I can relate deeply with everything you shared. I used to cry with no "apparent reason" in childhood, but after my recent diagnosis (ASD and high abilities) it came even stronger and as a male adult (42yo) it gets very unsettling
It really is so unsettling, both for the person crying and the people around them. But society as a whole seems to get more accepting of people who act outside strict norms, so I hope eventually there will be more understanding that some people have a crying reaction to events, more than others.
I’ve had a “meltdown” at work two days ago. I was just overwhelmed by sudden changes and complications that happened. I’ve felt dizzy and like I couldn’t handle anymore. so I took myself to the office, where I was on my own, sat on the floor, started sobbing then crying out loud, rocking and hitting head. I remember what I was doing but I just couldn’t stop, couldn’t help it. My manager came and held me to prevent me from hitting self. I have a massive bruise on my thigh, don’t even know how it happened. I had to take the next day off and I slept nearly all day, I was mentally and physically drained. I remember crying in lots of different situations, crying and running around the park when something was not right, crying when couldn’t do something. Once I took a wrong train and started crying and approached train workers for help because I panicked and didn’t know what to do. I don’t know if I’m autistic and these were meltdowns or I am just hysterical woman who cannot cope with stress/wrongdoing/new situations. I’m 35, was recently referred for ASD diagnosis.
I was, and still am, a very sensitive person. I related to a lot of what you said. Especially about crying at work and wanting to be able to show more confidence
im 20 yrs old and not diagnosed with autism but i relate so much to this experience and it overwhelms me so much especially in my relationship where the other person is confused as to why i react a certain way to something that is not super significant for most people/something most would brush of, yet i cant even explain it myself. and i feel like i cant even physically speak to explain myself and it becomes more overwhelming. it manifests for me as both crying easily and getting extremely angry easily and both are so overwhelming and hard to deal with. its such a huge struggle everyday and like you said i keep beating myself up about it bc i understand the social repercussions of it… i just wish i knew what exactly causes it or some way to manage or control it :/ this video was very comforting to me thank you
I had crying meltdowns when working at software firm, never really recovered from that there. Later working in security, I've had to project power and really struggled to keep that from happening. Great video
That's so interesting. I have recently wondered.. if so many of my male colleagues in IT have been autistic too, why did I not see meltdowns in others? I've never seen a man cry at work. I think men often have "anger" meltdowns or become super-argumentative (THAT I've seen often!). And maybe they manage to hold it together during work hours (like you do, you clearly have a good strategy now!). Maybe some then drink or self-medicate after hours. Plus so many people get sooo burned out. I will make a video about that soon.
@@AutismEtc yeah, I came out of period of heavy drinking to cope in my 30s. I was taking Tofranil back then in my 20s before I diagnosed, and I think it helped, but there were more cryiing meltdowns, On welbutrin now, thinking of switching back though. Women, bipolar women are unhealthy distraction too, lol.
Thank you for sharing. A lot of us older men and women get late diagnoses and share the feeling of being "at fault" and never really understanding why. Especially women are underdiagnosed with autism. We are incredible humans but we are different 🙂
I sometimes have crying meltdowns, sometimes angry (I do not take it out on someone else though). I also have bouts of depression/despair that I believe come from being overwhelmed.
So sorry to hear that. One thing I can say about crying meltdowns... I do prefer them over times in my life when I was going for days/weeks without crying, but with numbing, low-grade anxiety and depression. I do hope you feel better; feeling overwhelmed sucks.😢
Thank you for this video. I wish I had an official diagnosis of asd. I'm sure it would make my job easier as I work for a large airline that, I'm sure, would make accommodations for me if I had. As it is, I choose to work night-shift (less management patrolling around) and I picked a desk that is up on a mezzanine away from other people to avoid as much stress as possible. So, I make due as well as I can. Working in an aircraft hangar is constantly loud, it's cold in the winter, hot in the summer and we face constant dead-lines. If I had known about asd when I was young, I would have picked a different career. I'm happy that kids today are getting diagnosed early and their future looks great. I hope things keep going in the right direction for this and all things. Thanks again.
