“But you were unhappy. The different between you then and you now... I wish you'd told someone." Unhappy doesn't cover it. I dreaded school so much, I couldn't sleep at night and couldn't get up in the morning; I'd park my bike near the bike garage exit just so I could be the first to leave after classes. "It got harder after a while," is all I say.” SchoolMental IllnessBurnout Book:On the Edge of Gone Source: On the Edge of Gone
“For a moment, I'm tempted. Work was fine first, wasn't it? I enjoyed it, and she's right, the stress will never again be as bad as it's been— But school was like that, too. Starting each year thinking it'd be different, and within a month I'd be skipping class and fighting tears in the girls' bathroom.” SchoolMental IllnessDisabilityBurnout Book:On the Edge of Gone Source: On the Edge of Gone
“I'm not making sense, and I'm so tired of having to make sense. I've even more tired of talking about how OK or not OK I am. I'm not. I've failed. That's it. People should stop going on about it.” Mental IllnessAutismBurnoutOverstimulationShutdownMeltdown Book:On the Edge of Gone Source: On the Edge of Gone
“I know you're worried. I'm sorry. I'm just...very..." I can't think of the right word. How do I explain that mind is too slow and too jumbled all at once. That I'm out of gas? That I've failed, and the only way to keep from falling apart is to accept that? Or that maybe I've already fallen apart, and I don't know if I can sweep the pieces back together? I settle on three words. "I am tired.” DisabilityAutismBurnoutNonverbalOverstimulationShutdownSemiverbalSpeech Issues Book:On the Edge of Gone Source: On the Edge of Gone