Question: what causes meltdowns?

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Hey Gang,

I was wondering what causes meltdowns for those whom are on the spectrum? I recall at various times when I was a child I'd meltdown or what was then referred to as having a "temper tantrum" I can recall it happening at home and/or in school (which were the worst). It would take 3-4 adults to dog-pile on me in order to get me under control, My parents were also told when I was in 1st grade (I was 5-6 at the time) to just pull down my paints and go to town on my butt because I just wanted attention which kinda raised eyebrows with my folks, Not knowing any better they took the advice just once the outcome wasn't pretty... Tho later on the super attendant of that school would have his "own plans" for me which changed my life but I'm straying off topic here.

Thankfully I don't have meltdowns as an adult just moments of over stimulation which I normally try to retreat to a calm and/or cool dark room if there is one. Back to the question at hand is there a scientific explanation why those whom are on the spectrum have (at times) explosive meltdowns? Is it more common with those whom have Aspergers or H/LFA?

Thanks.

I "shut-down" in response to physical overstimulation - too much noise, too much light, etc. and need to go to a dark, quiet place to recover. They do not last too long, usually, unless I was exposed to overstimulation for a long time. The longer the exposure, the longer the recovery time. I do not get these often because my life is set up in such a way that I am not often "overexposed" and my family is used to my preferences in terms of the loudness of the house.

For me, "meltdowns" are usually happen as a result of emotional overstimulation - too much stress, too much excitement, too much disappointment, etc. I will have tiny "freak-outs" and yell a lot from stress about things like the house being a mess or having a tremendous amount to get done on a day. But I get myself together pretty quickly and these end in a few minutes. If a major emotional event happens and I lose self-control over my emotions, I can get very upset. In these instances, I usually end up crying in my room and trying to avoid people since I am not doing so well with the emotional control. Thankfully, these are a lot more rare.

If I know that I am going into a situation where I will face overstimulation or if I know I am going into a very emotional situation, I can mentally prepare and get myself "insulated" for lack of a better term. This will help me avoid a shutdown or meltdown.

I am curious if one or the other is more common among males vs. females. Or if I am more prone to meltdowns because I am an artsy type?

I feel as though my melt downs are primarily caused by being over-stimulated, over-stressed, and having no appropriate mechanisms to cope with it.

As an adult, I tend to melt down over things like too many sounds (big one for me), too many emotions, not able to understand why someone is mad, too many people talking/asking me questions, too many things to do, stressors, too many people in general, messes/disorganization/germs, or just irrational anxiety that won't quit. When these types of situations arise, I have no idea how to deal with them... so I freak.

When I was a kid I used to melt down over things like toys and video games. And I mean, melt down. Head banging, self-biting, throwing things, throwing myself. Not pretty, I'm surprised nobody caught on to my Autism until I was an adult.