Call it what you will, but we all know what overload is, in autism circles. Anger. Rage. Anxiety. Fear. Overload. Hijack. Meltdown.
It's reality in the world of autism. It's hard to look at, and even harder to cope with when it takes over.
This simple prayer can be said by someone in overload or by someone trying to help.
It dates back centuries, but today, it is an effective and sincere plea for help from ASD's adopted patron saint:
Holy Thorlak,
Cut with the scythe of your workings
The thorns casting shadows
In our unclear minds!
It's reality in the world of autism. It's hard to look at, and even harder to cope with when it takes over.
This simple prayer can be said by someone in overload or by someone trying to help.
It dates back centuries, but today, it is an effective and sincere plea for help from ASD's adopted patron saint:
Holy Thorlak,
Cut with the scythe of your workings
The thorns casting shadows
In our unclear minds!
This prayer is equally effective for those in meltdown as it is for those in close proximity. Memorize it... but, better still, visualize it.
Image by Chmee2 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1909503
That's a pretty big blade.
What is a scythe, exactly?
It's no pair of scissors. It's the big hook carried by the Grim Reaper.
We're not asking St. Thorlak to come and trim the tops of our hedges... we're calling on him to bring some swift, decisive action.
And if we're calling on him to bring the scythe, these must be some serious thorns.
That's a pretty big blade.
What is a scythe, exactly?
It's no pair of scissors. It's the big hook carried by the Grim Reaper.
We're not asking St. Thorlak to come and trim the tops of our hedges... we're calling on him to bring some swift, decisive action.
And if we're calling on him to bring the scythe, these must be some serious thorns.
Photo By Klaus Gremmels - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=40009670
We wouldn't need a scythe unless these thorns are big, and tangled, and have us trapped so badly that we see no way to escape without someone getting hurt. That sounds a lot like autism overload.
However we got there, however many missteps took us there, or even if we wandered into the grip of this thicket before we realized where we were headed... we're stuck. Every twitch, every attempt to free ourselves, every blink of our eye is another sharp cut. And the more we fight to escape, the deeper these thorns dig into our rapidly dwindling resources.
Yes. We need a swift and loving hand of someone with a rational mind, someone who can clear a path for us and reassure us that, as hijacked as we are, as tight a grip as this rage has in this moment... it is temporary. There is an exit. Calm can follow.
Holy Thorlak, Cut with the scythe of your workings the thorns casting shadows in our unclear minds!
Please Contact us if you use this prayer during moments of overload. Your testimony is crucial in proposing St. Thorlak as the world's official Patron Saint of Autism Spectrum Disabilities.
We wouldn't need a scythe unless these thorns are big, and tangled, and have us trapped so badly that we see no way to escape without someone getting hurt. That sounds a lot like autism overload.
However we got there, however many missteps took us there, or even if we wandered into the grip of this thicket before we realized where we were headed... we're stuck. Every twitch, every attempt to free ourselves, every blink of our eye is another sharp cut. And the more we fight to escape, the deeper these thorns dig into our rapidly dwindling resources.
Yes. We need a swift and loving hand of someone with a rational mind, someone who can clear a path for us and reassure us that, as hijacked as we are, as tight a grip as this rage has in this moment... it is temporary. There is an exit. Calm can follow.
Holy Thorlak, Cut with the scythe of your workings the thorns casting shadows in our unclear minds!
Please Contact us if you use this prayer during moments of overload. Your testimony is crucial in proposing St. Thorlak as the world's official Patron Saint of Autism Spectrum Disabilities.