Carter has Autism Spectrum Disorder. He is quite the young man and has quite the story! Thank you Sarah Shampine for allowing his story to be shared.

Carter’s testimony:

My name is Carter and I’m 15 years old. I also have Autism Spectrum Disorder.

My dad started Yoli in April, 2014 and my mom that June and they both have had great success so far. (Dad is down 70+pounds even being a truck driver and mom lost a total of 117lbs and has kept it off for over a year!!) After reading about everything that Yoli has helped to improve in others, my mom decided to let me try it! You see, I used to be tired. A lot. I fell asleep on the bus to and from school and would sleep through many of my classes. (I still got great grades, though!!) It was affecting my friendships, making it hard to interact with other kids and made some of them see me as “weird.” My teachers would try EVERYTHING to keep me awake. I’d run around the school, stand beside my desk or even take a shower as soon as I got to school to help wake me up. Nothing worked. I just couldn’t stay awake or focus!

May of 2014, my mom decided to have me start drinking a YES shake mixed with a scoop of Passion every morning. It tasted weird at first but it wasn’t so bad! She’d also give me protein for breakfast with it. A hard boiled egg or two or maybe some peanut butter toast. The very first day, I didn’t fall asleep! Not on the bus, not at school and I wasn’t sleepy when I got home. My teachers were very excited! As the days went on, I was STILL not sleeping all day! By the end of that school year, the principle, my special education case manager and my teachers DEMANDED mom and I come in and tell them what the heck I did that changed my entire being when it came to school and peer relations.

I can spend time with my peers at school, I enjoy my friendships, I feel focused, awake, alert and am able to participate in class and even small groups without needing many, if any, sensory breaks, when before I needed them almost daily. My teachers said I am like a totally different kid than the one before Yoli! If I miss my shake in the morning I feel it all day. I get sleepy again and can’t focus. I’ll come home and tell mom that I had a pretty rough day and really need my morning Yoli.

These last 2 years, we have kept up this same morning routine. I also now take Alkalete and Pure and drink Fun and Truth whenever I want. I haven’t been sick much, even with a sniffle! My classes are going well, in fact, I’m was moved to Honors English and doubled my math load this last year. (As a freshman I took both Algebra II and Geometry.) At this point, I should be able to do Post Secondary Education courses (where I can take Japanese as a second language…sweet!!) my junior and senior year and potentially even graduate early!!

I have a solid friend base at school. A whole group of “tech geeks” that I am close to and get along quite well with. I’ve gone from 2 or 3 kids that I could really call friends to a lunch table full. I was even nominated as Student Council Representative for my class.

I have joined the Speech Club and have been involved in the school plays. Not too shabby for a socially awkward kid.

My life is completely turned around from where I was. Don’t get me wrong, I have bad days, but they are rare and manageable. I still have an IEP at school but it’s been significantly altered since the “new me” made his appearance. I never knew how being tired and unfocused all the time was making me miss out on so much. All of this because of a simple shake and some passion. Crazy, huh?

I like how I feel with Yoli. I like who I am with Yoli. And I am thankful for whoever came up with Yoli. I am a Yoli-For-Lifer.