Metdowns!

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Hey guys and girls,

Meltdowns. Urgh. Ever since I could remember I've had these bouts of what I can only describe as hell. I didn't even know what a meltdown was until last night. I was so frustrated with how I keep having these outburts thats I I scoured the Internet for help.

Then I found a site that explained what meltdowns are and I ticked every single box. I guess this is what happens when you're diagnosed as an adult with no help or support.

The question is, can I expect to have these for life.

How's the music coming along?

Music just might be your counterpoint to your meltdowns.

Meltdowns are a lifelong threat yes, but once you have identified what they are, you can start to identify warning signs, triggers and countermeasures, to reduce the risk of having one.

my last true meltdown was 4 years ago, but i came dangerously close to a new one monday, when the company decided to do a (surprise) fire-drill...

in my case, music is indeed a counterbalance to meltdowns, but far from all music, and what i need also differs between situations.
lucky i have a lot of experience in the field, allowing me to have just the right track on a hair-trigger most of the time.

I've had meltdowns for as long as I can remember. I've had ones ranging from crying and shouting to being so severely deranged that I've been detained by the police.

I feel like I'll have these for the rest of my life as I am putting so much effort (and so are my support workers) but nothing is working. Not even medications so far.

Meltdowns are a common issue for people on the Autism Spectrum and seem to be a life long issue.

The things izzeme mentioned about identifying warning signs and triggers, as well as having countermeasures are extremely important. For me, while music definitely helps, I also do a soothing activity if I can, like painting, which I really love to do.

Something else to consider is that it may be beneficial to allow these meltdowns to happen. Although they are hard to deal with at the time, after they have occurred, I have always found that I am much more relaxed and can handle myself for a while before I feel another meltdown coming on. If I suppress it, on the other hand, I continue to feel stressed and on the verge of having one.

I generally try to get to somewhere I feel safe, like my room and have the meltdown there. Its much better than suppressing it until I cannot stop it in some public location and have to feel embarrassed on top of all the other negative emotions I experience.

I also take time to recover from the meltdown if I can. After I have one, I'm exhausted and like to take a nap or do something relaxing.

I hope that some of the things I have mentioned here are helpful. Good luck dealing with your meltdowns. I hope that some of the techniques mentioned on this thread and similar ones are helpful.

Depending on the severity and cause of the meltdown, my counterpoint might be familiar music, driving in my car (alone, on deserted country roads, radio off), or watching familiar, friendly episodes of shows I like.
If I'm really bad and inconsolable, the only thing that will help calm me down is TV shows. It has to be Frasier or Friends, Friends is the best. Something I've seen before (I've seen the entire series of Friends over 300 times), something I'm very familiar with, something where the characters only deal with sitcom-y problems.
If I'm in a situation that I HAVE to tolerate, grinding my teeth or staring at a tiny spot on the floor or intentionally focusing REALLY HARD on a familiar stim helps dispel a bit of the tension, but it only works a little and for a short time until I can get away and be alone and take the time I need to 'come down.'
I find that I can minimize meltdowns if I intentionally have them at home. I don't mean that I induce a meltdown. I mean that I can usually feel things building up, sometimes for days, so I get home as fast as I can and once I'm safe at home, I let myself have the meltdown at full strength. I let myself crash and burn for a while and I don't try to stop it. I let it burn itself out, and then I usually am so exhausted I fall asleep for an hour or so, and when I wake up, I feel better (or at least blank). If I have a big meltdown at home, it seems like I can tolerate more before I have another one away from home.
I also find that engaging in my counterpoint activities on a regular basis helps stop meltdowns before they start. I watch either Frasier or Friends every day, usually at least 4 episodes. That little bit of calming helps me start from a better place the next day. If I've been out in a social situation, I HAVE to watch an episode or two when I get home. I can't decompress without it. Being able to constantly go back to my comforting activity helps me to tolerate more outside home before melting down; sometimes I can stop or delay a meltdown just by reminding myself that I can do my comforting activity as soon as I get home.

I had a meltdown today, and my partner was here to see it. He was great about it, and I know I couldn't have stopped it, but now I feel effing embarrassed about it. I want to hide under the bed until today is over.

Meltdowns happen, fact of life for anyone on the spectrum. But, post dx I am able to minimize them or avoid them so much better that before. Walking away from the cause of the stress instead of lashing out, usualy violently in the past. But as I learn to deal with my internal emotions better, I have had more shutdowns that before. For me the shutdown usualy involves me curling up in a ball on the floor, bed, couch ect and crying. The world stands still or ceases to exhist to me. Some are just like daydreaming were I just tune out the world around me, others are overwhelming and thats when the crying starts, when I am at the deepest part of those crying shutdowns is when the thoughts of suicide enter my mind and that scares me. My meltdowns were violent most of the time, yelling, foul language, throwing or breaking things and lord help the person I saw as the source of my fustration if they were there or kept instigating me. I have a good handle on my meltdowns with with my therapist's help, I am working on avoiding any deep shutdowns. Having some support system, be it a pet, a family member, a friend or even online support like all of us is very important in my opinion to helping live and cope better. dodger

The best way to describe my meltdowns are:

Severe gas that is only re-leaved by a huge anal release of Nitrogen, Hydrogen, Carbon dioxide, Oxygen and Methane, lite by a match.