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50 Reasons why your #autistic adult (or you) may be in a Bad mood. Please share widely, add your thoughts and ideas too, make it a resource. #autism #Neurodiversity #thread #autistic /thread
1. Maybe they& #39;re too hot. They may not be dressed appropriately for the weather, to be honest. I struggle with this, having my favourite jeans that I& #39;ll wear without thinking during a heatwave, and spend all day grumpy as a sad badger. #autisticadults
2. Maybe they& #39;re too cold. Heavy woolly jumpers can be anathema to #autistic people, as can any rough material. Some of us hate wearing coats. We may need looking after with this, especially if we like the cold - we may not notice it& #39;s now too cold!
3. Maybe they really need a haircut. #autistic people may avoid these devilish torture Chambers from Satan& #39;s bottom, but we really also need our hair not winding us up constantly. Help us find a nice salon with ideally quiet staff.
4. Maybe they need to shower. Often showering can be a sensory nightmare, or if not, just overlooked as a waste of prime interest time! But having a layer of dirt & grime can feel awful too, so this is worth considering. Be sensitive too, for goodness sake. #autisticadults
5. Maybe they need to wear their sunglasses. The feeling of glasses, perched like an unwelcome pigeon on the bridge of my nose makes me want to scream, so I avoid sunglasses, but sometimes I admit I could do with them, whenever brightness is worse than nose-feel. #autisticadults
6. Maybe they have ill-fitting clothes on. This can be massive for me, as it doesn& #39;t register aoart from very slowly, throughout the day, as my rage builds cos my trousers are too tight. Favourite clothes can shrink, we can put weight on, this happens easily. #autisticadults
7. Perhaps they are over stimulated by stuff - still happens to #autistic adults who may not notice til it& #39;s too late. Particular problem away from home when fewer recharge opportunities are available. We need quiet spaces in towns nationwide! #autisticadults
8. Maybe they need the loo. Seriously, it& #39;s not just kids. I can suddenly realise I need to go do my grim business with a kind of shock of awakening, especially if engrossed in something cool. But it& #39;ll make me irritable. #autisticadults
9. Perhaps there& #39;s a really nasty smell around. This can cause massive problems, especially if the smell is not easily identified and sorted out. God, I& #39;ve had dreadful *weeks* thanks to a hidden, subtle smell I couldn& #39;t remedy before. Nightmarish. #autisticadults
10. Maybe they& #39;re embarrassed from a recent #autistic act or trait display that they& #39;re ashamed of for some reason. You may not even have noticed but they know what happened. This, I think, is quite common.
11. Perhaps they were right in the middle of thinking about something nice and interest-based and you interrupted them with some request. This may seem disproportionate but it can be very annoying. Sorry. #autisticadults
12. Perhaps they had nearly made a decision and were interrupted by someone asking what they had decided. Patience is an absolute necessity when dealing with #autistic people.
13. Perhaps they& #39;ve had too little time with their favourite interests. This is extremely common in adulthood, as responsibility increases and time seems to vanish. This can lead to burnout, I think. #autisticadults
14. Perhaps their favourite interest has suddenly suffered some setback. Like a new video game has been delayed, or worse is updating and unplayable... Best avoid your #autistic person if this is the case....!
15. Maybe they need to make a phone call or knock on someone& #39;s door. This can totally ruin my *week* if I& #39;m not careful. #autisticadults
16. Maybe they found out some massive news that they& #39;re struggling to make sense of, even to the point of not being able to explain it to anyone. This can create real isolation. #autisticadults
17. Maybe they& #39;ve found out some small news that they& #39;re struggling to make sense of, even to the point where they can& #39;t explain it to anyone else. #autisticadults
18. Maybe they& #39;ve just remembered a really sad thing they saw once. This is a thing, right? Like I get flashes of a little cat I saw on holiday once and it always kills my mood. #autisticadults
19. Maybe they are feeling a certain emotion and they& #39;re aware you and others feel differently. This can be disconcerting and upsetting, again creating isolation. Common at emotional moments like funerals, weddings, births, football matches.... #autisticadults
20. Maybe they found something really funny but no one else did. Or vice versa. Again, this can feel dreadful, as it highlights your & #39;difference& #39;, so an #autistic adult may be a bit shaken or upset by this. Especially if they thought something was *really* funny.
21. Maybe a cat or dog has recently rejected them. I& #39;m *deadly bloody serious, people*
22. Maybe it& #39;s too noisy wherever you are. Your #autistic person may be extremely irritable or even angry, seemingly at nothing at all, if this is the case.
