AuDHD Flourishing21 Kesä 2025

Autistic Meltdowns & Shutdowns - Repost

In June I'm re-posting the most popular episodes from the show while I take a step back to look at the big picture. Update: the re-thinking has happened and retooling is in process :D

Original show notes:

Meltdowns and shutdowns appear to be a natural release valve for an overwhelmed autistic brain. They feel out of control and can be quite distressing.

While there are ways to push them off, I experience a "point of no return" after which I need some big release or I'm going to feel terrible for days.

Learning your triggers, as well as planning ahead for a safer experience if you do have a meltdown or shutdown can lessen our overall stress and shame.

(One thing I forgot to record in the episode is that for me, shutdowns are almost always low-verbal or I can't speak at all.)

Links:

1. Meltdowns & Shutdowns* https://embrace-autism.com/meltdowns-and-shutdowns/

2. How it feels to have an autistic meltdown and how you can help* https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/38f5MsC2mB5fnmCr5v77zDn/how-it-feels-to-have-an-autistic-meltdown-and-how-you-can-help

3. All About ‘Autism Meltdowns’: Why They Happen and How to Cope https://psychcentral.com/autism/autism-meltdowns

4. Autism Shutdown Vs Meltdown: What's the Difference? https://www.andnextcomesl.com/2022/06/autism-shutdown-vs-meltdown.html

Resources:

*autistic writer

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(186)

154 Friendship Skills with Caroline Maguire

Caroline Maguire is passionate about learning how to bring your whole neurodivergent self to friendships... and not scaring people off!Her book, Friendship Skills for Neurodivergent Adults, includes n...

15 Elo 1h 6min

153 Polyamory & Community Bonds

Thanks for the great topic suggestion from the community: polyamory & strengthening community bonds. Those are quite intertwined for me, since I've been out as poly/RA and exclusively in open relation...

8 Elo 29min

152 You Can't Trick a Nervous System

My cats Mac & Cheese (see episode pic) have been having a hard time. I've learned a lot observing their reactive nervous systems because it's so easy to feel compassion for them.This episode uses that...

1 Elo 35min

151 The Skill No One Knew You Needed

The skill no one knew you needed: how to emotionally regulate while doing a task. It's simple yet difficult. And undiagnosed neurodivergent parents were even less likely to be able to help on some fro...

25 Heinä 40min

150 The Wall of Awful with Brendan Mahan

Brendan Mahan's concept of The Wall of Awful has taken on a life of its own. While originally geared toward ADHD, it's also extremely applicable to other neurodivergent folks including autism, AuDHD, ...

18 Heinä 58min

149 The Consistency That Matters

"Consistency" can feel like a dirty word in neurodivergent land... Consistency is a tool, not a final answer. It can be a better fit than habits for our brains (see past 3 episodes) It can be part of ...

11 Heinä 18min

148 Breaking Bad Habits

Builds on last two episodes: Self-Awareness vs. Solutions and Habits are Hard (but also very cool)Breaking "bad" habits is different (and more difficult) than building new habits. I also recommend not...

4 Heinä 25min

147 Habits are Hard (but also very cool)

There's some evidence that ADHD brains in particular may have trouble forming habits as they're traditionally thought of. But that doesn't mean they have no value for us!This episode is about how to l...

27 Kesä 23min