Workplaces that are not autism-friendly are the WORST! Sounds like you've been able to carve out a bit of a niche where you can be a bit more comfortable. I hope so much that society catches on to the fact that way more people are on the spectrum than believed, and make accommodations so they can be happy and productive. Not that my hopes are very high... Elon Musk has Asperger's (that SNL appearance...) and the first thing he insisted on at Twitter is that people should not be allowed to work from home. :(
I cried every day age 9 at school for a year and became physically ill through stress ! If overwhelmed today I cry Things get too much and I cry ! I also cry when I’m laughing ! I’m 53. Diagnosed with asd as adult . Can relate to everything u said ! In 70s. Nobody knew what to do 🙏☺️
It may even be that Aspies are protected by the Disability laws. Companies spend a fortune on management training. Who would be better than you to package a 1/2 or full day training session explaining typical Aspie abilities in IT, and then challenges, and management techniques to meet their special needs. These companies could not survive without Aspies. They are a major resource for them and they'd be foolish not focus on their needs. What a recruiting tool. Aspie sensitive working environment.
Absolutely. I'm looking for a job right now and have been thinking about this topic a lot. Initially I considered disclosing up front that I'm on the spectrum and might need just a tiny bit of accommodation. Like you I thought - it would benefit employers to be openly welcoming to Aspies. But with current conditions (100,000s of tech layoffs etc.) I think I might have to set that plan aside for now. I'm afraid I might turn potential employers off even more than I already do, with my imperfect resume, age, etc. 😔 Still thinking about it though...
I can relate deeply with everything you shared. I used to cry with no "apparent reason" in childhood, but after my recent diagnosis (ASD and high abilities) it came even stronger and as a male adult (42yo) it gets very unsettling
It really is so unsettling, both for the person crying and the people around them. But society as a whole seems to get more accepting of people who act outside strict norms, so I hope eventually there will be more understanding that some people have a crying reaction to events, more than others.
I’ve had a “meltdown” at work two days ago. I was just overwhelmed by sudden changes and complications that happened. I’ve felt dizzy and like I couldn’t handle anymore. so I took myself to the office, where I was on my own, sat on the floor, started sobbing then crying out loud, rocking and hitting head. I remember what I was doing but I just couldn’t stop, couldn’t help it. My manager came and held me to prevent me from hitting self. I have a massive bruise on my thigh, don’t even know how it happened. I had to take the next day off and I slept nearly all day, I was mentally and physically drained. I remember crying in lots of different situations, crying and running around the park when something was not right, crying when couldn’t do something. Once I took a wrong train and started crying and approached train workers for help because I panicked and didn’t know what to do. I don’t know if I’m autistic and these were meltdowns or I am just hysterical woman who cannot cope with stress/wrongdoing/new situations. I’m 35, was recently referred for ASD diagnosis.
I was, and still am, a very sensitive person. I related to a lot of what you said. Especially about crying at work and wanting to be able to show more confidence
im 20 yrs old and not diagnosed with autism but i relate so much to this experience and it overwhelms me so much especially in my relationship where the other person is confused as to why i react a certain way to something that is not super significant for most people/something most would brush of, yet i cant even explain it myself. and i feel like i cant even physically speak to explain myself and it becomes more overwhelming. it manifests for me as both crying easily and getting extremely angry easily and both are so overwhelming and hard to deal with. its such a huge struggle everyday and like you said i keep beating myself up about it bc i understand the social repercussions of it… i just wish i knew what exactly causes it or some way to manage or control it :/ this video was very comforting to me thank you
Really appreciate her warm honesty. And I know what those tears that fall feel like for us Autistic souls.
