Burnout pre/post diagnosis

Hi Octopus - congratulations on your diagnosis and welcome to the community.

There are plenty of other late-realised and/or late-diagnosed people here, so you're in good company.

The process of getting diagnosed can, itself, be exhausting and overwhelming. With or without that added stress, pressures at work can easily lead to autistic fatigue and burnout. Also, now that you have a better understanding of your autism-related difficulties, you are better placed to recognise them and make adjustments for yourself.

You might find these resources helpful. There are quite a few that seem relevant, but you can obviously work your way through them at your own pace. 

1. Post-diagnosis information:

The NAS has a great set of articles focused on "after diagnosis", including one covering how you might feel during the subsequent days / weeks / months. You might find them of interest and/or helpful:

NAS - How you might feel after a diagnosis - includes perspectives from other autistics

NAS - Other advice covering post-diagnosis including:

• Talking about and disclosing your autism diagnosis
• Emotional support for family members after a diagnosis
• Formal support following an autism diagnosis
• What can I do if formal support is not offered or is not enough

Therapy (or counselling) is often recommended after a diagnosis, as a follow up action for your GP to arrange. If you prefer, depending on where you are in the UK, you may instead be able to self refer for talking therapy on the NHS.

Before arranging it, you might find it helpful to borrow or buy this book, which includes discussion of various types of therapy and counselling, together with advice on choosing the right therapist or counsellor - all from an autistic person's viewpoint. Several of us here have found it very helpful:

The Autistic Survival Guide to Therapy

I'll also mention a couple of books that I and others have found helpful early on in our post-diagnosis journeys:

Self-Care for Autistic People: 100+ Ways to Recharge, De-Stress, and Unmask!

How to Be Autistic (free download currently available via this page)

2. Fatigue and burnout

Alongside seeking support from your GP, you might find these NAS resources helpful:

NAS - Autistic fatigue and burnout

NAS Professional Practice - Understanding autistic burnout

There's also some great (free) advice here from Dr Megan Neff - a neurodivergent author (who's also a clinician and advocate):

Autistic Burnout Recovery: How to Build a Recovery Plan

I also have this book of hers. It's very user-friendly, including lots of diagrams and worksheets:

The Autistic Burnout Workbook: Your Guide to Your Personal Recovery Plan

3. Employment

Finally, you might find the various resources here helpful, including in respect of requesting reasonable adjustments at work and decide who else to potentially tell:

NAS - Employment

Hi Octopus - congratulations on your diagnosis and welcome to the community.

There are plenty of other late-realised and/or late-diagnosed people here, so you're in good company.

The process of getting diagnosed can, itself, be exhausting and overwhelming. With or without that added stress, pressures at work can easily lead to autistic fatigue and burnout. Also, now that you have a better understanding of your autism-related difficulties, you are better placed to recognise them and make adjustments for yourself.

You might find these resources helpful. There are quite a few that seem relevant, but you can obviously work your way through them at your own pace. 

1. Post-diagnosis information:

The NAS has a great set of articles focused on "after diagnosis", including one covering how you might feel during the subsequent days / weeks / months. You might find them of interest and/or helpful:

NAS - How you might feel after a diagnosis - includes perspectives from other autistics

NAS - Other advice covering post-diagnosis including:

• Talking about and disclosing your autism diagnosis
• Emotional support for family members after a diagnosis
• Formal support following an autism diagnosis
• What can I do if formal support is not offered or is not enough

Therapy (or counselling) is often recommended after a diagnosis, as a follow up action for your GP to arrange. If you prefer, depending on where you are in the UK, you may instead be able to self refer for talking therapy on the NHS.

Before arranging it, you might find it helpful to borrow or buy this book, which includes discussion of various types of therapy and counselling, together with advice on choosing the right therapist or counsellor - all from an autistic person's viewpoint. Several of us here have found it very helpful:

The Autistic Survival Guide to Therapy

I'll also mention a couple of books that I and others have found helpful early on in our post-diagnosis journeys:

Self-Care for Autistic People: 100+ Ways to Recharge, De-Stress, and Unmask!

How to Be Autistic (free download currently available via this page)

2. Fatigue and burnout

Alongside seeking support from your GP, you might find these NAS resources helpful:

NAS - Autistic fatigue and burnout

NAS Professional Practice - Understanding autistic burnout

There's also some great (free) advice here from Dr Megan Neff - a neurodivergent author (who's also a clinician and advocate):

Autistic Burnout Recovery: How to Build a Recovery Plan

I also have this book of hers. It's very user-friendly, including lots of diagrams and worksheets:

The Autistic Burnout Workbook: Your Guide to Your Personal Recovery Plan

3. Employment

Finally, you might find the various resources here helpful, including in respect of requesting reasonable adjustments at work and decide who else to potentially tell:

NAS - Employment