AUD: When Everything That Could Go Wrong Did

You ever have one of those days that starts off chaotic and just… stays that way? Yeah. That was my AUD exam day.

It’s 5 a.m. I crawl out of bed. Brush my teeth. Wash my face. Moisturize. I sit down to get through my last review before the exam. Andddd my kid is wide awake, bright-eyed, and looking for me. Meanwhile, I’m sitting there trying to figure out why today was the day she got a good night’s rest.

Now, this exam was two hours away. Two. Hours. And it was storming like crazy. I’m talking thunder, lightning, rain smacking the windshield. So I’m driving through that, half asleep, half praying, trying to remember which section AUD even is at this point.

By the time I got to the testing center, I was already drenched, already exhausted, but I told myself: Let’s get this over with. Just get through it.

And that became my mantra for the day.

Breathe. Think. Perform.

You’re tired. Look at it again.

Okay, next question.

Breathe. Think. Perform.

I was literally pep-talking myself through every single question, fighting to stay focused when my brain was screaming for a nap and a reset. Every MCQ felt like a game of SAW. Every simulation felt like climbing a mountain barefoot.

Oh, and the exam crashed.

Not once.

Twice.

At that point, I just sat there staring at the screen like, okay God, this the test before the test, huh? The proctor looked just as stressed as I felt, rebooting things while I’m sitting there trying not to cry. Because what is today really?

When it finally came back up, I powered through on pure adrenaline. Finished the test, dragged myself to the car, and what greets me on the highway home? Traffic. Of course. Because apparently, this day wasn’t done with me yet.

So there I was sitting in traffic, in the rain, hair frizzy, mentally drained, migraine oncoming, eating Wendy’s fries out of the bag in silence, just… existing. Not even mad anymore. Just spiritually tired.

But as awful as that day was, it didn’t break me. It reminded me why this journey is so hard and so worth it.

Because if you can survive a 5 a.m. final review interruption, a two-hour stormy drive, two exam crashes, and stand-still traffic all while whispering “breathe, think, perform” to yourself, you can survive anything.

The result? I passed.