School Reunion & Moving On

Once I was told why don’t you go to school reunion’s? Having thought about this answer and the infinite amount of timely words I could plunder on this subject. I figured it would best to say never go back to the person you used to be you will only get lost again.

People change for all sorts of reason’s and those people who knew me time is about being the best version of yourself.

For those who bullied me who clad it with denial or detachment or the “phase of being a teenager” you probably needed a hug and listening ear more than I ever did.

Paul Isaacs 2019

So What is Simultagnosia & Semantic Agnosia? In The Context Of Autism?

Note: This is from a personal perspective

Simultagnosia is a condition that effects the occiptal lobes of the brain this is where visual perception and processing is connected, it also can have an impact on visual association, language perception/processing and overall navigation of the visual world around you.

“Blindisms” 

For me it meant not being able to access the visual world with coherence rendering me unable to access with my “eyes”and having to build up the visual world in a “non-visual” way such as.

• Smelling
• Touching 
• Sculpting
• Licking
• Tapping
• Moving

This started early in my development with my Mum’s observations thinking I was both deaf and blind (which is a common observation with people with visual agnosias) I was imprinting through EXTERNAL stimulus to build up a representation and connecting through other sensory modulations to make sense of the experience around me.

“Mapping” A System

As I have got older and with more awareness of the condition I have system in place where I do not hide anything from my view and placement of objects are important in relation to their context.

Context & Relevance

I still have a level of context blindness which means that things that are not being used “lose there relevance” (what they are, their use and function in relation to the environment) I may mistake objects for other things entirely and/or be caught up in how they make me feel rather than what they are.

Paul Isaacs 2019

My World- Autism, Ethos & Humanity

I am pleased an eagerly proud to be working for a small autism organisation called My World and day centre for people on the autism spectrum. This summer it shall be four years of service to which I have contributed my consultancy work.

With people who have a narrow, conceited and reductive view of what autism “is” and how one is supposed to “act” and “behave” noting that it has “one look” so therefore “one approach and intervention” is wrong and that doesn’t happen here.

At My World all the caring and empathic staff are valued, open-minded and willing to learn this means that what is taken is a person-centred approach, looking at the person’s mental health, learning styles, information processing challenges and ultimately sees them as people or equal worth and value going about their day and purcuits.

Our success is our ethos, open-mind natures, ability to learn new things and approaches and empathy which encourages people in the end to be the best version of themselves.

Paul Isaacs 2019

Autism & Identity

I have never seen all of my being as autistic because the word is an adjective a describing word of an experience.

Current Experiences

I experience face blindness, object blindness and meaning blindnessas I do a language processing disorder, hemiplegia, body agnosias and associated learning difficulties.

Past-Tense Experiences

There are also experiences in the past tense such as over coming oral apraxia, high levels of exposure anxiety, selective mutism and gaining functional speech although it was a long road to doing so.

Personality Types

I have personality types such as Mercurial, Idiosyncratic, Self-Sacrificing and Serious (all human beings have personality types of varying types).

Conclusion

Autism is not ALL it is PART OF I see myself as a person a patchwork quilt made of many things. Autism just “is” I am neither proud nor ashamed. I seek balance not objectification. 😊

Paul Isaacs 2019

Autism, Hemiplegia, Body Agnosias and Textured Insoles

Note this is from a personal perspective
Hemiplegia in Children

I have written in previous blogs about my challenges in the area of hemiplegia which was due to brain injury I had due to complications birth and body disconnection this has meant complications in the area of gait (movement and locomotion), pressure and depth.

Symptoms to Look Out For

Keep in mind that symptoms will vary according to each child. While some children may exhibit all symptoms, others may only exhibit a few. The common symptoms associated with hemiparetic and hemiplegic CP consist of:
Using only one hand while playing, typically surfacing before the age of three
Constantly keeping one hand balled into a fist
Unusually long delay in reaching developmental milestones
Extreme stiffness and/or muscle weakness on one side of the body
Balance and walking problems

Copyright Causes of Hemiparetic or Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy

Body Disconnection and Low Muscle Tone

Body disconnection has had an impact on my gait also in you think about not being about to perceive the pressure points of movement (toe and heel pressure), direction of legs and knee placement as well as having poor core muscle strength which is my case I feel was to do with being premature and having mild hypermobility/low muscle tone which may have also contributed to my problems with expressive language.

Insoles and Conclusion

Phoebe Caldwell contacted me sometime ago with regards to trying out some insoles which are supplied by a company called Revs Lights and here is my feedback from my experiences of them.

• Increased input in perceptual awareness of my “feet”.
• Increased awareness of the pressure needed which had a positive impact on locomotion.
• Feelings of fatigue have improved due to improve perceptual input and correcting of gait formation and locomotion.
• Information processing “blockage” has been freed allowing and freeing up space more
• I feeling of “coherence” and overall grounding improving mood and anxiety disorders

Paul Isaacs 2019

Anna Kennedy & Paul Isaacs – Life with Autism – The Women’s Radio Show

Please see info on this weeks guest. Paul is speaking again at 1pm today (06/03/2019)

My guest this week for Women’s Radio Station was one of our Charity Ambassadors Paul Isaacs. Paul is an autistic trainer, speaker, consultant and blogger. He has co-authored several books including Life through a Kaleidoscope and Living through the Haze.Paul has released and published 5 books on the subject of autism published by Chipmunka publishing and has contributed to other books too. Having overcome many challenges to achieve the success that he now enjoys, Paul’s message is that Autism is a complex mix of ability and disability. He firmly believes that every Autistic person should have the opportunity to reach their potential and be regarded as a valued member of society.

