too much leads to crankiness?

[Pats]

Yes, much more and I was going to start getting cranky - I could feel it coming.
Sunday my daughter brings her kids - daughter 4, son 5. Sunday night we meet my son and other daughter and their kids at the drive in to watch Toy Story 4. It was fun, but it's frustrating anymore since I just can't hear conversations and mostly I just sit and smile and laugh when everyone else laughs. When we get home, my son I live with put up a swing - tied to a really high limb. Monday, we push the kids on the swing then go to this plant place and to lunch. My daughter leaves.

So Mon, Tues and Wed are all the same. I smoke so with kids I have to go out and sit in the heat so it's not pleasant. Plus every time I go out, they want to go out and I have to either tie Cubby or hold him from getting out and running off into the woods - so it's a bit of a pain every time I open the door. And every time we go out they want to swing. I have to help them get on and off, push while holding my legs in to keep them from getting beat up by the swing so I'm hot, it's humid here, so also sweaty, my back hurts. Several times a day we do this - trust me - I cut way back on smoking while they were here. lol

The kids really were good. But each day I also took them out somewhere and I HATE carseats and reaching over to buckle them in (kills my back). I cook breakfast, fix their drinks, fix their lunch and dinner and they eat really good (unlike the others who eat 2 bites and done, these 2 will want more and say it's not just yummy, it's super yummy). And, might I add 3 1/2 days solid of Sonic (the cartoon). Turn the couch down at night, put it back in the morning. "Mema, can we play the switch and ipad?" "Yes!!! please". My grandson is the one I'm 99% certain is autistic and it can be really hard to understand him still, though he has had a few years of speech. And most his conversations are about video games. But he does know a lot of information about sharks and whales. My grand daughter is very attached to her mom and only cried once that she missed her mom - but several times I'd get her thoughts on good things and away from missing her mom.

Then Thur I'm watching the clock - at 5, we will be meeting their mom at my other granddaughters birthday party, which was at my son in law's grandmother's house - I don't know where to sit or what to do and all the grandkids are running through the house screaming and my son in law's step dad is making rude remarks because of the kids being loud (they're kids and that's what kids do). I unload my car into my daughter's car, hoping we didn't forget anything. I laugh and say "I'm officially done".

I don't think I could have done any longer and spent all day yesterday with that nagging feeling that I didn't do something right, even though everyone was happy. My daughter in law called me yesterday morning and I ignored the call because I was afraid she was going to ask me to do something for her with them out of town. I'm still trying to get back to myself, but pretty much let all the others know to leave me alone all next week.

Can anyone relate?

 

[Bolletje]

I get cranky when I’m overstimulated, which happens quite easily. It sounds like you made it through quite the few days. Time to Pat yourself on the back, put up your feet and relax!

 

[RMX07]

Agree with @Bolletje, you successfully made it through those days and you’re officially allowed to a) be proud of yourself, and b) cut yourself some slack.

I experience major overstimulation at work on a pretty regular basis; sensory and social, for the most part. The intense noise, lights, and having to talk and teach people all day for my job often leads to meltdowns or shutdowns when I get home, and lots of sleep to recover. I’m learning to take the small victories, to congratulate myself when I make it through a day. I’m starting to realise I don’t need to compare my experiences to anyone else’s: just because someone else might be able to get through the day easily, doesn’t mean that my own struggles aren’t valid. Slowly, I’m starting to accept, and understand that I need roughly a 2:1 ratio of downtime to social time.

So it’s totally OK to take the time you need to recover. Go and relax and absorb yourself in your interests.

 

[BraidedPony]

I couldn't have handled even an hour of that. Way too much going on and too mich responsibility.
I would smoke inside and get drunk.

 

[Fino]

"Gabapentin" is my answer to the title.

That is so much!!!! Did I miss the part where you're babysitting the kids and the mother is gone? Why are you doing so much work?

If you mean relate to the part where you feel like you did something wrong even though everyone's happy, that's me every day/night. My medication is changed every month primarily to deal with that sort of thing.

If you mean relate to the part where you did too much and want to be left alone, that's happened to me a lot, too, but I'm guessing everyone can relate to different extents to that.

If you mean relate to the part where you had to take care of several kids for days which consistently forced you to do things uncomfortable on every level, then no, that part I'm out. I've only done that for a matter of hours!

You did great, though! Good job!

 

[Pats]

"Gabapentin" is my answer to the title.

That is so much!!!! Did I miss the part where you're babysitting the kids and the mother is gone? Why are you doing so much work?

If you mean relate to the part where you feel like you did something wrong even though everyone's happy, that's me every day/night. My medication is changed every month primarily to deal with that sort of thing.

