It is often said that autistic people like to be ritualistic and have routines. While this can be bothersome in some ways. In other ways it can be what keeps us mentally stable. We know there are things we need to do to stay well. To incorporate these things into our life, there must be an understanding. We need to balance the things we must do with the things we like to do.

In many cases, it can be irritating to us when our routines are disrupted by sudden changes. We won’t always agree with these changes. But I have been more than willing to understand the necessity of adapting to things suddenly. I have learned to be understanding when I can’t always get what I want. Although, I speak up when I need to have my needs met. This helps bring a healthy compromise to any situation that I must go through.

Having a sense of routine in our lives brings a sense of calm. That calm can speak volumes. We become creatures of habit and learn the who, when, where, what, and why of what is expected. It can also be a pivotal tool in keeping us regulated. Over the years, flexibility has been introduced. It has made it easier for me to adapt to situations as they arise. As a result, I have become a stronger person overall.

Part of that routine has been how to put everything that I do into perfect balance. That has been the hardest thing to do from time to time. It has gotten easier. I have decided to put my well-being and need to care for myself to the forefront over everything else. This can be hard because there is often pressure from others to deliver quickly. Still, I have learned to put things aside. Instead, I work towards making things favorable for myself so I can consistently take care of my needs.

You have the power to make things work in your favor. This gives you control over how it best works for you. I often did not focus on my own needs. I focused on things I enjoyed or activities that helped me stay well. That hurt me. It set me back. I did not understand the true mission. I was unsure about whatever I was involved in at the moment.

Eventually I took that power back. Especially when I knew I had to. I came to the understanding that the rest of the world would wait for things to be taken care of. I also returned to doing things as I once did. I adequately planned them so they did not become too cumbersome. These were all successful tools on how I got my own health and personal priorities under control.

I had to understand what real priorities were important and shift my focus to making those priorities in my life. Once I had done that, life had become so much better for me. Even when there were moments when my routine was interrupted by other necessary events, my life was more under control. I had chosen to rank other things appropriately rather than focusing on the immediate tasks.

I began to understand something through all this. My routine needed personal respect. It also allowed me to manage the need to be flexible. Plans often got interrupted. This has happened more often in recent years. It was a way of being more relevant with the way that life was today. I had learned to make the caring for myself more of a priority and not the other way around.