I have searched for a community for a long time. Nothing felt right. My needs were too high for a neurotypical setting. I didn’t quite fit into groups for some people with disabilities either because many did not have access to meaningful communication methods yet, which was not their fault, but still impacted my relationships with them. My geographic area has never had real opportunities to have a community for spellers before and having one has changed my life so much. It was always nice to have a few friends to hang out with, but having a whole group gives me a sense of belonging I’ve never had before.

It started out with one group, but now I have things to look forward to multiple times per week. I can be myself and don’t have to worry about leaving early due to my anxiety. I know I have medical issues, but I think many social things I have left early in the past due to my own experiences of fear and anxiety or picking anxiety up off of my parents. I never want to leave anymore, not even when I’m supposed to. It is an amazing feeling. I have no fear about going on my own, because I know I have support. I am a much more confident person now and I don’t need to rely so heavily on things not cut out for me. I hope things continue on this trajectory because it’s very exciting.

Recently, in my adult support group, we learned about friendship. I have always had people to hang out with, but never really knew what friendship was about. I was excited to learn about it, so I can be better for the people I care about. We watched a few videos that my SLP got from people who she considers to be examples of good friends in her life. They all said different things, but I noticed a few common things that I’d like to apply. The big one was putting their needs before your own sometimes if they need you.