#Autistic Meltdowns

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

Autistic Meltdown: How to Help

Lil Penguin Studios/Autism Happy Place

[doctor-mccoys-sanity]

autism and strong emotion just be like… SHAKE! SHAKE SO HARD! BUT FEEL TRAPPED BY THE PRISON OF YOUR BONES *screams*

[crazycatsiren]

Autistic meltdowns aren't synonymous with temper tantrums, by the way.

[koala2055]

not mentally exhausted or physically exhausted but a third secret autistic type of exhausted

[therapy-gems]

[cattistic]

Self Regulation/Aggression/Anger Issues in Autism

I wonder why no one in the main autism community ever talks about this, as it seems to be a major issue for those with maybe severe traits of their autism and/or possibly early diagnosed people with possible speech or language delays. I haven't heard of a high functioning autistic deal or struggle with this, maybe because it's a shame thing for them which i understand and respect.

But that's not really the main point and/or question, but i would appreciate if someone talked about that or gave some guesses as to why. Yeah, i think this is me criticizing them, as i find that the main autism community barely talks about issues like these and/or other issues that aren't like theirs or quirky to take advantage of. I think it's even worse on twitter as everyone knows it's either braindead or toxic to the point of doxxing someone with an slightly controversial opinion.

My main question is why does it seem to be linked to autism? I deal and struggle with these issues seemingly every other day, sometimes even punching myself or hitting something else out of fury just because of a simple thing that didn't go my way, especially while in traffic. I know this isn't just a me issue but also it isn't a majority of people diagnosed with autism issue, but i want to know why.

Perhaps it's the extreme feelings traits that some people with autism have, which i don't exactly think i have as it's not a symptom if i recall correctly. Sometimes, i have extreme feelings and i feel overly disappointed to the point of crying just because someone said i wasn't autistic on Twitter and/or not achieving first place during a for-fun Kahoot game. In traffic, if the stop lights stop us suddenly, sometimes i punch the dashboard out of anger or hit my neck, but i'm sure it doesn't hurt past just like a slap would feel.

Could someone explain this to me like i'm 5? I find it hard to understand things with bigger words for some reason, might be my learning disability or autism once again. I don't know what autism can indirectly cause due to the struggles usually associated with it like social anxiety.

[five-pillows]

I have a question for autistics that know more about meltdowns than I do

I’ve had a couple episodes (I refer to them as episodes for lack of a better term) although they weren’t particularly loud, and I didn’t make many involuntary movements. I had always thought they were panic attacks because I had the staple shallow breathing, shakiness, and pit in my stomach, but now I’m not quite sure. Every time this happened I was in a social situation and felt extremely uncomfortable but was able to mask how I was feeling with a lot of difficulty. I stumbled over my speech and buffered quite a lot but anyone looking at me would likely just think I was nervous. I also felt stronger urges to stim but refrained from big movements.

Since every instance was in a public setting where I was responsible for something I was required to contain myself to some extent for the sake of my dignity if nothing else. Not saying that meltdowns aren’t justified or give autistics a bad reputation, I just hadn’t done nearly as much research or made accommodations for myself at those times so I felt as if I could be less Big Emotion if I just let myself feel so terrible and use exposure as a tool rather than escape the situation

I’m just curious whether this would qualify as some sort of meltdown, even if it’s far less severe than what I’ve heard them described as.

Most meltdown symptoms I see discussed are yelling, crying, hitting, stimming, and running away, and the symptoms are always described as involuntary but I can’t find anything about how it feels in the body, or if less severe meltdowns are possible

Sorry if this is a stupid theory I just don’t want to assume it’s panic attacks since exposure hasn’t helped at all

[clowningcrows]

bro i punched my bedroom walls when i was 16 how didn’t i know i was transmasc years ago

[theorahsart]

Paupers Prince Part 2

Click here for previous/future chapters if you're on a laptop/browser~

Or follow #paupersprince for updates on app :3 I will make webcomics readable on Tumblr somehow lol

A little autistic lord has a melt down- but maybe one kind kid can help, where unempathic adults have failed.

[child-of-peace]

The Bad Tension™️

I saw a post on autistic meltdowns and it didn’t address something, so I wanted to ask a question to the autistic community. Do you get The Bad Tension™️ when you have a meltdown?

Bc I get it when I feel both overstimulated and understimulated, but when I feel understimulated, stimming helps. When I’m overstimulated, I end up having a full-on meltdown.

The Bad Tension™️ sits under my skin and the best way I can describe it is like when you have a buildup of lactic acid, except it feels nothing like that. If I don’t stim, it makes me feel so uncomfortable, and so I pace or flap or stretch my arms out to get rid of it. When I have a meltdown, I end up aggressively stimming or hitting myself in an attempt to get rid of it and I’m not entirely in control anymore.

