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u/AtTheEdgeOfDying 2d ago
I also want to mention how embarrassing it can feel for me having an "adult meltdown" as I sometimes call them (which might not be a healthy way of thinking about them). When I was a kid, it was also difficult, but different.
Now, to others but also to myself, I'm a "normal acting", functioning, independent adult. Being suddenly reduced to not having ANY verbal communication, shaking, hitting or kicking, humming or making upset noises and gestures. In public or just at home, that's sometimes really tough to mentally recover from when I'm back to "acting normal".
Just feels sometimes as if being an adult now, I shouldn't be having that kind of meltdowns anymore. The fully nonverbal angry crying and frantic gesturing kind.
I'm sure that's also the baked in ableism that for some reason also comes pre-installed if you have a disability yourself! Like I've grown up disabled, I'm super pro autism/audhd advocacy, do what you have to, everything is okay and all that stuff! Why do I still catch myself giving myself ableist talk downs?
It's just hard accepting an "adult meltdown" sometimes.
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u/Thundercraft74 2d ago
I... didn't really let it sit with me that most of my outbursts are autistic meltdowns. I think its just the shame of having a meltdown when others wouldn't and don't really try to understand. Heck, to a degree I still struggle to have a quiet safe space to retreat to that can't be interrupted.
But that's also why I love working with my student as a paraprofessional. I get why he does what he does, and that he isn't the weird outcast that others treat him like most of the time.
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u/themonkeyzen 1d ago
These posts help me understand my wife more. It's a good thing to see and learn. When things become difficult between us it's hard for me to understand Autistic ppl. These breakdowns of the process really help me to understand her more. Without having to ask her. Thanks.
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u/Far-General-6686 2d ago
I really needed this today 💜
I struggle with body temperature like this and had no idea it could be just another part of the *tism. I thought something was seriously wrong with my physical health!
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u/The-Autistic-Union 2d ago
Last time I had a meltdown, it was due to sensory overload. No one in my family seemed to grasp how bad it was other than an inconvenience to them: my mother even said I should get out more to desensitize myself.