I heard something recently from a guest who was on The Daily Show while Leslie Jones was guest-hosting. One of her guests said something that has stuck with me. He said that anxiety cannot exist where there is faith. One of his coping mechanisms, when he gets overwhelmed, is to tell himself what he called “ his own hero’s story”. He would remind himself of everything he has already overcome and realize that he could handle whatever was overwhelming him at that moment. It hadn’t ever occurred to me that I could be my hero. I hadn’t thought about everything I’ve overcome as part of a hero’s journey. I have found that whenever I am overwhelmed with a current challenge, reminding myself of what I’m capable of, does help me calm down. My current set of challenges lies in the arena of professional development and not being overwhelmed with what I want to accomplish. I’ve made a lot of progress over the past four years and there’s still so much I want to accomplish. 

I want to encourage everyone, especially those of us on the spectrum to realize that we are capable of more than we may realize. People are often stronger than they imagine and capable of doing more than they think. I hope each dear reader will continue to dream boldly and never doubt that they are capable. Everyone is capable of being their own hero.