Meal time is a NIGHTMARE for me.
Even the simplest meal ( a piece of cold pizza) is a production for me. Because it has to be organized, compartmentalized, and systematic. (If you're thinking how crazy I am for turning meal time into drama, read up on ASD here)
It's WAY too chaotic for me.
"Autism spectrum disorders affect three different areas of a Person's life:
- Social interaction
- Communication -- both verbal and non verbal
- Behaviors and interests
Each person with an ASD will have his or her own pattern of autism.
Sometimes, a child's development is delayed from birth. Some children seem to develop normally before they suddenly lose social or language skills. Others show normal development until they have enough language to demonstrate unusual thoughts and preoccupations.
In some children, a loss of language is the major impairment. In others, unusual behaviors (like spending hours lining up toys) seem to to be the dominant factors."
I have had ENOUGH of everyone saying things like "Well, you can dress yourself and manage children so you are fine, just stubborn"
I don't have to fit YOUR definition of handicapped to have a mental discrepancy.
Anyhow, Meal time is a huge trigger for me. And it always has been. I just pushed through and clenched inside.
That is another reason people struggle with this diagnosis of mine. Because I get through it. Albeit haltingly. They DO notice I'm inept at handling it "normally" But it's only enough for them to criticize, not enough to think I may have a REAL excuse.
If someone else would just handle meal time for me, I could probably deal with just about everything else.
But then again, there is that other quirk: I HAVE to have the dishes lined up precisely, and just the right distance from the edge of the counter. Thereby making letting others handle it almost JUST as stressful ;-)
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