Brave New World of Autism pt 2 - Health & Fitness

“Less think, more do!” - Shardé Finn (Gym Instructor / Director) – Swan Leisure Centre, Rathmines, Dublin.

As being a certified Aspie, health and fitness has been an on and off affair; however in the close of 2013 and beginning of 2014 I started taking it seriously. I made mistakes but have since learnt from them and now have pretty much got my programme in check and my health is radically improving after discovering 3 months ago my cholesterol was sky high and I was piling on the lbs due, not due to inefficient exercise but an awful diet something I will come to later.

So now, why write this blog? Well, it has certainly come to my attention that, being an Aspie with ADHD and having a history of battling depression I noticed that doctors, health experts, psychologists and psychiatrists concentrate more so much on the brain and almost invariably forget what’s carrying it around; the vessel of the human body! 

From the one who has PTSD to Schizophrenia, from Aspergers to Autism, from Down syndrome to having the mental age of a child, the body is the same in each and every one of us; yes the brain is the most important organ in the collection but the rest is no less important in fact essential to keep healthy. We’re encouraged to keep our brain healthy via “brain exercises” so why neglect the body for the sheer sake of having a brain which is wired differently from the rest of the general populous?

The answer is simple, you don’t; the body is a vessel just like a car; if it sits in the garage it will only rust! If you sit on your backside concentrating solely on the brain the vessel will descend into a scourge of fat gain, loss of energy and disease.

For me being an Aspie I discovered the very benefits of fitness which helps in a huge way with the following areas;

1.       Mental Focus – Keeping a concentration on techniques and exercise completion. 

2.       Ridding of Anxiety – Throwing yourself into the programme boosts positive vibes.

3.       Channelling nervous energy – Having a core vision to aim for.

4.       Self confidence – Seeing your body improve overtime is highly rewarding.

5.       Health (Obviously) – Speaks for itself.

6.       Goal orientation – Helps the mind locate specific pathways & aims to shoot for.

7.       Immune Support – A body that’s worked is a body that works!

For me I pick up weights and have been for the last year, my programme is below...

The programme works for me as I am me not you, when I first joined the gym I admit I didn’t have a clue but I had some fantastic instructors - Swan Leisure Centre, Rathmines, Dublin.  But safe to say that what works for one is not for the other, so here’s a few tips for an Aspie entering fitness for the first time...

1.       Always complete an induction.

2.       Ask as many questions as you see fit.

3.       Never be afraid to make mistakes, it’s how we learn, but always err to the side of caution.

4.       Discuss at length with an instructor what you want to achieve.

5.       Know your limitations.

6.       Set yourself realistic goals.

7.       Achieve those goals!

Nutrition

I cannot stress enough how important it is to find the right balance between your programme and what you eat. As I said earlier I made mistakes, one of them was diet and from talking to other lads who pick up weights in the gym they made the same mistakes too.

At the start of the year I had my programme more or less perfected and I thought I was doing really well.   As far as the workload was going and I was gaining strength very quickly. So why was I putting on so much fat weight? 

The truth is a bit of a story, at first everything was fine, then the fat starting creeping back, then I had problems with the bits down below where as (and I am going to be brutally honest here) I started to get Erectile Dysfunction, now, I’ve suffered this in the past when I use to have a drinking problem but here I was, no longer drinking anywhere near the amounts I used to and hello, the old issue re-arose again.

Before I go any further, know this, Erectile Dysfunction is NOTHING to be embarrassed or ashamed about, it happens to the best of all men but it is however, an indicator something is wrong. So off I went to see my GP who performed a number of tests and discovered that my blood pressure was stuck to the ceiling, my pulse was heavy and fast so concluded I had a circulatory problem and a further blood test showed my cholesterol as sky high.

What was the cause? A bad diet!

I was eating so much protein laden foods, various meats with little or no veg, triple egg omelettes and tins upon tins of fish, thinking I was doing it right. So thus I was inputting more protein than my body could handle as well as the huge amount of calories that accompanied said protein (thus fat weight gain) and thus in turn the waste was being transferred to my kidneys causing them to be overworked (hence my high cholesterol) which resulted in causing my high blood pressure and circulatory problems and... and... and... leaving me feeling pretty crap about myself, so now you see my point about looking after the vessel as well the brain.

I felt like a right idiot but not one to admit defeat, so thus, I lowered the weights and did more reps, ate only two portions of meat a day, threw out my protein powders and started afresh.

