An aspie's first day in a different world

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The title of my post taken from the cosby show spin off that ran from 1987-93 on NBC where Lisa Bonet's character heads off to college... Ahem.. Anyways....

This has been an all around thoroughly difficult day for me. I woke up at 9am, got my stuff together, and headed off at around noon or so. Got into uw-oshkosh at around 1:25 with mom tagging along to help me move stuff upstairs. I got into the campus and quickly started to go into meltdown mode. Check-in for dorms at Evans hall, my dorm, was not as I had pictured it. That quickly sent me into a panic, mom commented to me that I was melting down and need to cool off. I finally found my way to the check-in point, on the other side of the building. Got my room keys, met my roommate - He was dressed as elvis, and was greeting everyone there. Very NT indeed. So far today I've seen him for all of five minutes.

Got my stuff moved in, got my computer setup and running, as is obvious by me having typed this message. About 5:30 I felt hungry and decided to go get something to eat. Panic city set in. The dining hall had to many people for me to be comfortable. I took me quite a bit before I could gather up the courage to get into line for food. The attendent swiped my card and I got a meal deducted from my plan. No problem there. Time to go get food. Once again panic set in. Too many things to choose from to eat, to many people around, all moving around in a disoriented way. I quickly went into overload, I was stumbling around the dining area like a deer caught in headlights. I finally managed to fill my plate and find a place to sit.

I prefer to eat by myself, and the dinning area had 100's of people in it. My heart was racing at 200 beats per minute as I ate, looking everywhich way every other second. I sat across from a freshmen who was living in grunhagen. I forced myself to talk to him and we ended up having an un-even, but satisfying conversation. which made my evening a little better.

I have to get up tomorrow morning and do it all over again. This time I have to get books and other things. Wedensday I start classes for real.

Well, if I can make it thru today, hopefully the rest will get easier as I go along.

That doesn't sound NT at all! [/quote]

First of all, don't worry about eating alone. It is perfectly normal, and my NT older sister does it all the time. I do too. Your first couple of weeks at college will almost always be kind of rough, but it should get better as you get familiar with the campus. I heard that from my uncle, who is also NT. I didn't get to meet all of my roommates on my first day of college either, as many of them were with their parents. I don't like my roommates that much as well, but we have managed so far. One of them is a hick from rural Tennessee with a heavy southern accent and another is black and part of the hip-hop subculture. The one I get along with the best is from Massachussets. I actually had to fly from Dallas to Atlanta to get to the campus, as the classes that I was taking at the community college conveniently did not end until the scheduled move in day for freshman. My dad insisted that only he come along to help me move in, and fortunately my mom was able to visit me the next weekend.

Scott, I have read your account with great interest. I am glad that you made through the first day (I never doubted that you would).

Regarding panic or uneasiness in unfamiliar situations, I have found that taking my time is usually a good solution. In a cafeteria line many people are impatient, simply because they are hungry. "Please go ahead" diffuses tension and also provides me with additional time to decide what to choose. I do not allow others to pressure me (well, in most cases). New situations can be overwhelming, but it always helps me to treat them not as obstacles, but as challenges. I may feel unsure and uneasy, but I also think that I would be proud of myself after I make it, which is very motivating.

Scott, watch out for that weird roommate!

Good for you. Simply talking to people (let alone actually making friends) will be my ultimate challenge when i start uni next year. Mainly because my mindset is about 4 years behind my actual age- im 18 but i feel about 14. So relating to people on the same level will be a big problem. And I know I'll have to be really proactive in making friends immediately, just because it'll be infinitely harder to make friends with an already established group. Anyhow, I'm doing physics or maybe physics/engineering, so there should be some fellow nerd types for me to befriend.

At least i dont have to live at uni with a roommate like you..that takes courage, man.

Its been a few weeks now, right? How are things going for you at college?

It's slowly growing on me. I've been getting use to it more and more each day. I've been slowly getting things down into a routine that I can follow. The food hall is getting easier for me each day. My roommate is pretty much a non-factor. He's gone 90% of the time during the day, execpt at night when we both sleep. So I have the room to myself for the most part.