Worry Chains

Does anyone get so worried about things in life that they start catastrophising?

I do that all the time recently. I have been so anxious. One thing leads to another and it's like a mind map

with bunting or a ghost with heavy silver chains starts to subsist their right in the back of my mind...

Ugh feeling so low right now.

  • Yes very much so. If there is a situation that I am remotely anxious about my mind goes into overdrive and comes up with a ridiculous number of scenarios, some of which are very unrealistic worse case scenarios. I believe part of this is to do with people with autism having a difficult to predict events (or at least not wanting to guess/assume what the event will be incase they are wrong). So the brain goes mad and comes up with multiple scenarios without boundaries. Probably not helped my tendancies to be literal etc. Just my theory on it. It isn't nice.

  • Your not being irrational, occasionally people with Autism get Mental Health Problems or are often mistaken to have them, I was in hospital because they thought that my Autism was a Mental Health Problem and its not its just a Neurological Difference! Its okay to worry because neurotypicals dont think like Autistic people do so they dont know what our normal is.

  • I guess I'm still learning how autism affects me. I suppose in reality it doesn't affect me, it just is me, so everything I do or experience is my brain reacting to the various inputs and reading them differently to most people. I used to get a lot of strange thoughts and I genuinely thought I was going crazy, so I've always kept it hidden because I don't want to end up in hospital. But even writing that down I know I'm being irrational.

  • That's strange I think lots of Autistic People feel the same, I often worry that I'm going to get in trouble myself for no reason. I guess thats a common fear for our community.

  • I've never admitted that to anyone before. I assumed it was just my crazy brain spouting crazies at me. Which I guess it still is in a way. 

  • I am constantly worried I'll be framed for murder when I happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time and I won't have the language skills to explain myself properly and I end up being found guilty. I pretty much think about this every day for as long as I remember, along with many other things. I had no idea this might be related to autism. 

  • Yes. 100%.

    I did this massively around 8 years ago, and it came about via a desire for certainty (& if certainty couldn't be had, I would take two or three alternative certainties, if that makes sense).

    *Eventually* I managed to use the techniques of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (some with a therapist, but the majority alone) to say things to myself quite firmly "This is not helping", "You've been here before in your thoughts and it didn't help - in fact it damaged your mental health", "STOP!", "React to what happens, not what might happen",

    This is a very personal journey and (unfortunately) no-one else can do it for you (us).

    I know what you mean about the mind map / chains etc - that's what I meant about following every possible thread so that you can say with certainty "ONE of these things will happen 100% and if it does, this is how I will react / what it will mean for me". I've constructed worry chains starting with for e.g. a minor accidental breach of a speed limit leading to me being murdered in prison! Even typing that feels risky, as if some cosmic policeman will take my alleged admission of once breaking a speed limit and damn me eternally for it.

    You *can* beat it, but it takes determination.

  • Hi 

    My partner does something similar to this, he literally has almost graphic nightmares about something happening to me or the kids and sees it in vivid details only he is not asleep when it happens and once he starts thinking about it he can't focus on anything else,