Jul 05 2008
I am not a procrastinator! Over stimulation just distracts me.
Patience is a virtue.Virtue is a grace.Grace is the little girl that forgot to wash her face.
My dad told me that one constantly when I was growing up.
I am not a procrastinator!
I can remember looking for my shoes, and not being able to find them. I could have walked by them 20 times and be late for the bus before someone would help me.
I bring up shoes because it the one thing that dominated my inability to recognize things in my environment. My parents thought I was just getting distracted, which I must admit did happen quite often. However, I missed the bus and found myself in tears countless times looking for my shoes.
Some things I learned to do as I got older to remember things like this were:
- Everything has a place, if it is in its place it is easier to find.
- When looking from room to room to keep a mental picture of what I was looking for.
- Asking for help, even insisting on it.
- Remaining calm in spite of being under a time constraint.
I still lose track of my shoes from time to time; however, my habit of taking them off by a door sure helps me in the search process.
One of the most difficult problems of this situation was that I would actually walk by them, having even looked at them with out recognizing them. To overcome that aspect:
- Remain calm.
- Actually touching items instead of just looking at them.
The sensory input of feeling objects helped to keep me focused on what I was looking for. It also made it impossible for me to overlook things. Lastly, I experienced a sudden realization of where I left something, even when I had difficulty back tacking.
Having autism and being susceptible to over stimulation can make recall a near impossible task, especially in stressful situations like getting ready for school and having to make a bus.
Touching things as you look is an excellent suggestion as are the others. I’m actually going to suggest some of these things to my husband. Gus is great at finding things, but my husband often “looks with his eyes closed” as I tell him sometimes. I think these may help him.
They are key in my house! Nothing would be found otherwise.
My other half tells me not to put things away in the kitchen because he can never find them again, especially in the refridgerator! I think it is funny, he takes a more serious tone with it.
Hey, it gets me out of dishes!