Difficulty identifying emotions linked to poor mental health in autistic people *updated*

So, today, is a crying day for me. For no reason at all, I feel tearful. I can carry on with my daily stuff, but at intervals, I stop and have a good weep. I guess it's depression and anxiety, but I wonder if it's to do with my autistic brain rather than classic depression. I feel alone and lonely, unlovable, unloved and unloving. This makes me even more prone to tears. I'm not suicidal. I never want to take my own life. I love being alive. It might be that I am overwhelmed by emotions from the previous day or thoughts and emotions about an upcoming event, and maybe this is my way of releasing tension.

**update**

Since posting, I've found some useful information about a possible explanation. "Autistic people who have trouble identifying their emotions, a condition known as alexithymia, are likely to have anxiety, depression and problems with social communication, according to a new study. Roughly half of autistic people experience alexithymia, which translates to ‘no words for emotions’ and is characterised by difficulties with identifying and describing one’s own feelings." This is more complicated than it seems. It doesn't mean that I don't have a vocabulary for my emotions, for me, at least, it's about not paying proper attention to my internal emotional states until they are too strong to ignore, and then I get confused by the sensations.

https://www.spectrumnews.org/news/difficulty-identifying-emotions-linked-to-poor-mental-health-in-autistic-people/


I hope this can help someone else too.





Parents
  • I have only experienced this once when I was a teenager I was laughing and then I started to crying I chalked it up to being some sort of stroke.

    I tend not to cry at all, but I do get very depressed though I hide the depression who know how it will be used against me so I just keep it. Under the rug life's complicated enough.

    I would be interested to know does anyone one here feel like there is no help or support for adults autistic people, I feel every resource is geared towards children which it is good for children on the spectrum to receive help I feel that now I'm an adult I am exiled to a lonely and confused existence. 

Reply
  • I have only experienced this once when I was a teenager I was laughing and then I started to crying I chalked it up to being some sort of stroke.

    I tend not to cry at all, but I do get very depressed though I hide the depression who know how it will be used against me so I just keep it. Under the rug life's complicated enough.

    I would be interested to know does anyone one here feel like there is no help or support for adults autistic people, I feel every resource is geared towards children which it is good for children on the spectrum to receive help I feel that now I'm an adult I am exiled to a lonely and confused existence. 

Children