23. Maybe they *really need to do this particular thing right now and you& #39;re not letting them cos to be fair you don& #39;t know but arhggghhh this thing needs to be done right now stop making me not do the thing*
24. Maybe they need to be alone *right now*. They may not realise this for themselves, which can make things difficult.
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26. Maybe they have tooth-, stomach-, head-, ear-, muscle-ache but haven& #39;t realised it and thus haven& #39;t taken any painkillers. This happens a lot. #autisticadults
27. Maybe they have lost a bit of control over their finances and are scared or very worried. #autisticadults
28. Maybe they& #39;ve got themselves into debt or something, almost by accident. This happened to me years ago as I assumed it& #39;d be easy to pay back. Some #autistic people can be quite *ahem* bad at money. #autisticadults
29. Maybe they had to make a snap decision earlier and they& #39;re still grappling with the ramifications. This might weigh in their mind for ages. #autisticadults
30. Perhaps they& #39;re exhausted but completely unaware of this fact, as they may feel energised by their hyperfixation. This can be a recipe for misery very frequently. I had nights playing GTA San Andreas at uni until 5am without realising how knackered I was. #autisticadults
31. Perhaps they& #39;re not sleeping very well. It can be very common for #autistic adults to have various sleeping issues #autisticadults
32. For #autistic women, hormones and periods can be particularly difficult, especially if their sensory issues are worsened of stress levels are raised. #autisticadults
33. Maybe a plan has suddenly changed and there& #39;s no time to re-evaluate or prepare. This is bad for #autistic children and #autistic adults pretty much equally. Trouble is, neurotypical adults are often fine with changing plans at the drop of a hat.
34. Maybe they& #39;re struggling to get themselves understood. If they& #39;re verbal, this might be because they can& #39;t find the words or clarity; if they& #39;re non-verbal it may be because their means of communication is limited and unable to get across their thoughts. #autisticadults
35. Maybe they& #39;re masking twice, three times. They could be desperate to communicate that they& #39;re non binary, trans, gay, asexual, demi... but far too scared to say anything. #autisticadults
36. They may, however, just need a bag of crisps or an apple as there& #39;s every chance they will have forgotten to eat. Or drink. #autisticadults
37. It& #39;s possible they may be nursing some injury or illness that they haven& #39;t communicated to you, thinking it& #39;s nothing of that it& #39;ll sort itself out. So maybe considerable pain or discomfort. #autisticadults
38. They may have been mocked or bullied by someone. The bullying of #autistic adults is pretty widespread and is a huge problem. #autistic people can react in a self destructive way to this, as it damages their already probably shaky self esteem.
39. They may be replaying a conversation they had earlier in their head, terrified that something went wrong thst they hadn& #39;t realised at the time, worried they& #39;ve put their foot in their mouth or worse. #autisticadults
40. They might be in burnout. #autisticadults
41. They might be lonely but not realise it, assuming they don& #39;t need human contact when actually they do. #autisticadults
42. They may be really upset about things happening in the wider world, especially at the moment. #autisticadults
43. They may have realised that something they were planning intricately in their heads won& #39;t work for some reason and are frustrated. Often related to hyperfixation. #autisticadults
44. They may have eaten too much and be feeling dreadful - I can& #39;t be the only #autistic person who struggles to regulate portion sizes.
45. Maybe there& #39;s an earthquake or tornado coming - #autistic people can detect such things, like horses.
(this one& #39;s a joke, sorry. I just can& #39;t help myself.)
(this one& #39;s a joke, sorry. I just can& #39;t help myself.)
46. Perhaps they need to listen to some music. Music can be very soothing but it seems #autistic people, even those who love music, sometimes forget it& #39;s a thing.
47. Perhaps they promised something they couldn& #39;t quite deliver as they tend to overestimate their energy levels and now feel silly...? (sorry I didn& #39;t get to 50 last night) #autisticadults
48. Maybe they were quietly looking forward to something but, now it& #39;s here, are overwhelmed by a combination of fear it won& #39;t be as good as they hoped and panic. I *hate* this feeling. #autisticadults
49. They might have recently had someone touch them. For #autistic adults, most touch will probably be unwanted, especially from strangers or mere acquaintances. Shaking hands, that kiss kiss thing posh folk do - all a bit much. #autisticadults
50. Maybe they misunderstood something you said and are upset, even though no harm was meant. #autisticadults
Tis the end of yet another epic thread o& #39;wonders. Hope it was useful. Follow me for LOTS more stuff like this. If you fancy flinging a coffee my way, here& #39;s a link: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/UfTVnRY ">https://www.buymeacoffee.com/UfTVnRY&q...
