An Unexpected Wildfire

I am not usually an anxious person but this year, anxiety became the unexpected volatile and persistent wildfire ripping through the past several months. Full disclosure, I'm on the high functioning end of the autism spectrum and I also have ADHD along with depression. At 44, feels like I am running out of time and that I am not where I should be. Yes, my family has tried to allay my concerns but the wildfire keeps burning despite best efforts and sleep was an issue beforehand. Compounded now by this whole thing which is frustrating when I felt like I had been doing good. I have an outline of a plan but not yet the means to fully implement it so it's been an extended spiral. I'd hope for a platoon of friends to keep the anxiety at bay but that has not yet materialized which adds gasoline on the fire. I'd give anything for a family of friends who isn't afraid of my worst so they can defuse the fire. I would do the same for them in a heartbeat. I fear losing the older generation before I am established, having not nearly enough friends or enough cornerstones to anchor a life that can stand on its own. With my history of codependency, that is extremely valid.

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whowasthatmaskedman · 70-79, M

As someone who lives in a country where fire is seasonal threat and has a touch of the hyperfocus the spectrum can bring, I may be able to offer a little perspective. Not by telling you not to worry. Fire is one of the scarier, nastier ways to go..But by qualifying what you have to do to be in actual danger..And how little it takes to be safe from it..
First, Wildfires of all types take place outside built up areas or at the very fringes of towns. If you are three streets in from the forest or grassland you are almost certainly safe.Streets, pathways and structures slow a fire to a crawl..Still dangerous. But something you can walk away from..
Next. If you do live in a more isolated area where a grass or scrub fire can sweep down on your home, some basic prep will mean that the fire will sweep past your home, without burning it down and you can indeed shelter inside, coming out after the actual fire has past to put out any hot spots that may have caught , like leaf filled gutters and ledges where burning debris landed..This gets riskier when you are in a treed forest area, where the best advice is to have a bag packed and the pets gathered and leave well in advance of the smoke, before the roads get crowded..
Now if you are in such a forested area and you feel apprehensive and vulnerable. My advice is to take a holiday. Because you arent going to get a lot of leep with it all going through your head..😷

NudasPriest

I can relate to some of this.

There's never enough time to do everything. We have to pick our priorities, and just get as far through as we can. Sometimes we have to gamble with trying to predict how the world will change, and how quickly.

Understanding ourselves, our brains, is a very good starting point. I hope you find what you need.

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