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Staring into space

Morgan

I was wondering if this is a symptom of ASD, cause its really been bothering me and I'm not sure why I do it.

I spend a lot of time doing nothing at all, not because I particularly want to - in fact I sometimes get stressed over the fact that I'm wasting time - but I guess its kind of calming in a way to just space out. The problem is that I often do it for around 30mins-1hr 30mins at a time, and this happens multiple times a day (so sometimes I can spend around 2-5 hours every day doing absolutely nothing). I might start a task, e.g. draw for 1-3hrs, then have over an hour of sitting at my desk thinking. When I try to push myself out of it I feel bored and can't focus on the things I try to do until it feels right to start doing something again, which can take a while. I try to make myself go for a walk everyday, but that's just another hour of being stuck in my head and I often don't even pay attention to anything around me when I'm out (other then completing my constant OCD compulsions). 

The majority of the time I just spend introspectively thinking about ASD and OCD, and often when I'm not spacing out I spend a lot of time researching about those conditions or looking on forums or discords server dedicated to them. The rest of my thoughts are mostly planning out what foods I'll eat that day, and if I'm going to go out, and also many many anxious thoughts. 

I was just wondering if anyone else spends so much time spaced out, and if it could be a symptom.

Parents

  • I prefer to close my eyes (and sometimes sleep) rather than stare into space. It depends where I am. I do it multiple times a day. I've come to understand from professionals that it is a natural part of my autism. They explained to me that this happens for the same reason that neurotypicals sleep at night. Sleep is when the brain goes into Safe Mode in order to free up BRAM, clear its CPU and get rid of any residual emotional junk. My autistic brain needs more time in Safe Mode and that's the reason for these temporary shutdowns. I welcome them now because I know they are a safety valve which is preventing me from overloading.

    I'm not sure I understand the other things you talk about. They sound like obsessive thoughts.  Obsessive thinking (which is a form of addiction) means you're addicted to thoughts about certain topics, usually unpleasant ones, about yourself, or others. It's not nice. It often leads to a depressive illness or an anxiety disorder. Have you checked out the MIND website? There are buckets of useful information on their site about all these kinds of mental malfunctions. I've used the site a few times when my connections have come loose. And it's comforting and reassuring. Once you know what something is, it loses its power to scare you. 

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  • I prefer to close my eyes (and sometimes sleep) rather than stare into space. It depends where I am. I do it multiple times a day. I've come to understand from professionals that it is a natural part of my autism. They explained to me that this happens for the same reason that neurotypicals sleep at night. Sleep is when the brain goes into Safe Mode in order to free up BRAM, clear its CPU and get rid of any residual emotional junk. My autistic brain needs more time in Safe Mode and that's the reason for these temporary shutdowns. I welcome them now because I know they are a safety valve which is preventing me from overloading.

    I'm not sure I understand the other things you talk about. They sound like obsessive thoughts.  Obsessive thinking (which is a form of addiction) means you're addicted to thoughts about certain topics, usually unpleasant ones, about yourself, or others. It's not nice. It often leads to a depressive illness or an anxiety disorder. Have you checked out the MIND website? There are buckets of useful information on their site about all these kinds of mental malfunctions. I've used the site a few times when my connections have come loose. And it's comforting and reassuring. Once you know what something is, it loses its power to scare you. 

Children