There is "Friday Tired," and then there is "Last Day Before Half Term Tired."
We were already running on fumes. The finish line was right there. We could practically smell the week off.
Usually, we have a golden rule in our house: The heavy lifting happens on Monday and Tuesday. Science, Maths, the complex stuff - that’s for the beginning of the week when the batteries are full. But this week, neurodivergency had other ideas!
The Perfect Storm
After a bad start to Monday (clothing stimulation breakdown), our carefully crafted rhythm was thrown out the window.
Suddenly, we were staring down the barrel of a heavy Science module... on a Friday. On the last Friday of the term.
The "Squirrel" Steps In
Usually, my role is to hover in the background (making tea, finding pencils). But today, Ash didn't just need a presence; she needed a processor.
Her ability to read the text and retain the information was harried. The cognitive load of just decoding the words was stealing the energy she needed to understand the concepts. Her brain was already in "holiday mode," and I couldn't blame her.
So, I sat down. I became the voice-to-text. I read the words so she could focus entirely on the meaning without the struggle of the mechanics.
A Meta Lesson
The irony wasn't lost on us.
The topic? Brain functions and the chemistry of the neurodivergent mind. There we were, learning about how the brain processes information, how it handles overwhelm, and how chemical regulators work - all while watching Ash's own brain teeter on the edge of its limit.
It was a real-time biology lab right at the kitchen table.
Toughing It Out
We didn't push through; we pulsed through.
We took it slow. We took breaks. She was dangerously close to entertaining overwhelm - that familiar precipice where the tears start and the shutting down begins. But she didn't fall. She toughed it out.
We finished the module. It wasn't perfect, but it was done.
Now, the laptops are closed. The "Out of Office" is on.
We made it to Half Term.
