Anxiety & ASD

I have suffered from anxiety all my life, KW, although as I've grown older I am able to manage it a bit better. Like you, I worry a tremendous amount over anything at all - things that many people would simply take in their stride. As you can appreciate, it does make life difficult at times because it acts as a barrier to getting on in life in terms of going places and interacting with people, which is very important for personal development, both in social and occupational terms.

Like you, I would at least know why I'm this way if I were able to obtain an official diagnosis of AS but without this I'm always left to wonder if it's just some kind of character flaw in me. I doubt I'm clinically Aspergers, anyway, so all that would happen is that I would be told to get on with it and stop feeling sorry for myself.

So, what puts me off seeking a diagnosis is the possible hostile and or indifference I might get from my GP, knowing what some people on the AS have to put up with, and this is something that would probably make me feel a bit guilty about wasting my GP's time.

A few years ago, I saw my GP (at least one of them) about a noise sensitivity problem I had and guess what? Yes, I was fobbed off with anti-depressents and an online CBT course which proved totally useless. So, I can well relate with your predicament, KW, and I just think the NHS is failing people, not only who are on the AS, but many others who have mental health issues and are left to 'get on with it', making life pretty difficult to deal with at times.

Wellington said:

I also think that I adapt well to fit in with others and rarely I am myself. When I am myself I may come across odd to others (for example talking to much about mundane subjects - well mundane to them!) and then this worries me further. As I get older though it gets more exhausting trying to fit in. That is the main reason I want to understand myself - why I feel different and why it worries me so much. 

This sounds as though you are putting yourself under more pressure to conform than you can cope with. One of the standard pieces of advice for a parent dealing with an autistic child is that they use positive reinforcement You can use the same techniques on yourself to reward yourself when you do something good but don't be so hard on yourself when you make a mistake. If you are struggling to adapt then you can allow yourself not to be so desparate about it but instead look out for and recognise the situations that you have managed to cope with.

Hello Keyboardworrier68.

Great name! I am in a similiar situation. I have finally made an appointment to see my Doctor about possible diagnosis but like you suffer from very high anxiety. To be honest I am dreading it. I have a lot of indications I might be on the spectrum but also some that suggest I am not. I have been worrying about it for ages and now really need to know.

I would say that my natural state of mind is anxious. I wake up feeling it and go to bed feeling the same. I have always been an intense worrier all my life and often about things that are silly or I have no control over. I certainly do not understand people which I think intensfies my anxious state further. The evidence for this is I feel a lot calmer often when I am by myself.

As mentioned here by others I can be a black and white thinker and I over analyse everything.

Other people who do not suffer the same anxiety level do not understand. For example, I could get put into a position at work where I have to travel to a meeting which is a key trigger. I hate travelling - huge worries. I will worry everyday about this until the actual day when often I have physical illness signs and for what? A meeting where the information could be excahnged over the phone. All that bad feeling for nothing - it is so not worth it. Yet I could never make the ones sending me understand that.

I also think that I adapt well to fit in with others and rarely I am myself. When I am myself I may come across odd to others (for example talking to much about mundane subjects - well mundane to them!) and then this worries me further. As I get older though it gets more exhausting trying to fit in. That is the main reason I want to understand myself - why I feel different and why it worries me so much. 

Also the anxiety is often so strong I avoid doing things I would like to do or when I do go to events etc. it takes so much out of me battling the fight or flight feeling using CBT etc. that I wonder is it worth it?

I know anxiety is not a direct trait of autism but it seems a common problem. I am grateful though that I am not alone and that there are people that really do understand it as they expereince the same things.

I suffer huge anxiety issues, up until recently assumed to be related to bullying at school but now thinking more to do with potential aspergers. In secondary school Inhad a number of short term nervous twitches which only made things worse. Luckily they stopped after leaving school.

Knowing what I know now I think my social interaction issues and not knowing how to intract with people resulted in being more of a loner, people picking up on this started bullying because I was an easy target, and it's easy to see how this continued to cause issues.

I'm hoping I can find better ways to cope with social anxietyissues based on coping mechanisms aimed at people with aspergers/hfa.

I am not yet sure if I want to try and get an official diagnosis and not sure how I would feel if I did get one. Would I be more self concious?

Of course, I'm massively overthinking and analysing this constantly :)

Anxiety is extremely common with ASD. My understanding of this is that it comes from two factors.

1) We keep misunderstanding situations and keep getting into trouble with other people. So, we tend to get a lot of criticism (and bullying) which, in turn, makes us defensive and ultimately anxious. If you can understand yourself better, with a diagnosis, then you can learn to deal with the world at large in a smoother, less confrontational manner.

2) Our thinking patterns tend to be too black and white so we can often think that situations are worse than they really are. This can lead to anxiety too. This aspect is best dealt with through cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).

Diagnosis is often good for us because, as Paul says, you know where you are at last.

My anxiety level has gone down since I got my diagnosis. I guess that's because I now know what my issue is. I'm not worried about it anymore because I know.

Not knowing what was happening to me and why I didn't fit in too well was what was causing most of my anxiety issues.