Does your AS child have 'unreal' sensations?

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Both me and my girls all have episodes where we feel, as my 7 year old describes as "in a dream" and I would describe as feeling like you're not quite here, everything's a bit unreal. I believe this is called one of the following:

disassociation
depersonalisation
derealisation

I am asking this of parents of those children diagnosed with AS (or HFA).

I've always had this. It seems to me to be worse if there is any stress, a change, a new environment etc.

Alternatively, if your child is NT and has this I would be interested to hear. It seems to me directly connected with AS, as others on the general forum have also posted about it.

I am new to this as a step-mom to an AS 8yr old who hasnt ever seemed to have gotten the medical attention needed.

I have noticed with our daughter that she screams ouch at the slightest touch. Something that took us a moment to process because every touch had her screaming.

Thanks for your reply, but that's physical sensory issues.

I'm talking about more of a mental sensation rather than a physical one.

My daughter has had what I have come to know as "disassociative" episodes. They started pretty young and most often are brought on post meltdown but they can also occur outside of a meltdown. She has them when she witnesses someone screaming in anger. I first noticed them as she would go into a spacey state and ask me things like "Where's my mom?" or "I want to go home" (when we were already at home) over and over. She was strangely, almost eeriily calm while asking these questions.

. I don't know for sure what they feel like for her, as she will never talk about these states after she comes out of them but she is not a different person or personality like you would see with schizophrenia, she just spaces out as though her brain has overloaded and is in a "reset" process.

That could be the same thing, although it sounds like a shutdown, which is the opposite of a meltdown really. You just go very quiet and 'into yourself' and perhaps need time alone, maybe even become non-verbal in a shutdown, it is where you are overwhelmed and it's sort of a defence mechanism I guess.

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I have this, DS with the diagnosis does not although he's described some other sensations (things suddenly appearing too large or too small) that are probably in the same vein.

I used to do this all the time as a child (as I'm describing this I am feeling my hands start to float above the keyboard...it's an odd sensation.) It's harmless, but I personally find it disconcerting and disorienting. BTW - it can happen to anyone; it isn't specific to autism. Often, it's a way to manage trauma but I believe that it also can just happen.

I thought this was a pretty good article that falls in line with my experiences: http://www.myshrink.com/counseling-theory.php?t_id=13

Thanks momsparky, an interesting article.

I'm not sure it is the same thing, (I've been confused about the difference between disassociation, depersonalisation and derealisation).

If I were to go by the name as describing it then I would say derealisation is the nearest. It's like you're doing everything you normally do, you could be walking along or whatever and everything seems really unreal, like you're not really here. You don't switch off or tune out or anything. It's so hard to explain.

BTW, as a child I used to get the thing your son gets, where everything looked really big, it freaked me out so much, it was like it was big and close up but really far away at the same time, like seeing it through a tunnel almost, but my field of vision was normal. Again, a very hard thing to describe.

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All the time. High stress makes it so deep I don't even notice it's happening. Come to think of it, it's been happening for the past week or two, slipping deeper into non-reality. I really can't even describe it. It is a very real disconnect though. When I'm in them, I forget practically everything I should be doing, except eating, and that only once I reach the point of being famished. Of course, that makes the state of mind even worse. It can become a viscous cycle. The only way out of it for me is snap decision to "snap out of it" followed by strong determination.

One thing I've found works is to deliberately look other people in the eye, no matter how uncomfortable it is. These states, for me always involve becoming isolated. Not going out enough, not talking to anyone right here in the house for long periods, and generally no face to face contact with anyone for quite a while. I just force myself to start DOING stuff, and talking to people. That will usually pull me out of the deep states, but I never actually feel quite all there anyway.

Oh. See? I'm so deep right now I missed that you were asking about kids. But yeah, they get into the same states too. I don't know if they even realize it, but they did inherit the ASD's from me, so they probably got this from me too. I do see what looks like it in them from time to time. Actually pretty regularly.

They last as well too don't they. I mean, you don't just have it for a brief moment, they can last days and days. It's so weird. It can almost feel like you're floating in your mind (not in body). Like you just stepped into a dream. It's not delusional or anything, just that you feel like you're not quite based in reality, everything's there but not. I'm probably not describing it well. I can't say that it specifically affects my daily functioning (my executive dysfunction does that by itself) it just makes the quality of everything feel weird.

So with both my children having stated they get this feeling (without ever having known I had it) I feel it must be to do with AS.

Diagnosed AS with ADD few months back, have been having what you described pretty regularly.
Stress does not affect mine however, i can have this happen when im completely relaxed (too relaxed lol).

I play alot of video games so i assumed it was sub concious taking over but sometimes im aware that im still playing and generally do better. Whatever does take over is better than i am so sometimes its nice to sit inside myself and watch it all happen on automatic.

Its annoying when you drink or eat and because you feel numb or floaty you dont feel better for eating etc and so end up eating later just to feel full. Weird.

It is weird, and hard to put across to someone who doesn't have it. I haven't noticed any trigger for mine, although possibly it could be worse under some sort of stress, it can happen any time.

I wonder if derealisation is the correct terminology for this.

My son will sometimes tell me that things feel " 2 D....as if he is watching a video".....
He also mention things shrinking...call micropsia I think....
The pdoc said its disosiation or something....I know stress and tiredness increases this in my son.