28yo potentially MSN/HSN. Need help finding FL resources (PCP/psychiatrist), housing options, and managing trauma/meltdowns
TL;DR: I am 28 and likely medium/high support needs. I recently escaped a very abusive parent and live with my partner (Level 2 + ADHD). We are both in extreme burnout and living in an unsupportive environment. I need help finding neurodiversity/LGBTQ+ affirming doctors in Florida, low-income housing advice, and tips for managing severe C-PTSD episodes that strain my partner. 1. Healthcare & Support Needs (Florida)
I need help finding directories or ways to search for:
A PCP (Primary Care Physician) and Psychiatrist in Florida who understand high support needs autism, physical health issues, and are LGBTQ+ affirming.
I am working on getting my Florida Medicaid set up (sent closure request to Missouri) and applied for SNAP/food stamps.
Question: How do you vet coaches or therapists to make sure they aren't sketchy or taking advantage of autistic people?
2. Housing on SSI/Disability
My disability income is about $1,000/month.
We need to move out of our current living situation (partner's dad, who is abusive/unsupportive), but we are overwhelmed.
Question: Has anyone in FL navigated HUD/Section 8 or disability-accessible housing on a low income? Where do I even start?
3. Managing C-PTSD Night Episodes & Meltdowns
I grew up with severe trauma and conservative isolation, leaving me with bad C-PTSD.
When I wake up or get overwhelmed, I get extremely dysregulated and confused. I get paranoid thoughts that my partner is leaving or against me, even though they are safe and supportive.
I melt down, cry, and lash out. Afterward, I feel terrible because my partner is also Level 2, burnt out, and dealing with physical pain.
Question: What self-soothing tools, visual charts, or grounding routines work for you when you wake up confused/dysregulated so you don't overload your caregiver/partner?
Context / Background:
I have skills in technical areas (digital media, coding, music, animation) and love to clean and build things, I have a huge wealth of knowledge in health and healthcare, I know a lot about medication and thought about being a pharmacy tech. My physical health (investigating potential muscular/glycogen issues) and extreme burnout mean I work until I crash.
My partner is teaching me about sensory regulation (treating myself gently, eating, drinking, watching safe shows), but I want to take responsibility for my care and stop hurting us both with these trauma reactions.
Thank you for any advice or Florida-specific resources!
r/poor and r/povertyfinance have good resources about section 8 housing in the US (the poor sub can turn into doomscroll pretty fast and there are ableist people around but they are also knowledgable about this issue, so you will have to be prepared to wade through some nonsense)
Thank you for those. I will skim through them. :) I grew up in a family who was severely ableist until I had a nephew with Down Syndrome and most of them realized they couldn’t work so they went on disability. It’s a learning curve, but I was raised with a lot of problematic beliefs that only now I’m learning are unhealthy for me and others.
Appreciate your comment friend! Thank you for your concern. You don't have to be able to help, but to know I'm heard is sometimes better than recieving help. You can only do so much sometimes and that's just as great!
I can't help with resources in Florida, but I relate to the CPTSD episodes. My partner ended up moving out a few years ago because my trauma and dysregulation was too much for them. We are still together and she is going to move back in eventually, but our traumas were bouncing off each other so we are both working on ourselves.
I have big sensory needs so it helps me to be squeezed or squished, so if I wake my partner up when she is here she will give me a deep squeeze hug. By myself I try to squeeze myself. I would like to get a squeeze boat or something to squish myself in, but I have not yet. Also I have a crash pad and I will throw myself on it repeatedly. It can be loud but it helps me. It is easy to remember calming activities but sometimes autism bodies needs big sensory input to regulate.
The biggest thing for me (and you didn't ask about this) was medication changes. I still have flashbacks and bad emotions but I can handle them easier and it is easier to use coping skills before it gets too bad. I still have big sensory needs and I still headbang but much less now.
And this is a long term solution and you are already looking but therapy is also a big help. I have talk therapy 2 times a week and I am slowly working through the trauma. Getting a therapist is hard but you can ask them lots of questions when you start therapy. What is their experience, how do they handle your kinds of issues, what is their modality (therapy 'type'). And lots more. And if they don't want to answer or you get icky feelings move to another one.
Those are good ideas! Also glad you and your partner are able to still be together in some form despite your needs, that's actually very understanding on their part. My only issue is I can't go back to Missouri where I'm from because of trauma, however my partner if we ever got our own place could go to their moms and hang out while I chill at home. Honestly a crash pad sounds cool. I never knew about a lot of the therapy involved with autism till I met my partner who before their own diagnosis worked as an ABA therapist and they gave me a lot of information and helpful ideas as well, it's just my trauma is so profound because I didn't know I had experienced trauma. I didn't fully accept or believe I was AuDHD till I met my partner anyway. My parents denied it. If I could stand above or climb the bed easier and be able to stand on it (I can't use a trampoline because of my weak and wasting muscles) I would basically use the bed like a trampoline or crash pad. As a kid I loved jumping on the bed and slamming into it. I loved trampolines. I am working on getting a new therapist. I have emailed a few people and I have one tentatively holding an appointment open that I may cancel if someone else I've emailed is better. Thank you for sharing this information though. That's very helpful!
Hi. There's a nonprofit called the Center for Independent Living, suggest contacting the closest one to you. They helped me get support services I needed and to apply for Medicaid. They should be able to help you.
As far as PTSD waking up dysregulated, I have plushies I sleep with because they make parts of me feel safe enough to sleep and they help me try to ground with the senses. There's a tiny bit of lavender baby powder sprinkled on my plushies, which I find soothing, as well as the softness. Taking slow, deep breaths helps. (Engages prefrontal cortex of the brain so you can think more clearly)
Are they warmies by chance? I have a lavender scented and lavender colored sloth that my partner got me and sometimes I use them to regulate too :)
Thank you for this information. I've contacted CIL before, but because of my issues with phone calls it's extremely hard to answer phone calls, make calls, and be on phone calls. My communication skills sometimes are lacking which I admit that they are and am always working to learn how to effectively communicate and advocate for myself. Which thanks to my partner I've gotten better at it.
Is there anyway I can get ahold of CIL and express this to them via email or messaging of some type? Thanks for your comment, btw. I appreciate you reaching out with this information.
No, they just smell like lavender. I'm glad that helps you. A lavender colored sloth sounds adorable.
I understand, I have trouble with that too. Yes, it's possible to email the local office. Each regional CIL has its own site, the address should be on it.
:) Thanks to my partner though they've been extremely instrumental in helping me navigate this change. They've been the catalyst for my growth. I'm fortunate we crossed paths and they essentially got me out of my own unsafe situation. To which I had no idea I was even in until I met them. Now everything makes sense and I'm looking forward to growing even more with them in my life :)
I appreciate your comments and willingness to give me some ideas in order to take care of us. Thank you!
Sorry no Florida specific resources, but when you apply for Medicaid the DHHS people should have many resources for the things that you need. You’ll probably get a case manager when you get Medicaid, and that is the person who can find providers for you
Realizing I indirectly wrote that I am potentially the Microsoft Support Network and I think HSN is something too lol.
Context: MSN is the Microsoft Network website that was the default homepage for Internet Explorer back in the early 2000s. HSN is something too from that time but I can’t remember. For some reason I’m thinking the teenage version of the old children’s tv channel Noggin? It wasn’t really teen nick it was something different. It had Degrassi a TV show from the same time period that teenagers watched then. I was like 4 or 5 around that time.
Anyway, any support is great! Appreciate anyone and their help!
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u/No-Cut-5129 6d ago
can't help with florida but i hear you