Play & Book Excerpts
Becoming an Autism Success Story
(Future Horizons, Inc.)
© 2019 by Anita Lesko
I have autism, diagnosed at age fifty. I think in pictures, yes, just like Dr. Temple Grandin. As a young child, I felt like a little lost soul in a world I didn’t understand. I was a total social misfit, I couldn’t look anyone in the eye, and simply didn’t know how to function. I was so uncoordinated that I tripped over my own feet. At the writing of this book, I just turned fifty-nine. I’ve been working for the past thirty years as a certified registered nurse anesthetist. I graduated from Columbia University in 1988 with my master’s in nurse anesthesia. I’ve accomplished many things in my life thus far. I was a guest speaker at the United Nations Headquarters for World Autism Awareness Day 2017. I’m an author, national speaker, and a blogger. I’m also an internationally published military aviation photojournalist, and I’ve gotten to fly in an F-15 fighter jet and a Navy helicopter. In my younger days, I jumped horses over six-foot-high fences.
So, you wonder, how did this uncoordinated misfit kid do all of this? Well, I developed a passion. Then I figured out a way to visualize what I wanted my body to do. Eventually, my brain got rewired to do the things I wanted it to—and then I did them. I would spend hours watching what I wanted to learn. During this long watching process, the steps would be downloading into my mind. Once recorded into my brain, I could play it back and watch it over and over with mental imagery to learn the skill. Here are several examples which are discussed later in the book. When I wanted to learn to ride, I spent hours watching beginners learning to ride, as well as advanced riding like jumping. I watched for many hours before actually getting on a horse. In my first riding lesson, I got to feel the sensations of the horses’ movement. Then I was able to use my mental imagery by combining what I was visualizing with the actual sensations. When I talk about this with my friend Temple, she discussed using this same method when she started out in her world-famous career with livestock. She spent hours watching the cattle getting vaccinated and how the handlers operated the vaccine device. After rehearsing that in her mind many times, one day she just picked up the vaccination gun and started vaccinating the cattle. Once she felt how to actually squeeze the handles on the device, it was downloaded permanently into her brain. She discusses this (and much more) in detail in her book Thinking in Pictures. I used these same methods to gain the social skills I greatly lacked. I watched people for years and took note of their facial expressions, how they look into each other’s eyes while talking, how they move their body, etc. Once I started implementing these skills in my daily life, it became easier to initiate a conversation with someone and look them in the eye. I learned everything through long periods of watching others do these things. The more complex the activity, the longer I’d have to spend watching. I had endless obstacles to overcome, but I never gave up. Each and every obstacle became another possibility. Henry Ford has a great quote, “Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” I first heard that quote from my friend Dr. Temple Grandin about a year ago. When I heard it, I realized I’ve been living my whole life by this very quote. I forged ahead and figured out ways to accomplish goals. I developed techniques to visualize things, from how to ride a horse, figure skate, look people in the eye, socialize with others, work as an anesthetist, everything.
This book will change the way you look at autism and the power of the mind. I will always be on the autism spectrum. I will never be a neurotypical person. But I’ve rewired my brain in ways that enabled me to function at full capacity at a high-stress job, develop exceptional executive functioning, social skills, the ability to develop a relationship and get married, run a household, and function in everyday life. I have achieved what every parent of a child on the spectrum dreams of, for their child to be fully independent after they’re gone. I can help others on the autism spectrum achieve the same results. But it’s not just for those on the spectrum, it’s for anyone who has a dream or goal they hope to reach.
I have a dream of totally changing the world’s view of autism. I am visualizing that this book will open the door for those on the autism spectrum to step through to their new lives. Once people begin learning to use visualization to rewire their brains, neuroplasticity will ignite this process. Occasionally, someone will ask me if I wish I didn’t have autism. Not a chance. I wouldn’t have experienced all the exciting things I’ve done thus far, and I wouldn’t be at a point in my life that I inspire others and change lives. That is the greatest gift of all.
