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Pauline Harley's avatar

Since I am autistic, routine and similarity are crucial to me. For many years, I flourished, and I still do, to a certain extent. However, as I get older and more recently, I've discovered that my reliance on routine for predictability and certainty in the chaos that is the world has actually made me an enemy of time, in which I feel a lack of growth and a bit lost. I'm currently working to reestablish a better, more gracious perspective and reframe it. Routine, though, is something I can really identify with. I believe that in order to thrive as I get closer to 50, I'm just trying to be more understanding of growth outside of my routine and not conflate it so rigidly as I was doing to my purpose, as I can live that without hypervigilance on my hands.

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Tacita B's avatar

I think making revisions to our routines or throwing them out the window completely and starting fresh is important to fit the different stages of life we enter. Thank you for sharing Pauline! Good luck with it! 💙

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Becky Handley Old Profile's avatar

I really relate to this a lot. I always fought against needing a routine though telling myself I was creative and creativity wouldn't thrive in routine. Not only does my creativity thrive but so do I! 🖤

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Tacita B's avatar

💯 it kind of reminds me of school when a teacher would set a creative writing tasks and say write about anything vs write about X topic. I think having some sort of lifestyle parameters can really help us. Keep thriving Becky! 💙

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Shihab S Joi's avatar

I've always forced myself away from being set in my ways in any way. There are a few that have crept in - a coffee on the cafe of a terrace here in barcelona to watch tourists look up in awe as they trundle their wheelies just so I can start each day feeling like I'm on holiday - and the teeth brushing session afterwards to try not to get found out by my wife I sneaked in a quick puff. And the post-coffee dump, of course. Other than that, I have no set times for anything I do (I obviously have set times for childcare matters). I dunno, it just makes me feel freer. Like I'm a slave to nothing, least of all my habits...

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Tacita B's avatar

You can brush as hard you want but I'm sure she'll still know 😂 its great you have a routine (or lack of routine) that works for you. I think its important finding the perfect fit 👌🏽

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