I dont see much value in an autism diagnosis. It is useful to know - yes or no. But it is more important to find out how to cope with the shutdowns. When I have a shutdown it's like pressing ctrl/ alt/ delete. I sink into a highly dissociative state and then come out feeling fresh (sometimes a day later sometimes more). In the meantime, during a shutdown anything I have been working on slows down or stops or is lost. I find I have to re-start various tasks or somehow use the recovered energy to get things going again. I have been so used to them all my life that I just thought this was 'normal' and 'getting tired' - but this inevitable and inescapable cycle of experiences is much more serious and damaging. Shutdowns have been extremely disruptive. It would be more helpful to know how to prevent or deal with them. There is limited advice on this. Oh and there are also the other problems - frequently unable to relate to people naturally, or look people in the eye, speak in a normal way, etc - which seem to be a signpost of the way into shutdown and also motivates shutdown. It's horrible to waken up in a panic during the downward phase with heart pounding and afraid of something indefinable. This happens less in the brief 'recovery' phase. However, the pandemic isolation has mainly been an 18 month period of 'downward' spiral. I have tried cognitive behaviour therapy but it is very limited in usefulness. Antidepressants were also only of limited use. The challenge seems to be learning to live with it but theres not a lot of advice or encouragement on this.
