changes and a little discomfort, and we're so excited for what's ahead. 😊 Safety around water is everyone's job, and we'd love for you to be part of it.

Behavior analysts: Ready to bring water safety into your clients' routines? Learn about the BRIDGE to Safety Certification for Behavior Analysts

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