u/Orangutan_Soda

For a while, my deadhang was only 4 seconds and I wanted to get that up. I would go to the gym and practice the dead hang on the pull up rack they have.

But I would always slip off, lose my grip, etc.

The other day, I went to the park with my friend and they had a workout trail with some pull up bars. These were like, skinny metal pull up bars you were meant to use to pull up.

Well, I did a 10+ second deadhang.
I was shocked that I could do that.

So I went to the gym the next day and tried to do a deadhang on the pull up rack and I slipped immediately.

I’m not sure if it’s the foam on the handles, the fact they are placed differently than just a straight bar, or maybe I’m just weaker at the gym?
Idk.

What am I doing wrong? I want to be able to do pull-ups!

I can’t even reach the bars at the top of the squat rack because I’m too short lol

Congratulations to Erika, Dr. Roberts, and friends for their hard work on their book!

Here is the Amazon Link for the book.
I will definitely be reading it as soon as I can get my hands on it. I love books like this so I’m excited!

Have any of you gotten it yet?

I made my goal this week to work out every day from Monday-Saturday and then on Saturday, I’d push myself as hard as I could since Sunday was my full rest day.
I was taking active rest days in between my weight lifting days, but I still made sure I was moving to keep the energy and momentum up.
Saturday was my go hard day where I’d try and push myself to the limit and boy did I.
I was bench pressing normal reps (5x10) and then I decided to add weight and find my 1 rep max. So I tried 75. Easy. Then I tried 85 also easy, but harder. I then went to try 95 and I felt scared to mess up.
So I began to scan the gym for a spotter.

Now, I am very intimidated by strangers and have very bad anxiety. So this wasn’t an easy task. I kept looking around for someone who looked kind and not annoyed. But the folks I liked were all far away, and I was getting more stressed.
But I told myself I’d rather have a spotter than to die by messing up a weight.
So I finally stood up and asked a lady who was doing bench presses across the room from me. I asked if she could spot me once her set was done and she said of course.
Then, I went for it.
And she was so encouraging.
And I did it.
I bench pressed 95lbs (43kg).

I just started bench pressing a couple weeks ago- so this was HUGE for me. I genuinely was so excited I jumped up and down.
I weigh about 260lbs, so I am naturally able to do heavier weights. But still- it feels so good to hit that pr.

My goal now is Triple digits and I believe in myself.

I’m now resting the day after feeling pretty sore. I’m getting my protein in and resting my body. But come Monday? I will be back in the gym like before :)

I’m autistic and thus am very conditioned to smile when I’m being photographed. Even if I am taking a picture when I’m not doing well, I am smiling because I was taught to do so.
So, I was watching cases of people getting arrested and they would get their mugshots taken and I started wondering if I got my mugshot taken, would I smile?

And then I wondered if that would be admissible in court?

Like, if a person is booked and they are smiling in their mugshot, can the prosecution use that in court as evidence against them?
What if they are like me, and smiling is an instinctual response?
Would the Defence be able to argue that?

Very curious :) thanks!

I am planning a roller coaster concept and I really want to have the track look like it explodes, sending you backwards, before you go forwards on an alternative track.
Basically, I want to completly mimic the design of Expedition Everest from Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
It’s one of my favourite rides.
I am brand new to Planet Coaster and so I have no idea what all I can do it this game.
I only have planet coaster 2, no DLC or CC.
Is there any way I can do this in the vanilla game? Or is this something I can get via mods or dlc?
Sorry if this is a silly question.
I cannot find the answer online via google :(

Thank you :)

My weight loss doctor gave me this plate shaped chart to use to make my plates for food.
And I’m very confused as to how to use it.
Because it separates things into grains, proteins, veggies, etc.
but my question is, if I make a dish that contains all of that, where do I put it?
For example, if I make a pasta dish using Tomtoes, Cream, Onion, Garlic, Beans, and Pasta, that covers fruit, dairy, vegetable, protein, and grains! So where does it go on the plate?
I am having a hard time preparing meals according to the plate chart because every meal I see doesn’t fit the plate chart. It doesn’t separate the grains and the proteins and whatnot. Any advice is very welcome because it’s very overwhelming.
Thank you

I have PCOS and am on Nexplanon birth control, so I almost never get my periods.
I sometimes have cramping and hormones, no blood.
And sometimes I get a normal period.
And sometimes I get one that’s light.