So, you wonder, how did this uncoordinated misfit kid do all of this? Well, I developed a passion. Then I figured out a way to visualize what I wanted my body to do. Eventually, my brain got rewired to do the things I wanted it to—and then I did them. I would spend hours watching what I wanted to learn. During this long watching process, the steps would be downloading into my mind. Once recorded into my brain, I could play it back and watch it over and over with mental imagery to learn the skill. Here are several examples which are discussed later in the book. When I wanted to learn to ride, I spent hours watching beginners learning to ride, as well as advanced riding like jumping. I watched for many hours before actually getting on a horse. In my first riding lesson, I got to feel the sensations of the horses’ movement. Then I was able to use my mental imagery by combining what I was visualizing with the actual sensations. When I talk about this with my friend Temple, she discussed using this same method when she started out in her world-famous career with livestock. She spent hours watching the cattle getting vaccinated and how the handlers operated the vaccine device. After rehearsing that in her mind many times, one day she just picked up the vaccination gun and started vaccinating the cattle. Once she felt how to actually squeeze the handles on the device, it was downloaded permanently into her brain. She discusses this (and much more) in detail in her book Thinking in Pictures. I used these same methods to gain the social skills I greatly lacked. I watched people for years and took note of their facial expressions, how they look into each other’s eyes while talking, how they move their body, etc. Once I started implementing these skills in my daily life, it became easier to initiate a conversation with someone and look them in the eye. I learned everything through long periods of watching others do these things. The more complex the activity, the longer I’d have to spend watching. I had endless obstacles to overcome, but I never gave up. Each and every obstacle became another possibility. Henry Ford has a great quote, “Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” I first heard that quote from my friend Dr. Temple Grandin about a year ago. When I heard it, I realized I’ve been living my whole life by this very quote. I forged ahead and figured out ways to accomplish goals. I developed techniques to visualize things, from how to ride a horse, figure skate, look people in the eye, socialize with others, work as an anesthetist, everything.
This book will change the way you look at autism and the power of the mind. I will always be on the autism spectrum. I will never be a neurotypical person. But I’ve rewired my brain in ways that enabled me to function at full capacity at a high-stress job, develop exceptional executive functioning, social skills, the ability to develop a relationship and get married, run a household, and function in everyday life. I have achieved what every parent of a child on the spectrum dreams of, for their child to be fully independent after they’re gone. I can help others on the autism spectrum achieve the same results. But it’s not just for those on the spectrum, it’s for anyone who has a dream or goal they hope to reach.
I have a dream of totally changing the world’s view of autism. I am visualizing that this book will open the door for those on the autism spectrum to step through to their new lives. Once people begin learning to use visualization to rewire their brains, neuroplasticity will ignite this process. Occasionally, someone will ask me if I wish I didn’t have autism. Not a chance. I wouldn’t have experienced all the exciting things I’ve done thus far, and I wouldn’t be at a point in my life that I inspire others and change lives. That is the greatest gift of all.
Photo Credit: William Butler
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Anita Lesko was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome (now under the umbrella diagnosis Autism Spectrum Disorder) at the age of fifty. She graduated from Columbia University in New York City with a Master of Science in Nurse Anesthesia in 1988. As a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist, she specialized in anesthesia for neurosurgery, organ transplants and orthopedic joint replacement surgery. Anita is an internationally-recognized autism advocate and a member of Autism Society of American’s Panel of Autistic Advisers.
Anita has been a speaker at the United Nations Headquarters in New York City for World Autism Awareness Day (2017) and at the Federal Communications Commission in Washington, D.C. She is the author of several books, including The Complete Guide to Autism & Healthcare (Future Horizons - excerpted in Sanctuary HERE), which was awarded the prestigious Temple Grandin Literary Award from the Autism Society of America, making its way into medical schools as part of required reading for fourth year medical students. She is also the author of Spectrum Women: Walking to the Beat of Autism (Jessica Kingsley Publishers) and Temple Grandin: The Stories I Tell My Friends (Future Horizons). Anita is also a Certified Life Coach with several areas of expertise, including Autism Life Skills Coaching, Integrated Health & Wellness Coaching, Health Care Professional Coaching and Executive/Corporate Coaching. |