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Math Help for the Adult Student Returning to School

- Purchasing a short-term or long-term tutoring service to gain control over your own time and privacy while re-introducing math into your life.

- Starting with small victories, such as adding a column of figures on a grocery receipt or calculating the tip on a meal with a calculator, may help. The longest journey begins with the first small step.

- Being self-compassionate is essential. As with any phobia, one anticipates fear of loss or pain when the essence of the fear is experienced. Understand that the fear is due to a traumatic event or to a series of events which were beyond your control at a time when you did not have the power you now have.

- Don’t expect your concerns to dissipate overnight. It may take an extended period of time with ups and downs to gain control over this fear. Be patient with yourself.

Perhaps the most important thing to remember is that others have faced this difficulty before you and many have overcome it. Building the mathematical part of you might be an experience similar to starting an exercise plan or taking vitamins: good for you in the long run, gives you aches and pains and side effects at first, and something that might be priceless for your future well-being.