Teenager Abbie is a finalist in Miss Teen Diamond Australia

At primary school she was teased, called names and pushed off the playground equipment. Now Tasmanian teenager Abbie Freeman lives by the motto “Autism is not a disability, it’s a different ability”.

IN primary school, Abbie Freeman was bullied to the edge of the playground because she was different.

“I got pushed off the play equipment. I got called names. I was excluded,” she recalls.

Now, at 17, Abbie is still different — but these days her uniqueness is attracting positive attention.

The Year 12 student, who is on the autism spectrum, has just won the Hobart Regatta Ambassador Quest and is preparing to represent Tasmania as a finalist in Miss Teen Diamond Australia.

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Competing in both events involves speaking before a panel of judges, which requires confidence and communication skills that have taken years of hard work for Abbie.

“If we went to a different environment that she found stressful, Abbie would scream the place down,” her mum Tanya Freeman said.

“It was a struggle.”

The family, from Forcett, organised early intervention for Abbie in the preschool years, which included learning non-verbal communication strategies such as sign language.

Mrs Freeman said the teachers throughout Abbie’s schooling had also been well-trained and supportive, and all the hard work had paid off.

“I used to cry myself to sleep, worrying about what her future held,” Mrs Freeman said.

“But I look at her now, and I can see she knows where she wants to go.” Abbie is excelling in science at school, and hopes to study forensic sciences when she completes Year 12 at Rosny College.

Abbie also started modelling last year, through GCP Models in Hobart.

“At the first photo shoot I was scared, but it has boosted my confidence greatly,” she said.

As part of her preparation for Miss Teen Diamond Australia, Abbie is fundraising for her charity Autism Awareness Australia.

She has arranged a gala fundraising dinner at Wrest Point Casino on March 16.

Tickets to the event can be purchased by following the links from the Facebook page Abbie for Autism.

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