Meltdowns

Meltdowns in Autism Spectrum Disorder 

Meltdowns are involuntary responses that autistic people have to stressful and overwhelming environments.  Meltdowns usually happen when an autistic person feels like they cannot escape a stressful situation or cannot express their concerns.  Typically, the autistic person is not aware of what is happening during their meltdown, and they can often feel scared and embarrassed.  During meltdowns, autistic people may experience:

• Chest tightness
• Heart racing
• Shaking hands
• Tingling
• Headaches or head pressure
• Irritability or rage
• Paranoia

Before autistic people have a meltdown, they may show signs that they are in distress. They may appear very anxious or do things like pacing, rocking, or freezing up. It is possible to prevent the meltdown at this point by learning calming strategies for them and helping them understand the signs.

Calming strategies are things that autistic people and their caregivers can do to reduce the likelihood of a meltdown.  While different autistic people will need different calming strategies, some things that caregivers could try include:

• Recognizing and removing triggers
• Distraction
• Moving to a quiet space
• Using relaxing techniques unique to them, such as playing with a toy or listening to music

Why do meltdowns happen?

Meltdowns occur because an individual does not know how to handle a stressor, and their anxiety takes over. People with autism usually get stressed more easily, and therefore are more likely to experience meltdowns.

Some stressors include:

• Hyperactive sensory processing – autistic people can have unusually large responses to sensations in their environments.
• Being given a lot of tasks or difficult tasks – some autistic people have difficulty with executive processing, so being asked to do a lot of things at once can be overwhelming.
• Changes in environment – generally, autistic people have a strong preference for routine and sameness.  Therefore, autistic people can become upset if their daily routine is disrupted or if their familiar environments are changed.
• General stressors – Like anyone else, autistic people can get stressed out over things like work, family, money, and health concerns.

Who gets Meltdowns? 

Autistic people can have meltdowns, regardless of their age or sex.  Even so, meltdowns tend to look slightly different in autistic children than in autistic adults.

Comparing temper tantrums and meltdowns

Although they are often confused, meltdowns and temper tantrums are not the same thing. Meltdowns occur when autistic people feel overwhelmed by their environments, whereas temper tantrums occur when toddlers or young children are frustrated.

Differences include:

How should caregivers handle meltdowns? 

Meltdowns can be scary for both caregivers/friends and autistic people.  Happily, there are some things that caregivers and friends can do to help autistic people avoid meltdowns and resolve meltdowns when they do happen.

Preventing and Preparing for Meltdowns

• Understand their triggers and help prepare for them.
• Creating a safe space in case a meltdown occurs
• If they can speak, ask what will help them during a meltdown.
• Practice being in different environments and start small. For instance, bring them to a new restaurant but stay for a short time.
• Teach your child coping strategies and practice them while they are calm: deep breaths, having their favorite toy, listening to a song.
• Teaching them what symptoms they may feel during a meltdown, so they understand what is happening.
• Have distractions ready.

Resolving Meltdowns

• Remain calm and intentional in your actions.
• Direct them to a quiet, private space if they are triggered by their environment because decreasing sensory input can help.
• Avoid angry responses to their meltdowns.
• Give them their personal space. Do not try to restrain or touch them.
• Don’t be afraid to kindly inform strangers around you what they need to do, whether it is not going near them or moving dangerous objects away.

Remember, meltdowns are an overwhelming experience for autistic people, so educating yourself and your autistic loved ones is very beneficial to their overall wellbeing.

Article by: Sarika Mahajan and The Autism ToolKit

Sources 

Understand autism meltdowns and share strategies to minimize, manage occurrences

Temper Tantrums

Meltdowns – a guide for all audiences

10 things that helped me during meltdowns as an autistic child

Parents of child with autism seek help with public meltdowns

Meltdowns’, surveillance and managing emotions; going out with children with autism