Week 20 - A good week.

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It’s coming up to 6pm on Friday so i am writing this post in the last "free" hour of my week. In about 30 minutes the babysitter will be here and i will have a routine to follow. Looking forward to it!

Thats pretty much the last week summerised in a single statement really. I’ve had a routine to follow with relatively short periods of unstructured time. At no point have I had to worry about what the "next" thing was. I had a thing to be doing!

After two very intense weeks i really needed to reduce demands for a week to allow me to recover from the week where i did the public speaking and the travel.

For the most part thats what happened. As it was half term we did an experiment with the babysitter visiting in the morning as well as the evening and that really helped.

By the time she left i was up, had eaten and i was dressed for the day. But perhaps more importantly, i was calm and i had a schedule to follow. We’re going to try it some more in the future. We’re now looking to recruit someone for a slightly longer period of experimentation.

Every day had a great structure. The week was not perfect, but i do think it was a positive change. Every other time i had had a "week off" iv’e ended up in anxiety hell so i’m rather pleased this week off went so well.

I followed my normal routine and its really helped. I visited the toy shop lots and i walked to and from the hub. At the hub i also helped out, both on autism things and by helping someone there with a website.

This week was no perfect. I had a few mini meltdowns (mostly relating to the sale of my old flat, or uncertainty with social services missing deadlines) but they were not to bad. When i was down, i was very down, but i have bounced back every time.

This week i have been drinking more as well. That’s really tested my bladder control and that was really getting to me, so i have decided to build up the amount i drink slowly. I guess doubling it overnight was probably a bad idea anyway!

I’ve spent most of the last hour re-organsing my bookshelves and sorting out my flat. I get a great enjoyment and satisfaction from organising stuff! I am collecting the last of my possessions from my old flat tomorrow as the new owner will move in soon so it was good to make space.

All in a pretty good week. We have heard from social services and the news is positive, but were not far enough along the process for any of it to be confirmed. I dont know how much support they are agreeing too or how much I will need to pay.

Im looking forward to getting my things from my old flat. It will mean i have all of my lego and toys in my new home. I am going to have a sort out, but thats something i can write about in the future!

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Spaced Out & Smiling is about exploring the fun side of Autism, and trying to understand what it means to be Autistically Happy.

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