Meltdowns / challenging behaviour and support.

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I am moderate functioning and I get severe meltdowns where I scream extremely loudly, bang my head against the wall, punch the walls, kick the walls, stab myself with anything sharp, bite myself, etc. The only way I can "stop" them is clonazepam and deep pressure / sensory deprivation, but even then it takes 2 hours before my meltdown stops. I am often left drained and nonverbal after them for a few to several hours. I have bruises and cuts on my body due to this. I recently nearly blinded myself.

I also get challening behaviour in public which I have nearly been arrested for several times.

I am getting to the point where I need a support worker just to go to uni or to even to the shops or an appointment.

I am applying for Direct Payments (a benefit in the UK to pay for my support needs as I can barely afford it at this insufficient level) as I think daily support would benefit me.

However I researched Direct Payments and it seems to imply that if you're cognitively highly able, you can't be severely disabled enough.

I have a very high IQ but I struggle to get through a day without challenging behaviour / shutdowns / meltdowns. I have a communication disability (I find conversation very mentally exhausting / hard and can quite easily get my words jumbled) too.

It has been suggested that I go back to supported housing where I can have support 24 hours a day (like I used to). I've been living in this house (my dad's second house) alone for 8 months and my challenging behaviour has been worse ever since. However I hated the lack of autonomy in supported housing. I couldn't shower when I wanted, eating was in some kind of rota, my studies were disrupted by the other (annoying) residents, and it was mental health supported housing, which was inappropriate as I am much more autistic than mentally ill.

Can anyone offer any advice? (I live in London, England so American systems don't apply).

Unless it explicitly states that you have to have a certain IQ, I would apply anyways. I'm guessing that the worst that can happen is that they say "no"(?).

Do they have supported housing specifically for people with autism in the UK? It would still have the problem of taking away autonomy, but maybe it would be more appropriate than mental health supported housing?

Deja vu.. it's almost as if you've posted almost this exact same thing on this forum about twice a week for the last year.

I've suggested you try changing your diet to see if it helps you as it has me. You seem to be hyperfocused on pharmaceuticals due to your education and special interest in them. Clearly if you're still posting the same threads over and over what you're doing isn't getting you the results you want. Perhaps you should try doing something different to see if you get a different result? ..or do as you've always done and get as you've always got.

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

I don't know whether or not she has been making similar posts for the last year, but if it were true - 8 months is a significant portion of a year.

In which case, it might be much less to do with diet and more to do with needing greater support. Which she's trying to get.

Steelmaiden - I wish you the best of luck getting more support. I hope you can find the balance between being stiffled and too little support. Unfortunately, I don't know too much about housing.

I suggest therapy with autism-specializing or knowledgeable therapist to work on emotional dysregulation problems.
More support from others is unlikely to help as much as working on core problems inside one's own mind.
It is not impossible to learn to regulate emotions better, even small improvements are valuable.

Thanks.

As for repeatedly posting, I will look at my posting history next time I post. I have this problem with other websites - I easily forget what I have posted in the past. I used to print out my posts and keep them in a folder to remind myself, but then I had to throw them away because my dad came over and I was worried he would find them.

Apologies.

I did manage to avert a meltdown today though. I was very close to it but I used a technique that a support worker taught me and I managed not to freak out.

Steel Maiden,

Whenever you feel like posting, post.

Forget what other people say.

I believe you want to make progress--but feel stymied at not making apparent progress--so that frustrates you.

WrongPlanet is a lifeline for you. Don't let people arbitrarily try to determine what you should post.

Thanks. I'm going to try extremely hard from now on. 100% effort.

I just wish you could go out and take walks with someone--maybe a support worker?

Getting fresh air, in my opinion, is a great way to promote calmness and clear thinking.

Forget those idiot kids who make insulting comments about you. Trust me: they have their own problems.

I'm applying for council funding for more support. If I get it then my support workers want to take me on days (or half days) out on the weekends so that I get a clean break.

Hey SteelMaiden - I sure hope you do get the additional support. Being able to get out on the weekends for a bit with your support worker would probably do you a world of good.

Take care

Thanks.

I was a bit of a dink when I posted that earlier. Sorry about that.

But you do tend to post very similar complaints and frustrations. Instead of hearing about the same challenges, it would be nice to hear what you've tried differently and how it helped, or didn't help you. That way you get yourself thinking in terms of solutions instead of problems. You can rule out things that don't work for you & request new and different suggestions from others on the forum. It would be much much nicer to hear you're making progress vs. continuing to deal with the same difficulties. Even if you try many things that don't improve your symptoms, it's still progress because you're trying them and ruling them out. Eventually you'll find one or more things that you can manage to do that help your mental health state, and then another, and another.. and bit by bit you'll think clearer and feel better. I hope that's how things go for you, anyways.

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No for supporting trump. Because doing so is deplorable.

Thanks. I have made my mind up to embrace logic and to tackle my problems methodically. I have printed out any notes that my psychologist has sent me in the past, and my support worker jut emailed me a list of strategies which I have also printed out. I will stick them on my study room wall in an ostensible place.