The Futility of Worry

I know worry, all too well. It is one of life's constant companions for most of us. It may take different forms, but it is the same beast. It steals our peace of mind and replaces it with thoughts of dire situations and catastrophic outcomes. 


Worry came to visit me the other night around 1am, when I was trying my best to fall asleep. The beast took the form of high school. "Where would I send Connor to high school?" sent my mind racing furiously in circles. Never mind that Connor is in the second grade and I have a few years before that decision needs to be made. The beast had taken over and sleep eluded me for some time that night. It took quite an effort to stop that beast.


I woke up shortly after to the dog throwing up all over the house. Later that day I received a text from my husband that Connor had pulled the fire alarm at school. Of course, everyone at the school thought it was a real fire, and the fire department responded accordingly. Connor's teacher asked if the Chief would speak to Connor about the importance of NOT pulling the fire alarm. As the Chief was kindly trying to explain this to Connor, Connor was more interested in his red pen!


I have sent information to both our local police and fire departments about the free autism training for first responders each year at the Autism One Conference. Children and adults with autism may act differently than the neurotypical person, and confusion in the past has brought tragic consequences for people on the spectrum. I just assumed it would be a LONG time before Connor's first interaction with someone addressed as Chief!


See, the point is, had I known the night before when the worry beast invaded my mind that I SHOULD worry about false fire alarms instead of high school choices, I could have had a conversation with Connor in the morning. I would have told him NOT to touch a fire alarm even though it is fire prevention week and the alarm does have PULL written clearly on it! And I could have gotten more sleep too. The dog probably would still have thrown up though.

Strength, denial and me

We ALL feel it, special needs children or not: the stress from work or loss of work, the lack of enough cash flow to cover the bills, the medical problems, the demands of family life, the economy, the gas pump and on and on . . . And each of us has our own way of dealing with stress. Some people will exercise religiously (which I will start doing tomorrow, I promise!), some people find comfort in friends and some, unfortunately, find relief in ways that are damaging to their bodies and their families.

I realized yesterday, that for me, I was living in the land of denial. I was just plain out denying that I was stressed. Spouse unemployed? no problem. No cash flow? oh, that's okay. Medical issues? I'll just keep pretending I am not in pain rather than have the surgery, because who has time for surgery when I am trying to earn as much cash as possible? Marriage falling apart? I am strong, I can handle this. I put my head down and charged like a mad bull into life. Throw a load of laundry in, get to work, run to appointments, figure out ways to help the kids with their medications/sensory problems/summer fun/friends/therapy/behaviors/obsessions, get everyone cleaned up and into bed, complete any work and off to bed myself, exhausted.

Then my sister called with the "we're worried because we haven't heard back from you" call. Which was true! My friends and family who I used to have time to talk to had been neglected in my rush. I just couldn't fit one more thing in my day. And as I talked to her on the phone I choked back the tears that suddenly flowed, I didn't want her to worry more about me. But as she gently asked me questions, I realized that here was someone who was genuinely worried about ME, that I was important and actually loved. 

And with sudden clarity I saw my life as I had carefully constructed it: a shabby cardboard box surrounded me, inside I scurried through each day, without stopping to think or feel - because I was afraid if I did stop, even for a moment, to really feel my emotions, I would break into a million shards and that strong woman who could care for her special needs children would die. 

As I listened to my sister's kind voice, I felt the shabby box start to break apart. Quickly I tried to put it back together, but a shaft of light had shone in the land of denial, and the box couldn't be repaired. Emotions started to leak out, and some landed on this page.