But then I discovered, Paleo! It was a god send (and that’s coming from an Atheist) which to me spoke volumes of common sense. For those who don’t what a Paleo diet is, well, put quite simply, it’s a land foraging diet.

The best way to allocate a Paleo menu is to look at what you exclude...

1.       Dairy – Milk, Butter, Creams, Cheese, Pasta.

2.       Legumes – Peanuts, Green Beans, Corn, Peas, Beans, Lentils.

3.       Processed Meats -   Sausages, wafer chicken slices, anything with a smiley face drawn on it.

4.       Processed Drinks – Energy Drinks, Coca Cola & All other sugar laden soft drinks.

5.       Factory Poop – Anything from the backside of a factory containing all things pertaining to artificiality.

So extrapolate that in a narrowed perspective that all things in the supermarket now that remains have come from the land, i.e. Fresh vegetable, Fruit, Fresh Meats, Nuts, Salads.  If it’s been covered in something (batter, breadcrumbs) then it isn’t Paleo. 

For further reading on Paleo please go to this excellent website here... http://thepaleodiet.com/

I live by a golden rule now: “Eat what Mother Nature intended because Convenience will kill you!”

For some ideas on Paleo meals go to my FaceBook photo album here...

Me

Then...

So it pretty much went like this, I was over 16 stone at the beginning of 2014, I then starting losing weight only to put it all back on again a few months later, I was at least 16 and a half stone again by midsummer, then starting to eat right and tweaked my programme and thus, I weighed myself again a month or so ago and I was down to 14.4 stone that’s about 92kgs. So I’ve lost two stone in three months, plus put on muscle weight and will continue to do so.

Remember: This is what I chose to do; I, nor is anyone else asking you to be pro bodybuilder and neither am I. 

Now, after 6 months...

 

Mental Health

So how does all this help with other conditions, some of these may fascinate you but their all true...

                Schizophrenia: There was a study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry...

                                                “...found that schizophrenics who cycled three times a week for 30 minutes significantly increased the volume of the hippocampus, a section of the brain important in memory and spatial perception. The hippocampus is often found to be smaller in schizophrenics. Subjects also experienced modest gains in short-term memory.”

That to me speaks volumes of getting off your backside and getting moving, this was a study on a simple daily cycle ride for crying out loud, so come one and all, think about it, weights, treadmill, machines and the right diet, just imagine the better world awaiting you??!!

Read the rest of that here... http://www.livestrong.com/article/417782-exercise-schizophrenia/

                Depression: It is well known that exercise defeats depression exponentially due to the release of endorphins which encourages the depletion of pain sensation and thus prepares the body for hard work for longer periods of time.

However, as I well know myself, depression can be tricky because depression will tell you that you’re not worth it, that you’re too tired, that’s all too hard...

I say this, don’t you believe it! A friend from many a year ago once told me...

                                                “...depression is nature’s greatest bluff!”

And he was absolutely right; anytime I feel it coming on and the downward spiral begins that’s when I dig deep, you literally punch through it and retain the control I have for my brain to command the mind not the other way around, my mind will do as it’s told.

Remember; there is nothing that can’t be achieved when feeling depressed than when you could feeling equilibrium. 

 

                Asperger Syndrome: Aspies would you believe, actually have the upper hand, we get into a routine and stick to it, we learn fast and it sticks. I for one have my entire programme in my mind and recall everything from memory while I observe Neurotypicals having to write it all down and rely on folders and clipboards, I can’t help but feel a bit smug about that!!! 

Aspies will put everything into it, 100% commitment once we get the grasp, all I need is a clear path and my energy is derived from, already mentioned – diet but also from being prone to environmental sensory issues, so I put all that stress, aggression, frustration and anxiety into a box in my head and let it out onto the weights and I find I can determine for myself a much more intense and focused workout; kicking ass comes as standard.  

The result is a calmer mind, a stronger body and a sharper brain atop a vessel that is working right. As I said, a body that is worked is a body that works. 

For more go here... http://www.livestrong.com/article/429000-physical-exercises-for-aspergers/

                Down Syndrome: Take a look at the photos below, says it all...

