• Replies 9 replies
  • Subscribers 86 subscribers
  • Views 380 views
  • Users 0 members are here
Options
Related
Hints and tips
  • To quote someone's message, first select/highlight the relevant text, and then use the Quote button that appears
  • To "mention" someone, type @ followed by the start of the forum name, and choose from the list; that person will get a notification of being mentioned

What are people's experiences of anxiety?

illustrated.lady

Hello,

I will pre-face this by saying I am a late diagnosed high masking woman, I was diagnosed two months ago and I'm in my thirties. 

I have had anxiety for as long as I can remember, I feel as though I came out of the womb anxious. When I first diagnosed with anxiety it presented as panic attacks when I started university at 18 but I think over the course of various stints in therapy and 10+ years on different anti-depressants it has morphed into more of a generalized anxiety where I feel one edge and worried a lot of the time. 

Work has always been a huge drain on my mental health, regardless of the job, the environment, the shifts, the workloads, all of my jobs have wound up with me feeling fragile and burnt out. I have had attendance issues in every job I've had. 

What I'm trying to understand now is what it anxiety and what is autistic overwhelm. I will feel overwhelmed if I have multiple things to do, even on days off from work. I'm trying to pin it down and really try to understand what are these feelings and where to they come from.

For example, I'm going to a comic con with my friend at the weekend, I've been planning and looking forward to it for ages but now it's close I'm feeling dread, I suppose because it will be busy and hot, there will be a lot of people I don't know and I won't be able to retreat somewhere safe...is this anxiety or autism? 

I do definitely think I have some alexithymia as I struggle tor recognize my emotions and will often just default to anxiety.  

I would love to hear your experiences.

Parents

  • ASD, ADHD, general anxiety, and major depression here! I was diagnosed with anxiety the same time (age 30) as I got my ASD diagnosis, but it wasn’t a huge shocker as I have been aware of it since at least college. Here’s some ways I think anxiety plays a role with my ASD and ADHD:

    - Crowds are horrifying. Absolute stimuli hell.
    - Driving is also an unpleasant experience. Every little thing that distracts me makes my nerves go crazy.
    - My social anxiety is off the charts. I know I’m going to say something wrong and I know I’m going to regret it. I might even delete this message later for no good reason besides my social anxiety is just too strong lol.
    - My stimming is usually connected to things that make me anxious (though on REALLY rare occasions I stim when extremely happy or angry).

    I also feel dread right before an event like you do. I think that’s more anxiety than Autism, but as wacky as this sounds, sometimes anticipating your Autistic experiences (ex. sensory input, social interactions, etc) can cause your anxiety to skyrocket.

Reply

  • ASD, ADHD, general anxiety, and major depression here! I was diagnosed with anxiety the same time (age 30) as I got my ASD diagnosis, but it wasn’t a huge shocker as I have been aware of it since at least college. Here’s some ways I think anxiety plays a role with my ASD and ADHD:

    - Crowds are horrifying. Absolute stimuli hell.
    - Driving is also an unpleasant experience. Every little thing that distracts me makes my nerves go crazy.
    - My social anxiety is off the charts. I know I’m going to say something wrong and I know I’m going to regret it. I might even delete this message later for no good reason besides my social anxiety is just too strong lol.
    - My stimming is usually connected to things that make me anxious (though on REALLY rare occasions I stim when extremely happy or angry).

    I also feel dread right before an event like you do. I think that’s more anxiety than Autism, but as wacky as this sounds, sometimes anticipating your Autistic experiences (ex. sensory input, social interactions, etc) can cause your anxiety to skyrocket.

Children
No Data