Rabbit Hole
4 March 2024
During his spelling session at the Growing Kids Therapy Center (GKTC), Katlyn asked Jason what his thoughts were about writing for In Words We Trust, the GKTC Tribe’s literary magazine featuring the work of neurodiverse and neurotypical writers and artists. Jason spelled, “I’d love to write about my experience.”
Jason started to write his story and finished it in the next session. Here is the article that was published in the In Words We Trust, Volume 5: Wellness, Issue 1: Mental and Emotional, in the Summer 2024 Edition.
Rabbit Hole
By Jason
Real struggles sums up my life with apraxia and OCD. Being locked inside with compulsions that overwhelm my nervous system makes it difficult to not fall into the anxiety rabbit hole. Since meeting more people like me and the brilliant spelling world, I feel like I don’t get lost in that rabbit hole for as long. I am being heard and understood in a way that is novel to me.
It gets my dopamine levels up to temporarily overcome my fight or flight response. Those glimpses of regulation and reprieve have boosted my morale. My advice to every family of a non-speaker is to open opportunities for your non-speaker to get those glimpses. I can speak from experience that it will help their mental health.
Jason added a short biography about himself which was included in the submission. Here is what he spelled, “I live in Virginia and have been spelling at GKTC for about two years. I was honored to write my first published piece on such an important topic. We all deserve the chance to be heard.”
