To Name But a Few:
Ansel Adams - Ann Bancroft (the explorer) - Alexander Graham Bell - Harry Andersen - Hans Christian Anderson - Beethoven - Harry Belafonte - Col. Gregory ‘Pappy’ Boyington - Terry Bradshaw - Richard Branson - George Burns - Andrew Carnegie - Dale Carnegie - Jim Carrey - Lewis Carroll - Prince Charles -
Cher - Agatha Christie - Winston Churchill - Bill Cosby - Tom Cruise - Salvador Dali - Leonardo da Vinci - John Denver - Walt Disney - Kirk Douglas - Thomas Edison - Albert Einstein - Dwight D. Eisenhower - F. Scott Fitzgerald - Malcolm Forbes - Henry Ford - Benjamin Franklin - Robert Frost - Galileo - Danny Glover - Tracey Gold - Whoopi Goldberg - Georg Frideric Handel - Valerie Hardin - Mariette Hartley - Ernest Hemingway - Mariel Hemingway - Milton Hershey - Dustin Hoffman - Bruce Jenner - "Magic" Johnson - Samuel Johnson - Micheal Jordan - John F Kennedy - Robert F Kennedy - Jason Kidd - John Lennon - Carl Lewis - Meriwether Lewis (Lewis & Clark) - Abraham Lincoln - Frank Lloyd Wright - Greg Louganis - Steve McQueen - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Napoleon Bonaparte - Gamal Abdel-nasser - Sir Issac Newton - Nostradamus - Ozzy Osbourne - Louis Pasteur - General George Patton - Pablo Picasso - Edgar Allan Poe - Rachmaninov - John D. Rockefeller - Nelson Rockefeller - Anna Eleanor Roosevelt - Pete Rose - Babe Ruth - Nolan Ryan - Muhammed Anwar al Sadat - George C Scott - George Bernard Shaw - Will Smith - Tom Smothers - Socrates - Suzanne Somers - Steven Spielberg - Sylvester Stallone - Jackie Stewart - James Stewart - Samuel Taylor Coleridge - Nikola Tesla - Henry David Thoreau - Alberto Tomba -Vincent van Gogh - Russell Varian - Jules Verne - Werner von Braun - Lyndsay Wagner - Robin Williams - Woodrow Wilson - Henry Winkler -Virginia Woolf - Stevie Wonder - F. W. Woolworth - Orville Wright - Wilber Wright - William Wrigley Jr. - William Butler Yeats
sources:
http://www.schwablearning.org/articles.asp?r=258
http://borntoexplore.org/famous.htm
http://www.oneaddplace.com/famous.htm
http://www.kpinst.org/famous.html
http://adhdtexas.com/famouspeople.htm
Do You Have ADD, ADHD, Dyslexia, Dyspraxia or Learning Difficulties? Read the trials and tribulations of a fellow sufferer, and laugh at her expense.
Friday, June 23, 2006
36. Dustin Hoffman
I keep trying to search for evidence of successful people with ADHD, and there are no shortage of websites, but being the pragmatic so-and-so that I am, I want proof!
Just a list of names is not enough for me, although if I had time I’d read the biographies of all the names listed to find my own evidence. When I was at uni we’d be in trouble if we didn’t reference the source of every fact we included in our essays – and quite right too, so that the reader could see for themselves that we haven’t just made stuff up. But the internet isn’t quite so strict, of course.
It is documented on several websites that Dustin Hoffman had learning difficulties. I love Dustin Hoffman and wanted to find evidence of this, so I asked on a popular message board if any of his fans knew if it were true, and what their source was. I had a range of replies, from people implying that ADHD people were retarded, to posts saying that the ‘facts’ must be true because people who put up webpages MUST do their research! HA!
It was soon clear that I was barking up the wrong tree. I shall obviously have to wait until my screenplay’s up for an academy award, so I can ask him myself.
In the meantime I’ll have to believe them at:
http://www.schwablearning.org/articles.asp?r=258
Just a list of names is not enough for me, although if I had time I’d read the biographies of all the names listed to find my own evidence. When I was at uni we’d be in trouble if we didn’t reference the source of every fact we included in our essays – and quite right too, so that the reader could see for themselves that we haven’t just made stuff up. But the internet isn’t quite so strict, of course.
It is documented on several websites that Dustin Hoffman had learning difficulties. I love Dustin Hoffman and wanted to find evidence of this, so I asked on a popular message board if any of his fans knew if it were true, and what their source was. I had a range of replies, from people implying that ADHD people were retarded, to posts saying that the ‘facts’ must be true because people who put up webpages MUST do their research! HA!
It was soon clear that I was barking up the wrong tree. I shall obviously have to wait until my screenplay’s up for an academy award, so I can ask him myself.
In the meantime I’ll have to believe them at:
http://www.schwablearning.org/articles.asp?r=258
35. Creative Writing
Another area where I’m improving is typing – although that’s speed, NOT accuracy! My typing has certainly got faster, but that’s just because I type so often. I’ve actually started my screenplay that I keep threatening to unleash on the world, but I only do one hour a day on it maximum. It’s all I can fit in. I have to stick to an hour even if most of that is thinking time – though I write ideas down all the time.
I was stuck without a pen the other day, so I rang myself up and left the idea as a message! – I often do that with songs I write, as I don’t carry a tape recorder around with me.
I have a friend who’s 80 later this year. When I told her I intend to beat Johnny Depp to an oscar she said “I wish you’d get on with it”. So I am.
Why not put an hour or two a week aside to do what it is you truly want to do? If you did the two hours together it’d just be like doing a nightschool class. You’d probably look forward to it all week.
