Meltdowns ?

[BlackWolfie555]

Since I'm new to this whole world, I'm wondering if what I'm feeling are meltdowns.

I know in children it's a lot like temper tantrums and can be loud or just obviously a meltdown.

But can they be and contained? Like I feel like I'm melting down, but I'm still walking through the grocery store unable to really focus on what I'm doing, just trying to keep control of myself and not yell or cry.

When I search for information, all I find is about children.

Thanks in advance for any input.

 

[SailorMars1994]

Yikes im not sure. I would make a guess and say yes. The first time, in a VERY long time i experience meltdowns wasnt too long ago. I am trans and my meltdowns came when I was stuck in my male shell and felt trapped. I would do things i normally wouldnt, i would cry a lot, scratch my face, rip my hair out.. It was scary. I got put on medication for it (Respiridone or however it is spelt). So I guess yes, it can happen to adults too!

 

[kay]

Not just a kid thing at all. I'm 45 and still have plenty. They got worse at puberty, I think that's common.

I avoid Barnes and Noble during December. Three years in a row attempting to Christmas shop there I had meltdowns. Just started crying right in the middle of the store, which is what most of my meltdowns are. Just extreme, intense crying. Last public meltdown was in November when a balloon popped in a restaurant. That was really embarrassing. All I know to avoid them is be careful where I go, when I go, keep earplugs on me, and just accept that sometimes, like with the balloon incident, it's going to happen. My worse meltdowns have mostly been at home, late at night. With those I cry and sometimes bite my fingers. When I was younger I would kick and punch walls, furniture, ect.. Did have a bad one in the truck a few weeks ago after getting yelled at by a mean guy. Barely got back home and I hurt my hands hitting the steering wheel. At least no one saw.

Don't know if any of that helps you.

 

[AustinTheAspie]

I've had some pretty intense meltdowns in the past; I've hit/thrown things, broken stuff, threatened people, and just gotten basically to the point where I'm ready to just basically tear someone's head off.

 

[Lady Penelope]

My meltdowns are more internal. I feel like there is a mental block and i can't think clearly. I struggle to work out the right thing to say or do and just shut down. If pressured during this time i have to fight back tears and the immense urge to retreat. I also have anxiety attacks and feel shaky ...hot... sweaty and weak.

 

[BlackWolfie555]

Just a bit a go I started to get inexplicably angry. I felt overwhelmed and like the world was coming to an end over a comment. Actually it was 2 texts. My outburst was a simple "whatever" for my reply. I felt my chest get tight, palpitations, shaking, nausea, and wanted to cry.

Worked it up to quite a frenzy in my head, but then it just stopped after about 45 minutes. I felt angry at myself and disappointed in myself as well for getting worked up at nothing. Again.

Now I feel great. Lost 50 lbs of emotional baggage.

I've always felt that this 'reaction' meant I was crazy or mentally ill, but after thinking on it a bit... I think I'm having meltdowns. Which explains the physical reactions I've had in the past. In grade school I would hide under my desk and screamed if anyone looked at me. Bashed my head into a wall until the school nurse and principal physically removed me. Or I would continously rip up paper until I calmed down.

My mother never though much of it. Now she waives it off as a sign of the abuse I was going through at the time that she didn't know about, but AS meltdowns make much more sense.

 

[xudo]

Just a bit a go I started to get inexplicably angry.

I get this a lot. Not entirely sure for me if it's down to AS though, or associated with Tourette's. Rage can be an issue for people with TS.

In terms of meltdowns, I would say what you're describing are meltdowns. I experience them pretty much the same as you described if I'm outside the house.

 

[BlackWolfie555]

I get this a lot. Not entirely sure for me if it's down to AS though, or associated with Tourette's. Rage can be an issue for people with TS.

In terms of meltdowns, I would say what you're describing are meltdowns. I experience them pretty much the same as you described if I'm outside the house.

I hate that you have them too, but I'm glad to know that I'm not alone. It's also a relief to realize that there is a reason.

