Now this topic is far from a fun one, and I promise I’ll be covering some happier things in the articles to come, but this is really important. As I’ve mentioned previously, managing sensory experiences is really important for an aspie (a person with Asperger’s). Managing sensory experiences helps aspies like me stay functioning properly, thus avoiding sensory overload. But wait…
What exactly is sensory overload? (just overload for short)
Well, as the name suggests, sensory overload is essentially an aspie’s brain “overheating” from too much input. To put it another way, this is essentially the same feeling a neurotypical (someone with a “standard” brain structure, unlike an aspie) would feel if they had a massive headache and then walked into a club with blasting bass and over the top lighting.
The result? Near total shutdown of the brain. It’s not a good feeling.
What this means is that a person in sensory overload will not be able to clearly interpret any words that are being spoken to them while at the same time, forcing the person in overload to choose one of three actions to cope: run, fight, or freeze.
So what is done to cope? “Run, fight, or freeze”
If a person experiencing overload chooses to run, then they are able to remove themselves from the stressful environment and take the road to recovering. In most situations, I would highly recommend this option.
If a person experiencing overload chooses to fight, then they will respond with a push or attack to keep threatening sensory disruptions like people away from them. This is fairly common for those who have stayed in the next state too long.
Finally, if a person experiencing overload chooses to freeze, they will likely be entirely unresponsive. I’ve personally found this to be a more common response when I’m in one of the following situations: 1) I’m in an environment that forces me to stay put, thus eliminating the run option, or 2) I’m so overwhelmed that I do not know how to escape the thing that is causing such overload.
It’s worth noting, that as time goes on I am getting better and better at hiding these three coping mechanisms. My running has become wearing transparent earbuds, my fighting has become explaining to the person causing me sensory problems what is going on, and my freezing has become gently explaining what I am going through to any ears that care enough to listen.
I mention my coping mechanisms specifically only because I know it can seem like improvement will never come, but I assure you it will. Sensory overload might never truly or completely go away, but the methods used to get relief from overload will become refined over time.
Please don’t give up and be sure to ask me whatever questions you may have at wouldaspie@gmail.com. I’ll try to answer every question I get either through an article or directly. And keep in mind that I will never share anything that needs to stay confidential.
Anyways, til’ the next one 🙂