ANDREA CHUA Class 3C1 ( 2013 )
I WILL NEVER GIVE UP : THERE IS LIGHT AT THE END OF A TUNNEL
A student ’ s constant struggle with autism helps her to be a better person .
When I was about three years old , I was diagnosed with mild Autistic Spectrum Disorder ( ASD ). I had to go through five years of therapy before I was considered “ good ” enough to stop therapy . Through therapy , I had learnt to control my anger , which was one of the main problems that I faced as a child . Up till now , I still use these skills to help me whenever I feel angry .
Primary school went by . I gradually forgot about the fact that I have ASD . I felt like a normal person as no one had discriminated me because of my diagnosis and my family , teachers and friends were very supportive .
When I entered Clementi Town Secondary School , I thought that secondary school life would be a breeze . I was completely wrong . Being in Secondary school was probably the most challenging phase of my life . Ever since I entered Secondary One , I had done considerably well in my academic , which was very surprising for me as I was not doing as well in primary school . However , I found dealing with people around me most challenging . I struggled with this , every day of my life .
People started to become jealous of me . They would jeer at me whenever I scored well in common tests and examinations . Anger , comments , questions and criticisms bothered me tremendously . In school , I would pretend I did not care about their nasty comments . However , whenever I was home , I would cry my feelings out . The fact that people were jealous of me to the point that they would say nasty things to me made me feel sad . Sometimes , I would feel frustrated and angry at them . I felt that they would never understand how I feel .
At one point of time , I felt like my ASD was getting worse because I started having anger management problems again . I felt as if my world was crashing down . However , I kept on reminding myself not to give up and to persevere . I reminded myself to become stronger and disregard what people say about me . I would not let ASD get in the way of achieving my success and learning . I used all the skills I learned to manage my emotions – and I finally stepped out of my shell .
Ever since that day , I felt better about myself and I have progressed so much from then on . I have learnt that no matter what situation I am in , I need to persevere and never give up . It is true that I am still struggling to manage insults that might get hurled my way , but I am trying and I will never give up .
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