Summer camp

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I'm going to sleepaway camp soon and am super exited! And I had a couple of questions.
- which bunk should I choose?
-how can I decorate my bunk?
- I sometimes have a hard time falling asleep away from home, what activities can be done quietly, discreetly, and in low light
-we usually have to go to the bathroom in partners how can I wake someone up with out annoying them or it being awkward
-should I bring my guitar I don't know very much yet so would it me look silly
-what can I do when I get aggravated and can't just go off and be alone
-should I tell my counselor about my Aspergers ( on the form it asks about ADHD which I also have and one year i think it made my counselor thinking was stupid)
-what can I do if we don't have enough down time
-this is kinda gross but I don't like public toilets I can hover if I'm peeing but well...
-do you think if my mom talks to the director They will let me bring my iPod it helps me relax
Also tips in general would be appreciated

Hi mercil!
I was on a camp last month and during a few days before it happens i was TERRIFIED about going on it! I even created a topic about it here on WP.
After some members give me a few tips, i talked to some people, decided to go and it ended up being a very enjoyable experience for me.
A few tips that comes through my mind that can help you:
Take a good book or something that you can do alone without giving the others a reason to worry or to go after you. I took a book and my 3DS and anytime that i needed to move away from people to relax a little bit i could take them and leave and, as far as i know, everything went well.
I have problems to sleep outside of home too so having my phone to listen some music was an essential part to overcome this difficulty. So, since you asked about it i REALLY recommend you to take your ipod with you.
You also asked about activities to do during night but... Well, the only activity that i have in mind is read but in my case when i tried to turn my lantern on to do it a guy from my room asked me to turn it off and there was nothing else that i wanted to do. My only option was to turn my music on and wait until i fall asleep. There was times where i waited more than one hour until i finally did it but that didn't bothered me too much.
You said that you are diagnosed so i recommend that you have at least one person that knows about your condition and can help if things starts to get hard. I had my two friends with me and they know about my habits and conditions, so it wasn't too much of a problem when i needed to move away from the group because of too many people talking loudly or when they asked me to do something that i couldn't.
About waking up someone during night to go to the bathroom with you... I don't think there is some way to do it without annoying them lol But if it's a rule of the event just do it without worrying.
About the guitar, i don't see a problem with it and there was a guy on the one that i went that had his guitar with him and even played it for us sometimes. So unless the rules of the acamp say no i don't think there is something wrong with it.
I hope that those tips can help you!

Thank you! Where is your topic? What is it called?

The subject of my topic is not about the "tips", but about how i felt that my fear and some others of my autistic traits were getting worse as time was passing. I made it because of how afraid i was of going to the camp,
It's here:
http://www.wrongplanet.net/postp6101816 ... t=#6101816

Summer camp was torture for me. But my mum was obsessed about making me "normal" so she kept forcing me to go to them. Thankfully the ones I went to were only a week long.

Which bunk should I chose? ( top or bottom bunk)

It depends on you, i think.
I choose the lower one to be able to handle my stuff easier.

My mom talked to the director and I'm not allowed to bring my iPod. How can I deal with not being able to fall asleep. I get scared when I'm alone at night(everyone is asleep) and I can't do anything but sit there. Also should I bring my guitar? I'm not very good yet so I might look stupid.

This camp sounds even worse than the one I went on. No iPod is crazy.

How on earth can you be excited..

You should def talk to a camp counselor about all this. I think a lot of them have experience dealing with aspies. Maybe have a special buddy assigned to you that will be there for you to "bother". I'm planning on going to Summit Camp next summer

I agree with ErzaS, you need to talk to a counselor.
Does this director knows that you are autistic? I don't know if it's worth to mention but if you really wanna go and there is nothing else that could help fall asleep maybe tell him is your only option.

Hi Meril,

I know a lot of folks here are telling you that they were miserable in camp as a kid, but I personally had the exact opposite experience. My parents didn't send me to camp for years, but I asked if I could go for the first time the summer I was 11 years old. I was SO nervous. I always did love going outside with my parents and camping with them from time to time, but this was a whole new experience for me to be away at camp with people I had never met before. Well, to make a long story short, I loved it. Thanks in part to my childhood summer camp experiences I realized that being outside as much as possible was the way to a happy life for me. Today I am a field biologist by profession.

Now, this isn't to say that camp was all smooth sailing. I found the following things to be annoying about camp:

1. It's not just you who has trouble going to bed at night, other kids do too. Unfortunately some kids are very annoying and like to stay up talking or even singing to themselves (for attention I suppose). I advise you not to throw shoes at them. I found out that this is a good way to get in trouble at camp.

2. Some kids are going to want to be your friends and some kids won't. The good news is that there will be SO MANY kids at camp that don't know each other yet, that your bound to at least meet one or two people who will be interested in befriending you.

3. Sometimes it's hard to just let-go. Going to camp was very good for me in part because it made me change my routine. Going to a new place and bringing a bubble of safety is comforting, but it can also take away from the experience. If you need your ipod yes, find a way to bring it with you. This I understand. However, I urge you to try a night going to bed without it, just to see what it's like. I find the quietness of the forest, sounds of rain, and morning birds, to be quite comforting and nice to sleep to. Maybe you will feel differently, and that's ok too. I just really enjoy sleeping with nature sounds around me.

4. Other people controlling my meals. I was a grazer as a kid, eating constantly in small portions throughout the day. It was really hard for me to change to the system of cramming HUGE amounts of food into my gut at three wide intervals and then going right back to physical activity. Maybe this is just me.

As for your guitar, bring it if it's something you'd like to share with your friends. If you feel awkward about it though, you can also leave it at home. It will be there waiting when you return.

And for bunks, I always choose top myself, but for absolutely no good reason. I think it just makes me feel safe being high up, like a cat or something. I'm sure this is just personal preference.

As for down time, they gave us some (maybe an hour or two a day) at my camp. If you need more, that is a good thing to contact the camp about ahead of time too. IMO the more communication you can have with the camp counselors about your needs, the better.

Good luck at camp! Have fun!

Thank you! In trying to pick a bed the only problem I have is I can't think of a way to make curtains for a top bunk. And I have been to this camp before and I loved it. These problems have been problems before. Also i am higher functioning than I have been in the past, and am kinda embarrased because I have had meltdowns there in the past and did some realy weird stuff. Do you think they will remember?