I was stuck without a pen the other day, so I rang myself up and left the idea as a message! – I often do that with songs I write, as I don’t carry a tape recorder around with me.
I have a friend who’s 80 later this year. When I told her I intend to beat Johnny Depp to an oscar she said “I wish you’d get on with it”. So I am.
Why not put an hour or two a week aside to do what it is you truly want to do? If you did the two hours together it’d just be like doing a nightschool class. You’d probably look forward to it all week.
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
34. Improved Concentration
I think my concentration levels are actually improving (I’m drifting off much less – I think that’s because it’s finally sunk in just how much work I have to do). I only noticed this when I had to decipher the information on my phone bill. Are they ever straight forward? I went through it one line at a time, and it made sense! I felt so proud.
I’m not sure whether this is because of all the exercise I’m getting – at least 90 minutes’ walk a day – or because of all the reading I’ve done lately – (I’m reading over six hours a day, learning Internet Marketing and reading ebooks and hard books).
Or could it be because my attitude towards reading has changed?
Previously, I’d have looked at the phone bill, and thought “I can’t understand it” and phoned the phone company up for them to explain it. Ironic eh? Not really – the number has always been free. But not now: I’ve changed from BT to NTL and the customer service number is not free. Aha! The real reason for my new found concentration!
I’ve completely given up TV. I’d throw it out, but I need it for my exercise videos. I don’t think my friends believe me, but Jim Edwards is right to call it the ‘idiot box’ – and it’s such a massive thief of time.
Do yourself a favour – sell your telly! - Stick it on Ebay and teach the kids origami or something. Then write an ebook about it!
You know it makes sense.
I’m not sure whether this is because of all the exercise I’m getting – at least 90 minutes’ walk a day – or because of all the reading I’ve done lately – (I’m reading over six hours a day, learning Internet Marketing and reading ebooks and hard books).
Or could it be because my attitude towards reading has changed?
Previously, I’d have looked at the phone bill, and thought “I can’t understand it” and phoned the phone company up for them to explain it. Ironic eh? Not really – the number has always been free. But not now: I’ve changed from BT to NTL and the customer service number is not free. Aha! The real reason for my new found concentration!
I’ve completely given up TV. I’d throw it out, but I need it for my exercise videos. I don’t think my friends believe me, but Jim Edwards is right to call it the ‘idiot box’ – and it’s such a massive thief of time.
Do yourself a favour – sell your telly! - Stick it on Ebay and teach the kids origami or something. Then write an ebook about it!
You know it makes sense.
Monday, May 29, 2006
33. Staying Focused
I’m very excited about finally making a start at Internet Marketing. It’s been hard work over the last month to concentrate and not drift off "up in the clouds in a dreamworld" - ('Living On My Own' - Freddie Mercury). The more difficult something is, the more I drift off, and I end up reading the same paragraph 16 times!
I’ve read more ebooks, articles, forums and goodness knows what else lately, I’ve been having to take a nap every afternoon because despite having 20/20 vision, all that reading gives me a headache. It’s either my ADHD brain hurting, or it’s psychological!
Actually, I have a theory about glasses. There was a feature on 'Richard and Judy' last year that talked about how people who wear glasses exercise the muscles in their eyes less than those who don’t, so their eyesight inevitibly gets worse.
I was prescribed reading glasses when I was eight years old, and had to wear these little pink framed NHS glasses whenever I read. But I never did – because whenever I wore them I would suffer immense dizziness after only a few minutes. Later I realised I could wear them if I kept my head, and the book, very still. By that I mean I was not allowed to move my head at all – not even an inch (that is nigh on impossible by the way!), or I would get severe dizziness exactly like travel sickness.
So the result was that I had to read without glasses, and thus force my eyes to focus. Did my eyes deteriorate? No – they improved! Actually, I’m not convinced the prescription was even correct. The optician could have presumed I needed glasses when I simply couldn’t be bothered to focus on the eye test!
Well I have to be bothered focusing now - 'I don't have no time for no monkey business...'
I’ve read more ebooks, articles, forums and goodness knows what else lately, I’ve been having to take a nap every afternoon because despite having 20/20 vision, all that reading gives me a headache. It’s either my ADHD brain hurting, or it’s psychological!
Actually, I have a theory about glasses. There was a feature on 'Richard and Judy' last year that talked about how people who wear glasses exercise the muscles in their eyes less than those who don’t, so their eyesight inevitibly gets worse.
I was prescribed reading glasses when I was eight years old, and had to wear these little pink framed NHS glasses whenever I read. But I never did – because whenever I wore them I would suffer immense dizziness after only a few minutes. Later I realised I could wear them if I kept my head, and the book, very still. By that I mean I was not allowed to move my head at all – not even an inch (that is nigh on impossible by the way!), or I would get severe dizziness exactly like travel sickness.
So the result was that I had to read without glasses, and thus force my eyes to focus. Did my eyes deteriorate? No – they improved! Actually, I’m not convinced the prescription was even correct. The optician could have presumed I needed glasses when I simply couldn’t be bothered to focus on the eye test!
Well I have to be bothered focusing now - 'I don't have no time for no monkey business...'
Friday, May 05, 2006
32. Get Anything You Want!
I've been thinking about what I can do to improve my life with the resources I already have, rather than dwell on the things I don't have. This is hugely due to 'The 5 Steps To Getting Anything You Want' by Internet Marketing legend Jim Edwards.

I was both an attendee and the official photographer for Jim's Ebook Workshop two weeks ago, and it was quality stuff. I received the '5 Steps' in the post the other day and I immediately put the audios onto iTunes and listened to them on my ipod whilst on a 4 mile walk.
He says if your life is not how you want it, you are already very good at the system needed for success, because we always focus on what we don't want - so we get more of it!
