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Autism and university.

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SteelMaiden
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29 Jun 2014, 3:35 pm

Does anyone here with ASD have any experiences with coping at university?

I've struggled so far and the other students are scared of me due to my frequent meltdowns, involving me getting hurt and dents in walls.

I'm getting a new full time support worker hopefully next term. I cannot manage without one.

I like the lecture content and I am intelligent but I'm struggling with the lack of structure and the bias towards the social, independent, organised student, of which I am none. My tutor is crap.


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I am a partially verbal classic autistic. I am a pharmacology student with full time support.


PullBackOnTheStick
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29 Jun 2014, 4:12 pm

I didn't go to uni when I was younger as even though I wasn't diagnosed then I instinctively knew I could never cope with it. You've taken a big step by going, I think you're very brave.

Is there any sort of mental health or counselling service at the university that might be able to help you? It sounds as if you're finding it all extremely stressful at the moment - I hope you can find a way to manage things that makes you happier while you are waiting for your support worker to start.



SteelMaiden
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29 Jun 2014, 4:26 pm

PullBackOnTheStick wrote:
I didn't go to uni when I was younger as even though I wasn't diagnosed then I instinctively knew I could never cope with it. You've taken a big step by going, I think you're very brave.

Is there any sort of mental health or counselling service at the university that might be able to help you? It sounds as if you're finding it all extremely stressful at the moment - I hope you can find a way to manage things that makes you happier while you are waiting for your support worker to start.


Thanks. I had to repeat a year due to being sectioned four times in one year. My support worker went almost everywhere with me as I am a danger if I'm not supervised. She was from an Autism society and the only reason I didn't drop out.

I love textbooks, I love science, I love learning.

I am under the support of an NHS mental health team who are very good most of the time.


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starkid
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29 Jun 2014, 6:11 pm

If you are having frequent meltdowns in the class, can you ask the disabilities services office to videotape the lectures so you don't have to be in class except for exams?



alex913
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30 Jun 2014, 3:35 pm

Going to university for me was a massive shock because of the lack of structure. It took me three years to learn how to cope with it, and I think the main problem was that at the time I was not aware of how dependent on structure and routines I had been my whole life, and when they were taken away from me I struggled a lot without understanding why. I had several panic attacks especially in my second year, but things got much better in my third. I think you're already in a good position in the sense that you are aware of your need for structure, so one thing you can do is try to create your own structure for the week, maybe working together with your support worker to help you do that. I know it's not easy when you have lectures at random different times here and there on different days, but it might help ease your stress at least a little.