For the past couple of months I’ve begun swimming at my local gym. I used to competitively swim and I loved it.
But I am worried that I won’t be able to swim on my period. But swimming is my main way of exercising.

However, I cannot use tampons to save my life. I hate them, I hate having to put things inside of myself, I hate feeling like there’s something inside of me, they are so uncomfortable. I just cannot do tampons. Plus, with my flow being so irregular, sometimes they are really painful to take out.

Is there a way I can swim on my period without using a tampon?

Please do not suggest i just “get better” at using a tampon. I genuinely have tried everything and I cannot get them in properly. I think it’s a sensory thing from my autism probably.

Anyways please help ;3; I wanna swim.
Could I free bleed? Would it be noticeable in the water? If I’m a light enough flow at least.

Obligatory TW: anorexia, skipping meals, low blood sugar symptoms, mental health issues, weight talk, food talk, talk of nausea w/o vomiting.

I am extremely overweight and went to the weight loss clinic today to hopefully get some help.
When I told the doctor I don’t like eating lunch, she got concerned.

I told her I will eat breakfast and won’t eat again til dinner because I don’t like food and I feel nauseous when I look at it during the day.
I am on Aderall which reduces one’s appetite a lot. Right?
I told her I liked the feeling of lightheadedness I got when I didn’t eat for hours, and that I liked feeling tired and dizzy.
And she said that sounded like I needed therapy.

Now, in my mind, I just tend to enjoy being fawned over and for my coworkers and family and friends to force me to eat and get worried about me.
I like when they say “please eat something” it makes me feel good inside?

But I don’t think this is disordered eating so much as just wanting to be cared for and given attention.

Because it’s not like I DONT eat. I will eat normally when I’ve not taken my meds, or when I’m alone. It’s only when I’m around others I don’t eat.
And I feel that’s less disordered eating and more disordered thinking, especially since I’m obese.

Should I look into therapy for disordered eating anyways? I don’t want to take away resources for those who actually need it. Especially since I’m not at risk of needing medical help for not eating.
I am afraid I’m just faking it/looking for more attention and I’d hate to be a burden in spaces I don’t belong in.
I don’t consider myself to have an ED and I feel like it almost would be selfish and cruel to pretend to have one?

Anyways, if anyone’s had any similar experiences please let me know. Also please don’t try to diagnose me in the comments of course. I just want to see if this is worth looking into or if my doctor is over reacting :/

Thanks yall 🩷🩷🩷

I have always been a poetic person and have used figurative language to describe the world around me since I was a child.
In first grande, a snowflake gently landed on my face and I said “Oh, a snowflake kissed my cheek.”
And my teacher was like “Wow orangutansoda, that was so poetic.”

I’ve had a very hard time communicating my feelings throughout my life but have found, especially recently, that similes and allegories are the best ways I can describe how I feel.

In a meeting with my boss about how I felt disheartened at work because a lot of folks are leaving due to poor workplace conditions, I said I felt like “trying to find passion in what I do is like trying to be a patriot during the Vietnam war.”

When myself and a coworker’s program with guests got cut early because people all left at the same time, I said “I feel like we just no-clipped through a wall into the ending cutscene.”

Then, immediately made fun of myself by saying “wow sorry that sounded like dialogue a ‘gamer character’ would say in a bad Netflix show.”

And I realized that this is just how I speak. I constantly am using metaphor, smilie, allegory, allusion, and even personification to make sense of my world around me.

To me, comparing how I feel to something simple like “mopping the ocean”, it clears up any nuance there could be without using too many words. I think it paints a much clearer picture.

If I say “I feel like every time I put something away, it gets messy again.” That only conveys so much. It doesn’t convey the deeper feeling I have which is
“I feel like I am trying to complete an impossible task which gets undone whenever I finish the first step”

Why say that when saying “I feel like I’m trying to mop the ocean” immediately gives the listener a picture in their head.
You picture someone trying to mop a beach or dock, but-as the ocean does- waves continue to crash down making it wet again. You can imagine the frustration one might feel, and then you can picture how vast the ocean looks to them and how overwhelming that task will feel.

That’s how I feel.

Does anyone else prefer to use more poetic language when describing their feelings and experiences?
Or do you prefer to use concise, clear, and literal language to get your point across?

I’m curious how this relates to autistic folks :)

Got rejected from another show.
I haven’t done theatre in years because I just keep getting no after no.