I've completed the workbook, but it's evident that you need to review it daily, or you lose track of what you want. You're not allowed to say things like 'I want more money' because that creates negative images of not having any money. We should visualise what 'more money' will bring us, like a nice house, holiday or car.
And you can't say 'I'm sick of being fat' because you'll only be able to visualise yourself as a fat person. You think to yourself "I'm slim, confident and full of energy!" - using the present tense is important too as it makes the image more real.
Jim gives examples of how it works for him, but to be honest, I know that when I've managed to think like that myself, I've been successful. I now realise everyone should have a system for probably everything they undertake, but most of us just wander aimlessly through life, expecting everything to just fall into place, and getting annoyed when things don't go our way.
Despite having been at college for a total of 10 years (aaagh!) I've a feeling the most important education of my life is the self taught stuff I'm doing now through books and courses by people who have actually done what they preach, themselves.

I was both an attendee and the official photographer for Jim's Ebook Workshop two weeks ago, and it was quality stuff. I received the '5 Steps' in the post the other day and I immediately put the audios onto iTunes and listened to them on my ipod whilst on a 4 mile walk.
He says if your life is not how you want it, you are already very good at the system needed for success, because we always focus on what we don't want - so we get more of it!
I've completed the workbook, but it's evident that you need to review it daily, or you lose track of what you want. You're not allowed to say things like 'I want more money' because that creates negative images of not having any money. We should visualise what 'more money' will bring us, like a nice house, holiday or car.
And you can't say 'I'm sick of being fat' because you'll only be able to visualise yourself as a fat person. You think to yourself "I'm slim, confident and full of energy!" - using the present tense is important too as it makes the image more real.
Jim gives examples of how it works for him, but to be honest, I know that when I've managed to think like that myself, I've been successful. I now realise everyone should have a system for probably everything they undertake, but most of us just wander aimlessly through life, expecting everything to just fall into place, and getting annoyed when things don't go our way.
Despite having been at college for a total of 10 years (aaagh!) I've a feeling the most important education of my life is the self taught stuff I'm doing now through books and courses by people who have actually done what they preach, themselves.
Wednesday, April 19, 2006
31. Other Drug Free Programmes
I’ve been neglecting my blog, but as I’ve yet to learn how to drive traffic to it, I’m just sat here talking to myself anyway for now! I have been researching, but as I said earlier I do not want to promote sites that sell or advise people to take medication for their difficulties, and there are a lot more that do, than don’t!
I’ve yet to find out if this is a competitor of the Dore Programme, but at Gifted Dyslexic at http://www.lesblind.is/aboutgifted/aboutgifted.cfm they appear to split each condition into segments, and charge £1,800 for a course of treatment for Dyslexia, then another £1,800 for the treatment of Dyscalculia, (the proper name for being rubbish at Maths!)
That’s convenient for them. I’m still on the lookout for a cheaper alternative, but only for now, as I cannot afford the Dore Programme yet.
Another Programme that was featured on GMTV recently is the www.tinsleyhouseclinic.co.uk Dr Robin Pauc’s programme is a lot cheaper, but is it as effective? His site doesn’t boast the testimonials that the Dore Programme does, but they say they can treat adults too. I’ve been advised to buy the book ‘Is That My Child?’ which I’ve ordered from Amazon.
I’ve yet to find out if this is a competitor of the Dore Programme, but at Gifted Dyslexic at http://www.lesblind.is/aboutgifted/aboutgifted.cfm they appear to split each condition into segments, and charge £1,800 for a course of treatment for Dyslexia, then another £1,800 for the treatment of Dyscalculia, (the proper name for being rubbish at Maths!)
That’s convenient for them. I’m still on the lookout for a cheaper alternative, but only for now, as I cannot afford the Dore Programme yet.
Another Programme that was featured on GMTV recently is the www.tinsleyhouseclinic.co.uk Dr Robin Pauc’s programme is a lot cheaper, but is it as effective? His site doesn’t boast the testimonials that the Dore Programme does, but they say they can treat adults too. I’ve been advised to buy the book ‘Is That My Child?’ which I’ve ordered from Amazon.
Tuesday, April 11, 2006
30. Reading Age – Comprehension Age
At the Dore Presentation, Wynford Dore explained how children could score reasonably well with on their reading age but not so well on their comprehension age.
I asked Mr Dore if he could explain further as I couldn’t write my notes fast enough. He explained more about how the working memory affects the difference between the reading age and the comprehension age:
“It’s often noticed that children with a learning difficulty can score reasonably well with a reading age but far worse with their comprehension age. What we believe is happening is that many of the functions used during the process of reading have not been automatised.
Virtually everyone that goes through the Dore Programme is found to have serious problems with eye tracking, in other words they are unable to smoothly move their eyes across a line of words so that those words go into the brain in a smooth manner.
The fact that the eyes are jumping rather than moving smoothly suggests that that process has not been automatised and is, therefore, probably being controlled in working memory. The fuller working memory is with those things that have not been automatised and, therefore, should not really be there the less space is left for processing.
Thus for someone with a learning difficulty trying to read they may well be using up all their available working memory space just working out what that particular word means. They then move on to the next word and the process starts again.
The problem seems to be that after they have worked out what each individual word means they do not have the working memory capacity to retain that word and the subsequent ones in the sentence.
Thus the lack of working memory capacity will reduce the comprehension ability even though that person has been able to work out what each individual word means. It is, therefore, quite common and explainable that someone can have a good reading age but poor comprehension age.
