Recovery from Autistic Burnout

I’d like to know what an autistic person can do when they burned out so bad even their special interests become triggers of anxiety

Very difficult to take time out when you're in a job where sick leave is frowned on even if there is a doctor's note. Risk of getting a disciplinary followed by dismissal. Makes life almost impossible.

Interesting topic with many potential facets. Coming to understand my autism late in life, I learned to compensate early on in ways that did help but also were very costly. Always struggling with the sense of not being good enough, I over compensated by putting in intense amounts of effort into my work so that what I accomplished was undeniably excellent. It worked. The works I have achieved over the years have earned me a high degree of respect from my clients and peers and it has given me something tangible to hang my self esteem on. It's also too costly in terms of energy to maintain. I still never feel good enough. After 45 years of over compensation, I can hardly keep up the effort. It's burnout that verges on breakdown.

I was furloughed in March 2020. It took awhile for me to adjust to that. My dog died 3 weeks later. It took me awhile to adjust to that. > A year later, I began to realize I’ve been on auto run - my entire life ! > I’m not going back to that madness ., I’m going to enjoy my life from now on. But first, I will relax & pay attention to doing stuff bc it energizes me 💁🏻‍♀️💚✨

I am in Autistic burnout right now. It's a pretty intense one. It's not my first one. What you say is so important. We have to be able to say no and not just postpone things but basically take them off our plates and gradually and carefully reintroduce the things that help us. Because even the things that help us can knock us back down if we do too much

My husband is about to turn 50 years old. He is this absolute treasure of a human being but he has been in burnout for 4 years at least. This is what lead him to do a number of assessments and begin following your channel. He hasn't been able to get an official diagnosis but we know we is Autistic. He is an engineer and works full-time, right now he is the breadwinner for the family as I am caring for our 5 kids full-time. At this point, we know his lifestyle needs to completely change because his quality of life is so low. He wants to connect with his family and can't due to burnout. We are in the process of determining what is needed for a real reset for him. We very much appreciate your videos as they have given us both such great understanding and insight. Thanks!

Just learned im autistic over the past few weeks. I've owned 3 businesses. Each business I start then sell after 3 years. Never understood the timing, but it was becoming a pattern. My most recent business was the largest endeavor though, and it required 6 years to make it profitable enough to sell. The final year, I was really getting depressed and had zero motivation. Looking back now, my masks were falling away when dealing with people. I was being more honest about what I expected, how I felt, and less patient with dealing with people and partaking in small talk. I was becoming lazy and by extension supremely guilty. The sale went through early this year, about 6 months ago. I'm essentially retired now and have the time to work on my physical and mental health. Lo and behold, I am in the middle of an autistic burnout. It never made sense to me before that I could become so useless after a lifetime of overachieving and workaholism. These videos are incredibly helpful in helping me understand why I've felt so much different from everyone else my whole life.

As a health worker with ASD I've had to come to peace with having to reschedule clients from time to time. I have built into my schedule a week off every 6, and then two weeks every 12 to be able to pace myself. When I relax on that mechanism, burnout is a real thing. But this way I can give myself what I need and be at my best to serve my clients 💖 win win.

I think I’ve been going through cycles of burnout throughout 34 years and just blaming myself for being immature and self centered, like some unhelpful family members have tended to tell me I am.. I just keep going through your videos this week and it’s really helping me see from a new, much healthier perspective. There was always a feeling that I was chasing that said there’s something I really need to learn to explain this difficult pattern of burnout in my life ever since a young kid.

Trying to figure out what gives me energy in of itself is exhausting so yeah this is very hard.

I'm 2 years in to burnout, I quit my last job 2 weeks ago after spending the time saving every cent I could to be able to stop. I have zero safety net and zero abilities right now. My brain couldn't get around how to make a sandwich yesterday so I just went without food until 8pm when why body screamed so loud I couldn't ignore it anymore. Waiting for some family stress to quieten so I hopefully will stop the exhausted buzzing in my nervous system will quieten and I can get through this thing. I just have to eat enough good food (when I can remember - ADHD and a zillion other things), sleep and requiring nothing of myself until I have enough energy to start doing the restorative things. This burnout thing is a Sisyphean feat. And we're supposed to live in an NT world as adults with zero support. Edit: If you are experiencing burnout and would like to share, please do so below, just reading all your stories makes me feel way less alone and like my tribe is out there, fighting with me. Thanks guys.

gets more complicated with a family and home where you still have to attend to those things even if you are "off"

I've found that I need to figure out what I wanted to invest my energy in to, and sometimes I'm blind to my own exhaustion. I'll go without eating or drinking, because I'm so focused on work. Take time for yourself, and learn how to use your energy more wisely.

I'm sitting here reflecting on what burn out means to me. One and a half years since my breakdown, and then more recently an adult diagnos. The biggest problem for me, aside from the physical health problems (which seem to be getting better) and economic difficulties (which are getting worse by the day), is that I am just now beginning to realise that it's all gone. My dream job is over, the financial security is gone, that little house in the countryside will never be. That's my reality and it makes me so very sad. 50 years I've been fooling myself that I'll amount to something and it's only just now I'm realising I've run out of time.

When I was working, I could only work 4 days a week. I didn't know WHY, I just knew that was optimal for ME. People tried to fight back, bosses wanted more. I told them, "do you want a burned out employee? Or do you want 4 days of an excellent employee?" I didn't mean to me rude or mean, I just knew I had a limit. Now, I understand I'm likely an aspie

I was incredibly burnt out and then did a full month internship which took 3000 times the spoons I had. I don’t know how I managed it but it put me so deep into burnout. It’s now been several months since with a week or two off here and there and I feel sure I will never recover. I am beyond miserable and there’s no end in sight.

Sometimes I need a month or more totally alone...ittakes almost a week just to be able to feel able to remember what restores my energy... Then once I feel I'm not going to be interrupted by someone else's needs I start to calm down and feel creative... If someone asks anything of me. It can take me right back to the burned out state.... I need 100 % alone time , maybe a whole month.... I like to paint , sew. ,write poems , take walks collect natural things ...make bread...etc. But I go fore ever not doing theses things because other responsibilities take up my energy and leave me with no mental or physical resources to do any of those things.....I get exhausted just trying to put it into words...etc. Take the time you need Paul.... I say ," Just Be "....( it does take understanding & supportive friends & or family...or its just a down ward spiral...and you never get well and can lead one down a very bad road....💕 Take care

Omg, thank you. I pushed myself beyond burn out until my PTSD kicked in with a side of debilitating depression. It's been several weeks and I'm still not "recovered". You've given me permission to take the time I need to truly recover. I've been forced to "semi"work and it makes recovery time longer.

I am just figuring out that I am on the autistic spectrum and I am in burnout for a while, but couldn't find the right words. Finding your video is the first time in a while that I feel like something applies to my struggles and I just cried bc maybe I am not "broken", maybe I just work different. Thank you so much for your honesty!

I recover by reading in my bible as much as a can because it makes my so much joyful... in Psalm 119 I realized how I could pray to God... Its so meaningful to know my real identity in Christ... I love to take time with my creator to realize my purpose in this specific time