Being Sarah: Living with autism

Some may look askance when Sarah Nurul Ain Ismail, 18, talks to herself as she goes about her tasks. READ MORE: https://str.sg/w2nR

“Sarah, take off your apron. Fold it and put it in your bag, don’t forget. It’s important,” she says quietly as she follows a checklist of tasks to do before she finishes her shift at Swensen’s in Sun Plaza in Sembawang.

The repeated sentences serve as reminders and are a coping mechanism for the many thoughts in her mind, said her eldest sister Nurul Jannah Ismail, 28, an assistant editor and producer.

Sarah has autism spectrum disorder - a developmental disorder that affects a person’s ability to communicate and interact.

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