And, of course, this makes all the difference between wanting to read for pleasure and not.” – Wynford Dore
www.dore.co.uk
I asked Mr Dore if he could explain further as I couldn’t write my notes fast enough. He explained more about how the working memory affects the difference between the reading age and the comprehension age:
“It’s often noticed that children with a learning difficulty can score reasonably well with a reading age but far worse with their comprehension age. What we believe is happening is that many of the functions used during the process of reading have not been automatised.
Virtually everyone that goes through the Dore Programme is found to have serious problems with eye tracking, in other words they are unable to smoothly move their eyes across a line of words so that those words go into the brain in a smooth manner.
The fact that the eyes are jumping rather than moving smoothly suggests that that process has not been automatised and is, therefore, probably being controlled in working memory. The fuller working memory is with those things that have not been automatised and, therefore, should not really be there the less space is left for processing.
Thus for someone with a learning difficulty trying to read they may well be using up all their available working memory space just working out what that particular word means. They then move on to the next word and the process starts again.
The problem seems to be that after they have worked out what each individual word means they do not have the working memory capacity to retain that word and the subsequent ones in the sentence.
Thus the lack of working memory capacity will reduce the comprehension ability even though that person has been able to work out what each individual word means. It is, therefore, quite common and explainable that someone can have a good reading age but poor comprehension age.
And, of course, this makes all the difference between wanting to read for pleasure and not.” – Wynford Dore
www.dore.co.uk
Monday, April 10, 2006
29. Working Memory
I know my working memory is rubbish, because of the examples I gave in my Spelling post, and I cannot play the game ‘Answer the previous question’. If I was asked a series of questions and was required to not answer the first question until after the second question had been asked (and so on), I would fail after only one question – two if I’m lucky.
I also made a hopeless barmaid at college, because if someone wanted more than three drinks, I’d have to ask them again what the first one was.
Most people who don’t have learning disabilities can remember a substantial number of things at once, because they have automatised other tasks. However, people with learning disabilities haven’t automatised other tasks, such as reading, or hearing a sequence of numbers, so they are busy using up their working memory in order to simply process the information they are being given.
This means that there is very little available working memory left. I think of it as like using an overdraft! (something I can relate to!) I was wrong to say I have a ‘small working memory’ yesterday. I actually have the same working memory as most people, but it is being used to process information that should be automatised, so has a smaller available balance!
I once shared reading a book with a classmate, and she was finishing each page long before I was. So I asked her to read aloud at the same speed she was reading in her head, as I thought she was skipping some of the lines. Her response was that she was reading all the words, but at a much faster rate than she could speak (because it was automatised). I thought she was lying! Even now when I read, I imagine saying each word aloud.
See further information on working memory at:
http://www.learnplus.com/guides/learning-sys-memo.html
http://www.brainconnection.com/topics/?main=fa/working-memory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working_memory
I also made a hopeless barmaid at college, because if someone wanted more than three drinks, I’d have to ask them again what the first one was.
Most people who don’t have learning disabilities can remember a substantial number of things at once, because they have automatised other tasks. However, people with learning disabilities haven’t automatised other tasks, such as reading, or hearing a sequence of numbers, so they are busy using up their working memory in order to simply process the information they are being given.
This means that there is very little available working memory left. I think of it as like using an overdraft! (something I can relate to!) I was wrong to say I have a ‘small working memory’ yesterday. I actually have the same working memory as most people, but it is being used to process information that should be automatised, so has a smaller available balance!
I once shared reading a book with a classmate, and she was finishing each page long before I was. So I asked her to read aloud at the same speed she was reading in her head, as I thought she was skipping some of the lines. Her response was that she was reading all the words, but at a much faster rate than she could speak (because it was automatised). I thought she was lying! Even now when I read, I imagine saying each word aloud.
See further information on working memory at:
http://www.learnplus.com/guides/learning-sys-memo.html
http://www.brainconnection.com/topics/?main=fa/working-memory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Working_memory
Sunday, April 09, 2006
28. Confidence and Mood Swings
I have bought loads of books on building confidence, and for the first few days I’ve felt great - then I’ve tried in vain to put them into practice, because I’ve forgotten most of the content. But I think even if I’d remembered, I’d still only be ‘papering over the cracks’ because the root of the problem must be in the fact that I know I have limitations. I now know those limitations are in the cerebellum.
I even bought a book on Nasty People and how to deal with them, as I could never stand up to them effectively, and now I know all the psychology behind why they behave that way (as I did when I was a child), and yet I can’t put it into practice because my working memory is so small, I still can’t speak effectively -the number of times I lose my thread during a conversation.
I’d love to know for sure that when I opened my mouth, something intelligent would come out, and people wouldn’t frown and wonder what I was on about! That I could speak without semi-stuttering, and stay focussed without going off on a tangent, then I’d have so much more confidence. And I believe this would have a snowball effect, because there are so many situations that I avoid at the moment.
And for years I was an unruly child, then an anarchic teenager, then had major mood swings as an adult. I joined a Bi Polar group because I thought I was manic depressive. A psychiatrist even said I might be, but she didn’t force me to take medication, because I wasn’t considered a danger to myself or anyone else.
This is why I related to Toyah so much, because she seemed to have the same problems as me when she was very young. The thing I am most looking forward to when I finally get on the Dore programme is to eliminate the mood swings, as Toyah did. I will have such a fulfilling life, because I’ll be much nicer to know!
www.dore.co.uk
I even bought a book on Nasty People and how to deal with them, as I could never stand up to them effectively, and now I know all the psychology behind why they behave that way (as I did when I was a child), and yet I can’t put it into practice because my working memory is so small, I still can’t speak effectively -the number of times I lose my thread during a conversation.
I’d love to know for sure that when I opened my mouth, something intelligent would come out, and people wouldn’t frown and wonder what I was on about! That I could speak without semi-stuttering, and stay focussed without going off on a tangent, then I’d have so much more confidence. And I believe this would have a snowball effect, because there are so many situations that I avoid at the moment.
