Does everyone have meltdowns?

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(I got it). It reminds me a bit of a quote from Sheldon Cooper (of the big bang theory)
"I cry because other people are stupid and it makes me sad"

I do not get sensory overload, because I'm only sensitive to the way things feel, not sound or light.
I have had meltdowns from emotional overload and stress, especially when I was younger. I once had one when I chap I was seeing tried to force me to decide what he should wear, I just couldn't do it and ended up hiding in a corner of his bedsit crying.
They gradually dropped off after I started living with my husband, he has taught me to handle my emotions better so that they do not build up. And also to be more assertive and talk about my own needs, which helps. I've still had the odd moment when I couldn't stop crying- the most recent one was when I was going through the whole post-diagnosis process and coming to terms with all that - but htere are certainly very rare these days.

Well if you're like me, lets grab some System of a down, Metallica, and hell, if we're feeling extra spunky, Slipknot and perhaps some slayer.

Not me.

I lean more towards alternative rock as opposed to the heavy metal stuff but I do listen to it sometimes as long as I can half understand what they're yelling about.

Yes, I have meltdowns. I agree with a previous reply: when I am right about an issue and the result of the other person's view is an injustice to someone else (or me) then I become self-absorbed about it and I build myself into a kind of 'righteous anger'. At that point, despite knowing that I need to calm down, I can start a 'meltdown'. It's difficult. Another cause of meltdowns is as a result of my AS trait of being stupidly honest to everyone I know. An example of this is that some years ago in Amsterdam, I smoked a marijuana cigarette (I hasten to add that I gave up smoking shortly after this episode). I thought little of it - other than that I wasn't sure if I like the effect or not - and I discussed it with friends and work colleagues.

The outcome of this was a rumour between colleagues that grew and grew until I was told that, apparently, I was dependent on the stuff and used it all the time. I was interviewed by my manager and told that I must stop smoking it. I nearly ended up going into meltdown as it appeared to me to be a minor matter that remained in Amsterdam after I left. To say I was seething would be an understatement. Anyone else had difficulties with the 'unnecessary-honesty' thing?

Yes.

Some of us have shut downs instead of overt melt downs.

I cool off in the toilets if I were in a job like in an office or supermarket, or if shopping to get away from the noise just find a quiet place to gather my thoughts because there's a point I can deal with the noise but a part of me has sensory overload which brings the whole body down and anxiety goes into play. Annoying thing is i'm the sort of person who doesn't physically show that I am struggling to hold on so it makes people think i'm doing fine.

Like others here, I don't have meltdowns. It's also hard for my senses to get overloaded. However, when I feel overloaded, I feel overwhelmed. I don't quite shut down, but I begin to function very poorly.

I have meltdowns from time to time, but they're crying ones instead of violent ones.

Bathrooms are a great excuse for getting out.

I have meltdowns, but not that often.

-LegoMaster2149 (Written on September 16, 2017)

"I'm going to define meltdown as 'An uncontrollable outward negative response to sensory stimuli'. "

I don't get this. I have sensory overloads, when it comes to taste, (I'm lucky in that I don't have sight/sound overloads), and possibly smell. But if I taste a pea, I don't suddenly flip. I have meltdowns if I lose something, or someone has a go at me. I admit that when my Ex acciddently lost my bank card, I let rip and she had to hide from me. To me meltdown alos includes haranguing someone and being utterly vicious, (something I'm good at), or havimg what looks like a tantrum - crying and wailing.

I also hate having too much information given to me, or asks me to do something, I'm not too sure about/understand,I panic. A few years' ago, I was asked to do a task, by one of my telemarketing clients, that I didn't understand. I got that stressed, that I called my mum, in tears, (at the time, my late dad was in hospital, on life support).

I also get low and have to take to my bed. There was an incident, some time ago, when I had to send in proof to an organisation about something, that I panicked and shut down, (I occasionally do this, but not all that often). Is shutting down, considered having a meltdown?

I don't think I agree with this definition. While sensory stimuli are certainly usually a contributing factor, they also usually aren't the only cause. Usually, there other contributing factors like social issues or general stress that contribute. Basically, your brain has had more than it can handle. If everything else is going perfectly, I think it's pretty rare for sensory alone to cause a meltdown or shutdown.

Even if one can have a meltdown from sensory alone, I certainly wouldn't want to exclude other issues from causes as well.


That absolutely sounds like it could contribute to a shutdown or meltdown.


A shutdown and a meltdown have pretty much the same causes, but are not the same thing. One is essentially retreating inward, while the other is exploding outword.

I never have or have had meltdowns.

I burnout instead. It's this extreme feeling of fatigue and my head feels so full that it feels like it could explode. I need to isolate myself and physically relax in a quiet room for some time, in order to ease it.