 

[toothless]

Since I'm new to this whole world, I'm wondering if what I'm feeling are meltdowns.

I know in children it's a lot like temper tantrums and can be loud or just obviously a meltdown.

But can they be and contained? Like I feel like I'm melting down, but I'm still walking through the grocery store unable to really focus on what I'm doing, just trying to keep control of myself and not yell or cry.

When I search for information, all I find is about children.

Thanks in advance for any input.

i think what your feeling is fight or flight stress which could potentially develop into a meltdown,but to me,its not a meltdown-its the bit before that.
a meltdown is when you 'melt down' you lose control [either externally or internally] of your thinking and behavior,you cant be rational and choose to make good or bad choices, you cannot cope with the situation your in, you basically feel like your in some kind of hell but you are so entranced with such intense negative emotions that you are not 'with it',you either need to come out of the meltdown and escape the part of reality causing you trouble or have some support in getting away from the stressor.

 

[Stik]

I've often wondered the same thing. I work with ASD kids and it feels familiar when they meltdown or have a behavior. I think you and I have had so long to figure out how to hold them back when possible but I don't think it's always the best practice because I think it's building up to a big meltdown that we might not be strong enough to stop. I've had those too

 

[Alaska]

I am not sure I still experience much in the way of "meltdowns" in the way you describe them. If it is very bad for me I usually get sick at the same time, so just go to bed and sleep or go into something like a coma, but where I mostly know what is happening around me.

It is possible some of the difference is because of me being female. Some of it may be because of things I have learned to do that mitigate the severity of a meltdown.

I can usually tell when I am heading in the direction of a meltdown, so I have time for preventive actions. The most important parts of the preventive actions are distraction and calming and soothing.

For distraction I keep some mindless and repetitive acitivities handy. One is removing labels from containers that I intend to recycle for new uses. I reuse spice containers to put herbs in or put the same spice in it bought in bulk, for example. I also make my own baking and cooking mixes and need containers for that. Label removal is quite mindless and repetitive. I can watch a movie or listen to music while I do this.

Crocheting and knitting a simple item like a dishcloth is very repetitive and mindless, and therefore a good distraction to avoid a meltdown. This, of course, applies after you already know how to knit or crochet without thinking about it much.

The same goes for hand sewing. I am sure you will find lots of other mindless, repetitive activities to do when you want to avoid a meltdown.

 

[Jerome]

It is painful for me to reflect on my meltdowns. I was undiagnosed for 58 years and until age 36 I relied on drugs and alcohol to manage my meltdowns. I became a pot addict and alcoholic as a result. As a child I was prone to fits of rage so violent that it once landed me in custody of the police. No one knew what was wrong with me, or what would trigger these rage storms. When I found a chemical solution at age 18 I dived headlong into addiction. At age 36 the consequences became too great and I gave up my chemical dependency in exchange for recovery. They had a program for my addiction that worked very well with my Aspie condition. I still had meltdowns (rage attacks) but now I have the tools to manage them. For 17 years my meltdown took the form of severe depression that I had to work through in therapy. Today, I enforce strict boundaries for my down time. I simplified my life and placed my well being before the demands society makes upon me. I am building an Aspie support group in recovery. I found many of us sought a chemical solution to our condition. I found out the AA founder, Bill Wilson, exhibited many Aspie traits and suffered from depression just as I. He labeled his meltdowns as emotional hangovers. I'very had many such hangovers in sobriety. Today I manage to avoid them through practice of the AA program with a heavy dose of meditation. I am blessed!

 

[stigmatic]

If I am at home and by myself my meltdowns can become violent and I will usually inflict harm on myself where if I'm in public or on the job its more bottled up and when they do happen its just a wave of emotion, sometimes more than one and its never easy to control. The aftereffects can last for months it seems because during this time anxiety attacks are triggered through breaking my rituals, social situations, or when my internal noise produces unwanted thoughts and I can't control them I will usually try to hold back because the attacks will come at times that are definitely not appropriate and so what I ended up doing was getting in the habit of self-harming myself, but thankfully broke myself of it through experimenting with mushrooms and now it seems that at least meltdowns are fewer throughout the past few months since I took them. I still have issues with Social Anxiety and just being around other people I do not know by myself and most recently I feel like I haven't researched Asperger's or Autism enough to understand myself and the way my mind works.

