#pda profile

[itsaspectrumcomic]

Don't tell me what to do!

[autism-affirmations]

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

PDA; Pathological Demand Avoidance

A profile of autism/also known as Persuasive Drive for Autonomy

A need for control/autonomy driven by (often unseen anxiety

Avoidance of demands and daily tasks even those they enjoy

Perceived demands or control triggers anxiety, fight/fight & distress

Likely to show “obsessive” or controlling behavior (e.g. control of others)

Survival instinct for autonomy overrides other instincts such as bodily needs

Uses excuses, distraction, negotiation, lying, ect. to avoid demands

Low-aprousal approach, trusts, choices, negotiation & flexibility benefit

itsemilykaty

[phleb0tomist]

pathological demand avoidance in autism is wild. my body will be like “i need the bathroom” and my brain will be like “ok” but then my nervous system will be like “i perceive this as a threat so now i’m systematically going through all the evolutionary adrenaline responses”

[neurodivergent-mermaid]

I feel like people are forgetting you cant get like offically identified with PDA, there is *no* offical criteria, people are told that you cant get diagnosed in their country, but you cant get diagnosed in *any* country

Even the biggest PDA advocates cant decide on if its some new type of autism or a separate disorder, theres no standard of PDA

So i just want to warn people to not go basing your whole personality on PDA, There is no official criteria, when your "specialist" tells you your diagnosed with PDA, they mean diagnosed as in identified, they also are diagnosing you based of their perception of PDA, not any criteria

And i think this can be very bad, saying the reason why someones not doing things is because its a demand and you should let them not do it is the easy way out, people should look and see why you dont want to do it, why your struggling, and either help you do it or understand you cant. Its not as simply as "this person cant do X Y and Z, probably because its a demand lets just let them not do it"

Yes some people dont like to do things that are a demand, so that can and should just be called demand avoidance, also if someones not doing something because they avoid demands thats really dangerous if their need to avoid demands gets even worse because they could start avoiding eatinf and drinking, so you should work on that not just say "thats how things are not🤷‍♀️"

[autball]

Autism won today. 😁

[Image description: A 3-panel cartoon by Autball.

1: Close up of Autism (a round, gold figure with loopy squiggles all over) and ADHD (an orange, firework-shaped figure) arm wrestling.

2: They are still arm wrestling, hands a little lower than before, with ADHD looking concerned. Now we can see they have an audience made up of Logic (a blue cube), Anxiety (a green, wiggly blob), Sensory (a rainbow colored orb with eight tendrils), Creativity (a yellow lightbulb-shaped figure), and PDA (a red, spiky figure).

3: The competition is over. Logic announces, “And AUTISM WINS today!” To the left, Autism is flanked by Anxiety and Sensory, who all look happy. Anxiety exclaims, “Yay, routine and predictability it is!” To the right, ADHD is flanked by Creativity and PDA, all looking unhappy. PDA says, “Sorry mate. Maybe we’ll get some chaos and novelty tomorrow.”]

[maevesweirdart]

god: “hey dude check this out” creates pathological demand avoidance

angel: “but won’t this like… ruin people’s ability to function in society, while also sounding like a bullshit excuse whenever a person tries to explain it?”

god: “exactly! that’s the point lol” >:3

angel: “…yknow, honestly, i think i might quit”

[chronicsymptomsyndrome]

PDA autistic culture is hating the demand that comes with labels so much that you don’t even like identifying as agender because it still feels like…a gender (a concept which society forcefully imposed on you, and you therefore want no part of)

[pda-culture-is]

PDA culture is going into the PDA tag on tumblr to find some sense of reassurance/community and then getting annoyed because every post is a dumbass 'me no wanna' meme and there's literally nothing of substance anywhere (except this blog ofc lol)

^

[probablypeoplepleasering]

Maybe I'm not a monster. Maybe I'm just an undiagnosed autistic living without accommodations

[antlerkitty]

Having PDA is so fucking annoying. You're telling me that I have the "Can't Do Anything That's Asked of Me" subtype of "Needs Active Prompting to Complete Most Tasks" disorder???

