Published on 12, July, 2020
Hello again!
I have recently learned about autistic inertia thanks to Pete Wharmby's book Un-typicaI and have realised this is something I really struggle with but hadn't really given it any thought, until now.
Very briefly Autistic inertia, for anyone who doesn't know, is a difficulty switching tasks (even if you want to). Here's some light further reading - https://autismawarenesscentre.com/what-is-autistic-inertia/
The example Pete gave in his book so perfectly encapsulated my experience, reading a book but wanting a cup of tea. In this example, I can see myself getting up, making the tea, and then sitting and enjoying the tea while I continue to read. I am happy to get up and make the tea but I just...don't. I want to but something blocks me from switching my focus from reading to getting up and making tea.
Of course, this is just one example that doesn't have any major ramifications but it does impact other areas of my life. I wondered whether anyone had any tips or tricks for getting through this? If you also experience this, how do you switch tasks effectively?
I have this! Even smaller examples than the cup of tea, if I am absorbed doing something on the laptop, reading this thread for example, I don't even want to stop to move my eyes aside to check the time! I have to force myself to do it, and it is slightly easier when I just look in the corner of the screen than glance behind the laptop screen at the clock on my desk. Or just having a drink of water from the glass beside me.
But then sometimes the thread I am reading becomes too interesting or overwhelming with too much info/too many thoughts, and I have to stop reading it. Like the hyperfocus suddenly got blocked. Weird. Or if I want to reply but want to read not write then I might leave that thread open in one tab but open another to keep reading the forum, and then I might not get back to the one I wanted to reply to for days... by which time it has gone cold so I probably don't reply at all, but I usually leave the tab open so end up with fifty trillion tabs open...
Not sure I have any good tips for breaking it or switching tasks, not very good at that. Maybe closing my eyes for a bit (seems easier than actually looking away!) moving my head aside with them still closed so when they open I am not looking at the thing any more, just letting my brain catch up, then gently try thinking about the next thing. I thought the imagining doing it was actually somewhat helpful though, like how sportspeople use visualisation to achieve their goals! So actually picturing myself getting out of bed, putting on my slippers and walking to the bathroom might help motivate me to actually go to the loo!
The other thing that does break me out of hyperfocus is unfortunately pain/discomfort. I am more on the hypersensitive side of things, so although I can kind of understand people not noticing hunger, my arthritis can become too insistent to ignore. Then I stop and realise just how much the pain has built up behind the dam before it overflowed, ouch! Plus when that happens I usually also have a rather urgently full bladder! It doesn't help with housework either, yesterday I was vacuuming the stairs but the pain got too much after only 5 of them and I had to stop for a youtube break. Then of course I didn't want to go back to it as the pain made it somewhat aversive, but I really wanted to get it finished (they hadn't been done for a while due to the vacuum being blocked so were badly in need of it, and quite satisfying to clean) so did manage another few steps, but had to give up after only 8 so there are 4 left which I have not gone back to yet...
Haha, now I am struggling to stop writing this post even though it is rather long! I wonder if that is part of why we write so much sometimes? As well as thoroughness of course.
Thanks for sharing, AuTricker! Weirdly enough I saw and read this message yesterday but couldn't bring myself to reply. I thought about the response and then left the tab open on my phone until now. I often get what you said about the message going cold. I get LOTS of tabs on my phone and end up with duplicates, do a big cleanout then the cycle happens again.
The visualisation is agood idea but, and I think this might be related to my suspected ADHD, is that I am VERY susceptible to daydreaming/ fantasising. If I'm feeling a little spacey It will achieve the goal of switching task but the new task ends up being fantasising instead of whatever I intended to do.
Discomfort can break me out sometimes but not always. If it's bladder- related I am very hyper-aware but I've let my foot go numb or let my arm tingle etc. from being in awkward positions and not moving. I'm sorry to hear about your arthritis though, that sounds really difficult. I'm the same with cleaning. I'm Ok once I start BUT I Cannot stop or I will STOP.
I also end up writing a lot so I think you might be onto something there.