Fittingly this blog post is set to be published on a Sunday, it is when my anxiety often kicks up and wants me to give in to not doing the things that help keep me mentally stable. It has been a long battle that I have been having since living independently and while anxiety is one of the biggest comorbidities of the autistic community, for the most part I have it under control and I do not allow it to rule my life most times, instead working to cope with the challenges that it brings to my life by doing what I know I need to do to stay well.

This hasn’t always been the case. Anxiety has been the root cause of many of my reactions to others in a negative manner and I have had to pay the price. But one thing that has stood out was knowing how crucial my SSRI medication was in helping me manage my mental health, but ultimately it took to understand that all of my medications are crucial in navigating a world where there is a great deal of uncertainty, where anything can happen to cause more challenges in me that are not necessarily beneficial.

I like many autistics and others who experience anxiety also experience the “Sunday Scaries” where it becomes challenging to switch from the weekend to the weekday flow. There have been times when it has also been challenging when I have switched from one day to another where there are impending challenges that I may feel that are unknown or uncertain. It took the past year to find what exactly has worked for me in being able to wind down before bed in addition to making sure that I am able to get the necessary sleep that I need to be able to start the next day off in the right mindset.

There is still the morning anxiety that happens from time to time, but it has gotten much better over time. It is just knowing the factors of how things work in addition to realizing the necessity that all of my medications play their role in assisting me in having a good day. It is also by making sure that I have ample time to do what I need to do before heading out that door. When that anxiety kicks up, I know I must stick it up until that bus arrives and once I am on my way to my destination, things will get better.

It is in my mind that when I am working up or thinking about things that used to make me nervous, especially anxiety about producing items, it was and still is at times to forget to let go of certain statements. These statements stick in my head from time to time and me ‘script’ them in the form of echolalia. While I do this mostly in the privacy of my own home, it fuels up my anxiety and as a result, I may not want to do what I need to do because I think about things that no longer exist while not totally realizing what I have to do in the present moment in place of what I script about is a much better thing than what happened used to be.

It is continuing to establish coping strategies including grounding and the varying types of needs as I navigate the world where I need to navigate it. It can be hard sometimes, but I know deep down I am more than my anxiety and I know not to let it win. There is so much more to do in my life other than what I am thinking at that moment.