So the bottom line it seems is simply this, no matter what your state of mental health your body is pretty much the same as everyone else's in respect to fitness and exercise helps, it helps A LOT.  From improving social anxiety, ridding the mind of depression and even improving the structure of the brain for those that are Schizophrenic and furthermore, even better than all this, is that we are ALL capable; at Swan Leisure centre where I work out I see disabled people, I see people who have to get off a machine to start stimming then jump right back on the machine again, I even see people talking to themselves but first and foremost, their working at it in terms of bettering the body...

Their all making a positive difference, so what about you?

Thank you for reading

VisionGhost 

If you live in Dublin and want more information on Swan Leisure Centre in Rathmines, please Click Here

No Longer British (And Will Never Be American Either)

For many, many, years, I was proud to be British, I was proud of the flag, proud of the standard of politics, proud of the lifestyle, proud the pinnacle reputation and proud even of our heritage, well, that was until a few years ago when this glorious internet reached a stage of unparalleled exposed fruition.

I was once the asshole who believed in the Gulf war, thought the conflict in Iraq was justified and led to believe that the IRA were simply fanatical terrorists; I realised as of recent years that my eyes were British, which is a liquorice way of saying, blinded; blinded by the media, blinded by an British “education” and blinded by politics.

When I arrived in Ireland I was told to keep my mouth shut about my opinions and through the stress of mental health and alcohol reliance I never really asked why as I was wholly consumed in my own stress I had little time to worry about others.  This was at least true up until approximately five years ago when I met my current partner to who was willing to educate me and inform of the real truth of Ireland and the British. Upon further research I discovered how wrong I had been and how misled I had become since I was a boy, venturing through the innocence of schooling at an age where you would believe anything and so here I realised what a troop of lies I had been told.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aj5lSBMyUfY

When I saw the documented horror of the 1972, January 30^th massacre of innocent Catholic protestors calling for civil rights and recognition in Free Derry upon the Bogside, when the Para-Troopers of the British Armed Forces illegally opened fire upon unarmed and innocence persons killing 13 people and injuring tens of others I realised how much I had never known, then thereafter the lies of the Widgery report and the subsequent uprising of the Provision IRA which caused the bombings of Belfast and the most violent retaliation since 1969, 1971 and 1972! (Research this yourself).

Since 1921 after the Easter Risings of 1916, Britain just couldn’t let Ireland go and so led to the constant and continued discrimination of Catholics in the North, especially the burning down of their homes by the ruthless viciousness of the Protestants and the Unionists as well as the discrimination in the workplace, some 75% of the population were Catholic and 80% of that population were unemployed during the 1970’s which extended onward into the 1980’s as they were disallowed work.

So when I was told in school by my lying idiot headmaster that the IRA was not a real army and just a bunch of fanatical terrorists I believed him.  And it wasn’t until I arrived in Ireland I’d never known of the Maze Prisoners and the persecution of Bobby Sands (Rest his soul) as well as the others who thought the demand to be recognised as political prisoners was not too much to ask for, Margaret Thatcher allowed those men and others to starve to death via a hunger strike...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1981_Irish_hunger_strike

So here now the screaming argument you would preach is to ask why my head is the past, it isn’t, Britain’s constant destruction of humanity throughout the world as well as America came again in the form of the illegal invasion of Iraq, if this wasn’t even enough the USA and Britain colluded upon the “Shock and Awe” campaign of murdering innocent civilians in the Middle East; but it gets worse, as if illegal wars weren’t enough (The US have been in conflict constantly with another country in the world continually since 1950) they used a new form of weapon, Depleted Uranium, which has contaminated Iraq, Kosovo, Serbia and Afghanistan.

And if this wasn’t bad enough in the modern world, it’s clear the developed nations never learnt from the past either...

And yet I notice something, any country, any person, any other militarys' actions that stands against the US or British’s tyranny is branded, wait for it....

“Terrorism”

British and American politics have created Terrorism for themselves, their tyranny, their lies, their collusion and their bloodshed throughout the decades has created for themselves a world of violence, retribution and hated of the West. 

It’s little wonder why Putin laughs in the face of the hypocrisy of the US/UK collaborations when Russia claims Crimea and the western world point’s fingers.  Prince Charles says Putin is “Hitler”; maybe you should look at your own country first ole Charlie boy.  The truth be told, no one is allowed an opinion against these two “great” nations without being branded a traitor or a terrorist. 

Bush: "Either you're with us or you're with the terrorists."

