Leaving the supermarket exhausted again

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aspergers varies greatly,some adults with it cannot cope at all and have melt downs,head bang/attack themselves, panic attacks or challenging behavior.

am autie,not aspergan but am unable to go into supermarkets at all because of acute sensory and information overload, the PA systems,the phones ringing and tills noises,the music,the products all out of order etc. woud head bang and bite self before getting in stores,woud hit out at anyone/anything,then woud involuntarily drop to the floor [thanks to having profound vestibular hyperacusis] and then head bang the floor till knock out,it usualy involved triggering multiple major epileptic seizures or status epilepticus because of the incredible pain and distress was in.
what we have done since is have one staff go on the shop whilst am sat out in the car with another staff- am supported by two support staff at all times so its easily done.

some stores are incredibly supportive and will do everything to make the store accessible.
robinsons equestrian in wigan/near liverpool for example will turn off their phone system,turn off their PA system, and turn off any hoovers theyre using so am able to go in,theyre amazing guys there so helpful,used to go at least once a week back in the day when had some savings.
having the wheel chair when out means am able to get around with todds paralysis and cant collapse to the floor with sound or seizures.

I don't mind supermarkets, if they're not too busy and I'm just on my own getting what I know I need. Shopping with my dad is easy because he doesn't be indecisive with choosing items, so we nip round the supermarket rather quickly. That's because he doesn't like supermarkets either when they're crowded (he is not on the spectrum though).

I find supermarkets more overwhelming when they're really busy, and I'm following someone else around doing their shopping. I like to help out, but I still get overwhelmed when there are too many people and too much noise. Well, the only noise in supermarkets that agitate me are babies and small kids shouting and screaming, and workers clanging empty crates (that loud slapping sound they make on the floor, just irritates me). I become easily distracted with noise, and also I hate it when there's somebody standing right in my personal space. It puts me off trying to look for something on the shelves, especially when an arm suddenly appears and reaches across my face. I then get the ''you are in the way'' expression too, and I hate being in people's way. Makes me feel clumsy and awkward.

Lights and smells don't bother me, though. I'm under-sensitive to smells anyway, and I can't bear dim-lit places because it makes me feel sleepy and my eyes feel like they are bulging out. At least supermarkets are well-lit.

After about 1o/15 minutes I start to have a rising feeling of 'I need to go and get out of here'. I hate them.

I usually deal with supermarkets with the in-grab-out stragegy, which means I'm trying to spend as little time as possible in the actual store. I usually have some kind of concept of what I need before I enter the supermarket and then just run to those aisles and pick up what I need. I'm always buying the same brands, so I know which kind of yoghurt etc to pick. I'm in some kind of survival mode and try to pay as little attention to other people as possible, even pushing them aside if they're in my way. This strategy of course gets me some dirty looks from other people and can only be used if you know where all the stuff is in the store, but since I don't really care how strangers perceive me and go to the same supermarket every time, it works for me. My partner (also an aspie) always wants to check what's the cheapest alternative and takes ages compairing brands, which drives me crazy. We don't really shop together anymore because of this.

Oh and I care about money too, but not as much as her. If I like the regular brand of something instead of the store's own cheaper brand, I'll go with the regular brand.