If you mean relate to the part where you did too much and want to be left alone, that's happened to me a lot, too, but I'm guessing everyone can relate to different extents to that.

If you mean relate to the part where you had to take care of several kids for days which consistently forced you to do things uncomfortable on every level, then no, that part I'm out. I've only done that for a matter of hours!

You did great, though! Good job!

Fino, you're always so funny. gabapentin, smoking and alcohol probably would have helped a lot. lol Yes - guess you missed where mom left and I was babysitting. Not sure you remember my complaint last week about my daughter in law and counting on them to be here so I could take the kids home but she changed plans and they were all gone this week so my daughter had to come back for them, too. But, now, in the long run - I didn't have to drive to Charlotte and spend a night there. So Yay for that after all.
And, yes, I always do the 'feeling like I've missed something or did something wrong' thing and I HATE that feeling. So much anxiety. AND the need to be alone now.

 

[Fino]

Fino, you're always so funny. gabapentin, smoking and alcohol probably would have helped a lot. lol Yes - guess you missed where mom left and I was babysitting. Not sure you remember my complaint last week about my daughter in law and counting on them to be here so I could take the kids home but she changed plans and they were all gone this week so my daughter had to come back for them, too. But, now, in the long run - I didn't have to drive to Charlotte and spend a night there. So Yay for that after all.
And, yes, I always do the 'feeling like I've missed something or did something wrong' thing and I HATE that feeling. So much anxiety. AND the need to be alone now.

Now I see it! "My daughter leaves." I somehow skipped that sentence. I think this is the first time I've seen someone say, "did I miss the part where..." and the answer is, "Yes, you missed that part."

And I remember that! Seems like a lot of family contact going on lately.

 

[Progster]

Yes, I can relate to getting cranky when overstimulated. Not just cranky; I often feel sick and feel like throwing up. I have a history of becoming very sick after a long journey, and not being able to get up out of bed the next day. Happens mostly on the journey to my destination, not so much on the return journey. Or, after a social event, the next day I have a migraine and don't feel too good. It was too much, and I didn't heed the warning signs.

that nagging feeling that I didn't do something right, even though everyone was happy.

I can relate to this, too. I often feel very anxious after a social event or interaction, even just after speaking to someone, without knowing why... often, nothing bad happened in the interaction, but I still feel this way, as if I did something wrong. It's not pleasant.

 

[Gracey]

Yes. Can relate to over doing it part. (overstimulation)
Was so pleased to read everyone knows to leave you alone for a while
Gives you a chance to get back to being yourself.

Some peace and quiet will do you the world of good.
Calm everything down and have you relaxed...
...ready for next time

 

[Pats]

Yes, I can relate to getting cranky when overstimulated. Not just cranky; I often feel sick and feel like throwing up. I have a history of becoming very sick after a long journey, and not being able to get up out of bed the next day. Happens mostly on the journey to my destination, not so much on the return journey. Or, after a social event, the next day I have a migraine and don't feel too good. It was too much, and I didn't heed the warning signs.

I can relate to this, too. I often feel very anxious after a social event or interaction, even just after speaking to someone, without knowing why... often, nothing bad happened in the interaction, but I still feel this way, as if I did something wrong. It's not pleasant.

You know, I never related the two things, except being very tired and my immunities being down maybe, but I always feel like I'm coming down with something after being overstimulated. Even run a low grade fever.

 

[Mary Terry]

I'd be a raging maniac if I did all that and would have to retire to the front porch alone with a glass of wine to settle down. The older I become, the crankier I get when I have to deal with the grandkids and their hordes of friends. They're good kids, but they are kids afterall.

 

[Progster]

You know, I never related the two things, except being very tired and my immunities being down maybe, but I always feel like I'm coming down with something after being overstimulated. Even run a low grade fever.

It took me a long time to correlate these, and I had previously always blamed the sickness on something else - the food, a virus or bug, gastritis or something like that. One or twice I think I was misdiagnosed with gastritis. But stress and over-stimulation can have physical as well as mental/cognitive effects.

 

[LucyPurrs]

@Pats, You get an award in my book. That would have utterly done me in and I'd be useless for at least 2 days afterwards so rest up in peace and quiet!!! Good job!!!

 

[Pats]

@Pats, You get an award in my book. That would have utterly done me in and I'd be useless for at least 2 days afterwards so rest up in peace and quiet!!! Good job!!!

Oh - I'm STILL at the useless point. lol

 

[Juliettaa]

Oh - I'm STILL at the useless point. lol

I'm not surprised!!!! I couldn't endure what you described without needing a whole month alone to recover

You must have huge reserves of patience @pat. I couldn't cope with a quarter of that level of stimulation without going into shutdown mode.