And for years I was an unruly child, then an anarchic teenager, then had major mood swings as an adult. I joined a Bi Polar group because I thought I was manic depressive. A psychiatrist even said I might be, but she didn’t force me to take medication, because I wasn’t considered a danger to myself or anyone else.
This is why I related to Toyah so much, because she seemed to have the same problems as me when she was very young. The thing I am most looking forward to when I finally get on the Dore programme is to eliminate the mood swings, as Toyah did. I will have such a fulfilling life, because I’ll be much nicer to know!
www.dore.co.uk
Friday, April 07, 2006
27. Ozzy Osbourne - Paranoid
Ozzy Osbourne said he had ADHD. Let’s just recap the words to ‘Paranoid’ by Black Sabbath:
"Finished with my woman
'Cause she couldn't help me with my mind
People think I'm insane
Because I am frowning all the time
All day long I think of things
But nothing seems to satisfy
Think I'll lose my mind
If I don't find something to pacify
Can you help me, occupy my brain?
Oh yeah!
I need someone to show me
The things in life that I can't find
I can't see the things that make true Happiness,
I must be blind
Make a joke and I will sigh
And you will laugh and I will cry
Happiness I cannot feel
And love to me is so unreal
And so as you hear these words
Telling you now of my state
I tell you to enjoy life
I wish I could but it's too late"
It’s difficult to know if Ozzy was fully responsible for all the words, as the whole band are credited with all the song writing. But still, I bet Toyah could persuade Ozzy to attend the Dore Centre.
www.dore.co.uk
"Finished with my woman
'Cause she couldn't help me with my mind
People think I'm insane
Because I am frowning all the time
All day long I think of things
But nothing seems to satisfy
Think I'll lose my mind
If I don't find something to pacify
Can you help me, occupy my brain?
Oh yeah!
I need someone to show me
The things in life that I can't find
I can't see the things that make true Happiness,
I must be blind
Make a joke and I will sigh
And you will laugh and I will cry
Happiness I cannot feel
And love to me is so unreal
And so as you hear these words
Telling you now of my state
I tell you to enjoy life
I wish I could but it's too late"
It’s difficult to know if Ozzy was fully responsible for all the words, as the whole band are credited with all the song writing. But still, I bet Toyah could persuade Ozzy to attend the Dore Centre.
www.dore.co.uk
Thursday, April 06, 2006
26. Stories of Inspiration
Whilst waiting for your free DVD from the Dore Centre, have a look at these pdf files:
http://www.dorecenters.com/files/SundayMail_Aug05.pdf
http://www.dorecenters.com/files/Toyah.pdf
When reading the one about Toyah, I was reminded again of one of the cerebellum exercises that they give you to do on the Dore Programme; walking downstairs whilst blindfolded!
OK, I’m sure it must adhere to all health and safety regulations, and there must be more to it than that, but my initial reaction was, “Well, a cracked skull would probably sort out most cerebellum problems…!”
I can only just manage going forwards with my eyes open!
But hey, Toyah survived didn’t she?
www.dore.co.uk
http://www.dorecenters.com/files/SundayMail_Aug05.pdf
http://www.dorecenters.com/files/Toyah.pdf
When reading the one about Toyah, I was reminded again of one of the cerebellum exercises that they give you to do on the Dore Programme; walking downstairs whilst blindfolded!
OK, I’m sure it must adhere to all health and safety regulations, and there must be more to it than that, but my initial reaction was, “Well, a cracked skull would probably sort out most cerebellum problems…!”
I can only just manage going forwards with my eyes open!
But hey, Toyah survived didn’t she?
www.dore.co.uk
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
25. Astronauts' Balance Disorders
I talked earlier about the balance machines at the Dore Centres, which were developed by NASA to monitor astronauts’ balance progress after returning to earth. Wynford Dore has kindly sent me additional information after speaking at the Dore Presentation in Cardiff on March 21st, about the astronauts’ temporary difficulties.
“I’ve been trying hard to find the old astronauts balance problems link - I haven’t seen them for two or three years and they seem to have been taken off the various websites. One of the references I can remember clearly was a French - Russian mission where they described in detail the co-ordination problems experienced by cosmonauts when they returned to earth. Some of them were writing backwards, some of them had orientation problems, a number of them had travel sickness problems for a while. When we first started doing our research one of our specialists went to America to discuss with the expert that had been working with NASA on the development of the equipment we subsequently obtained. NASA have constantly denied that astronauts have “dyslexic problems”. We know some of the symptoms they suffer temporarily are exactly the same as those that are suffered every day by some people.” – Wynford Dore
Astronaut David Wolf also said in National Geographic that upon his return to earth, balance problems caused him to run into doors.
There is more information on astronauts’ balance disorders at:
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=11919
And general information on balance disorders at:
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/balance/balance_disorders.asp
www.dore.co.uk
“I’ve been trying hard to find the old astronauts balance problems link - I haven’t seen them for two or three years and they seem to have been taken off the various websites. One of the references I can remember clearly was a French - Russian mission where they described in detail the co-ordination problems experienced by cosmonauts when they returned to earth. Some of them were writing backwards, some of them had orientation problems, a number of them had travel sickness problems for a while. When we first started doing our research one of our specialists went to America to discuss with the expert that had been working with NASA on the development of the equipment we subsequently obtained. NASA have constantly denied that astronauts have “dyslexic problems”. We know some of the symptoms they suffer temporarily are exactly the same as those that are suffered every day by some people.” – Wynford Dore
Astronaut David Wolf also said in National Geographic that upon his return to earth, balance problems caused him to run into doors.
