Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi, I’ve just been diagnosed aged 25 and I feel this has made things worse as I now know what I thought was just social anxiety (so possibly treatable) is actually autism and so will never go away. Looking back at my life, I realise that autism has had a huge negative impact - I’m unable to do things such as join sports teams or go to parties/social events without experiencing extreme anxiety before going, and then wanting them to be over the whole time I’m there. This has lead to me having no friends at 25 years old which is beginning to take a toll on my mental health. My mind feels like it’s in a constant battle with itself where I want to join in and enjoy playing sports, etc. but when I actually think about doing it, the anxiety kicks in and I end up back where I started. Does anyone else feel the same or have any advice on dealing with the diagnosis?
Autism and anxiety are two different things. It is true that around half of all autistic people suffer from severe anxiety (I do, hence why I am still awake at 6am with my heart racing because I'm terrified my fire alarm might go off again for no reason). However, regardless of your autism, your anxiety is still treatable. There are a myriad of medications that you can try, aswell as various forms of therapy if you can bring yourself to talk to a professional. Lifestyle changes can also make a difference. Cutting out stimulants like tobacco, caffeine and chocolate can help, aswell as doing regular exercise (I like yoga as I can do it alone in my front room watching youtube.) I have also just decided tonight that I am going to start trying out various scents to help calm me such as lavender, ylang ylang and chamomile tea.
When there is something I really want to do, or have to do, I acknowledge that my anxiety is there, that it is merely a biological reaction to psychological fear, that it is not (usually) rational, I try to think of the worse possible outcome and ask myself whether or not it would actually make any difference to my daily life, and remind myself I should not let it control me. Sometimes it works and I can push through it. Sometimes it doesn't.
I hope you find a way that works for you, and don't give up hope. Autism can make certain things more difficult, but you always have choices on how you handle the hurdles.