So beyond America’s Hollywood hills of whining over paid celebrities, gun crimes, their Nazi-feminism and capital punishment; beyond Britain’s pomp and ceremony inclusive of the day the Queen, Elizabeth 2^nd decorated the officers who ordered the killing of innocent civilians in Northern Ireland and continues to decorate soldiers who were sent to kill innocents all over the world; but oh wait, apparently I am a traitor to criticise my nations military in a time of war; well, to that I say this, had I known better, had I known more, had I been older, I would have gladly sympathised with the IRA. 

Had I been that father of a child born deformed in the Middle East with my home destroyed by illegal US and British forces I would have taken up arms against you; there is so much more I could say, but already I am a traitor and proud of it, already I am probably a terrorist and proud of it; already I am hated by the self righteous elite of the monetary prosperity helm and I am proud of it, proud of it as I a better person that political tyranny and hypocrisy.

Now I know that every country has its problems, nowhere is perfect; India and Pakistan have an appalling record for violence against women; America has a gun control issue; Syria is embroiled in civil war; Russia has a drugs problem (Google “Krokodil”); Britain has an immigration issue and Ireland is still reeling from the recession and accounts of atrocities committed by the Catholic church and not to mention the Magdalene Laundries; China has a bogging human rights record (whom the rest of the world went cap in hand to); oh it goes on and on and on...

BUT: to my former leaders of the country of Britain I can only say this, your politicians lied to me, your media lied to me, your education institutes lied to me, YOU lied to me and you have made me ashamed to be British.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRC1VbddRY0

Thank you for reading.

VisionGhost

A Brave New World of Autism pt. 1

It will probably come as no surprise I am writing this new post; as after all I am an Aspie, I am on the Autistic Spectrum (best club in the world) and I only found out 2 years ago, I am now 35. There are an awful lot of blogs and websites promoting knowledge of Autism, the spectrum and Aspergers, we need more, we need to ram Autism down the throats of society; I say push harder and I will explain why later.

In the meantime I am called to silence a couple of “critics” one of which made an accursed accusation of forgery on my part in relation to my condition (yes that’s condition not disorder) so below is a scanned copy of Professor Michael Fitzgerald’s expert diagnosis...

"I cannot emphasize enough the importance of a good teacher." - Temple Grandin

This post is part one of what may be a possible two to three part series of posts all about Autism, Aspergers, my perspectives, the fears, the positives and all in between, inside and out, shake it all about.

OK, now as I was saying, why the push for knowledge, awareness, social integration and initiation? Quite simply, because ignorance breathes a climate of paranoia, fear and disrespect when ill of the necessary learning to comprehend what it is you’re needlessly afraid of. This is very apparent in the world of Autism, today even though there are approximately 105 million people in the world with Autism, relative to all forms, genders and population ratio of 7 billion people according to...

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Approximately_how_many_people_in_the_world_have_autism?#slide=1

To be honest with you, I believe that figure to be too low, I think personally it should be much higher but as we improve diagnosing techniques I am in the belief it will most certainly rise.  But cometh what may the fact remains there are a lot of us in the world and I believe steadily, slowly & surely the playing field if it were, is being recognised with Autists and Aspies well populated within it. 

The problem I have with so much of these diagnosis’s is that I think there now exists a preference to try and find a single source cause for Autism, I have heard one theory after another, that it’s caused by mercury poisoning, vaccines and only recently I read a piece in the Daily Mail a couple of days ago to say that it’s pollution that’s causing it; personally I think it is a clumsy science that attributes so many untested hypothesis’s to an apparent learning difficulty then slap the causation on the person concerned purely to assume that must be the reason why. I think it breathes a frustrated discontent within the world of science and creates a further misconception toward the Autistic person concerned furthering the ambiguity of their condition and place in society.  If those who are Autistic, Aspergian, PDD NOS or otherwise, they are hardly going to flourish in a world of, ifs, buts, maybes, possibly yes, might be no and upside down to the left of right. 

It’s quite incredible to think that with the right mindset of those who care, love and accompany the one's on the spectrum, they very quickly come to the realisation that when the road ahead for the Autist is displayed clearly the mileage is of little concern in preference to the journey and ultimate outcome.  It is one thing I used to repeatedly say to employers or friends...