There is more information on astronauts’ balance disorders at:
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewpr.html?pid=11919
And general information on balance disorders at:
http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/balance/balance_disorders.asp
www.dore.co.uk
Monday, April 03, 2006
24. Clumsiness
I have always been clumsy and quite heavy handed, when opening and closing cupboard doors for example, and when I write I press quite hard.
The more tired I am, the worse I am, but I’m not too bad when I go out. I think I subconsciously know to be more careful!
I did some research on Clumsiness and was interested to find that several sources claim that hand/ eye co-ordination exercises help clumsiness. Tennis and Ping Pong are supposed to help quite a lot, and positive and calm imagery, as stated at:
http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/16/42.cfm
It also states that rolling a stick on top of two other sticks, in the shape of an ‘H’ will improve Clumsiness. I wonder if this is because it stimulates the cerebellum? That sounds easy to do, and I always have old wrapping paper tubes lying around (I’m a hoarder!)
(Later) Woohoo! A co-ordination exercise I can do first time! I may have been cheating by using very long tubes with a considerable overlap to stop the top tube from falling off, but I found it easy and quite therapeutic. I made the rule that you can only hold the two parallel tubes and not let the horizontal one fall off the end or touch your hands. I think it’s rather similar to doing a hill start in a car, in relation to the pressure and speed that you allow the top tube to travel.
If I didn’t have more pressing things to do, I could do this all evening! Parents! Save money on expensive toys! Give your kid three tubes and tell them to make an ‘H’!
www.dore.co.uk
The more tired I am, the worse I am, but I’m not too bad when I go out. I think I subconsciously know to be more careful!
I did some research on Clumsiness and was interested to find that several sources claim that hand/ eye co-ordination exercises help clumsiness. Tennis and Ping Pong are supposed to help quite a lot, and positive and calm imagery, as stated at:
http://www.mothernature.com/Library/Bookshelf/Books/16/42.cfm
It also states that rolling a stick on top of two other sticks, in the shape of an ‘H’ will improve Clumsiness. I wonder if this is because it stimulates the cerebellum? That sounds easy to do, and I always have old wrapping paper tubes lying around (I’m a hoarder!)
(Later) Woohoo! A co-ordination exercise I can do first time! I may have been cheating by using very long tubes with a considerable overlap to stop the top tube from falling off, but I found it easy and quite therapeutic. I made the rule that you can only hold the two parallel tubes and not let the horizontal one fall off the end or touch your hands. I think it’s rather similar to doing a hill start in a car, in relation to the pressure and speed that you allow the top tube to travel.
If I didn’t have more pressing things to do, I could do this all evening! Parents! Save money on expensive toys! Give your kid three tubes and tell them to make an ‘H’!
www.dore.co.uk
Sunday, April 02, 2006
23. Dogs With ADHD Part2
OK, I may have been joking yesterday when I said The Dore Centre plans to include dogs in their Training Centres (my contribution to April Fool’s Day – I’ll cross off ‘comedienne’ shall I, from my Miscellaneous List of Possible Careers?) but it’s not beyond the realms of possibility for dogs to have ADHD, is it? I mean, in theory, anything that possesses a brain could have it.
I did a bit of online research, and found that some sites that mention dogs with ADHD, dwell on the ‘Hyperactivity’ part of ADHD a bit too much (well I guess it’s difficult to test most dogs’ spelling) and I’m having trouble finding any sites at all on ADHD that don’t suggest medication, which I do NOT want to promote.
Talking of spelling, I was tempted yesterday to write that the Dore Centre has facilities for testing dogs’ memory, balance, co-ordination and spelling! But I thought that would make it a bit too obvious. Although I have no doubt that someone could teach a clever dog to spell certain words, with enough buttons, bells and whistles, if that person had a lot of time on their hands!
Maybe it’s not a ludicrous idea to test and try to treat dogs for ADHD. If a good drug free programme is devised, I doubt there’ll be a shortage of customers.
I did a bit of online research, and found that some sites that mention dogs with ADHD, dwell on the ‘Hyperactivity’ part of ADHD a bit too much (well I guess it’s difficult to test most dogs’ spelling) and I’m having trouble finding any sites at all on ADHD that don’t suggest medication, which I do NOT want to promote.
Talking of spelling, I was tempted yesterday to write that the Dore Centre has facilities for testing dogs’ memory, balance, co-ordination and spelling! But I thought that would make it a bit too obvious. Although I have no doubt that someone could teach a clever dog to spell certain words, with enough buttons, bells and whistles, if that person had a lot of time on their hands!
Maybe it’s not a ludicrous idea to test and try to treat dogs for ADHD. If a good drug free programme is devised, I doubt there’ll be a shortage of customers.
Saturday, April 01, 2006
22. Dogs With ADHD
Of course humans are not the only creatures who can have ADHD and other learning disabilities. Since 2001 dogs too have been tested for the condition. Some findings can be found here at:
http://www.ahherald.com/senior/2005/ss050428_adhd_dogs.htm
I had a chat with Wynford Dore at the Dore Presentation in Cardiff about his involvement with ADHD dogs at Crufts UK earlier this year. Go to:
www.bbc.co.uk/crufts
The Dore Centre at Kenilworth, Warwickshire already has facilities to test dogs on their memory, balance and co-ordination and a Canine Dore Programme is due to be available from September. Mr Dore hopes that by 2009 there will be as many Canine Dore Training Centres worldwide as there are for people.
www.dore.co.uk
http://www.ahherald.com/senior/2005/ss050428_adhd_dogs.htm
I had a chat with Wynford Dore at the Dore Presentation in Cardiff about his involvement with ADHD dogs at Crufts UK earlier this year. Go to:
www.bbc.co.uk/crufts
The Dore Centre at Kenilworth, Warwickshire already has facilities to test dogs on their memory, balance and co-ordination and a Canine Dore Programme is due to be available from September. Mr Dore hopes that by 2009 there will be as many Canine Dore Training Centres worldwide as there are for people.
www.dore.co.uk
Friday, March 31, 2006
21. Spelling and Memory
I’ve already been to the Dore Centre in Cardiff for an initial assessment, and two members of staff say I’m suitable for the programme, but I’m concerned they may say I’m not suitable when they assess me further because I’m good at spelling and I’m sure I could easily remember loads of animals in a minute. Actually let’s try that:
The girl on The Tonight Programme could think of 22 animals within a minute on her first attempt, and six months later she got 28 animals within a minute.
