Some of you may know that I have identical twin brothers who are older than me, and it’s them I have to thank for my initial interest in movement. When we were children no-one else could tell my brothers apart, but to me it was always obvious who was who as their walking styles were so different. They each had an individual, distinctive gait. This fascinated me: how come nobody else noticed it? Many years later, I recognise that the only reason I saw this was because I was invariably trailing behind them as we walked to school or to the park.
Simon experienced a similar identity issue to my brothers, as it was difficult for people to tell him and his identical twin brother apart. But when Simon approached me for help his life was very different from his brother’s. He had lost his job due to long covid and was consumed by fatigue. He’d begun an online computer course but was simply too tired to progress effectively with it. Meanwhile, his twin brother was in his final year of an engineering degree which he completed with flying colours.
Simon felt the difference in their circumstances keenly and he saw himself as somehow less than his brother. They both loved competitive road biking, but while his brother continued to excel at this sport it was another part of Simon’s life that fatigue had taken away.
It takes a lot of courage to reach out for help from a neuroplastic symptoms practitioner, but Simon was brave enough to do it. He diligently undertook the tasks we agreed on at each session. Steadily he began to work through his online computer course; a few minutes a day at first, gradually and over time increasing to an hour or more a day. Alongside this we addressed the issue of Simon’s daily routine, agreeing on a time for him to get up and go outside each day. After a while this evolved into mowing the lawn and sitting on his bike. Some weeks later he began cycling again, just a short distance at first a couple of times a week. Building up gradually, he eventually felt able to join a social cycling group.
Progress was deliberately measured and was frustrating for Simon at times. I felt for him, but held the line. I knew that maintaining a slow pace and gradually building up exposure would serve him best in the long run. Inevitably there were setbacks, as some days Simon’s fatigue weighed particularly heavily on him. When this happened we would agree to pull back a bit, continuing with the routine but reducing the time for each activity. At such moments it was Simon’s determination and growing self-belief that paid dividends.
Within six months Simon’s fatigue had lifted and he went on a camping holiday to Europe with a group of friends. He has now rejoined a local competitive road-biking group and often travels around Ireland to compete, achieving impressive times: something he’d believed he’d never be able to do again. On family holidays, he and his twin brother have enjoyed cycling long distances together and comparing times.
Simon is now in the final year of his undergraduate degree and absolutely flying it.
If you would like to hear from Simon himself here is his video, made for the Association for the Treatment of Neuroplastic Symptoms (ATNS).
Simons story as told by him