Straight from the horses mouth (Nathan's thoughts.....my typing)

One of the most stressful parts of reaching the tween years is anxiety. There's peer anxiety at school and the anxiety that comes with being the oldest child. I feel that as I grow older rules should be more bending.(ok, here's where I interject. We don't have unreasonable rules or set unreasonable goals but having a very strong minded strong opinioned child causes conflict. Gone are the days of "because I said so" He needs a reason for EVERYTHING.) I get angry when I try to multitask "my way" which is doing chores while doing something fun at the same time. I am currently grounded from the basement which is our play room. This makes me feel like an outcast because I feel like I've been driven out of a place where I can find solitude. When I'm very frustrated I cry and growl and scream into a pillow....sometimes I just flip and flop around like a fish out of water. It soothes me to let my anger out through motion and not violence even though sometimes I want to punch something. Also, sometimes when I'm very stressed or anxious I eat things that aren't food (that's called Pica). I don't always think about what I'm doing....it just happens. I've gotten very sick from this in the past.
Anxiety at school is different. Kids there are sometimes rude and unkind. I don't have alot of friends because people think I'm different. I'm fine with being who I am even if they are uncomfortable. I have odd eating habits and often chew on my clothing (sleeves and shirt collars). I don't do this to draw attention to myself it just happens. I like most of the kids in my class and want to be friends but they don't seem very interested in being friends with me. I feel excluded from groups and don't like being the last one picked for games. It irritates me that I'm the first person picked if it's something to do with academics because someone wants a good grade for being in a group with me. It's been this way for a couple of years.
Please try to treat people who act differently with kindness and understanding. We want to be accepted too.