Wow! It was a lot harder than I thought. I got 25, but I think I said ‘Tiger’ twice. So I’m not that good at all!
I’m deliberately not going to practice that, or when I do get to go on the programme, my results won’t be accurate. Or maybe they can give me a list of something else to think of that makes me think on my feet.
Maybe I’m deluded about spelling as well. I remember I often got high scores at school, but there was no pressure. I’m only good at spelling if I write the word down. Most of the time if a word looks wrong to me, it is wrong. But then if a word looks wrong, wouldn’t that be using the creative part of the brain? And not the cerebellum? I can always cope with diagrams much better than text.
And I always have a real problem when I’ve mistyped something. I go back and because the word is unrecognisable, I don’t know which letters to change, and for some reason I have to close one eye to see it properly (though my sight’s fine).
I always type ‘form’ instead of ‘from’, which is ironic, because I hate forms! Every ‘from’ you see will have been amended from ‘form’!
I’ve watched these spelling contests, and the kids on there are so fast! I’d have to think for a second or two in between each letter. And they say the word at the beginning and at the end really fast – I definitely can’t do that. Whatever happens I’m hopeful that the Dore Programme can sort me out!
www.dore.co.uk
The girl on The Tonight Programme could think of 22 animals within a minute on her first attempt, and six months later she got 28 animals within a minute.
Wow! It was a lot harder than I thought. I got 25, but I think I said ‘Tiger’ twice. So I’m not that good at all!
I’m deliberately not going to practice that, or when I do get to go on the programme, my results won’t be accurate. Or maybe they can give me a list of something else to think of that makes me think on my feet.
Maybe I’m deluded about spelling as well. I remember I often got high scores at school, but there was no pressure. I’m only good at spelling if I write the word down. Most of the time if a word looks wrong to me, it is wrong. But then if a word looks wrong, wouldn’t that be using the creative part of the brain? And not the cerebellum? I can always cope with diagrams much better than text.
And I always have a real problem when I’ve mistyped something. I go back and because the word is unrecognisable, I don’t know which letters to change, and for some reason I have to close one eye to see it properly (though my sight’s fine).
I always type ‘form’ instead of ‘from’, which is ironic, because I hate forms! Every ‘from’ you see will have been amended from ‘form’!
I’ve watched these spelling contests, and the kids on there are so fast! I’d have to think for a second or two in between each letter. And they say the word at the beginning and at the end really fast – I definitely can’t do that. Whatever happens I’m hopeful that the Dore Programme can sort me out!
www.dore.co.uk
Thursday, March 30, 2006
20. My Biggest Ever Goof
The undercharging camera story (from yesterday’s post) gets worse: When I was a student, I was working in a camera store and it was the last Saturday before Christmas, so the shop was packed with impatient shoppers. To look at their faces petrified me because I hate keeping people waiting, and I couldn’t cope with the stress.
A lady said she wanted a camera for her husband for Christmas for about £100. So I showed her three and she opted for one for £119.00, the Canon Sureshot Telemax, that had its own little box, carrying case, strap, two batteries, two films and two little photo albums all included in a large kit box.
Our computers always added the .00 on the end of the price because all the products were rounded up to a pound. So I keyed the price into the credit card machine the same as I’d keyed into the computer; 119, but it only registered £1.19.
I went off for two weeks for the holidays, completely oblivious. When I came back I was told that the shop had contacted the bank, the bank had rung the customer and left a message on the answerphone. The husband then heard it, so he now knew what he was getting for Christmas.
An angry wife came back to pay the difference. Then Christmas day arrived. The husband, (probably) opens his wife’s present first, because he knows what it is, and wants to photograph the kids opening their presents. He knows he has everything in the kit box to start taking photos immediately.
So he removes the wrapping, opens the kit box, takes out the two little photo albums, the two films, the two batteries, the strap, the carrying case and …an empty box. On Christmas eve, the staff had done a stock-take and found a lonely little Canon Sureshot Telemax sitting on a shelf with no home. The shop gave her the camera and a £10 gift voucher, but she’d been under no obligation to pay the full amount even if the camera had been in its box.
So let’s recap: I charge £1.19 for all those goodies? Even without the camera, it’s still a bargain if you ask me. Who says I’m not talented? When I goof things up, I do a proper job.
A lady said she wanted a camera for her husband for Christmas for about £100. So I showed her three and she opted for one for £119.00, the Canon Sureshot Telemax, that had its own little box, carrying case, strap, two batteries, two films and two little photo albums all included in a large kit box.
Our computers always added the .00 on the end of the price because all the products were rounded up to a pound. So I keyed the price into the credit card machine the same as I’d keyed into the computer; 119, but it only registered £1.19.
I went off for two weeks for the holidays, completely oblivious. When I came back I was told that the shop had contacted the bank, the bank had rung the customer and left a message on the answerphone. The husband then heard it, so he now knew what he was getting for Christmas.
