School Troubles

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I am 26 and I go to a community college. I want to have a teaching job working with autistic children because I see the same things that I've gone through a lot of children go through each day on the spectrum. The problem is I am having issues starting and finishing assignments. I really wish there were someone to help me start and finish because this has been very hard for me to come up with words to express for example an essay or writing assignments. I feel that is my deficit and hell and it is hard to get through college with this going on. Not to mention my life is turning into crap. I never have time for myself, I am always stressed out and panic due to my PTSD/anxiety/coping skills (which are by the way very poor). I am getting sad and feeling like I am running out of options. I've been having issues lately about not being able to get my work done and turning it in late which is a no no in college and then I become even more behind. The teachers will not work with me nor understand about my autism so I pretty much blend into the walls or the floor and feel unheard. Could someone please help me or have any advice what I should do or just your take on it if you are going through the same thing?

If you are not already registered with Student Disability Services, do so. Having said that, even if you are registered with them, you still need to turn in your work on time, and you need to do the work; autism (or anything else, for that matter) is not a reason for extended deadlines; however, SDS may be able to help you in breaking down projects into more manageable tasks, as well as with time management; to that end, you might also want to check in with your College's Counseling Center. You may also want to see if your college has a Writing Center; they may be able to help you put words to ideas for papers (but you need to come up with the ideas).

I have learned to break down school projects into mini tasks, and allocate time both during the day and over the semester for how long something is going to take. So, if I have a term paper due at the end of the semester, I really need to be reading up on the topic by the end of the first month of school; I should start writing the draft during the second month; and so on. I use a program called Pomodoro (www.pomodoroapp.com) on my computer for tracking time during the day. Basically, you allocated time for a task in 20 minute increments, and the program keeps track of those increments. You take small breaks every 20 minutes; after an hour, you get an unlimited break. It makes it easier for me to stay on task if I see that I only have to hold focus for however-many minutes, as opposed to the "OMG I need to write this paper for ever" mindset. Hope that helps!

Thank you

I have dropped out of college twice within the first semester, I am now going in with a different mentality this fall semester.
You have to keep your eye on the prize.
Also make sure you register with the "disabled office" (they call it DSPS here) at your college campus. At the college I went to, they provided extra test time, and carbon paper to give to a classmate, so you get the same notes they take down for you. At least for me there, it seemed literally impossible to function in that type of setting...but I gotta' do it. I'm already nervous thinking about how I'm going to get a "study buddy" for each class.

My career goal is to make money. Can't really do that nowadays without a degree. Keep your eye on the prize.

I was in school until about a month ago. Couldn't take it anymore... pretty sure I messed up another opportunity. Everything all came to a head at the same time, and now the panic is starting to set in. But if it hadn't happened, I wouldn't know what I know about myself now. Small victories, I guess, are better than none at all.