I had crying meltdowns when working at software firm, never really recovered from that there. Later working in security, I've had to project power and really struggled to keep that from happening. Great video
That's so interesting. I have recently wondered.. if so many of my male colleagues in IT have been autistic too, why did I not see meltdowns in others? I've never seen a man cry at work.
I think men often have "anger" meltdowns or become super-argumentative (THAT I've seen often!). And maybe they manage to hold it together during work hours (like you do, you clearly have a good strategy now!). Maybe some then drink or self-medicate after hours. Plus so many people get sooo burned out. I will make a video about that soon.
@@AutismEtc yeah, I came out of period of heavy drinking to cope in my 30s. I was taking Tofranil back then in my 20s before I diagnosed, and I think it helped, but there were more cryiing meltdowns, On welbutrin now, thinking of switching back though. Women, bipolar women are unhealthy distraction too, lol.
Thank you for sharing. A lot of us older men and women get late diagnoses and share the feeling of being "at fault" and never really understanding why.
Especially women are underdiagnosed with autism.
We are incredible humans but we are different 🙂
I sometimes have crying meltdowns, sometimes angry (I do not take it out on someone else though). I also have bouts of depression/despair that I believe come from being overwhelmed.
So sorry to hear that. One thing I can say about crying meltdowns... I do prefer them over times in my life when I was going for days/weeks without crying, but with numbing, low-grade anxiety and depression.
I do hope you feel better; feeling overwhelmed sucks.😢
Thank you for this video. I wish I had an official diagnosis of asd. I'm sure it would make my job easier as I work for a large airline that, I'm sure, would make accommodations for me if I had. As it is, I choose to work night-shift (less management patrolling around) and I picked a desk that is up on a mezzanine away from other people to avoid as much stress as possible. So, I make due as well as I can. Working in an aircraft hangar is constantly loud, it's cold in the winter, hot in the summer and we face constant dead-lines. If I had known about asd when I was young, I would have picked a different career. I'm happy that kids today are getting diagnosed early and their future looks great. I hope things keep going in the right direction for this and all things. Thanks again.
Workplaces that are not autism-friendly are the WORST! Sounds like you've been able to carve out a bit of a niche where you can be a bit more comfortable. I hope so much that society catches on to the fact that way more people are on the spectrum than believed, and make accommodations so they can be happy and productive.
Not that my hopes are very high... Elon Musk has Asperger's (that SNL appearance...) and the first thing he insisted on at Twitter is that people should not be allowed to work from home. :(
I cried every day age 9 at school for a year and became physically ill through stress ! If overwhelmed today I cry
Things get too much and I cry ! I also cry when I’m laughing ! I’m 53. Diagnosed with asd as adult . Can relate to everything u said ! In 70s. Nobody knew what to do 🙏☺️
I cry at work. I cannot handle the overhead light- i feel out of control after work- I sometimes hit my head and I can’t stop moving
I've had the same thought about "Karens". Some of them are clearly entitled, though.
I got it much worse in the past. maybe I can mask it now better. Because I still feel it but get it under control most of the time.
Thanks so much!! Positive comments like this make my day
It may even be that Aspies are protected by the Disability laws. Companies spend a fortune on management training. Who would be better than you to package a 1/2 or full day training session explaining typical Aspie abilities in IT, and then challenges, and management techniques to meet their special needs. These companies could not survive without Aspies. They are a major resource for them and they'd be foolish not focus on their needs. What a recruiting tool. Aspie sensitive working environment.
Absolutely. I'm looking for a job right now and have been thinking about this topic a lot. Initially I considered disclosing up front that I'm on the spectrum and might need just a tiny bit of accommodation. Like you I thought - it would benefit employers to be openly welcoming to Aspies.
But with current conditions (100,000s of tech layoffs etc.) I think I might have to set that plan aside for now. I'm afraid I might turn potential employers off even more than I already do, with my imperfect resume, age, etc. 😔 Still thinking about it though...