When I was a kid, I got roles handed to me on a silver platter. I was told I was amazing. I was told I had star quality. I was told I could be on broadway.

I was getting speaking roles, I was cast as the lead character in a show before they realized I couldn’t do it because I was a kid.

I was a star.

Then, I turned 13 and I guess something changed.

I auditioned for a young artists theatre. Got Ensamble

I was 13, so this was fine to me.

Then I auditioned at 14.
Ensamble

At 15?
Ensamble

At 16? Ensamble.

17? Ensamble

18! Finally. The final year I could do the program. Surely I was going to get something.
Cast as an old woman… and a guy.

Meanwhile, high school wasn’t going any better.

In 10th grade I auditioned for into the woods. I got Jacks Mother. While I loved the role, I was a bit miffed to see a freshman get the role of Cinderella.

11th grade? For the first time ever… I didn’t get cast.
I- didn’t get cast… in a show.

12th grade.
Covid :)

It wasn’t all doom and gloom, I was doing plays and getting great roles there. But musicals, my love- I was flopping.

Audition after audition as an adult.
No. No. No. No.

This last audition I was at, I KILLED it.
I felt so proud of myself.
And I even got pulled aside by one of the people on the casting team and was offered vocal coaching. She said I had an amazing voice and a lot of power.

And… nothing.

I begged to be put into the Ensamble. That was the role I really wanted. For once in my life I just wanted to be part of theatre again.
And I got a no.

I hear over and over again that I’m amazing, that I have “star quality” that I am worthy of these things. But time and time again I get let down.

And I can’t help but feel like I’m just being lied to.

Does anyone else feel this way? I apologize, venting is crass I’m sure. But I just am feeling broken.

What can I do to figure out why I’m not good enough for theatre? What can I do to help myself be cast.

I’m worried that it’s because I’m fat and plain that I’m not getting cast. That I could be the best actress and singer but no one wants to look at me. And I’m scared :(

I struggle a lot with breaks at work because once the break is over, I’m expected to be immediately back on the floor and talking with folks.

I work at a museum and so interacting with people is my main job. I am constantly expected to be ON and ready to serve.

I love my job, it’s one of the best jobs I’ve ever had and I’m Incredibly grateful for my team every day.
I love that being at a museum gives me these crazy opportunities to meet NASA scientists (including Victor Glover!!!), to work with real Palentologists and Archeologists, to get to touch and see things every day that some folks never get to see- like dinosaur fossils or meteorites. I get to work with kids and adults every day to help them discover their love for science.

But, I am also autistic and have ADHD. So I get easily overwhelmed.
With summer season in full swing, the amount of screaming babies, loud families, and just general chatter filling the tall walls and echoey galleries makes me stressed.

I use my breaks to relax and destress and unmask. I take off my shoes, I wear comfy clothes, I watch videos and play games or draw while I lay on the floor of our break spaces. And I don’t talk to others.

So when I have to transition from that to being back on the floor… I struggle.

I’m writing this while hiding Right Now!

So, I’d like advice.

Now, before you give advice please note:
I am currently in the process of getting accommodations right now. I have to get my paper back from my doctor and the process at my work is a BEAST. So accommodations are not an option at the moment, but I’m hoping they will be soon.

I am also not looking for ways to make the floor time less stressful. I have earplugs, I have coping skills, and I have the ability to leave when I need To.
The issue isn’t the interacting itself- it’s the transition from one space to another.

From break me, to work me.
Both are fine when I’m there, but it’s the transition period I struggle with.

I’m mostly wanting advice on how to frame my mindset or get into the headspace easier, without taking time away from my already short 15-30min breaks.

If anyone has advice on how to deal with transitions like this, I’d appreciate it!

Thank you so very much friends :)

Also, if you don’t have any advice (or even if you do), please share your favourite dinosaur or animal or anything else youre interested in in the comments! If you have a fun fact, lmk! If u have a picture of something related to that animal or dinosaur (or prehistoric creature in general) I’ll share it, too.
But as a museum nerd, I love love love hearing what you folks are into!

Right now I’ve been very into carousels :3

I didn’t skip the First Aid girl (can’t remember her name sorry) when the trigger warning came up since I’m not super woozy around medical things… or so I thought.
I didn’t expect it to be triggering to my hypochondriac tendencies. It was pretty rough and I had to sort of just skip her dialogue as fast as I could.

Is there a way I can get the game to let me skip her still? Or do I just need to grit my teeth and bare it?

Thanks :)