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Public Meltdown

Bert

Hi.

I wonder if anyone on here as ever had as an adult a meltdown in public. I unfortunately

had my first one on Sunday & it is an experience quite different than having one without

a public presence..I had it in front of a neighbour who was informed earlier in the week

that I was autistic,it was not as bad as some, ripped my top off attacked the ivy beat up

a wreath,all our property I ranted but no Tourette's.

Her first reaction was to make it all about her, calling her husband "come here come here 

I have a problem will you come down please" my mother who is end of life & who I care

for was sitting there said later " I was the one with the problem & me who could of used the

help" Anyway I came back down after replacing my t shirt had a rant & told the husband

to stay out of it as before his wife had been berating my mother & as I went to stop it

I had a panic attack so she threatened me with her husband.

I was told by friends not to worry & there is no need to apologise it was not intentional but I

send a text saying "sorry about that sensory overload caused a meltdown linked to my ASD

it was nothing personal" & the reason I is there will be repercussions as there were over the

panic attack nothing illegal last time it was trying to have  my safe space tree cut down & various

other actions.

Whilst there is no magic bullet how do you cope having them outside, any advice would be great.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

  

  • I had one in the dentist a few years ago, I was very nervous and on the edge of panic and this bloke and his son where there in the waiting room and the child was being noisy, I gave him a hostile look and the dad started having a real go at me, I ran outside, hyperventilating and wanting to hide, I managed to keep it together long enough to drive home, where I totally collapsed nd spent days recovering, it was months before I got up the courage to go near a dentists again.

  • in reply to Lotus

    I went straight indoors but then back out and sat in the car. I did remove myself from the situation.

  • My instinct if I was melting down outside would be to flee the situation - walk away and keep walking until I felt calmer, but I'm not sure if that would have been possible for you in the situation you describe, if you needed to stay with your mother.

    I try to use forward planning and think of possible scenarios and how I could manage them. It's not always possible, but sometimes helps. Using a mindfulness technique in the moment of stress may also help - reminding yourself that this is temporary and it will soon be over, thinking of something good you are looking forward to or could plan to do in the near future.

    Some medications can help some people to be calmer - this is not medical advice, but you could speak to your GP if you are open to trying this.

  • in reply to Emmalephant

    Thank you for your reply & advice.

  • Hi! I’m still very young (graduating from German “Gymnasium” right now), but I am now old enough to be recognised as an adult by law and the majority of the population (strangers greet me with “Sie” instead of “Du”. That’s basically the measure for how old people think you are here xD).

    While I did have meltdowns in school, it was a very different experience to have one in public while being seen as a responsible adult (especially since I barely have them nowadays). Thankfully, it was a rather small one in a less crowded area, but I still kicked against a tree, pulled at my hair, cried in an ugly manner and threw dirt and rocks on the ground to release some of the energy. As soon as I calmed down enough to half care about my surroundings, I realised how passing strangers were looking at me, making a beeline to avoid my path. After one woman actually asked me if I needed help, I could barely manage to say “no”. Since then, I always bring a little note with me that explains what’s happening and what I need or don’t need. When I feel something coming, I take it out, just in case. It should keep people from panicking and doing dumb things like touching, screaming, getting mad, calling an ambulance for no reason etc.

    But you probably already thought of that. Sorry, that I couldn’t help more.