I have an autistic friend who says that she also experiences this so I was wondering if it was a universal experience or not? Is there an actual name for this sensation?

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

Autistic Meltdown Iceberg

Neurodivergent_lou

[rileylastname]

extreme sensitivity and difficulty adapting to change is one of the most challenging parts of being autistic (to me, i am only speaking my for myself here, every single autistic person is different). small changes, even positive changes are liable to cause a meltdown. the world is such a scary place when you know that things changing, as all things do, could send you into a spiral. and it’s so difficult to explain to allistics why we’re reacting the way that we do, especially when you know it seems like an overreaction... but this is how i describe it:

you know that feeling when you got a haircut that you hated and were doing everything you could to hold back the tears? that “oh no oh no oh no” moment when you look in the mirror and realize you hate how it looks, and now there’s a sob bubbling up in your throat and you’re trying so hard to choke it back down so that you don’t cry in public but the more you look the harder it feels to bottle it all in?

i feel and often react that way to everyday situations and changes. i cut my nails a little bit shorter than I’m used to? meltdown. or we got a new toaster to replace the old one? meltdown. or my phone updated and everything is different? meltdown and now i can’t stop crying! (these are all real examples of real things from my real life that caused me to have real meltdowns btw.) and in the midst of my stress i can’t help but berate myself for losing it over something like that, and of course shame and self-loathing only exacerbate the meltdown.

i am constantly trying to work through my internalized ableism about this. I spent years being called dramatic and immature, confused about why i was unable to grapple with things my peers found entirely inconsequential. i wish that i didn’t feel guilty or embarrassed about the way that i naturally react to stressful situations (especially situations that are probably not nearly all that stressful to allistics) because I know that if I could hate myself into becoming someone I liked better, it would have worked by now.

[crazycatsiren]

Stop calling autistic meltdowns "tantrums". Just stop.

[elaurianwellness]

Meltdowns suck. Here's some reminders for those who experience them.

Swearing versions on slide 2.

These graphics are always available on request, just dm me and its yours!

IDs - Both slides have a blue to purple gradient background and black writing.

The first slide...

Neurodivergent Wellbeing

Meltdowns are.......

NOT YOUR FAULT

☆ EXHAUSTING ☆

Rest, hydrate, eat when you can

☆ A sign things have been too much for too long. Give yourself a break where possible

☆ Upsetting and pretty horrible to experience, be kind to yourself

☆ Very common in ND folk, you're not alone

Slide 2...

Neurodivergent Wellbeing

Meltdowns are.......

☆GODDAMN EXHAUSTING ☆

Rest, hydrate, eat when you can

☆ A sign things have been too fucking much for too fucking long. Give yourself a break where possible for fuck's sake

☆ A shitty thing to experience, don't add to it by being a dick to yourself

☆ Too fucking common in ND folk, at least you're not alone

[therapy-gems]

[cattistic]

Disability and Autism (Autistic?) Pride as Concepts Make no Sense to Me

I understand that some autistics want to be proud of themselves and of their autism. But i don't like it when it's being forced on everyone who's on the autism spectrum.

I, myself, don't feel proud of having a disability. It literally disables me to the point of having needed multiple services out and in school for me to just enter the classroom and stay there, even now as an young adult.

I have had multiple violent meltdowns, i've slapped and otherwise hurt people just because they did or said something i've not liked. There's other examples but i'm assuming this was enough. I don't want to be proud of and accepting that i hurt people, it almost seems like i'm using that as an excuse and a demand to let me do whatever i want.

Like, i prefer to use the term Autism Awareness instead of Acceptance. I see that some autists already get plenty of acceptance and so i assume people are aware of them and have now accepted them, so that's really great! But i feel like some autistics with severe-er traits are being ignored, even by other autistics.

But some or even most autistics, violent meltdowners, elopers and people who otherwise struggle with their autism more aren't yet accepted as who they are. They, and so do i, need more awareness before people can accept us i feel like. Just my thoughts.

I remember this one higher support needs autistic Australian post her stimming behaviour during NYE because she was watching Bluey and all of the comments were calling her out, calling what she was doing infantilizing and even accusing her of setting back the community a couple of years back.

That's obviously not true and that's just one example. I honestly think we also need awareness of others within the autism spectrum and acceptance of who they are, if they subscribe to that concept and/or idea.

Some others may agree, and that's fine but i'd rather if we all didn't force our beliefs on each other. And by the way, this post isn't aimed at anyone in particular, this post is just a way to express my thoughts on things like disability pride month and whatever.

Sorry for my super delayed response, it's done now and has been done for a long time now.