[round-boys13]

i tried to do some ctommy PDA doodles but this was all i could get out

[my-autism-adhd-blog]

Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA)

Autisticality

[bostova]

so after a whole bunch of research and watching endless youtube videos I am very confident that I am solidly in the PDA profile of autism. I knew I was autistic, but a lot of the coping strategies and mechanisms that I read about for being an adult with autism just did not work at all for me, and only increased my meltdowns and anxiety. Once I learned about PDA everything just made a lot more sense about my entire life, including my childhood and the problems I have been facing in the past few years.

I made a list of all of the things I do daily that my brain perceives as demands and it's no wonder I am so fucking exhausted and have no time for other people. Even just keeping myself alive by eating, staying hydrated, showering, going to the bathroom, brushing my teeth, getting dressed, going out to buy food/drinks, waking up at a decent time, going to sleep when I know I am tired, washing my hair... these are all things I don't WANT to do, but I NEED to and HAVE to do them which threatens my autonomy (there's always something else I would rather be doing) and triggers my stress response (depends on the situation but usually fight, sometimes flight, rarely freeze). God help me if I have other things I have to do that day like running errands, cooking for my partners, working a job (demand fucking city), cleaning the house, reaponding to messages/emails/calls that I have been putting off etc. etc.

It's no wonder i got so burned out in 2022 and needed fuckin 5 months off work sick to literally do NOTHING. Honestly it feels like I squeezed out the toothpaste tube of my autism and i've never been able to put it back in and get my shit together. I have no idea how I was able to cope for so long, cause these days it feels like I'm drowning and I'll never be in control of my life ever again. Like how the fuck do I get a job where people don't make demands of me all fucking day, where I'm the one in control of my time and life? Because even if I'm my own boss, then I'M the one who has to still do the fucking things I don't want to do but HAVE to do to earn the money just to keep myself alive

i am so tired

[scarlet97531]

⭕️❗️after touching some grass this weekend I was feeling really good, like I might actually be able to improve my mental health a lot, but this morning my PDA got triggered really badly and now I feel like I never should’ve tried getting out of bed.

Every time I start getting better people immediately start putting pressure on me again and it just sends me spiraling down again.

Does anyone with experience with PDA have advice for how to deal with this? I really want to get better but demands make me want to undo everything I have just to feel like I’m in control of my own life.

[autball]

And Did You Know…that that is part of the reason why “appears comfortable in role play and pretend” became a “key criteria” for PDA? (PDA = Pathological Demand Avoidance, or Pervasive Drive for Autonomy.)

For a long time it was considered an essential part of PDA, but it was changed to “optional” not too long ago. And for good reason. We know now that plenty of autistic people do engage in imaginative play and role play, AND that not all PDAers do.

While role play is very often just for fun, no matter who you are, it can also sometimes be used as a coping mechanism. It can be used to get out of things, or to make it easier to get through something challenging, or even as a way to mask.

It’s not always a cause for concern, but if you find your person (or yourself) spending more time as someone/something else than as themselves (or yourself), it might be a sign that some changes are needed. For example, you may need to lower stress/demands, or you may to ensure there are more places where they feel safe being themselves.

But again, it’s not always a bad thing! If your child does use role play as a way to cope or avoid things, it’s okay to just go with it in the moment. If it helps them get through doing a hard thing, just play along! If they use it to try and “get out of something,” hear that they’re telling you they can’t handle it for some reason. Maybe there’s something in their way that you could help with, or maybe they just need you to back off right now.

This is talked about a lot more in the PDA community than in the wider autistic community, so hopefully this brings awareness to people who haven’t yet come across it. But I do wanna reiterate that it is not all PDAers and not only PDAers who use role play in this way (or at all). So don’t let anyone try to tell you that you or your kid is or isn’t something over this particular trait alone.

(Image description in Alt Text.)