Paul shares :

Yesterday I spoke to Anna Kennedy at the Women’s Radio show in London the first question she asked was the road to being diagnosed on the autism spectrum. In 2007 I was sent to the local mental health team in which I was misdiagnosed with “Aspergers traits with a complex personality” I found out later looking through my medical records during this period that I was diagnosed with schizotypal and borderline personality disorders I was also suffering at this point in time from psychosis and auditory hallucinations.

In 2010 I was diagnosed formally with autism and OCD by a psychiatrist the key to this process was the caring and connecting nature in which he allowed our myself and my parents to talk about the difficult and challenging aspects of my past which included current difficulties with professionalism and humility.

Anna went on to talk about what the educational system was like for me I was born in 1986 and went through mainstream education to which many problems arose it was more to do with the the frame of reference the teachers had rather than them doing me deliberate harm. Everything was distorted, fragmented both visually and from a language perspective. People making phonic noises at one another, shapeless form less people, near and far, here nor there. I was hyperactive and didn’t seem to the connect with the world around me. If I had been diagnosed at this point it would have been of classic autism due to higher levels of visual-verbal processing challenges, language processing disorder and expressive communication challenges.

I found solace in water to which I was fascinated by and flushing toilets looking at the flow of water in amazement getting lost in it, becoming it and not wanting on a subconscious level to let go it was a friend of sorts always there when I needed him.

Anna followed on by asking me about how my parents coped what they done to help me despite not having a formal diagnosis at this time. Headteachers at primary school had noted behaviourally issues, being shy and difficulties with handwriting and using a pen. My parents all through primary and secondary school did not find solutions from these meetings because it was always “Paul cannot” with no alternative being put in its place.

So my parents treated me as a child a little adult, they allowed me to experience the world around me not making part of it small but going out cycling, walking, swimming, going out restaurants and holidays. They instilled that in me that I was apart of the world not centre of it, that failure is a normal part of life and that in the end can be the best version of yourself.

Anna asked about what I do in my free time I like to create mostly through the mediums of poetry, creating writing and art these things I find very relaxing and connect with my on a emotive level it grounds my thoughts, feelings and expands my experiences with other people also. I like meeting up with friends which I do twice monthly at a local restaurant I value all their friendships deeply. I have also made friendships up north with The Kings Sharon and her family have been great to be around with as well as a friend in London who shares many creative vibes with.

Anna asked about my tinted lenses and what the function of them are. They help me bring coherence to the world around me binding it together without them everything becomes shattered and all the pieces do not come together. seventy percent of information is visual so if you think about how much one takes in through that one sense and if in my case the inability to perceive faces, objects, places etc the are a great aid for me to not only walk around the visual world but be able to hand the incoming information and store it in a more calmy fashion.

Anna finally talked about the “autism fruit salad” I explained to her about the late Donna Williams a lady on the autism spectrum who will be greatly missed because she touched so many people’s lives in profound and brilliant ways. Donna was a trailblazer and in many ways ahead of her time while other people are being militant about what autism “is” and “isn’t” the fruit salad explains that autism is a patchwork quilt of differing factors such as information processing, identity and personality, mental health, learning styles and environmental factors. “Autism” in affect doesn’t have a “look” with regards the “Asperger’s syndrome” removal in the DSM 5 I feel that did they understand the mechanics of the condition?

Donna wrote a brilliant blog about the differences between “Aspie and Autie Fruit Salads” which means from her observations as a consultant it seems that people with a diagnosis of AS seem to be literal, logical and process internally while people with Autism are less literal, less logical and processing things externally and then of course what about the “Aspinauts” people who are dipping into both worlds? I like Donna’s ability to always think about side of the box she was so kind and giving.

The future for autism I feel is to ditch the stereotypes, politics, rhetoric and nonsense the burns more bridges than it builds, let’s start by looking at autism realities for all, striking up healthy and balanced dialogues, lets learn from people different experiences and be humble with it.

If you would like to book Paul as speaker, trainer and/or consultant please contact him via email at

staypuft12@yahoo.co.uk

Paul Isaacs Freelance Autistic Speaker, Trainer, Consultant & Author

Be The Best Version Of Yourself

In a sometimes mind boggling world of shallow, narrow cucumber minded folk. Remember to be the person you want to be, when you close your eyes, wake up, make breakfast and go to work.

Short and timely travels within a flesh vessel of chemicals, minerals, fluids and too many a complication to bubble upon the cooking fat of existence.

I do no t adhere to clubs of a singular mentality for sometimes a heard can lead the blinkered people towards darkly paths of anxiety and self recriminations.

So I say crumble the falsehoods of separation, for they create longer bridges of acceptance to cross, know you are one person with the ability of helpfulness to share love upon everyone.

Paul Isaacs 2019