What is a meltdown? Does every aspie have it?

Page 1 of 1 [ 3 posts ] 

HoodedShadow
Sea Gull
Sea Gull

User avatar

Joined: 10 Jun 2011
Age: 35
Gender: Male
Posts: 209
Location: Finland

22 Oct 2011, 10:29 am

I don't think I have ever had meltdown.. But since I don't know exactly what it could be, I don't know.
Can someone describe their meltdowns?
Does every aspie have them?
How does depression affect meltdowns? Can it reduce or increase them?


_________________
http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt164561.html - My introduction
Diagnosed aspergers
Email or PM me!
Email address: http://www.google.com/recaptcha/mailhid ... 0lSIA-uw==


Ichinin
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 3 Apr 2009
Gender: Male
Posts: 3,653
Location: A cold place with lots of blondes.

22 Oct 2011, 10:32 am

http://www.wrongplanet.net/postt177454.html

And no, not everyone have them. I cant even say what they look like.


_________________
"It is far better to grasp the Universe as it really is than to persist in delusion, however satisfying and reassuring" (Carl Sagan)


bicentennialman
Sea Gull
Sea Gull

User avatar

Joined: 20 Mar 2008
Gender: Male
Posts: 228

22 Oct 2011, 11:44 am

This is just my attempt to understand it, but I think a "meltdown" is usually a reaction to a sensory overload, when something just becomes too much to handle. If that's the case, melting down is not really just an autistic thing; it's a human thing-- it's just that aspies and autistics tend to be more sensitive to things that neurotypicals might not even notice, and are thus more likely to get totally overwhelmed and "melt down."

I think that different people react to overload in different ways, too. It's been a long time since I melted down in a way that caused a scene (such as a lot of crying), but that's because I tend to deal with the possibility of overload by hiding, whether that means literally finding a place to be by myself, or by retreating within myself and trying to shut everything out.

I'm no expert though, so this is just speculation.