An angry wife came back to pay the difference. Then Christmas day arrived. The husband, (probably) opens his wife’s present first, because he knows what it is, and wants to photograph the kids opening their presents. He knows he has everything in the kit box to start taking photos immediately.
So he removes the wrapping, opens the kit box, takes out the two little photo albums, the two films, the two batteries, the strap, the carrying case and …an empty box. On Christmas eve, the staff had done a stock-take and found a lonely little Canon Sureshot Telemax sitting on a shelf with no home. The shop gave her the camera and a £10 gift voucher, but she’d been under no obligation to pay the full amount even if the camera had been in its box.
So let’s recap: I charge £1.19 for all those goodies? Even without the camera, it’s still a bargain if you ask me. Who says I’m not talented? When I goof things up, I do a proper job.
Wednesday, March 29, 2006
19. You Know You Have ADHD When…
- You forget you take sugar in your own tea
- You leave your shopping on the bus
- You dump your fella and post your own (last) key through his letterbox, instead of his
- You mix Jerry Adams up with Jerry Hall in your university interview – but still get in
- You charge for postage after weighing your item on Ebay, before you’ve wrapped it up
- You turn up a day early for a job interview
- You have to pay the taxi fare in postage stamps
- You don’t have any right angles on the bathroom cabinet you made in Woodwork
- You turn your house upside down looking for the sunglasses that are on your head
- You charge a customer £1.19 for a £119.00 camera
- You look up a word in a dictionary, get distracted by other words, and forget the word
- You become a photographer because most books on the subject are full of pictures
- You omit two pints of vegetable stock from your home made vegetable soup
- You have to sit on deck on the cross channel ferry, in the rain, watching the horizon
- You have to buy a replica of your expensive camera because you lost the charger
- You get 240 mph when working out the speed for the 4 minute mile
- You’re caught tucking toilet rolls in the door of the fridge – I was being harrassed, OK?
- You can’t find your time management book; ‘Getting Things Done’
- You write down the patient’s name from a Hand X-ray; ‘RT Scaphoid’
- You crash into an empty, parked police car and tell them it was a stupid place to park
Tuesday, March 28, 2006
18. Why Create This Blog?
I need to be self employed because of health reasons. I have a bad back, and lots of other pain, which I’m certain is TMS (Tension Myositis Syndrome, an idea pioneered by John E Sarno MD, which I won’t try to explain here. See reviews for his book, 'The Mindbody Prescription' on Amazon, but ignore the one by the person who clearly hasn’t read the book).
Although I’m a photographer I want to work from home more so that I can control my working conditions more easily. I started off wanting to learn web design, after studying modules in Film and Graphic Design on my Photography course, and Web Design on a Post Graduate course.
I found that I knew what looked good, and what didn’t, but I was struggling with the technical aspects. So from web design, I got into internet marketing, though I still have a lot to learn, and I’m struggling with that too. One of the first and easiest steps is to publish a blog, on any subject you want. As I write this I have no comments from readers on any of my posts, but slowly I’m learning how to drive traffic to the site. And when I know what I’m doing I’ll have my own sites with their own domains on other subjects.
At the moment I’m really frustrated that it’s taking me so long to learn it all, but if I hadn’t spent so much time online in the past few months, I wouldn’t have discovered I had ADHD, and whatever other learning difficulties I have; I wouldn’t have found out about Sarno’s work, etc. So I think I’m lucky and very pleased to be on the right road at last.
At first, I thought ‘What will I write every day?’ (you have to post every day to be listed in the search engines, at least until you get lots of people linking to the site) And now you can’t shut me up! I’ve spent all morning writing the next five posts – (or is that the last five?!)
Oh, and for people in the UK, no I don’t stay up all night posting. The times displayed on the blog are EST in the US, so they’re 8 hours behind us.
Once I become interested in something, I become really interested in it! So the Dore Programme is what I want to promote, until I can go on it myself, then I can document my real progress, instead of just being a wannabe! I think it’s because it’s such a new and relatively unknown drug-free treatment, that has had astounding results and could literally change the lives of millions of people – that I feel I have to promote it!
www.dore.co.uk
Although I’m a photographer I want to work from home more so that I can control my working conditions more easily. I started off wanting to learn web design, after studying modules in Film and Graphic Design on my Photography course, and Web Design on a Post Graduate course.
I found that I knew what looked good, and what didn’t, but I was struggling with the technical aspects. So from web design, I got into internet marketing, though I still have a lot to learn, and I’m struggling with that too. One of the first and easiest steps is to publish a blog, on any subject you want. As I write this I have no comments from readers on any of my posts, but slowly I’m learning how to drive traffic to the site. And when I know what I’m doing I’ll have my own sites with their own domains on other subjects.
At the moment I’m really frustrated that it’s taking me so long to learn it all, but if I hadn’t spent so much time online in the past few months, I wouldn’t have discovered I had ADHD, and whatever other learning difficulties I have; I wouldn’t have found out about Sarno’s work, etc. So I think I’m lucky and very pleased to be on the right road at last.
At first, I thought ‘What will I write every day?’ (you have to post every day to be listed in the search engines, at least until you get lots of people linking to the site) And now you can’t shut me up! I’ve spent all morning writing the next five posts – (or is that the last five?!)
Oh, and for people in the UK, no I don’t stay up all night posting. The times displayed on the blog are EST in the US, so they’re 8 hours behind us.
Once I become interested in something, I become really interested in it! So the Dore Programme is what I want to promote, until I can go on it myself, then I can document my real progress, instead of just being a wannabe! I think it’s because it’s such a new and relatively unknown drug-free treatment, that has had astounding results and could literally change the lives of millions of people – that I feel I have to promote it!
www.dore.co.uk
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