Are these symptoms of autism or something else?

Page 1 of 1 [ 7 posts ] 

Crystal1414
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 25 Aug 2020
Posts: 508
Location: Canada

19 Sep 2020, 6:18 pm

I have autism but I think I might also have a mental illness that is not related. I have seen a counsellor and a psychiatrist. I was prescribed Abilify. However I do not have a diagnosis of anything but autism. I have mood swings and I get angry at things that are quite minor. I sometimes have periods where I am more energetic than usual and I talk more and get irritable as well. I also have periods where I am very sad. I have used drugs and alcohol to get rid of these feelings, especially paranoia which I get when I am stressed or when I am in new situations. My paranoia used to get super bad before I started taking medication. I would see people talking and assume they were talking about me. I would think I heard them talking about me. I would think that complete strangers hated me. I sometimes think I am a toxic person and that I am bad for other people. I isolate myself because of these feelings. I dont know if this is an autism thing or not. I am confused currently. I also get feelings that people are trying to manipulate and brain wash me.



Jiheisho
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 21 Jul 2020
Age: 62
Gender: Male
Posts: 1,507

19 Sep 2020, 6:29 pm

You need to talk to your doctors. It sounds like (from someone that is not qualified to write that) anxiety and depression. While Social Anxiety Disorder and General Anxiety Disorder can be co-morbid with ASD, many people with ASD suffer from anxiety and depression without those clear diagnoses (like me). Nor do you need a diagnosis to be treated--the anxiety or depression does have to present, but not diagnosed with a specific diagnosis.

But medical help is important as you need the right interventions. It is important to take care of these things.



Mountain Goat
Veteran
Veteran

Joined: 13 May 2019
Gender: Male
Posts: 15,014
Location: .

19 Sep 2020, 6:38 pm

I can't answer, but out of curiosity, did you or your parents have any involvement with the occult or witchcraft etc? Only asking because some issues seem to me like they could be spiritual issues.
I will say though that I do not know much about the mental side of things in this area and I am no expert at all. I have only learned about autism for just over a year as I was trying to find out what was causing the issues that I had.


_________________
Verifying you are human. This may take a few seconds...


Pieplup
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 15 Dec 2015
Age: 23
Gender: Non-binary
Posts: 2,658
Location: Maine

20 Sep 2020, 2:03 am

Crystal1414 wrote:
I have autism but I think I might also have a mental illness that is not related. I have seen a counsellor and a psychiatrist. I was prescribed Abilify. However I do not have a diagnosis of anything but autism. I have mood swings and I get angry at things that are quite minor. I sometimes have periods where I am more energetic than usual and I talk more and get irritable as well. I also have periods where I am very sad. I have used drugs and alcohol to get rid of these feelings, especially paranoia which I get when I am stressed or when I am in new situations. My paranoia used to get super bad before I started taking medication. I would see people talking and assume they were talking about me. I would think I heard them talking about me. I would think that complete strangers hated me. I sometimes think I am a toxic person and that I am bad for other people. I isolate myself because of these feelings. I dont know if this is an autism thing or not. I am confused currently. I also get feelings that people are trying to manipulate and brain wash me.

Soudns like maybe Bipolar 2



MrsPeel
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 1 Oct 2017
Age: 54
Gender: Non-binary
Posts: 1,927
Location: Australia

20 Sep 2020, 4:53 am

I think we on the spectrum have an inherent inability to properly regulate our stress responses.
Over time, high stress levels can cause imbalance in our nervous system and/or endocrine system with effects such as adrenal fatigue, hyper-sensitive amygdala and fluctuating neurotransmitter levels, which give symptoms similar to mixed anxiety/depression, c-PTSD and/or autism burn-out.
You don't have to accept this as part of autism as it is caused by a combination of autism and stressors in our environment, and it should be treatable as long as you can find ways to keep your stress levels low and avoid triggers.
I suggest you consider it a comorbid condition and seek treatment.



Dear_one
Veteran
Veteran

User avatar

Joined: 2 Feb 2008
Age: 77
Gender: Male
Posts: 5,721
Location: Where the Great Plains meet the Northern Pines

21 Sep 2020, 2:41 am

The highs and lows could be a touch of bi-polar, or just the result of being overwhelmed at times. Depression, etc. is a common response to social isolation, and AS contributes to that.



hariboci
Raven
Raven

User avatar

Joined: 3 Jan 2020
Age: 50
Gender: Female
Posts: 121

24 Sep 2020, 6:52 am

The extreme mood swings and the paranoia reminded me to Borderline Personality Disorder. I don't know your gender, but it's said to be more common among females - however some researchers pointed out it might be because like autistic symptom lists was initially created by examining boys and said to be a disorder affecting men only, the same misconception happened with BPD, but the other way around.

Try to read about the stuffs people listed here and check them with your consultant.

Have a nice day! :heart:


_________________
Your neurodiverse (Aspie) score: 152 of 200
Your neurotypical (non-autistic) score: 73 of 200
You are very likely neurodiverse (Aspie)