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Monday, May 28, 2012

Why I love being an Aspie

    In honor of my 50th blog (Wow, this is crazy), I have decided to talk about why I love being an Aspie.
  • The ability to rattle off facts about something I love and stunning everyone.
  • Being a member of an elite clique that includes people like Thomas Jefferson, Jane Austen and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.
  • The ability to be able to think in a depth most people can't comprehend.
  • My obsessions. All of them.
  • Being different from the average person. Sometimes it is difficult, but it makes an Aspie memorable.
  • The incredible people I have met who have changed my life in ways they will never be able to comprehend. I never would have met them without being who I  am and am daily thankful for the blessing of knowing them.
  • This blog. Its help me to connect to other Aspies, and I am especially grateful for my readers. Thank you for everything.
   These are the reasons I love being an Aspie. And I cannot honestly say I would rather be anything else in the world. It makes me who I am, and helps those who want to change the world.

Monday, May 14, 2012

Too much stress!

     Let me tell you the state of mind I was in last Thursday night.
  
     It was the night before the APUSH (AP United States History) Exam. I am not in AP, but my teacher told me I was capable, I could score high on it and so I agreed to take said examination.
 
     That was not what was going through my mind, believe me.

      Raw, terrifying, panic was overriding my senses. Believe me, I had studied all year for this, but I felt unprepared and started freaking out when I realized there were three Treaties of Paris. Plus, I had never been exceptional on the mid eighteen hundreds historical information.
      So, to say the least, I was scared. I started worrying and explained to my mother how I felt inadequate. She sat me down with some tea and told me I was more than capable and I could do it. Then she suggested I call or text my friends who were also taking the test and talk to them and maybe we could quiz each other. I texted each of them and learned they were freaking out too. We all then got on Facebook and quizzed each other.
      That day, I learned so much. Other than the fact that my mother is a genius (Love you Mom!), I learned that I am not the only one, and everyone, not just Aspies gets that "I am alone in the world" and "I am panicked" feeling before a test.  Having someone to calm you down and friends who can quiz you and sit close to you during the test for comfort is the greatest thing ever. Try to find people who can help you and make you feel safe. And calm down,  it literally is not the end of the world, it's just a test.

Saturday, May 5, 2012

SAT, ACT, Subject Tests, oh my!

    I am so sorry to all of my readers for not posting more often, but I can explain. As a junior in the Spring of her high school year, I am nearing my finals (very important!), and I am also taking the SAT, ACT, two AP tests and this very morning I took two SAT subject tests.
   Standardized testing is not anyone's favorite thing, but for Aspies, including me, it's really a struggle.  Math has never been my favorite subject and I tend to worry and freak out over all of these tests because most include some form of math.
   While standardized testing may never be your best friend, there are ways for Aspies to get around the freaking out part of it.  First, try to study for the areas you struggle in specifically. Getting a tutor also helps.
   Second, review things you struggle with the night before. I don't mean obsessively study and cram, I mean review basic things you may need to know, like the area of a circle or something like that right before you go to bed so you can sleep on it.
   Third, if this is possible, try to find someone to take the test with, someone who you are comfortable with. A friend of mine, who knows about my Asperger's, tried to sit close to me today, which was very comforting and helped me feel safe in a place where I didn't exactly know a lot of people.
   Try to use these ideas for standardized testing. They will truly help your comfort level and your score.