Autism and managing emotions

@Bean021

Tell me about it. 0-100 in no time. No time to count to 10 like they say. If anyone knows a secret, I'm all ears.

Yep I'm the same - I have alexithymia I think. I find it so hard to identify my own emotions and others, and even harder to process them and manage them

@Bean021 This resource may be helpful to you: https://www.7cups.com/help-managing-emotions/ Also, feel free to message me anytime if you want to talk more about your emotions.

@Bean021 I am autistic as well and it always helps me to listen to my body… what sounds they make (hungry and stuff like that) or how it reacts… you could also look what kind of thoughts you have when you know you’re happy/sad so when you have these thoughts again you can find out how you feel (helped me)

I have the same problem. One thing that has started to help me a bit is a "feelings wheel". If you Google it, images of it will come up. When I feel really uncomfortable and don't know why, if I can remember to look at that wheel, (9x out of 10 I forget) it helps me ask myself which of those feelings I can relate to. And then the wheel lets you drill down even deeper until you can name your feelings. Prior to learning about that wheel, I'd just feel dysregulated but had no idea why.

@Bean021

I can definitely relate to that. I have been going around for years thinking it was just "how a teenager feels" and thinking that it was "normal" but recently, getting into a serious relationship with my partner has made me realise that certain actions are not necessarily counted as normal and certain behaviours are not okay. (By this I mean extreme behaviours that are unhealthy for me).

I'm trying still to manage my emotions and my thought processing but it's hard and often difficult to do so as a lot of thoughts tend to go on repeat and become cloudy and confusing and stressful. It usually feels like my brain will implode with the amount of confusion and overwhelming feelings I get with certain things. It's difficult to explain honestly.

Anyways, am doing my best. Just felt like posting this message here and contributing to the thread. Have a good day/night everyone :)

@Bean021

First i want to say that I felt the same way a lot so I can relate, but also that after therapy i understood what I'm feeling and how to improve my mood more. I still struggle a lot but, I just wanted to let you know that it does get better.

And for the advice:

When you're feeling bad, but don't know why, you can try and recall last events. Maybe you saw something that Made your thoughts go on bad path( maybe it reminded you of something)? Maybe someone said something that offended you, but you didn't realize prior. Maybe you're pressured into making a decision quickly so you feel overwhelmed? Maybe when you talked with someone and they didn't notice something was important to you so they dismissed it and you feel bad about it?

If the examples weren't clear just let me know and I'll explain them more precisely.

Maybe you're having a sensory overload ? I happens a lot to people with autism ( speaking from experience)

Here are some signs:

-studden sounds make you flinch

-you can't answer people and/or feel paralysed

-most sounds make your skin itch

-every piece of your clothing is uncomfortable

-you feel irritated so you can have anger outbrusts

-breathing problems

-everything is just too much

Those are just some of the symptoms, and even if you don't have any of them you still can have sensory overload, cuz I'm telling them from personal experience and everyone experiences things differently. But if you have some of them it is very possible you are having a sensory overload

Here are some situations that can trigger it :

-you left your comfort space( vent out with people, been on a trip, experienced a lot of things you don't on a day basic) and even if you enjoyed these things it still may lead to a breakdown at home

- did things that, you didn't want to do/ make you stressed(i can't give examples cuz it's a personal thing so everyone has their preferences. I may not like going to doctors, you may not like shopping)

-Studdent change of routine

-sytuation you felt endengered in ( it may be witnessing an car accident as well as someone shouting at you )

Things that can help to deal with it:

- if your surrounded by people excuse yourself and find a quite place

- listen to music( makes you focus on the lirycs and relax)

-get under a blanket ( if you see less you may feel less overwhelmed )

-If you have someone you trust you can ask them to squiz you (put you arms to your chest and have them hug you tightly ( works only if you trust them cuz otherwise you may feel traped))

-I highly recomend to buy noise cancelling headphones (they don't make you hear nothing but the noises feel more 'away' )

-Drink water

- Do a breathing exercises that helps you ( if you don't have one i recommend to look for one in free time)

- spin, jump, hum, change your body weight from one leg to another(anything that makes you calmer, honestly )

-Do anything that makes you focus one one thing.

-after you've calmed down a bit do some self care ( eat your favorite food( tho i don't recommend sweets, cuz sugar makes you more 'jumpy'), do a thing you like(pet a cat, blow bubbles, go shopping, solve a puzzle, do anything that makes you feel satisfied), take a shower

All this is just my personal thoughts, I'm no professional

Wish you luck, and if you need anything, feel free to let me know

@Bean021 Really difficult managing my emotions due to Asp's and partially related anxiety and depression.