The Greatest Game You've Never Heard Of!!

I’m pretty sure 99.999% of people on this earth have heard of the game soccer (the only .1% must live under a rock) but I’m pretty sure you’ve never heard of Paralympic soccer. Paralympic soccer is a sport for soccer players with disabilities who compete in the Paralympics. (ABOSULTLY NO AFFILATION WITH THE SECPIACL OLYMPICS) to be eligible to play for your country you must have Cerebral Palsy, A traumatic brain injury (TBI) or be a stroke survivor.  The game is played on a 75 x 55m field with 5 x 2m goals and is played with 7 players for each team (6 outfield players and a goalkeeper). The game follows the same FIFA rules as the 11 v 11 games expect that there is no offside rule and a player can perform a under arm throw (like bowling  a ball) if one arm is to affected.  There are also 2 30 minutes half’s in the game.

 Here are some links and websites to help you better understand Paralympic soccer:

  http://www.back-spin.com/

 http://www.ussoccer.com/teams/other-programs/paralympic-soccer.aspx

http://www.facebook.com/parasoccer?ref=ts

The U.S. Paralympic national soccer team qualified for the 2012 London Olympics Early this year in June after a 3-2 win over Ireland at the 2011 CPISRA FOOTBALL 7-a-side world championships in Holland and finished 8^th place in the tournament. Like any other professional athletes they need your support in London, the best way you can support and follow them  is by checking there Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/parasoccer?ref=ts) and the U.S soccer website page (http://www.ussoccer.com/Teams/Other-Programs/Paralympic-Soccer.aspx ). I will be supporting them 100% and hope to able to right a few more blog posts in the future on how they do in London. GO USA!!!!

One last note, I would also like to say how happy I am that I found out about this team and also the Paralympics in general. It has helped me accept that I am disabled and have the ability to do great things and given me true hero’s to look up to and to . It has opened new doors for me in more way than one. While I know there is currently no women’s team in place it gives me hope that one day there is a possibility that I will represent my country and play the game I love so much.  I would also like to give a shout out to a member of the team Nick Creasey (@NickCreasey) for being an awesome guy!!!!!!

My next post is likely to come in late winter when I will hopefully be playing indoor soccer but then again I might find something awesome to blog about sooner! J  

 

Health Issues + Holidays + school = NOT MUCH SOCCER! :(

 I apologize for not updating in over a month as I have been attempting to sort out heath issues and school along with the holidays. Part of being disabled and having cerebral palsy is having health issues but I have been lucky and avoided that by staying active, a privilege that not very many disabled people get. Anyways to update you my high school jv2 soccer season ended in late October. Id say it was a very successful season on my part (even though our team only own 4 games, and some of my team mates seemed to dislike me, or they just didn’t really understand my disability).  I scored my second goal ever, in a 3-0 win over Woodburn High school! I also put on some great performances while the JV coach was watching!!! J. I’d also say I was in the best shape of my life for about 80% of the season which is a very big milestone for me.  All of this gives me real promise for next year and the years to come!

Heath issues:

Lou Holtz once said "I've never known anybody to achieve anything without overcoming adversity. And that’s exactly how I feel right now. Earlier I said I was fit for about 80 % of the season, the other 20 % was during the last 2 weeks of the season. I began to get very sick first with a very bad cold and then just a little over a week later a bad flu with many symptoms. Once of the main concerns were bad headaches. I went to the doctor in the middle of having the flu shortly after the season and they had no clue what was causing my headaches so the doctor sent me to the hospital for blood test, chest x-rays and an urinalysis. This did scare me a little, although a never admitted it to my mom. On top of that I have a great hatred for hospitals. After it was clear that I did not have any viruses or infections and my headaches continually worsened the doctors sent my back to the hospital for a CT scan. This scared me the most because all I could think of from the time in the waiting room to getting the actual results later that night were “Brain Tumor”.  I am very glad to say there was no trace of anything on the scan. Although this meant many more doctors and missed days at school to try to figure out what was wrong with me.  The one thing that did threaten my soccer ambitions was a heart murmur my doctor found. When he told me that if he found the murmur during my sports physical just months earlier, he WOULD HAVE NEVER LET ME PLAY! L. This was the first ever in my life I had thought about my life if I ever would not be able to play soccer. And to be honest I HAVE NO CLUE WHAT I WOULD DO WITH MY LIFE IF I COULD NOT PLAY SOCCER. This really made me feel lucky that I have the chance to play soccer even with my disabilityJ. THANK GOD the test came back about a week later and the heat murmur that not a worry.  I COULD STILL PLAY SOCCER!  After many other doctors’ visits to pediatricians, eye doctor’s ext., it was discovered that I have cavities. The first appointment to remove them was 2 weeks ago. The second one was last Tuesday. Miraculously the next day all trace of the horrible headaches that took control of my life for more than 2 months was gone!! (THEY HAVE NOT RETURNED!)  It has not been confirmed that my headaches were cause by cavities but I thank god that I have relief and can live my life as normal once againJ.

Holidays and relaxationJ:

It is exactly 1 week till my favorite holiday of the year!! And I am also of school for 2 weeks!!  These next 2 weeks will be spent relaxing and getting my body back to %100.  Also I’ll be spending time with family and getting back on track in school. I’m not asking for much this Christmas, only a new IPod and a few soccer related things :). The number one thing I ask for cannot be given to me by my parents. I ask god for my headaches to STAY AWAY for a very, very long time and to have no more health problems. It is also only a few for weeks till January 2012! This means I am able to start indoor soccer. I also will be getting back with my trainer at club sport soon in an attempt to get back in shape. I wish all of you and your family’s a very happy holiday!! J      

2011 Wilson family christmas tree!!