“I need not much of the technical manual, just show me the direction so I can clearly see the path and so I can be left alone to walk it myself.” - VisionGhost

For example; I used to work in telesales, thank fully not any more, however, all I would ever need is the product/service description, my leads, my phone, computer and a basic script, and then I was away. It was noted in a staff review that I was never needing much in the way of supervision or instruction, the rest I could figure out myself; so why didn’t I excel in the corporate world, probably because I too damn good at being at the bottom.

 “Who do you think made the first stone spears? The Asperger guy. If you were to get rid of all the autism genetics, there would be no more Silicon Valley." - Temple Grandin

Now, as mentioned earlier I said we need to be ramming the truth of Autism down the throats of society and I promised to explain why, which neatly brings me to the causation of such paranoia and misinformation by the infamous so called “awareness” giant, Autism Speaks.

Founded in February 2005 by Bob & Suzanne Wright, Autism Speaks has grown to be a formidable force in the world by utilising paranoia, fear mongering and misinformation so much so that this bunch have actually convinced people that Autism is a curable disease, first caused by mercury, then it was vaccines, then it is pollution and now I await to hear the next rhetoric line from the BS department.

But, people are listening to them, including governments, scientists, doctors and other high profile persons who blindly follow such sentiments under the banner of “Combating Autism” and finding a cure inclusive of a video dictating that autism will tear your family infrastructure apart, wreck your marriage, etc, etc...

So how are Bobby & Suzie so successful at selling a lie for millions of dollars?

See below a simple diagraphic I designed, you can see it demonstrates population vs intellectual ability and where to sell the lie en mass. 

By the way I have brown eyes, stand 5 foot 9 inches tall and I am a respectable 52 years old. Actually that is utter crap, but if you knew not of the truth we tend to be hardwired to assume (unless you have some form of a suspicious disposition) that what are being told is ultimately true and Autism Speaks knows this.

It is the same methodology as utilised by none other than, religion, a manner of which you make fictitious and exaggerated hypothesis’s but never actually prove any of it is true or provide anything in the way of grounded scientific.

So all they need to do now is re-invent the “truth” by telling a different lie and back it up with pseudoscience to keep peoples’ interest alive and once you have that in sufficient a number of believers then you have successfully sold a lie en mass.

Certainly the truth can only come from the Autism/Asperger folk themselves and of course, Autism Speaks has NO ONE of that condition within their board room, ranks or anywhere else within their company. I wonder why?

It is so surprising how little it takes to debunk a pseudoscience paranoia misinformation campaign, for example...

“Autism is caused by vaccines” - Err no, because Autism has been found to start in the womb of which the unborn child hasn’t been exposed to vaccines as of yet.

“Autism is caused by mercury” - Err no, because how on Earth did 105 million people get exposed to high enough levels of mercury to manipulate their psychology and neurological design.

“Autism is a disease” - Err no, Autism is a genetic neurological condition, in layman’s terms, simply wired differently in the brain.

“Autism can be cured” - Err no, because if it is a genetic neurological condition starting in the womb then how do you propose to suddenly manufacture a special pill or drug that can magically re-wire an entire brain’s neurological pathways in an unborn child of which it’s DNA cannot be accurately distinguished until birth of which then Autism is already present?   And if you were to suggest psycho-active drugs once Autism has been diagnosed, oh wait hang on, over 105 million people on psycho-active drugs? Get real!

The only reason the human species has survived for so long against so much is due to the fact we are as a race ultimately diversive and it is that diversity that allows us to invent, create and research science in so many differing faculties and so thus without Autism and Asperger Syndrome we simply would be creating a race of people without neurological diversity and resulting in a population bland, un-inventive and ultimately in causation of their own downfall.

Autism isn’t a disease, ignorance is! The cure is truth & knowledge, not aggravating the disease with misinformation and lies for profit and power.

And if this wasn’t enough, Autism Speaks is affiliated with a place called, The Judge Rotenburg Center, who are responsible for carrying out this...

(Warning – link leads to a video some viewers may find disturbing from the start)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aAj9W0ntUMI

A further insight to this can be found here...

http://www.autistichoya.com/2013/11/an-unholy-alliance-autism-speaks-and.html

So after all,maybe in April we should, err, light it up blue?...

Ladies & gentleman the bottom line simply is this, we need Autism, we need Asperger Syndrome, we are many and more are on the way, we are not diseased, we are simply perceptively different socially, academically and neurologically, now, come on, please, just exactly what the hell is wrong with that?

  

Thank you for reading.

VisionGhost