The worse meltdowns I ever had was when I ended up moving to another state for my girlfriend (presently not together anymore) and I left all my friends and pretty much everything that could help me with my issues. The first was not as bad, but involved drinking because I was just so out of my rituals and in such a new environment that it was extremely overwhelming. The second one was the worse because I ended up cutting myself and during the whole time this happened my girlfriend wasn't helping and neither was her dad who was there at the time. I did end up moving back and I felt a lot better.

 

[icesyckel]

Mine are more in control than they used to be, but it's taken medication to get there. Even with the medication, I still sometimes lose control when something doesn't go as planned/expected.

 

[Jerome]

I am in meltdown mode right now. I am four years behind on filing taxes. Tax season is very stressful for me. My anxiety levels are so high that I took a mental health day from work. My AA sponsor taught me this was OK. My attendance is good and I actually the time off coming. I don't know if I will get my taxes done or not. Either way it is OK. I accept life on Aspergers terms. Sometimes it disables me, but most times I am able to act through the anxiety. My brother lives with me and I have retreated to my room for solitude. I've no desire for social interaction with him. In full disclosure, I never have desire for human interaction . My job and AA is where I have obligations for social interactions. Otherwise, I spend quality time with myself reading, writing and interacting with people via social media.

 

[Aspie_With_Attitude]

Last week I had made a video about "Autistic Meltdowns" and what causes meltdowns on most aspies in the first place.

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel if you enjoy my videos and have a YouTube account.

You can discuss your experiences with autistic meltdowns if you wish.



SHOULD PARENTS WITH AUTISTIC CHILDREN BE ALLOWED TO VIDEO THEIR CHILDREN HAVING MELTDOWNS AND POST ONTO SOCIAL MEDIA?
What's your opinions on parents raising autistic children who have meltdowns and film their meltdowns from their smart phones and share around social media. I have mentioned in the video why I believe it's wrong and explained how I don't like it. It would be cool if you express your view and opinions on the subject.

 

[Kyou Nukui]

I cannot imagine any child being happy to have a video of them in an extremely stressed and frustrated state being publicly distributed on the Internet. Do these parents have a lack of empathy or something?!

 

[Aspie_With_Attitude]

I cannot imagine any child being happy to have a video of them in an extremely stressed and frustrated state being publicly distributed on the Internet. Do these parents have a lack of empathy or something?!

That's what I like to get at. I am very against parents humiliating their autistic children like that. If parents are raising autistic children, they must learn that they shouldn't be doing things like that when they're on the meltdown. This gives more fuel and fire to their stressful situations.

 

[Progster]

SHOULD PARENTS WITH AUTISTIC CHILDREN BE ALLOWED TO VIDEO THEIR CHILDREN HAVING MELTDOWNS AND POST ONTO SOCIAL MEDIA?

No. It's wrong. Nobody should post any photo or video of another person without their permission. Small children may have no understanding of the implications of posting on social media, so it is abuse.

 

[Mr Allen]

Last week I had made a video about "Autistic Meltdowns" and what causes meltdowns on most aspies in the first place.

Please subscribe to my YouTube channel if you enjoy my videos and have a YouTube account.

You can discuss your experiences with autistic meltdowns if you wish.

View attachment 48938

SHOULD PARENTS WITH AUTISTIC CHILDREN BE ALLOWED TO VIDEO THEIR CHILDREN HAVING MELTDOWNS AND POST ONTO SOCIAL MEDIA?
What's your opinions on parents raising autistic children who have meltdowns and film their meltdowns from their smart phones and share around social media. I have mentioned in the video why I believe it's wrong and explained how I don't like it. It would be cool if you express your view and opinions on the subject.

No, it's a form of child cruelty IMO.