Did anyone else here avoid the bell at school?

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Did anyone else avoid the school bell?
Yeh, I did 67%  67%  [ 4 ]
Nah, not really 33%  33%  [ 2 ]
Total votes : 6

Joe90
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13 Sep 2010, 11:53 am

I know this is probably a ridiculous thread to start, but what the hey! I really want to know if other Aspies here spent most of their school life avoiding the school bell when it was due to go off.
I used to set my watch so it was timed exactly the same time as the times the bells rang, so that I knew exactly when it was going to ring, then I could be ready to get out of the way.
It wasn't so bad at the primary school, because we were all outside when the bell rang to come in, and were all inside when the bell rang to come out, so you was never in the corridors at the times when the bell was due to go off. But at high school, it was different. We were allowed in the corridors at lunchtimes and breaktimes, and we had different classrooms for each lesson, so we had to wait outside the classrooms in the corridors until the teacher arrived - and the bell would go whilst waiting. I hated it. I felt embarrassed to put my fingers in my ears, and I was embarrassed to wait right down the other end of the corridor away from the nearest bell, because other kids would ask why I wasn't waiting with all the others. I couldn't admit to anybody that I didn't like the bell ringing above me, because I was afraid they will laugh (you know how you are at 14 years old - a bit more self-consious about what other kids think of you). I used to feel annoyed at myself because it was like the other kids never seemed to react to the loud bells, only me. So one day I asked myself, ''why do bells bother me? It's just sound-waves - it's not going to kill me for christ sake!'' But then I thought about when I flinch when it rings, and it's so involuntary that I just think avoiding it altogether will be best for me.
But anyway - did anyone else here have the same problem at school? I know it's quite a weird thread, but we're all Aspies, and this is what these discussion forums are here for, so I just want to open up to other people.


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Peko
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13 Sep 2010, 2:46 pm

Yeah, cause I hated the noise. But I'll take a school bell over a fire alarm any day. OWWW


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thechadmaster
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13 Sep 2010, 3:07 pm

I had more of a problem with fire drills. The school bell was planned and predictable, i could look forward to and expect it. the Fire alarm on the other hand, was never predictable and could possibly signal death, and even with an IEP i could not be forewarned of a Drill. I was always on guard for a drill, to the point where i could not go "number two" at school for fear of being "caught with my pants down" literally. I let my guard down once in sixth grade and sure enough mid-crap the alarm went off, and its worse in the bathrooms with the echo and all. I smartened up after that.


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Joe90
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13 Sep 2010, 3:30 pm

It's not exactly the sound of the bell - it's more so my reaction from it. When it makes me jump, I flinch in a way what makes other people look. My arms go up in the air, my head jolts quick to look up at the sound, and because all this is literally involuntary, it makes me feel embarrassed. I could do without jumping out of my skin in front of people. Also my heart would thump really hard afterwards, and I have a heart condition too, so sudden loud noise don't do it any good.
But the firebell usually went when we were in lessons, so the bells didn't make me jump when I was in the classrooms because the bells were out in the corridors, and so didn't sound as loud. And when we walked past it whilst it was going off in a fire drill, it didn't worry me because it wasn't a loud sudden noise, it was a continuous noise, and so wouldn't make me flinch or jump.
I used to hate the firebell going off when I was under 7. It wasn't because of the noise, it was because I used to think there was actually a fire, and I think that's why fires have always freaked me out. (Apart from bonfires/campfires).
But when I was 8, I promised myself not to cry at the firebell anymore, and it did work. I just got up calmly with the rest of the children and went outside to line up with them. And when I was at high school, I used to enjoy firedrills because we got to miss about 20 minutes of a lesson. I especially liked it when it went off in science or maths :D
But when it just rang ordinarily, I would jump and flinch, and my heart would pound so fast that it made me feel sick, and I really hated that. So, really, being afraid of the bell was just related to my fear of loud sudden noises - I have the same reactions to dogs barking loud aswell, and car horns bibbing loud near me.


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